156 IOWA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE 



may acquire some knowledge of objects in nature so near and so com- 

 mon to them, but yet of which they never learn to know anything. 



It is such knowledge, acquired by the young brain, that tends to- 

 wards the conservation of all things beautiful. Rather than to kill a 

 bird or rob its nest, learn to encourage them, and rather than pull up 

 wild flowers by the basketful and leave them to perish, cultivate them 

 and observe their beauties all the season. 



By a plan of co-operation between the schools of a state and a cen- 

 tral state museum, with the central one in turn, in a degree, co-oper- 

 ating with other states, and with larger museums, there can be brought 

 about, such general results to all as could not be accomplished by in- 

 dividual action. 



In building a museum, first determine the province, then the nature, 

 whether it is to be of some special feature, or to be a general museum. 

 This done, then determine the amount of material desired. (Number 

 of species, and specimens of each species.) This being decided, you 

 are ready to begin plans for a building. The province and nature of 

 your museum being determined, will decide the classes of material to 

 be collected.' The classes of material, and the amount of it, will de- 

 cide the styles and numbers of cases required to exhibit it to the best 

 advantage. The number of styles of cases of any division will deter- 

 mine the size and shape of a room to accommodate them, — its archi- 

 tecture,, light, heat, ventilation, etc. The number of divisions and 

 rooms, their various sizes, forms and architecture for their various 

 purposes, will in turn determine the size, shape, and general archi- 

 tecture of a completed building to contain the whole. 



With the provincial idea in mind, we will now take our state of 

 Iowa as an example, and let the boundary line of the state be the out- 

 line of our province. The province determined, we must next decide 

 on the nature of our museum, and the classes of material desired. For 

 conservation and general educational purposes, a State Museum (as 

 it now would be) should collect, preserve and exhibit material suffi- 

 cient to illustrate its history, both natural and civil. The history of 

 a state then, speaking from a museum standpoint, is composed of these 

 two great divisions, its natural history and its civil history, each of 

 which is susceptible of, and is conveniently divided into many sub- 

 ordinate divisions. When we speak of divisions, we do not infer that 

 there be straight and rigid lines of demarcation, for there are not; all 

 objects of history, both natural and civil, when considered as a whole, 

 are very closely united. But for the convenience of study, and the 

 division of labor and responsibility among its curators, divisions and 



