§ Order of the Day for the Second Reading, read.
§ VISCOUNT CROSS, in moving the Second Reading, said: My Lords, the real object the promoter of this Bill has is to extend to Ireland the advantages which England has enjoyed for some time under the Public Libraries Act. I am bound to confess, however, that I think many of the provisions of the Bill are very objectionable, and I also think the drafting requires amending very much. As, however, the Bill has passed the House of Commons, and the Government has undertaken to refer the Bill to the draftsman with a view to certain necessary alterations being made, I will only now ask your Lordships to affirm the principle of the measure, that Public Libraries are as necessary in Ireland as in England, and leave Amendments to be made in Committee to bring the Bill as nearly as possible into conformity with the English Act.
§ Moved, "That the Bill be now read 2a."—(The Viscount Cross.)
LORD ACTONMy Lords, I need only say that it will, no doubt, be easy to propose Amendments in the Bill, which will be satisfactory to the noble Viscount.
LORD ASHBOURNEsaid, he was very glad to hear that it was proposed to establish Public Libraries in Ireland. It was as desirable that they should be established, and that books should be available to be read by the public in Ireland as in England, but in this case the matter was a somewhat difficult and complex one. It was obvious to anybody who had the slightest knowledge of the country that any Public L braries Act for Ireland must be different in many substantial respects from the English Act, and that the Bill would want considerable amendment. The idea of 1530 appointing brand-new staffs of librarians and other paid officers opened up a vista leading to a variety of complications which it was unnecessary on that occasion to dilate upon.
§ Motion agreed to; Bill read 2a accordingly, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House on Tuesday the 22nd instant.