PROCEEDINGS FOR 1899 XVII 



15. National Museum. 



We understand that some practical steps are being at last taken 

 towards the preparation of plans for the construction of a National 

 Museum in this city. It is to be hoped that the architecture of this 

 building will be conspicuous for its artistic beauty, worthy of this bright 

 era in our country's material development. Canada possesses relatively 

 few public buildings or churches which can be considered remarkable 

 examples of original design, though such new structures as the new 

 Court House and City Hall in Toronto and the Government building in 

 Victoria are well worthy of the cities in which they form the most inter- 

 esting 'architectural features. It seems to the Council that the Govern- 

 ment of the Dominion have now an 'admirable opportunity of taking a 

 practical step towards giving the Washington of the North some of the 

 aspects of the Washington of the South, where the Premier and other 

 members of the Cabinet have had such abundant opportunity of I'ate 

 of studying the most notable characteristics. The architects of the 

 Dominion should be asked to compete for a design for this important 

 national work. Such a competition would stimulate the genius and 

 enterprise of our ambitious and able architects and probably result in 

 giving us a work worthy of the country. 



16. The Decoration of oue National Buildings. 



We hope to see in our most notable public buildings such mural 

 decorations as have been very recently executed by the eminent Cana- 

 dian artist, Mr. G. A. Eeid, K.C.A., for the main hall of the new muni- 

 cipal buildings in the city of Toronto. These paintings are the gift of 

 the artist to the city, and illustrate the heroic work of the pioneers of 

 Canada, to whom an appropriate reference is made by the following 

 motto : 



" Hail to the Pioneers, their homes and deeds 

 Remembered and forgotten we honor here." 



The Eoyal Society fully sympathize with the hope expressed by the 

 Toronto Guild of Civic Art, in officially presenting Mr. Eeid's beautiful 

 gift to the city, that '^ these fine decorations may prove to be but the 

 first of a series of historical memorials of this nature, illustrating the 

 progress of our country which may be placed in this and other buildings. 

 They beg to record their conviction that no better investment can be 

 made than the expenditure of money in the proper decoration of such 

 buildings, which thus not only add to the attractiveness and interest of 



