LABOUR LITERATURE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19986, 29 June 1920, Page 8

LABOUR LITERATURE.

ABSENCE FROM PUBLIC

LIBRARY

Messrs' E. J. Howard, M.F., D, G. Sullivan, M.P., and H. T. Armstrong, representing the Labour Party, waited on tho Board of Governors of Canterbnry College yesterday and asked that Labour literature should be placed on tho tables of the Public Library.. Mr .Howard said that the Labour Party wished to place newspapers published in the United Kingdom and tho colonies on the tables, at the party’s expense. A large part of tho population of Christchurch, which used the library, represented Labour. Labour journals were on the tables of tho Parliamentary Library. Tho absence of Labour litem euro from the Christchurch Public Library had boon the subject of comment. Mr Sullivan said that it was hard to understand the hoard’s attitude in the past in excluding Labour publications. In Christchurch and the suburbs there were at least 20,000 people who wore aiterested in Labour, and it was hard to discover the reason for the board’s antagonism to the proposal. Was it right to admit one side of social and industrial questions and to exclude the other side? The board was tho trustee of a large section of tho public who wished to read the class of literature referred to. in Australia and in other places literature of that character was on the tables of almost all public libraries. Mr Armstrong said that many complaints were made by members of the Labour Party, who failed to, discover Labour literature on the tables of the library. The party had applied to the Museum and Library Committee, and received from it a very curt reply. ft was decided, on the motion of Mr J. .1. Dougall, seconded by Mr T. Hughes, to refer the request to the Museum and Library Committee, and a member suggested blurt tho committee should obtain specimens of the journals named by the deputation.