HC Deb 21 March 1837 vol 37 cc690-2
Mr. Hume

then moved for the production of "copies of all the Parliamentary surveys of church lands preserved in the library of manuscripts at Lambeth, and which were made under an ordinance of Parliament in 1646."

The Attorney-General

said, he should be very well pleased if the surveys in question could be produced. They were made in the time of the Commonwealth, and embraced, no doubt, a vast quantity of most important and interesting information with respect to ecclesiastical property in the country; but, consisting as they did of no less than forty folio volumes, he did not see how they could be transcribed and printed without incurring an amount of expense which would really be most enormous. How were they to order an officer to go into the Archbishop's library and transcribe them? And if they could, who was to pay for the transcription? If they were to be printed, it should be under the charge of the Record Commission, and those only should have copies who were willing to purchase them.

Mr. Hume

contended, the surveys he had moved was were a Parliamentary document, and it for the archbishop to satisfy the House w he got possession of it. That House as not bound to stand up as the protector of stolen goods, Here was a public document, and it ought to remain among their other records in their own library.

Sir M. Rolfe

said, the hon. Member now shifted his ground; his motion was "for copies of all the surveys;" he now wanted the original only.

Mr. Hume

would then leave out the words "copies of," and move that the original surveys themselves should be brought into the library.

The Attorney-General

could not believe the hon. Member serious. His motion was quite unexampled. There was no precedent for it whatever. If it were produced at all, why should the library of the House of Commons, any more than that of the House of Lords, be fixed on as its place of custody? He had great respect for the privileges of the House of Commons, but he greatly doubted whether they had the power of ordering these surveys of ecclesiastical property to be produced.

The Speaker

Does the hon. Member mean to divide?

Mr. Hume

said, undoubtedly there was some difficulty in the way of proceeding. He thought, however, the best plan would be to appoint a Committee to ascertain how the Archbishop obtained possession, and what right he had to the custody of these Parliamentary documents. The fact was, this was not his motion; it belonged to the hon. Member for Finsbury and, under all the circumstances, perhaps, it would be better to postpone its further consideration till the second Tuesday after the recess.

Motion withdrawn