840 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, i!»03. 



inaintaiiis also a biological laboratory on the seashore, with 12 employ- 

 ees, as well as a larger museum for children in Bedford Park, the 

 latter with 8 employees, one of whom is a naturalist." The art build- 

 ing on Montague street, worth about $125,000, stands financially and 

 otherwise in close relation to the institute. The library includes 

 27,000 volumes. From June 1, 1898, to May 31, 1899, 3,80H meetings 

 were held, including lectures, demonstrations, and class reunions, 

 which were attended by over 360,000 persons. The Institute has an 

 invested fund of over $2.50,000, and an annual income of $175,000. 

 The city gives $50,000, by authority of the government of the State 



Fig. (i.— Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences. A corner in the room devoted to Botany. 



of New York, primarily for the running of the museum, and $75,000 

 are received from private donations. 



« The museum for children is designed for young people from 6 to 20 years of age, 

 and includes all human endeavors and interests, so far as they are comprehensive for 

 youth or can serve for their education. The objects cho.«en all bear a detinite rela- 

 tion to home life and school life. In 6 rooms on the basement floor are collections 

 of models, animals, plants, anatomical preparations and meteorological instruments, 

 as well as a lecture loom wliich will accommodate 40. On the first floor are the 

 library and administration rooms. The rooms are prettily decorated, and the cases 

 are low enough to enaV)le children to see everything .\ell. Many things are here 

 brought together which are of interest also to grown persons. I may mention a 

 so-called type collection, such as is used in elementary schools in France. It con- 



