BUILDINGS. 67 
is a wing of say thirty feet square. This wing is lighted by 
windows in the ordinary way and contains on the ground floor 
a hall with stairs leading to the basement and the second story ; 
a closet for the janitor and a lecture room. On the second 
floor are the laboratory, a room for necessary books of refer- 
ence, anda small study for the professor or curator in charge. 
In the basement can be placed the means of heating ; room 
for the storage of speciniens, macerating rooms, etc. If pos- 
sible, both basement and laboratory should be supplied with 
water. 
For museums of the larger class, this plan will of course 
prove inadequate and some other must be adopted. ‘The 
architect and others having the erection of a museum in 
charge should visit the larger museums and consult with those 
having them in charge. 
A museum building should always, if possible, be isolated 
and built in the most thoroughly fire-proof manner. The walls 
should be of brick or stone, the girders, joists, etc., of iron, 
and the floors of brick, iron, slate or some other incombusti- 
ble material. Museums are far too valuable to be entrusted to. 
wooden buildings and even those thought to be fire-proof have 
not always proved so. ‘The fires at Portland and Chicago 
each destroyed valuable collections stored in buildings which 
were supposed to be secure against the devouring element. 
One feature which should be adopted in every museum 
building is adequate provision for laboratory work. In col- 
lege museums this is best accomplished by having a large 
room where all can be at once under the supervision of the 
instructor. In buildings for society purposes it is better to 
