The Sun.
London, England, 1868-06-04 00:00:00

PROPOSED 31 SSAC 11 USE TTS MUSEUM

Professor Agassiz offers Massachusetts the oppor-
tunity of establishing a museum, which, he says,
will place science in America fifty years in advance
of the Old World. He addressed the Legislature
on the occasion of their visit to his Museum of
Comparative Zoology at Cambridge, near Boston,
setting forth the details of his plan, on which no
museum has yet been founded, and for which,
though an effort is being made to remodel the
British Museum on a similar scheme borrowed from
one of his reports to the Legislature—neither in
America nor in Europe can the material be com-
manded by any single institution. His own collection
is immense, and has within late years been vastly
increased principally by his Brazilian tour. Various
specithens are boxed up, so placed as to be impossible
to inspect for lack of room. These are his words—
"lf we can obtain the means to complete this wing of
the main building, it is my purpose to have a room imme-
diately connected with the main entrance, which shall
present a synoptic arrangement of the contents of the
museum—a condensed representation of all the leading
groups of the animal kingdom in their natural relations,
perfectly legible to the intelligent observer. Ono side of
this room shall be devoted to the illustration of the class
of mammalia to which we ourselves belong. By the side of
the complete animal shall be its skeleton, to explain its na-
tural s..ructure ; its fossil representative, to tell something
of its history tu the past ages ; its embryo, to illustrate
the story of its growth. Next shall come the birds,
illustrated in the same ways, and in such juxtaposition to
the preceding groups as shall explain their natural r. la-
lions. Next the reptiles, and then the fishes, all being so
labelled and so arranged that it shall be understood by
every intelligent visitor why these groups are placed to-
gether, what relation they bear to each other in the living
world as it at present exists, what relation they have
borne to each other in past ages, what further relation
they hold and have ever held to each other in the daily
problem of their growth and development. On another
wall of the same room I would have the insect world in its
history and growth ; on another the molluscs in their
order of succession, growth, and present relation ; on the
fourth, the radiates, or corals, sea-urchins, star-fishes,
the like. . . . With labels, perhaps with some
written explanations, and with further illustrations, in
drawing, I should hope to make this entrance-room ex-
plain the general purpose and scheme of the museum. . •
Having thus laid down the general sketch in this entrance
room, I would have four rooms separately devoted to
these classes singly—one for the vertebrates and mamma-
lia, birds, reptiles, and fishes, one for the molluscs, one for
the articulates, and one for the radiates. Here my o'l
should be to show the fulness, richness, diversity, endless
variety, and complications of forms belonging to each of
these types, each presenting a totally different series of
ideas and a wonderful wealth of impressions. Nor is this
all. Every part of the world has different representatives,
and their geographical distribution is established accord-
ing to certain laws. Our Museum should explain this : it
should have its local area, its zoological premises, to speak;
in scientific terms, where the inhabitants of different conti-
nents should be brought together in their natural juxtaposi-
tion, showing how animal life is scattered over the surface
of the earth. In the next place, the succession of animals
in their introduction upon our planet should be illustrated.
There should be a room devoted, for instance, to the 0-
fillet animals of the coal period; and then to those of the
tertiary periods more immediately preceding our own geo-
graphical era. Aud, finally, there should be a room de'
voted to embryological series, showing the problem of lift!
to-day, as wonderful in its ever-renewed miracles 01
growth and development as in its relation to past ages'
We would thus have the history of organic life from every
point of view in which it has been studied, and our museum
would bo what every museum should be, a diagram of crea-
tion, so*far as it is understood in the present condition of
our science."

The Finance Committee of the Massachusetts
Legislature has reported in favour of making the
appropriation for the Museum.

We are glad to see that our recent suggestion as
to the feasibility of introducing into New York Family Club
Houses, on the plan of the Belgrave mansions in Londool
bids fair to be put to a practical test. Tho World of the
9th inst. contains a plan and detailed description of such e
building, which seems to meet every requirement of eco-
no my, elegance, and comfort. The average rental of the varl-
ous apartments is estimated at $2,000 per annum, which
seems to us moderate enough, considering the importance,
as is judiciously suggested in the paper, of erecting the
pioneer building in elegant style, and in a fashionable
quarter, to secure the countenance and support of a class
without whose example their poor, but superior, neigh-
bours could never be brought to the ignominy of
over a " store." The plan suggested combines s9me of the
features of the co-operative system, with many of the Ad-
vantages of club and hotel life; and we hope that a suffi-
cient amount of enterprise and capital may be found to
give it a trial. We believe it is in successful operation le
London, and we see no reason to doubt at least au ale--
A
success here.—Round Table.

Births.
ANDREWS—On the 2d inst., at Wimbledon, the wife fo
John Andrews, Esq., of a son.
BRODRICK —On the 2d inst., at 26, Beaufort-buildiDO
S.W., the Hon. Mrs. Brcdriek, of a son.
HOOKER—On the 3d inst., at the Royal Gardens, Novi tll6
wife of Dr. Hooker, F.R,S., of a daughter.

Marriages.
SPEED—On:limp—On the 2d inst., at B3rkeley, 13ober.
N. Speer, Esq., of Culdees Castle, Perth, and Bunabrant
Itenfrewshire, to the lion. Emily Gifford, third (taught°
of Lord Gifford.
Somali—JACKSON—On the 2d inst., at St. John's, renB":
Thomas H. Scarth, Esq., of South relige Park, to 03,;r3
riett Barton, only daughter of the late Captain Th°ll'.-
J. Jackson, of St. Augustine-road, Camden-square.
Deaths.
AnDLEY—On the Ist inst., at lachniond-road, liao,,klll
Mr. A. G. Ardlev, of Great St. Helen's, E.G., „g''
l.
DotimE---On the 2d ult., at Bangalore, Madras, Lieut.-`l-
- S. Dobbie, 49th Regiment, N. 1., aged 47. „,
DomNsoNt - On the 31st ult., at 5, Osborne-terrace, g'-
chester, Robert G. Dobiuson, Esq.
FEYEll—)ia the 30th ult., at Chatteris, Daniel Foyer, -644
age.4l 80. rg •
HoGG —On the Ist inst., at Park-hill, Ewell, Surre),
P. Hogg, late of Kensington.
SKELTON - On the Ist inst., at Sutton Bridge, Liuco.
Spencer Skelton, Esq., age G 7. vorbY'
WALKLATE —On the 31st ultd ~ at Normanfon-t03., ,
Mr. Thos. Walklate, goods manager, Midland lie
aged 49.

Loudon : Printed and Published by WILLIA.3I ANO2S 02,
of No. 112, Strand, Printer, at Tai Sys 011ce,0°43 t 7
Strand, in the Precinct of the Savoy, in the
Middlesox.—Thursday, Juno 4,186 S.