«54 



THE MUSEUM. 



and common sense of one who fails to 

 interest his friends in the microscope, 

 let me say the failure is generally due 

 to either a wrong choice of objects, or 

 of the time selected to display them. 

 Of course a novice with five minutes to 

 catch a train, will not give much intelli- 

 gent notice to a slide showing division 

 of nucleus in the hair of Tradescantia, 

 but he might take one glance at a 

 flower seed, and remember while on 

 the train how prettily Nature has wrap- 

 ped up the embryo poppy. 



Then there is another thought con- 

 cerning the introduction or preface to 

 the display. We all know that one 

 who has heard of anything highly 

 praised in advance, rarely deems it 

 worthy of so great praise when he sees 

 it. It makes little difference whether 

 it be a landscape, a work of art, or a 

 microscopical slide. The one explor- 

 ing should have the right of making his 

 own discoveries of beauty, and rejoic- 

 ing in them in his own way, however 

 unconventional. If he likens the ob- 

 ject to some incongrous thing — his case 

 is not hopeless. Every one of us may 

 be placed in a position where we can- 

 not speak the proper language used by 

 those at home in it. Therefore explain 

 all that is needed, and then wait, and 

 cordially welcome the expression of 

 wonder or pleasure, and your reward 

 shall be that you have won the interest 

 of your friend. 



There must be judgement exercised 

 in the selection of objects. This will 

 involve considerations of the age, in- 

 formation, and tastes of the one you 

 wish to please, as well as the length of 

 time advisable to be taken. Often a 

 single object well shown is better than 

 more — because it leaves a perfectly 



clear picture in the mind that is in- 

 structive to recall. Keep closely to- 

 the simple things that are easily under- 

 stood and have no complicated struc- 

 ture. 



There should be nothing to shock or 

 disturb the observer, so you must be 

 considerate of his natural prejudices, 

 and however much you may enjoy the 

 dissection of worms or the comparison 

 of cheese mites with sugar mites, or 

 abnormal tissue with normal — be sure 

 the average spectator will shrink from 

 the sight and feel uneasy over the next 

 meal. (I would like to say all I think 

 of the evil done by blundering people 

 in this line.) 



Confine yourself to low powers until' 

 your friend has mastered the matters 

 of focus and moving the object on the 

 stage — and then use high powers spar- 

 ingly. Remember that the greater 

 magnification is obtained at the sacri- 

 fice of a larger field, and that it is al- 

 ways best to show as much general re- 

 lation between the parts of the object 

 as is possible. 



Children are fond of looking at small 

 insects, wings, feathers, seeds, moss, 

 sand, etc. , and it is quite safe to ex- 

 pect that the older people will enjoy 

 them as well. With adults, however, 

 this difference will be noticed, more 

 attention can be given to the details, 

 and particularly to the adaptation of 

 parts to the use for which they are 

 made. Also the maturer mind will 

 take pleasure in observing the similar- 

 ties or differences between two or more 

 closely allied objects. 



Generally speaking, a lady will be- 

 interested in botanical subjects — pol- 

 len, sections of leaves or stems with 

 their various forms of cells and their 



