200 Notes and Comments. 



THE PUBLIC UTILITY OF MUSEUMS. 



Lord Sudely has kindly favoured us with a copy of a pamph- 

 let he has issued on ' The Public Utility of Museums.' It 

 contains a number of letters written by Lord Sudely and others 

 to The Times, as well as leading articles in that journal, re- 

 printed in convenient form. The pamphlet should be in the 

 hands of everybody interested in the educational work of our 

 museums. Briefly, Lord Sudeley's suggestion is, that the 

 educational value of our great museums would be considerably 

 increased if guides were appointed to conduct visitors round 

 the collections, explaining the more interesting and more 

 important exhibits. Since the letters appeared, the experiment 

 has been tried at the British Museum, and from what we have 

 personally seen at that institution it can certainly be looked 

 upon as successful. A time table has been drawn up so that 

 the visitor may arrange to hear the guide's remarks on any 

 subject in which he is particularly interested. Arrangements 

 can also be made for special parties to be conducted round the 

 collections, without charge. There can be no question that 

 Lord Sudeley's suggestion is on the right lines. Whether it 

 can be carried out in the provincial museums or not will largely 

 depend on the old question of funds. It is certain that, except 

 in rare cases, the curator cannot spare the time for these 

 lectures. And most visitors would be glad to have such 

 guidance, and would profit thereby. 



THE YORK MUSEUM 



On June the 6th, Dr. Tempest Anderson, the President, 

 formally presented a magnificent lecture theatre to the York- 

 shire Philosophical Society, which will be a valuable addition 

 to the Society's property. In the erection of the new room 

 full advantage has been taken of all modern improvements. 

 The former lecture theatre, which was too small for the Society's 

 requirements, has been levelled, and makes a convenient 

 entrance-hall to the museum. At present, however, the exhi- 

 bition space available in the museum is still much too small, 

 and has not been improved by the recent changes. 



AND ITS NEW LECTURE THEATRE. 



The lecture theatre was opened by Prof. Bonney, who gave 

 an address on the advantages of nature study, and on the 

 history of York ; oddly enough the audience almost entirely 

 consisted of York people. Mrs. Gray, in a charming speech, 

 presented Dr. Anderson with an illuminated album from 

 his numerous friends, which contained an expression of thanks 

 for the Doctor's various acts of generosity. The Very Rev. 

 the Dean of York, after a few well-chosen words, unveiled a 

 portrait of Dr. Anderson, which is to adorn the walls of the 

 new room. In this we must admit we missed the pleasant 



Naturalist, 



