THE HANCOCK MUSEUM AND ITS HISTORY V 



the Transactions — are furthermore at present in preparation. 

 And it is pleasant to be able to state that the vigour of the 

 Society and the value of its publications have met, during the 

 past year, with wide and most favourable recognition in the 

 scientific press. 



We have, then, in this city a Natural History Society with 

 a long and honourable history behind it, and before it a 

 prospect of service to science and to the public only limited 

 by its material resources. In the investigation of the natural 

 history of its district — a field of work depending on the zeal of 

 its members rather than on the state of its purse — this Society 

 has given remarkable proofs of its vitality. And the general 

 public, from whom a full appreciation of these more technical 

 achievements is not to be expected, have before their eyes, in 

 the shape of the Hancock Museum, an even more striking 

 witness to what the Society has done and intends to do for 

 the cause of natural history in this neighbourhood. 



As we have already said, the history of the Museum, 

 though little known in the district, is of great interest, and is 

 associated with many names that will always hold an honoured 

 place in the annals of natural science ; and to give an outline 

 of this history will be the main purpose of the succeediAg 

 articles. 



n.— EARLIER HISTORY OF THE MUSEUM 



In a work published a few years ago dealing with the 

 museums of Great Britain, the Hancock Museum at New- 

 castle was made the text of a chapter upon "what private 

 effort can do." It was thus placed in contradistinction to 

 almost all the other leading museums of the country; and in 

 the preceding article we saw something of the significance of 

 this unique position. For it is practically a unique thing for 

 a museum of any importance to be owned and administered 

 by a private society. Excluding the State museums and a 

 few owned by universities, all our chief natural history 



