MASTERTON INSTITUTE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 6, Issue 1767, 21 August 1884, Page 2

MASTERTON INSTITUTE.

The adjourned public meeting con- - vened to consider the advisability of - converting the upper room of the • Institute into a reading-room, and also to make arrangements to start a i museum in the same room was held 3 last night, In consequence of the ; Chairman, Mr Lowes, having to attend i a school committee meeting the chair 3 was not taken until nearly nine i o'clock. ; Mr Lowes on taking the chair 1 referred to a local in that evening's • paper which stated the object of this . meeting to be the removal of the reading-room, the addition of a museum i and to build a lecture hall—where it - would end it was impossible to say. i The original intention was that the 3 reading publio be consulted as to i whether it would be an improvement I to have the upper room converted into a reading room. I Mr Papworth said the advertisement ; calling the meeting stated the object to i be the conversion of the upper room s into a reading room and museum, The Chairman said the promoters of ) the idea for a museum had said a few

cases to contain, specimens put round a the room' would not cost much. Mr t! Brown,' the principal mover in this matter, had expressed himself against v a combined reading room and museum, t Mr Rapp asked if funds were avail- o able tor the purposes. t The Chairman said no funds were in r hand for such a purpose, and the special a funds for purchase of new books had o been encroached upon to a considerable r extent to meet current expenditure, t and it would be found when the books s were sent for that they would have about 75 per cent less than they i originally arranged for. He had not n heard anyone put forward an estimate i of the cost of the removal of the reading room, He himself thought it would be very expensive. 1 Mr R. Brown said he did not think any of the Committee knew the finan- 1 cial state of the Institute beyond the j amount of cash in hand, in consequence j of the changes in the secretaryship, He i thought they would have sufficient to ' purchase books to the amount origin- ! ally intended. , The museum question ,< would ■ not affect the funds of the ; Institute, All that was wanted was < to know whether the movement was popular with readers to have this room converted into a reading-room, Mr Renall did uot see how. the two questions could be separated. What, the question was at the last; meeting would have to . be considered now, and the chairman, if lie had allowed; the questions to get mixed, would have to stand by it. Perhaps Mr Hogg remembered what the motion was he had . moved, and which had been left undecided in consequence of; the.adjournment. Mr Hogg said the Chairman had not intimated at the last meeting that there was anything improper in the motions or questions at the last meeting, He considered the construction of a lecture room necessary to render the institute complete. The Chairman said he had referred only to the local in that night's paper, which asked the people to come there for objects beyond what the meeting was called to discuss. Mr Gapper asked if any complaints had been made of insufficient accomodation in the present reading room. (Chairman: Not to my knowledge). It was true the papers were overlapping each other a little, but the expense attending its removal to the upper room would be increased £lO to £ls a year. The custodian's stipend would have to be increased to keep the room clean, and the outside public were already complaining that the expenditure as a whole was too considerable for the result, and he thought-it was time the committee considered its financial position with a view, to reducing its expenditure. He did not mean to advocate a ten per cent reduction, Government fashion. (Laughter). But as a reader he did not see the necessity of the removal of the reading room. It was convenient for ladies on the ground floor, and they ' would not visit it if they had to go upstairs to it, He pointed to Palmerston North in proof of the disfavor in which upper reading rooms were viewed, and unless it was the wish of the ratepayers themselves, on account of limited accommodation, - considering the present state of the funds it should not be done, The - whole matter should have emanated from the committee itself (hear! hear !) and their recommendations submitted to this meeting. The Chairman said a sub-committee had fully gone into the question and i submitted a report to the general comi mittee, and they relegated it to the i public, considering it to be of too great importance to be undertaken by the committee on its own responsibility. Mr Renall quite agreed with the Chairman. The committee wereservants of the public. In discussing details - they were leaving principles out of sight. It was for this meeting to , decide upon the matter, and for the . Committee to carry out the details. The proper body to apply to for funds i was the Town Lands Trust. This . was the Institution they should 1 support, the land was given them for i that purpose, The Institute and i school were the only two objects i mentioned in the Act, but they had . gone considerably out of their way to spend the Trust funds in other direc- ; tions. If the public want the Institute supported by the funds of the ■ Trust they could soon put that right, i It was their own property, and if the . present Trustees would not administer . the estate they could very speedily be . substituted by better men who would, . He was not one who made use ■ of the public reading room. He was i married, (laughter) but he considered the Institute should be ■ popularised. Prom what Mr Brown had told them, Dr Hector was willing . to give a great deal if the museum was ■ only started. Museums should be estabi iished in every town. The minds of the i rising youths would' be improved and a great want supplied, They ; had a fine endowment, in the Trust lands, and they would have £2OO in hand now for such an object as the present it it had not been for the folly of some of the Trustees, and backed up .by the editor of the Wairarafa ■ Daily, in letting go the forty aore ' section they had held, and then bringi ing it back again at a cost of £2OO. Instead of Mr J. Y. Smith keeping the land when he had it, he objected to the title, He was only a trnstee. How would they like it, if certain lands had been left in trust to be administered for their benefit, if the trustee lot the property go because he doubted the validity of the title, instead of administering the trust as relegated to him. (Mr Payton: I recollect Mr Valentine Smith said that his course was an honest one and yours a dishonest one.) This was a deliberate falsehood. He would meet Mr Payton anywhere lie liked and stake £SO, and let Mr Payton stake the same, to back his against Smith's opinions, and give the proceeds to the Institute, The chairman called the speaker to order, and said the object of the meeting was to discuss the question of a reading room, There was no one more anxious than himself to make the Institute a success, He considered that would be done by providing new books, the present ones being well read

