New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-02-26

smpls 20 many pefhos VINO are nH haotoaion W
dy.sipgs and plans and viii often plain 10 saoh IN
ten minutes, more u eoad b. tasght them 10 hoirs
by the aid Of maps and diagrams
The successive rsk-.trs;a Of tie State should be
fully lutra'td by specimens Of larger SIZE than ara
euiiabe for private school collections. Large "a
sivc block, rough from their native bed showing the
fIesh fracture where broken, and other sdes, the
triaiss Of the drift, the oerrvog acton OF the at
noepbere should teach the eye to distinguish toe gen.
eral character sites OF every rock and good dIa xins
or whs, is far batter Photographic pictures taken OF
instructive localities, might sho~ TIE peculiar appear
apoe Of each group 81 strata in the cliff or qu4ry;
from sucb aids the student viii be able to recos
bize them in the field
Block. or sl.be, rough-hewn, smoothly cut, POI
i.hed should oe provided to sh1~ the Capabilities OF
each rock FOR emple, meat IN useful or Ornamental an
and al the building materials of the State shouid be
sbown in substantial specimen.
The ecieItifc collection Of rocks and fostiIs wodld
| DO far larger Specimens of every rock should be
given Of sire sufficient To show rot only the fossils,
bot the manDez in which they are found ia the stone
and its Theological chaTactersuch % the hnestones
of Trenton, with tt en- my Iad little shells and ncbitesi
the saty rocks Of Central and Southern New-York,
with their larger bivave shells and remaas of land
nj. pts the saI dstones Of Clinton ssd Lokpor with
their peculiar sell sea-weeds; and the nesoDes Of
Niagara and the Heidelberg, showing their besu.-
fully preserved coras; al displaying vivioy the ap-
pearance Of thefe relics Of the past a. found in tue
quarry or ledge, before the hammer or chiSel had
touched them 10 remove their envel1png atone.
IL cases would be arranged, we usually see them,
the developed and freed fossils themselves detached
from the rock In the greatest procarsble perfection
Crinoads corss robites, univave and bvalve rheu,,
fragments Of skeletons of fishes, plsntsa the vaii
Gus organic remain. Of the Sate, to the probable num-
Der Of fifteen or eighteen hundred species-shouli
here be SEEM ard no reasonable expense or trouble
oug ht to be spared to make this part Of the eOeo
ton complete and perfect as Possioie
With or near these fossils should be displayed epeci
mems Of the animated forms existing uost nearly a.
he'd to them to eIplsn 10 the beginner the true nature
ofthe their proper place in the great chain of
ganc hf, and their relations to yet living forms. For
instance, modem corals should be provided in sutciea
variety to ustfate and explain the fossil species the
shell Of the modern Iautius should lie beside the
titus chiseed from the sold rock; Of the Gviug
crustacesps ciinCds and brachop1 ious Shells should
be near to compare with the analogous forms from
tie Hsmi ton states OF the Trenton limestopes. By
this mt the fossils would longer be regarded by
ordinary observers remarkable "cdrissites,"
strange and neIplcsble forms in the rock; nor would
they be absurdy referred to the vulgar list Of petri
"fed cpskes tosds, and hickory nuts" but their true
nature would be easly understood.
Nor should the cole ctiOn end here. While 40 far
regards the fossils Of State, it should be
made as perfect and full possible, without any oni.
sion that could be supplied it should also go beyond
our territorial limits, and provide general representa-
ton Of The geological formations Of other States and
L
rocks collected from their extension into other States,
should be displayed and the scientific boundaries of
our State should be enlarged widely the spread
of these geological formations which have here their
most aRthentic center, and perfect development
whole.
We should also provide moderate general conec.
Non from formations not known in this State for il.
stance, the fishes aud brdtrscks of the New Rel
Sandstone Of Connecticut and New-Jcrsey; the 70 ISL
plants from the coal formations OF Penns yvaua aud
Nova-Scotia. the Shells fshbones and other relics
fioi the crcactous and tertiary strata Of the S1ahern
States; the fossil reptiles shells and fishes Of the
European secondary iocks; and tue Sluran and De-
voDian fossls so like our own from Germany, Russ is
aud Scandinavia. We do not mean, By this wide
enumeration, to imply that anything like complete
collection OF suoh foreign fossils should be attempted
or that large sumo should he eIpended it, bu. sim
ply that tn0ogh of foreign collection should be OBJ
tanned TO compare With and Illustrate our own Geolo-
gy, and also to sford every citizen who visits the
capital Of State opportunity TO examine objects
OF which every intelligent man reads with interest,
and which be desires TO see, but which arc, 10 this
county, accessible to very few. Such things form no
part Of the popular museums" established as
money making enterprises, TO which hunbug or
nonstresity is always more acceptable than fact;
and the only good public museum of scientific char
sctr known to ur in this country is that OF the Acsd
envy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia.
No great eIpense would be needed to procure all
the foreign sp cmens which would be desirable. and
whatever foreign maps models, and plans wol!d serve
TO illustrate the geology Of Europe as compared With
our own A portion might be procured 10 exchanges,
In rotuin for duplicate speclmeDs OF our own rocks
and fossils, which are highly valued abroad; aud
very moderate SUN indeed judNiou,ly and gradually
expended wonld defray the cost Of al the remainder.
The collection, when ioimed and arranged, would no.
be fully useful without explanation beyond the
ordinary labels scribe with hard nos, which con-
veyno idea whatever to persons not classicay edu.
Gated, or familiar with natural science. Men who have
acquired knows Of such things are too apt to Jr-
get that terms simple to them unntel gibe to the
great mass OF y'sitors; and they by no means give
sufficient pains 10 exp4in and sim plfy them. The re-
suit is, that the baled visitor tbtsns little benefit
h,m his search through Of stones labeled with
Greek and Latin which might as well be Hebrew or
lroquos for him; he makes up mind that the thing
Is mostly lumbuc; and for the savant himself, next
time he wants the popular atteItion aid support tor
the promotion of bis sconce he finds that he has few
friends OF sympsthzers. 1t is better to over.sxplan
than TO fan short Of being undcrst Cd; and when We