8 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
The Bodleian Library, at Oxford, ranks next in importance to the 
Pritish Museum, among English libraries, but as it is a university 
rather than a public library, it hardly comes within the scope of this 
paper. It is chiefly famous for the value of its unique collections of 
manuscripts, and in this department it perhaps ranks even above the 
British Museum. 
The original City Library of London, of which the present Guild- 
hall Library is the legitimate successor, was founded by the executors 
of the renowned Richard (or Dick) Whityngton, Lord Mayor of London, 
and of William Bury, early in the fifteenth century. The old City 
Library fell upon days of indifference and nothing was heard of it 
for several centuries, until in 1824 it was restored by a resolution in 
the Court of Common Council. In June, 1828, the library was opened 
with 1700 volumes. In 1840 these had grown to nearly 10,000; and 
in 1893 to 68,369 books, besides 38,075 pamphlets. Of late years 
there has been a movement on foot for the unification of the various 
free libraries in London, the Guildhall Library to become a central 
reference library, with a limited number of branch reference libraries 
systematically distributed throughout the city with due regard to public 
needs, thus leaving free many of the smaller libraries to development 
as lending libraries. 
Of the free libraries in London, Battersea was established in 1887, 
and now contains 40,000 volumes. Chelsea opened the same year, 
and has now about 30,000 volumes. Clerkenwell was established in 
1588; Hampstead in 1893; and Lambeth in 1896. Other representa- 
tive London free libraries are those of Newington, Poplar, Hanover 
Square, Shoreditch, Wandsworth and St. Martin’s. 
The most important of the English free libraries outside of London 
are those of Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds, and Hull. The 
most important free library in Scotland is that of Edinburgh. The 
Mitchell Library at Glasgow is an endowed, not a free public library. 
Ii was founded by the late Stephen Mitchell, and opened in 1877 with 
over 14,000 volumes, which have since grown to something over 
123,000. The leading Irish free libraries are those at Belfast and 
Dublin. 
The Manchester free library system consists of a central reference 
library with eleven branches and four reading rooms. There are 
some 270,000 volumes on the shelves, and the annual circulation 
averages 2,000,000 volumes. 
To Liverpool belongs the honour of having established the earliest 
branch library; of first introducing into a free library books for the 
blind, (1857); and book-music (1859). 
