I SPECIMENS FOR EXHIBITION 19 



may be made nearly as useful as if : "occupied by the actual 

 specimens. 



A public exhibition which is intended to be instructive and 

 interesting must never be crowded. The?e is, indeed, no reason 

 why it ever should be. Every such exhibition, whether on a 

 large or small scale, can only contain a representative series of 

 specimens, selected with a view to the needs of the particular 

 class of persons who are likely to visit the gallery, and the 

 number of specimens exhibited should be adapted to the space 

 available. There is, therefore, rarely any excuse for filling it 

 up in such a manner as to interfere with the full view of 

 every specimen shown. A crowded gallery, except in some very 

 exceptional circumstances, at once condemns the curator, as 

 the remedy is generally in his own hands. In order to avoid 

 it he has nothing to do but sternly to eliminate all the less 

 important specimens. If any of these possess features of 

 historical or scientific interest demanding their permanent 

 preservation, they should be kept in the reserve collections ; 

 if otherwise, they should not be kept at all. 



The ideal public museums of the future will, however, 

 require far more exhibition space than has hitherto been 

 allowed ; for though the number of specimens shown may be 

 fewer than is often thought necessary now, each will require 

 more room if the conditions above described are carried 

 out, and especially if it is thought desirable to show it in 

 such a manner as to enable the visitor to realise something 

 of the wonderful complexity of the adaptations which bring 

 each species into harmonious relation with its surrounding 

 conditions. Artistic reproductions of natural environments, 

 illustrations of protective resemblances, or of special modes 

 of life, all require much room for their display. This method 

 of exhibition, wherever faithfully carried out, is, however, 

 proving both instructive and attractive, and will doubtless be 

 greatly extended. 



Guide-books and catalogues are useful adjuncts, as being 

 adapted to convey fuller information than labels, and as they 

 can be taken away for study during the intervals of visits to 

 the museum, but they can never supersede the use of labels. 

 Any one who is in the habit of visiting picture-galleries where 



