1897] SOMJE NEW BOOKS 131 



plates include about 000 almost tolerable figures. But the matter 

 contained in the pages is somewhat disappointing. It consists of 

 brief descriptions, and of an introduction, too short and vague to be 

 of much use, dealing with more general points. D. S. 



The Museums Association 



Museums Association : Report of Proceedings with the Papers read at the seventh 



Annual General Meeting held in Glasgow, July 21 to 2i>, 1890. Svo, pp. 107. 

 London: Dulau & Co., 1896. Price 5s. 



If anything were needed to show the growth of interest in the ques- 

 tions connected with the administration and development of museums 

 it may be found in the institution and continued prosperity of the 

 " Museums Association," and the issue of the compact volumes of 

 papers read at their annual meetings. Last year's meeting took place 

 at Glasgow, and for the first time since its foundation seven years ago 

 the association had an " Art-man " as its president in the person of 

 Mr James Paton, curator of the Kelvingrove Museum and Corporation 

 Art Galleries in that city. In his presidential address Mr Paton 

 gives an extremely interesting account of the institutions under his 

 direction, but considering that the majority of his audience must have 

 been men of science, I think that he might safely have omitted telling 

 them that the aim of the picture gallery is " higher and holier," pre- 

 sumably from the context, than the scientific museum. Few scientific 

 men are wholly blind to Art, many are in the highest degree sus- 

 ceptible to its influence, but all the same — comparisons are invidious ! 



Mr F. A. Bather's paper entitled " How may museums best retard 

 the advance of science," being of a satirical vein throughout, is very 

 entertaining reading ; and, on the whole, I think we may give ready 

 assent to most of the ideas which he has chosen this method of 

 conveying. 



Other papers in the volume are: — Mr H. Coates on the Arrange- 

 ment of the Perthshire Natural History Museum ; Mr E. M. Holmes 

 on Type Specimens in Botanical Museums ; Descriptive Geological 

 Labels, by Mr H. Bolton ; Mr F. A. Bather on Electrotypes in 

 Natural History Museums ; Mr G. W. Orel on Chemistry in 

 Museums ; Suggestions for a Proposed Natural History Museum 

 in Manchester, by the late Prof. Huxley; Clara Nordlinger on 

 a Visit to the Directress of the Schleswig-Holstein Museum ; 

 Illustrated Lectures in Art Galleries and Museums, by T. Eennie ; 

 and the Lighting of Museums, by Thomas White. 



The perusal of these papers brings under our notice two important 

 questions connected with museum economy. The first of these 

 relates to Type Specimens. It is extremely desirable that all 

 museums should publish catalogues of the types contained in their 

 collections, and by many museums this has already been clone. But 

 the idea of bringing together all the type specimens in the kingdom, 

 perhaps in the world, as some people possibly desire, is not only utterly 

 impracticable, but from some points of view not even desirable. A 

 little travel is not at all a bad thing for a zoological worker, and no 

 doubt when he visits other towns and other countries for the purpose 

 of consulting type specimens he will have the opportunity of enlarg- 



