trout

Conservation

Mostly the books need protection
from the damp, from the heat, from any

sudden change. At the moment on display
are rare autographs including one of G. B. Shaw

the scallywag. Many patrons of the library
are included in the collection: Thomas Wilson

Leys, who made Ponsonby a seat of learning
and kick-started the Auckland Star, George Grey

of course, as well as little snippets like
Tennyson saying how he fell down in the dark,

'I almost broke my kneepan', one from Queen
Elizabeth II thanking the Mayor of Auckland,

John Allum, for the 'teaspoons tipped with
paua shell' which are a symbol of her subjects'

'loyalty and affection'. There's also a treaty
signed by Cromwell's son Richard, the Lord Protector.