2 THE LEWIS BROOKS MUSEUM. 



The Board of Trustees of the Miller Agricultural 

 Department of the University pledged $10,000 of the 

 amount required in Mr. Brooks' condition, and the remain- 

 ing $2,000 were supplied by Prof. Wm. B. Rogers and 

 alumni of the University. 



Thereupon, under pledge of secrecy, the following letter 

 was addressed to the Hon. A. H. H. Stuart, Rector of the 

 University : 



Rochester, April 14th, 1876. 

 To the Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia : 

 Gentlemen, — 



Prof. Hem-y A. Ward, of this city, will deliver to you herewith forty-five 

 bonds of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Company of one thou" 

 sand dollars each— 815,000. 



This sum being deemed by Prof. Ward sufficient to enable you to provide 

 a suitable building for a Cabinet of Natural Science, (with the exception of Bo- 

 tany,) and to procure through him, on terms which will be mutually satisfac- 

 tory, the necessary material for such Cabinet, which in extent, and all respects, 

 will be well adapted to the purpose of instruction in this department of educa- 

 tion in the University of Virginia, I respectfully tender for your acceptance the 

 bonds above mentioned ; the avails of twenty-five of them to be devoted to the 

 procurement of the material for such Cabinet, and the remaining twenty to the 

 erection of a suitable building. I am, gentleman, 



Very respectfully yours, Lewis Brooks. 



The proceeds of the bonds amounted to $50,000. To 

 this sum Mr. Brooks afterwards added nearly $20,000 for 

 the extension of the building, authorizing among other 

 things, the addition of a Botanical Hall. 



The building was completed in July, 1877, and before 

 the collection of specimens had been fully arranged and 

 placed in position, the death of Mr. Brooks was announced. 

 This happened before any provision had been made for the 

 procuring of the Botanical specimens to occupy the Botani- 

 cal Hall, which Mr. Brooks had authorized to be added to 

 the building. His heirs, however, in order to carry out 

 fully his plan for the Museum, generously made a donation 

 to purchase the specimens for the Botanical Hall, and thus 

 the Museum was finally made complete. 



By the establishment of this splendidly-furnished Mu- 

 seum, the University was put in possession of a most ad- 

 mirable instrument for illustrating the principles of Natural 

 History, but as she was situated at the death of Mr. Brooksj 



