408 CONFERENCE OF DELEGATES 
Museums can hardly assist the research worker to the same extent that 
societies and libraries can, since museum display must confine itself mainly 
to providing an informative exhibit of what has been attained in this branch 
of science or in that industry ; but the growing practice of arranging tempo- 
rary exhibitions to illustrate a special activity or achievement may be expected 
to provide matter of interest to him, and should also enlist his interest 
and resourcefulness in making such exhibitions both interesting and repre- 
sentative of the latest advances in the subject. 
Archeology and natural history take a prominent place in the activities 
of many local societies, but there seems to be no reason why those who 
have so restricted their interest should not also co-operate with their museum 
in representing not only local trades but also those modern industries which 
are growing rapidly around them. In bringing such technical processes 
and products to the notice of the public, the modern museum has a task of 
great importance and one with which it is specially competent to deal. 
Even though the subject may present difficulties and the processes may be 
complicated, it is quite possible to make them fully intelligible to visitors ; 
and if such an exhibit is understood the visitor is at once interested. The 
experience gained at the Science Museum, London, during the past ten or 
twelve years has shown very clearly that trouble taken to make scientific 
exhibits intelligible is well spent, for once they are understood they arouse 
a keen interest in the minds of visitors, which is far more effective in in- 
ducing others to come in their turn than any form of advertising which can 
be planned. 
But however attractive an exhibit may be, it will sooner or later become 
too familiar to arrest the visitor’s attention, and the museum which is the 
most visited is that which the public regard as usually having something 
new for them to see. Here the members of a society may assist the curator 
by their suggestions, as well as by arousing the interest of those who may be 
in a position to contribute objects of special technical interest. 
Among libraries co-operation has already advanced far, and through the 
National Central Library local libraries can obtain for their readers access 
to far wider and more specialised collections of material than can be found 
at any one place out of London. Here scientific workers, and especially 
those who are engaged in research work for industrial purposes, are in a 
somewhat special position, for often they require published material not so 
much for lengthy study as to look through in order to see what is being done 
in some special branch elsewhere and in other countries ; a reference given 
in a technical journal may have to be followed up ; while not infrequently 
time is of considerable importance and everyone cannot expect to have at his 
elbow a technical library equipped to provide both foreign and home 
publications on a large scale. But now, through the facilities provided by 
the National Central Library and by the Science Library at the Science 
Museum, London, where there is one of the largest collections of periodical 
scientific and technical literature in existence, he can obtain on loan what 
he requires for a sufficient time to enable him to see what it contains of 
importance for his purpose. In this way, not only may the costly duplication 
of published material be avoided, but also needless waste of time in follow- 
ing up a line of investigation which has already been worked out elsewhere 
may be prevented. The rich bibliographical equipment at these libraries 
also enables them to indicate where recent information on various subjects 
in many lands may have appeared, and inquiries of this kind are readily 
answered so far as the resources of the institution allow. 
The access to published subject matter in the field of pure and applied 
science is to-day fairly easy to all, though this is not so generally realised 