and well worn.. Subscribers would co then increase, . I ti< Mr Papworth moved—" That all the | la: words in Mr Hogg's proposition after in the words 'reading room 1 be struck th out, the resolution then to read ' that wi this upper room be converted into a ra reading; room," 1 Ho moved this as an ta amendment to get over the difficulty lo of discussing the two questions of st reading room and musenm together, if that each might be properly under- ,ac stood. di Mr Ronall in seconding the 'amend- ui ment, said it would competent for al anyone to move afterwards re the, B museum. q The amendment was piit and carried. E The motion of Mr Hogg as amended ai was also carried. Mr Hogg moved—That a, museum be established in this room in con- p junction with the reading' room. The a great bugbear in the way of starting a 0 museum had been the expense. This j was an easy matter to get over. Mr „ Brown and Bome of the committee, in- j .eluding himself, had gone carefully into the matter, and bad arrived at the conclusion that by a series of entertain- a ments and industrial exhibitions, ! funds could be raised to cover all j expenses. The cost of removing the reading room fixtures would be but [ trifling, all appliances were to hand. When that was done the room could ' be embellished with maps, pictures and c portraits of the founders of the settle- 'J ment, &c., to carry down to posterity the history of the district. The pres- J .ent library room was in the darkest and most dismal part of tho building, J and only open at certain intervals day and night. It would be considerably ( improved if transferred to the present 1 reading room. He did not believe in 1 waiting until sufficient funds were in 1 hand' before starting the museum. , They were standing still for lack of 1 enterprise and allowingthemselves to be ' trampled under foot by permitting that ! room to be used as a dancing room 1 instead of using it for its . legitimate 1 purpose. They had now got a good ' Committee, and if the people only backed them up in their ondeavors, the Institute would soon be placed on a proper footing and become popular. The Town Lands Trustees would only be carrying eut the wishes of the founders of the Trust even if they expended the whole of its funds in promoting adult education by museums, libraries, and lectures, as well as State Schools. Large sums of money of that Trust were thrown away on a public Park, which was nothing but rank grass and weeds, neither use to man nor beast. The Town Lands Trust had now in hand a large sum of money, and if- asked to build a lecture hall would no doubt respond. (The speaker was notified by the chairman that hewas wandering away from the • question, which was whether a museum should be established or not), Mr Hogg said one hinged upon the other—reading-room, museum, and lecture hall—and if the people chose to have the Trust funds expended in that direction they could. If the present Trustees set their faces against the wishes of the people the composition of the Trust could soon be altered. Mr Woodroofe seconded the resolution, and earnestly hoped it would be carried. He considered the using of the trust funds for the advancement of literary pursuits to lie the legitimate purpose of that trust. If a museum were started they would soon have more specimens than they would have shelves for, Mr Papworth spoke in favor of a museum. Mr Rapp hoped that when applying for money to bo expended on internal improvements they would not forget the outside of the building, which was at present in a disgraceful state for want of paint, Mr R, Brown said if the motion was passed establishing a museum there would be no doubt as to funds being raised for carrying it out, Dr Hector had promised to send any quantity of specimens suitable to an agricultural district to start a museum, and as regarded expense he considered that £2B would cover the first cost for cases, k, This could be raised without difficulty in such a district as they boasted of, where they had plenty of talent available for entertainments in aid of charitable objects or for schemes of public utility, and appreciative audiences ready to patronise them. The chairman said he had not favored the removal of the reading room upstairs, but since it had been carried he would go in heart and soul to make it a success, and the museum also. The motion was put and carried and a committee appointed to give effect thereto, consisting of Messrs Papworth, Hogg, E, Brown, Woodroofe, and Gardner, A vote of thanks to the chair concluded the meeting.