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the Speaker in the chair, as he delivered apparently extempore rulings which were judged to conform with those from previous parliaments.

         I was left with the impression that years of study would be required to obtain a reasonable grasp of this complex and cumbersome methodology.   What relevance did this ritual have in modern New South Wales, I wondered.   What kind of mind could enjoy it?

        I also accepted an invitation to inspect the library.   The quietly-spoken librarian, Russell Cope, was another servant of the Parliament of long standing.   He had worked his way up through the ranks, while at the same time completing a PhD in German.

        He seemed pleased to see me--apparently he had not received a big response from the other new members.   In fact, the library was not heavily patronized by my colleagues.   Those that did spend some time there seemed to more talking than reading.

      There was a good selection of popular magazines and paperbacks, newspapers from all the electorates, and video and audio tapes of news programs.   The main users were journalists and ministerial staff.   A research service was available to provide members with assistance for their speeches (but not to write them), and to give general information to the public.

        The principle source of the information which was requested for speeches was the carefully indexed file

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