0.2 Finding what you are looking for in the british parliamentary

Introduction

Fondren's resources for the british parliamentary papers

Let’s begin by taking a look at the resources available at Fondren Library, our example library (other research libraries have similar resources). First, we will perform a very basic search of the catalog for anything relating to the Parliamentary Papers. For a brief tutorial on how to use this resource, please visit our WebCat module . Visit the WebCat online catalog, enter the words parliamentary papers into the text box, select the keyword option and then select Search Everything. Your query should look like this.

Among the items in the collection at Fondren we find everything we need for our introduction to the Parliamentary Papers, including:

Fondren also offers an online Guide to the British Parliamentary Papers , including a comprehensive list of the resources available on line and in the stacks. Let's begin with the bound guides.

Guides to the parliamentary papers

Take notice of the headings here. You will see many familiar terms from the The British Parliament and its Papers section of this course. These terms were introduced there for the same reason that they appear as headings here. They represent documents of a specific type, each with its own purpose in the business of Parliament. Their significance as headings is determined by the role they play in the daily operation of the Parliament in relation to other documents, represented by other headings. The function of a document in the legislative process, the location of that document in the Papers, and the type of information contained in its text are all closely related in ways you will become more and more familiar with as your research brings you in contact with a wider variety of them.