410 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



reading rooms, repository for works of genius, art, industry, always open 

 to the world, free of charge, than hy one annual fair. 



Dr. Treadwell described the building of the Maryland Institute at Bal- 

 timore. It has not a quarter of the space we had at the Crystal Palace. 

 I prefer Pteservoir Square here for our building ; population grows rapidly 

 out to it, and it will soon become central enough. 



Mr. Brower. — The center of population of the whole surrounding coun- 

 try moves down town ; our park and city hall are already near it. 



Mr. Treadwell, Jr.' — All admit the superiority of one floor to hold the 

 whole exhibition, and our people will not, and ought not, to trust them- 

 selves in such crowds — tens of thousands — much above the solid earth. 

 As to centrality, a great change will be effected every five or ten years. 



Secretary Meigs, — It is proper that we should avail ourselves of all 

 knowledge, and experience is best of all. The Homans, after several cen- 

 turies of steady industry, by Cato and others gardeners, while, as Juvenal 

 says, " all the men were brave and all the women chaste," no public shows 

 or theatres were wanted ; but when they began to be wealthy, towards the 

 Christian era, they would have theatres. Their best rulers, whether consuls 

 or emperors, always opposed them. Yet they came, first small, then movable, 

 of wood, and at last a freeman of Rome formed a company to build a large 

 one of wood. He selected for its site " the Greenwich village of Rome," 

 viz., Fidenae, about the same distance from Rome that the late Crystal 

 Palace was. He said he could make it large and strong enough for all 

 Rome to get in and be safe. He procured timbers, some of which were the 

 largest then known ; they squared four feet. On the completion of it all 

 Rome was in exstacy. Pifty thousand of the people could get in at once ! 

 They got in. It fell and killed about nine thousand of the best society ! 

 This checked had building and shows for some time. But in the time of 

 Yespasian, against his wish, they clamored for a theatre. The wise and 

 good Emperor said, If you will have a theatre, I will build you a proper 

 one. He gave Rome the Coliseum, with ground room five and a quarter 

 acres ; stone seats for 87,000 persons, and standing room for 22,000, with 

 vomitoiics (passages) enough to let all out in a few minutes ; without 

 a roof, having sheets of cloth to keep off water, &c. This was the acme 

 of theatrical glory, Rome said of it, " Dum stat Coliseum stet Roma. 

 Qundo cadit Coliseum cadet Roma." Their sublime law, " Salus populi 

 suprcraa lex " should be our law. 



Mr. Sherry. — Safety is near the ground. Country people visit you more 

 than citizens do. Provide where you will, the country people will come 

 to see it. 



Mr ^leigs had been consulted by a large landholder, as to the centre of 

 this population. Had been commissioner on streets and avenues, and con- 

 sidered the growth of this city, and that, singular as it may now seem, 

 that centre was about our battery, looking to the certain immense groAvth 

 of Brooklyn and to adjacent Jersey ; and he had no doubt but Brooklyn 



