218 H. G. FOEDHAM ON LOCAL inJSEUMS. 



their way to a distant collection. Thus treasures are saved which 

 would be lost were it not for the existence of a convenient place of 

 deposit. 



It is probable that such a collection, situated in the district from 

 which it is obtained, would become as complete as possible ; for it 

 would itself exercise an influence, and induce a local pride in its 

 completeness, and thus those who are in a position to contribute 

 would do so readily, and feel a satisfaction in helping on the work, 

 a satisfaction and interest which would be much less likely to be 

 developed in the sending of specimens to be buried in a vast, far- 

 distant, central museum. There is, also, a fitness in preserving 

 specimens near their place of discovery, or origin, and a convenience 

 in being able to examine a quarry, for instance, and its products, at 

 the same time, and in this way connecting easily the lithological 

 conditions with the life of the period. "We should also hope by 

 this means to promote local study and investigation, which being 

 fostered by superior advantages should produce valuable results. 

 A prominence is given to a distinctive local collection which would 

 not attach itself to the same collection buried amongst other 

 treasures in a large central museum. 



It is manifestly absurd, however, to dream of making a local 

 accumulative museum similar to a central museum of the same class 

 in its inclusiveness. A local accumulative museum must gather up 

 the peculiar products of its own immediate neighbourhood ; if more 

 than this is attempted, an unsatisfactory result will be inevitable. 



A local educational museum might, one would think, be reason- 

 ably established in each small centre of population in which one 

 does not already exist, and although at present it is rather Utopian 

 to expect any great advantage from these little museums, I am 

 sanguine enough to hope that in the future the advance of know- 

 ledge and desire for instruction may make them eagerly taken 

 advantage of, and of great practical value to the people generally. 



Museums established with the purpose of instruction in view 

 need not depend on their particular locality for their contents. A 

 representative collection must be got together, and great care must 

 be taken in excluding all superfluous objects. The arrangement of 

 the specimens must be made with knowledge and intelligence ; the 

 specimens must be well displayed, must be such as are adapted to 

 being clearly seen and understood when seen, and have such 

 descriptions and particulars attached that their nature and character 

 may be thoroughly and easily comprehended. It is more important 

 in this case that the objects exhibited should be really representa- 

 tive in their different classes or divisions, than that the collection 

 should be complete, or very abundant in specimens. The bony 

 skeleton of knowledge gives a better general notion of the dimen- 

 sions of the whole than an elaborate display of the minute nerves 

 and intricate organs which constitute the complete body. 



As a rule, in a local museum, even when the spread of informa- 

 tion has been kept in view, and it may fairly be classed as an 

 educational museum, the circumstances of the particular case have 



