114 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



and customs by the reproduction of certain important ceremonials 

 and councils of which there remain today but stories on printed 

 pages. New York could afford to keep this romantic period of its 

 history before the eye and transmit it in reasonable fulness and 

 force, to posterity. 



2 The domestic life of the Dutch culture, represented by one or 

 two rooms, say a living room and kitchen equipped with the utensils 

 and materials appropriate to the period of the Dutch settlement. 



3 Some portrayal of the German culture of the upper Hudson, 

 Schoharie and Mohawk valleys — a culture which though transient 

 left a recognizable impress on the community. Also of the Huge- 

 not settlements in Ulster county and the lower Hudson valley. 



4 Rooms equipped with the furnishings of the English colonial 

 revolutionary period before the invasion of the French influence. 



5 An adequate representation of life on the frontier of Central 

 Western New York before the extinction of the Indian land titles 

 and the Massachusetts claims. 



Such a carefully coordinated collection would naturally be supple- 

 mented by other materials which could not be placed in such asso- 

 ciations but would help to complete the portrayal of past cultures. 



In the geological department of the State Museum an earnest 

 effort is being made to bring together materials which will demon- 

 strate the historical development and present working of such in- 

 dustries as depend upon the natural mineral resources ofthe State. 

 In this undertaking a willing and appreciative cooperation with the 

 producers of the State has been elicited. With the very best reason 

 the State Museum may hope for an equally zealous cooperation of 

 the citizens in the formation of an historical collection. 



There are still to be had from the descendants of the older 

 families of this State many historical relics ; few are treasured, 

 more are not. • Some are merely harbored for their associations, 

 many are lying in garrets and barns. An appeal to the patriotic 

 instinct coupled with an assurance that such relics if placed in the 

 State's custody will not only never be deprived of their personal 

 associations, but be placed in their proper surroundings, should not 

 fail to be effective. 



It is submitted that such an historical collection as is here outlined 

 for New York should exist and that the acquisition of such mate- 

 rials by the State should not be delayed. There is no historical col- 

 lection in America arranged on such a basis as here suggested. 



