THE RYLANDS LIBRARY
By SIR ALFRED HOPKINSON' FARLY in October the twenty-fifth anniversary of 4 the opening of the John Rylands Library was celebrated in Manchester, but theoccasion was one of far more than local interest. How widespread and important the work of the Library has become is well shown in an interesting volume which has just been published giving an account of its contents and its operations during a quarter of a century. It is a wonderful record of an idea nobly conceived, and carried out with a wise foresight and unstinted liberality. The Founder, Mrs. Rylands, in the provision she made certainly showed how she too rejected " the lore, of nicely calculated less or more." She desired that the building and its contents should be the best possible, and never considered the cost in carrying out her object. When the freedom of the City of Man- chester was conferred on her at the time when the Library was opened it was truly said :-
" This has not been a matter in which a rich person said, There is so much money to spend—spend it,' and who then had left it. Mrs. Rylands has herself from the very beginning taken the keenest interest in and has devoted almost all her time, almost, all her thought to, this great work. She has not only done this as regards the building and its arrangements, but also in regard to the selection of treasures that were to be found within the walls of the library."
The first great addition to those treasures was the pur- chase from the late Lord Spencer of the Althorp collection. But for the prompt and decisive action of Mrs. Rylands the whole of that collection would have left the country., It is pleasant to remember how Lord Spencer some years afterwards visited the Library . and, in spite of natural personal regrets at the departure of the books from Althorp, expressed his deep satisfaction that the collection had been kept together, beautifully housed and made available for the use of scholars from all over the world. Subsequent gifts of rare books, judiciously selected, fol- lowed year by year, and it is estimated that between the opening of the Library and her death in 1908.Mrs.Rylands must have spent about £200,000 upon additions to her original gift. Then by her will she " made further pro- vision for the upkeep and development of the Library which has enabled the Trustees and Governors to ad- minister it in a manner worthy of the ideals of the Founder." That administration has been carried on by Governors under a constitution carefully thought out by the Founder herself. The Council contains representatives of the City, and the University, and from various. religious deno- minations who have worked together with perfect harmony, and the scholars and men of business thus associated have regularly adopted a liberal policy in extending the usefulness of the Library as far as possible. Everyone, however, connected with the Institution would agree that the main credit for its development and yearly increasing usefulness is due to the untiring labour, the business capacity, the knowledge, and above all the kindliness and far-sighted vision of the Librarian, Dr. Guppy. From him and from his staff everyone who wants to learn from books or pursue any investigation has a hearty welcome and receives the fullest information. The treasures are not only carefully collected and pre- served, but well catalogued -and arranged and made accessible to all users, from the distinguished scholars who come from a distance to consult the rarest works to the young student who is beginning his first original researches.
The building, designed by • Mr. - Basil Champneys, is- worthy of its contents. It took nine years- to -erect, and it has truly been said—as regards the interior-at least— that " no - finer has been 'erected in this or in any other country during the present generation." He had a free hand as regards expense, but the choice of site was un- fortunate. It was too small and shut in, except on a small frontage to Deansgate, by other buildings, some of them of the meanest description. It was only with great difficulty that some land at the back was recently acquired for extensions that were absolutely necessary. It was, however, encouraging to hear the Lord Mayor state his opinion that the Corporation might do something to make the surroundings of the Library more suitable.
One example of its activities calls for special notice. Readers of the Spectator may remember how attention has been 'called from time to time in its columns to the steps that were being taken to reconstitute the Library of the University of Louvain which was burned by the Germans in August, 1914. Among the speakers at the recent celebrations was Professor Henri de Vocht, of the University of Louvain. He had come to bring the con- gratulations of his University and to express its gratitude for the valuable -gift of books that had been sent them from Manchester. The ashes of the library of Louvain had hardly ceased 'to smoulder before the Council of the Rylands Library determined to take steps for helping to provide a new one, and from that time the work of collection, selection, arrangement and cataloguing was irried on steadily by Dr. Guppy and his staff until about 50,000 volumes have now been delivered at-Louvain.
" The rest of the world " (said Professor de Vocht) " sent us books without order or discrimination. From the Rylands Library have been assigned the choicest, the most useful and the most valuable books on every subject and in every science, not one incomplete, not one. double. The war cry Remember Louvain' has changed, now it is Louvain remembers.' "
To. quote again from the commemorative record it is well said that :— " As we look back over these twenty.five years we cannot help feeling that this anniversary is an occasion which unites the past, the present, and the future in happy association. It awakens feelings of intense. gratitude for a great bestowal followed by a great bequest, which makes the horizon of the future bright with hope since in accordance with the wish and intention of the Founder these benefactions are being devoted to the encouragement of scholarship and original investigation. It is a great object lesson as to the worthy uses of wealth."
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