1886 IDEAL PALEONTOLOGICAL MUSEUM 449 



The following letter on the ideal of a Paleonto- 

 logical Museum is a specialised and improved version 

 of his earlier schemes on the same subject : 



4 MARLBOROUGH PLACE, 

 May 3, 1886. 



MY DEAR FOSTER I cannot find Hughes' letter, and 

 fancy I must have destroyed it. So I cannot satisfy 

 Newton as to the exact terms of his question. 



But I am quite clear that my answer was not meant 

 to recommend any particular course for Cambridge, when 

 I know nothing about the particular circumstances of 

 the case, but referred to what I should like to do if I 

 had carte blanche. 



It is as plain as the nose on one's face (mine is said to 

 be very plain) that Zoological and Botanical collections 

 should illustrate (1) Morphology, (2) Geographical Distri- 

 bution, (3) Geological Succession. 



It is also obvious to me that the morphological series 

 ought to contain examples of all the extinct types in 

 their proper places. But I think it will be no less plain 

 to any one who has had anything to do with Geology 

 and Paleontology that the great mass of fossils is to 

 be most conveniently arranged stratigraphically. The 

 Jermyn St. Museum affords an example of the strati- 

 graphical arrangement 



I do not know that there is anywhere a collection 

 arranged according to Provinces of Geographical Distri- 

 bution. It would be a great credit to Cambridge to set 

 the example of having one. 



If I had a free hand in Cambridge or anywhere else, 

 I should build (A) a Museum, open to the public, and 

 containing three strictly limited and selected collections ; 

 one morphologically, one geographically, and one strati- 

 graphically arranged ; and (B) a series of annexes arranged 

 for storage and working purposes to contain the material 



VOL. II 2 G 



