Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1905-12-07
COMMERCIAL

MI John J. Macf arlane, Ll0rarlan
of the Phil adelphia Commercial Mu-
scum last night addressed the teachers
of the county and some others IN the
High School auditorium on the sub
ject of Japan, dwelling principally on
the products of that country. The OBJ
ject of the address was to interest the
educators of the county in the Phila-
delphia Commercial Museum and its
proposition to furnish free TO the
schools of the Commonwealth q col
lection of the wide range of exhibits
that make up the museum.
DR.. W. p. Wilson of Philadelphia is
a director of the Commercial Museum
aud leading spirit of the enterprise,
which has as It's object the advance
ment of popular education along the
line Of commerce The museum was
first fostered by the City of Philadel-
phia, but during the last session of the
Legislature an appropriation of $780,
900 was made by the State to enlarge
the museums scope of usefulness and
90 make its exhibits available to all
she schools of the State. In this way
will be met the need for education in
regard to commercial products, the
better fitting children of today for the
duties that will come to them later iu
life as the future merchants and m an
ufscturers of this country.
The Commercial Museum has already
some seven hundred collections out in
the State. each collection comprising
about four hundred exhibits, three
hundred being actual products and
one hundred photographs. Pretty near.
ly the whole world is represented III
she collection with the exception of
the European countries, which furnish
but few specimens.
Three hundred collections are pack
ed mp at the museum and may be had
by the schools for the skiing. all that
Ia required being that the local mem
plication and the school district re-
oeiving the collection agree at its own
expense to provide suitable cases for
the exhibits.
The cases, il is true, form an item
of cost winch in some instances may
deter the school authorities from avail
ing themselves of the collection. Mr.
MscFsrlaue, yesterday stated that to
display the collection to the best ad-
vantage it would require six shelves,
each thirty feet long At some places
less space is occupied by packing the
photographs in a drawer and placing
on shelves only the actual products
Where the cost is not factor the
want of available pace for the collec-
tion sometimes stands in the way. The
collection will add immensely to the
interest in the study of geography aud
IL is likely that in view of all the cir
oumstances neither of the above OBJ
jections will be permitted to weigh
too heavily.
Mr. MacFarlane's s address last night
proved very interesting. AS above
stated he restricted himself wholly to
Japan. which sufficed as a specimen of
the whole Among the immense num-
Der of exhibits from the land OF the
Mikado were the following of especi-
al interest: Silk eggs. cocoon. moth,
mulberry leaf, raw silk. wild silk, of
which pongee is made; also tea, me-
thod OF firing and other processes
necessary for preparing tea for mar
ket; rice plant, rice unhulled. also
hulled-polished aud cleaned for mar
ket. There were photographs illustrat.
ing japanese customs. showing the
various kinds of Japanese shoes, Jap
anese carpenters planning back wards.
Jinrikisha or carrying chair and man
and donkey going to market in which
the harness and the shoes of both man
and donkey are made of rice straw.