§ MR. A. BILLSON (Devon, Barnstaple)I beg to ask the First Commissioner of Works, whether the guide to Kew Gardens has been out of print for eight years, and whether a new edition was almost ready three year ago; whether another summer is to be allowed to pass without its publication; and how soon a guide to Museum 2 is to be issued.
THE FIRST COMMISSIONER OF WORKS (Mr. HERBERT GLADSTONE LEEDS, W.)The general guide-book to Kew Gardens has been for some year out of print. Owing to the, extensive development of the collections, and their re-organization, a mere revision of the old guide would be worthless and misleading. Each department is being worked up and catalogued in detail, and rapid progress is being made in this work, which must be accomplished before the new edition of the popular guide can be issued. Every effort is being made to hasten the publication but I must remind my hon. Friend that the resources of the Kew establishment 466 are being strained to the uttermost by the growing demands of the Government Departments, India, and the Colonies. In the meantime an enlarged key-plan appears to satisfy the requirements of the bulk of visitors. The guide to Museum 2 is ready, and will be published as soon as the index is finished.