60 ILLINOIS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE 



The museum is also of real value to another class of stu- 

 dents not usually considered when thinking of a museum 

 of natural history, namely, the students who casually visit 

 the museum out of curiosity, invited by the queer and 

 unfamiliar objects, or from the "exjjloring" instinct so 

 deeply instilled in the human species. These students, if 

 interested, will acquire a fund of facts relating to nature 

 which will be second only to that acquired by the regular 

 students taking courses. In passing, it might also be added 

 that the exhibits are of value to another class of students, 

 those taking English composition and related subjects, for 

 the objects in the museum are very suggestive for studies 

 of this kind. Some of these classes in the University of 

 Illinois have already made use of the museum for this pur- 

 pose. 



And thus one might go on enumerating the various sub- 

 jects that can be treated in a museum of natural history 

 that are of value to a university, but the inference is plain 

 and need not be dwelt upon further. In addition to all 

 that has been said, the museum affords a place for quiet 

 and healthful recreation and often provides a stimulus to 

 the enthusiasm of many students. It must be remembered, 

 also, that a museum is always on the job, continuously 

 teaching all who will but tarry long enough to examine 

 the exhibits. They are thus perpetual instructors. 



Aims of the University of Illinois Museum 



It is the aim of the Natural History Museum of the 

 University of Illinois to provide all that is inferred in the 

 foregoing discussion. The lack of room, aside from insuf- 

 ficient funds, is the chief drawback to the proper expan- 

 sion of the museum exhibits. It is probably not generally 

 known by either the student body, the alumni, or even the 

 faculty, that the museum possesses enough material at the 

 present time to require a building as large as the Univers- 

 ity Library for its proper display. 



It is quite pertinent to note here briefly the character 

 and extent of the collections now in the possession of the 

 University Natural History Museum. Perhaps of chief 

 interest is the material brought back by the Crocker Land 

 Expedition from Northern Greenland. This includes 

 many fine specimens illustrative of the culture of the 



