87

E.—7a

and disinterested study of some subject, and thus develop throughout the land a body of clear-thinking students interested in literary and historical or economic and social subjects, must have far-reaching effects for good on the social, intellectual, and even political life of the community. That we are not alone in such an opinion is evident from the following recommendation of the Oxford and Cambridge Commission : " That extra-mural instruction be definitely accepted as an established and essential part of the normal work of a University LIBRARIES. The condition of the college libraries has given us much concern. A good library is essential to effective work whether in Arts, Law, or Science Departments, but on the Arts and Law side it plays the part of the science laboratory as well. At each centre we found the same complaint, that the supply of books is quite inadequate. At Canterbury Professor Wall, speaking of the provision for the Department of English, said : "We have no library ; and the students cannot do a proper thesis." At Dunedin, we were told " A library plays a vital part in the existence of a school. . . . We must have suitable book-stacks and readingrooms, and an assured income for the maintenance of a library staff and for the provision of current journals and new books " (Sir Lindo Ferguson). The report of the Inspector-General of Schools on the University colleges, published in 1912, gives for the total number of volumes in the college libraries at that date the following figures: Auckland, 5,535 ; Victoria, 8,770; Canterbury, 4,378 ; Otago, 5,196 : total, 23,879. There has been a considerable growth since then. No official figures have been published, but from evidence given during our inquiry it would seem that the present total would probably fall between 40,000 and 45,000. At Bangor, the smallest of the three original colleges of the Welsh University, which in number of students is little more than half the size of any of the New Zealand University colleges, the library contains upwards of 60,000 volumes, about half as many again as are found in their four combined libraries. This inferiority is further greatly enhanced by the fact that the 45,000 volumes, being divided amongst four institutions which follow much the same courses of study, must be to a large extent in duplicate, triplicate, or even quadruplicate. It is probably an over-estimate that the number of different volumes in all four libraries may be about 30,000. When in addition it is remembered that there are practically no public reference libraries in New Zealand comparable with the British Museum, the great University collections at Oxford and Cambridge, the Rylands Library at Manchester, and several others which are accessible to students, it will be evident at what a serious disadvantage the New Zealand student who wishes to do good Honours work is placed in comparison with his British compeer. We are glad to note that in the Turnbull Library the Dominion possesses a collection admirably suited for research, which so far as it goes is a model of what a University library should be, particularly in English Literature and in certain branches of History, notably that of New Zealand and the South Seas. We are of opinion that greatly increased provision for libraries is imperatively needed, and that this should take the form of, — (1.) A substantial capital grant for making up to some extent the deficiencies which have been incurred in the past; (2.) A substantial increase in the annual grant to each college for the purchase of new books, so as to keep the collections up to date. The present annual grants for this purpose, should, in our opinion, be at least doubled. We notice that an increased grant, as here suggested, was recommended by a previous inquiry and was incorporated in an Act of Parliament of 1914, which contains this provision: "To the University of New Zealand, one-third" (approximately £4,200) " of such sum in trust, to be distributed to the four colleges or affiliated institutions as occasion may arise and as the Senate shall decide, for the support of libraries, for the establishment of new chairs, schools, or faculties, and in other ways

Present facilities wholly inadequate.

Turnbull Library.

* Royal Commission on Oxford and Cambridge Universities, 1922, sec. 148, p. 123,