BUILDINGS . 67 



is a wing of say thirty feet square. This wing is lighted by 

 windows in the ordinary way and contains on the ground floor 

 a hall with stairs leading to the basement and the second story ; 

 a closet for the janitor and a lecture room. On the second 

 floor are the laboratory, a room for necessary books of refer- 

 ence, and a small study for the professor or curator in charge. 

 In the basement can be placed the means of heating ; room 

 for the storage of specimens, macerating rooms, etc. If pos- 

 sible, both basement and laboratory should be supplied with 

 water. 



For museums of the larger class, this plan will of course 

 prove inadequate and some other must be adopted. The 

 architect and others having the erection of a museum in 

 charge should visit the larger museums and consult with those 

 having them in charge. 



A museum building should always, if possible, be isolated 

 and built in the most thoroughly fire-proof manner. The walls 

 should be of brick or stone, the girders, joists, etc., of iron, 

 and the floors of brick, iron, slate or some other incombusti- 

 ble material. Museums are far too valuable to be entrusted to 

 wooden buildings and even those thought to be fire-proof have 

 not always proved so. The fires at Portland and Chicago 

 each destroyed valuable collections stored in buildings which 

 were supposed to be secure against the devouring element. 



One feature which should be adopted in every museum 

 building is adequate provision for laboratory work. In col- 

 lege museums this is best accomplished by having a large 

 room where all can be at once under the supervision of the 

 instructor. In buildings for society purposes it is better to 



