CHAPTER IV. 

 HOW TO START A MUSEUM. 



A museum may be a, source of constant pleasure, or 

 the cause of perpetual annoyance. All depends upon 

 the purpose with which it is started, and the manner in 

 which it is managed. Before giving advice as to the 

 best way of making a museum permanently enjoyable, 

 I will mention some of the more common causes of fail- 

 ure. 



1. Many fail because they start their museum "just 

 for fun." It is true that a great deal of pleasure can be 

 got from a collection, but not when amusement is made 

 the main purpose. 



2. Others fail because they think that a museum is 

 the same thing as a curiosity-shop, and seek only those 

 things that are quaint or rare. They want something 

 that will make their friends open wide their eyes, and 

 they like to have people ask, in surprise, "Why, where 

 in the world did you get, that?" 



3. A third cause of failure is the attempt to collect 

 all sorts of things at once. You shall see, crowded to- 

 gether on the same shelf, coins, stamps, Indian relics, 

 birds'-eggs, autographs, sharks'-tefeth sand from the 

 Mississippi, wood from the home of Walter Scott, sea- 

 beans, and pieces of the funeral decorations in memory 

 of Lincoln or Gariielcl. In this way, the mind, confused 

 and wearied, soon loses its interest. 



4. An equally fatal error is the neglect to learn all 

 that can be learned about each specimen. This usually 

 follows the first and second sources of failure already 

 mentioned. It sometimes results from a selfish spirit of 

 gain, an inordinate love of possession. 



