CONTROL OF MUSEUM

Press, Volume LXXX, Issue 24270, 30 May 1944, Page 4

CONTROL OF MUSEUM

SEPARATE COMMITTEE SUGGESTED INCREASE IN LOCAL BODY GRANTS TO BE SOUGHT A proposal to set up a separate museum committee, with representa-' tion from outside the Canterbury University College Council, was referred back to the library and museum committee by the council yesterday. The council agreed to approach local bodies between Ashburton and Amuri for additional grants. The recommendation of the committee in its report was that a separate museum committee be established with, say, five members of the present governing body and three members representing the contributing bodies, the chairman to be a member of the college council, with possibly one or two co-opted members of high scientific attainment who were specially interested; the committee to report as usual to the college council. The chairman of the committee (Mr A. A. G. Reed), however, said he did not' think the recommendation expressed quite what the committee had in mind; and he suggested, first, that, instead of the reference to the co-opted members, provision should be made for the appointment of two members of the Canterbury branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand, two members of the Association of Friends of the Museum, and one member of the Pilgrims’ Association, and, second, that the separate committee should be set up forthwith. Mr C. T. Aschman, another member of the committee, objected to this course, and the recommendation was referred back to the committee. In a brief discussion, it was suggested that the widening of representation wts to some extent affected bv the contributions received from local bodies. The committee’s recommendation on the question of grants from local bodies, which was adopted, was as fol-lows:—-"That steps be taken to approach the Christchurch City Council and other local bodies between Ashburton and Amuri, with a view to obtaining ' additional grants for the museum of not less than £2OOO per annum, the apportionment of this sum to be ascertained before approaching the local bodies concerned, this to be followed by a request for an annual statutory levy on local bodies.”