The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-10-31
HERBERT SMITH TALKS
 OF MUSEUM PLANS
By WALTER HARPER.

Housed in a small held tent on the banks of the Coosa river near Cedar Bluff, in Cherokee county, are two of the busiest scientists in the state of Alabama. They have been busy in that locality now for several weeks gath ering specimens of fossils and shells
 for the museum of the Alabama geo. logical survey located at the University. These people are MT. and Mrs Her
 bert H. Smith. MT. Smith is curator of | assistant.
 During the week they will transfer their operations to the Tennessee river in Madison county.
 Tn discussing the field work and the future plans of the museum Curator Smith said:
 The museum of the geological sur vey, now an integral part of the Uni versity of Alabama, was formally
 opened on May 29, consequently 1t is just five months old. They have been five months of strenuous work and strong, healthy growth. One thing is pretty evident, the institution is not going to stand still. The university has the first museum building and the
 most important collection in the south ern states, but 1t has something bet ter-enthusiasm and modern ideas. No
 doubt the collections, the exhibition
 rooms and the scientific work are i'm portant, and they are receiving our attention. But more important and far reaching In it's consequences Is the educational plan, and It may be called a new departure. We have had uni versity extension for several years; It remained for this young institution to coin a new phrase-Anuseum extension Some of the older institutions-the the American Museum of Natural His tory at New York, and the Field Col umbian museum at Chicago-have loan collections for the use of public schools. We propose to go step farther ana give collections outright If the plan succeeds-and we believe 1t will. will mark a distinct advance in museum methods. Whatever benefit and honor it may bring will belong to Alabama and the southern states.
 "Any large museum has mass or duplicate material which may De useo for exchange, but oftimes is not useo at all. The specimens are ,frst-rate-a good as those in the museum coliec- tion-but they are not needed simply
 h.cause the museum has enough of the same species or varieties. We nave an immense number of duplicates anu from the first we have planned to give them to certain schools and colleges "Please understand that we are Tn m way bound to do this; the laws poverning us do not mention the schools at all and I suppose that such a nlan never entered the minds or the
 legislators. Neither has there been any outside influence urging us to
 make the gift. It Is simply phase or
 nroeress. and progress is the watch
 word of the new museum system. Dr' E. A. Smith, the director or the sur yey and museum, is one or the iios' nrooressiye men in Alabama, and as enthusiastic as ever, though his en- tbusiasm Is tempered by age and ex-
 narisnce AS for newell, am an enthusiast by nature, and If l was not such q leader would Infect me With ms own spirit. Be that as 1t may. we have concocted this scheme between us and we mean to carry It out.
 "of course. we cannot give collec- t;ons to all the schools in the state' that would swamp any museum ably. to begin with, we shall seieo'
 about 24, including, of course' all the Apricultural schools. the principal ms schools and several colleges These
 ,r,st first agree to place the coilec- .,ons where they can be seen, at least bv the students and probably aI'er the first sending they will De asheo '' nrovide proper trays and pay soihe minor expenses they must also prom ,-. .o take proper care of the speci- mens
 "It would be impossible to get out all the duplicates at once' the 'asA "''i run through years, and, inoeeo' u he'e'
 w,l, he ended, for we propose 10 aoo 'o these school collections whenever we have the material. Each collection VIII he a kind of branch of the museuh--a ,t+,a museum in itself. Any teacher who has had to cram natural his'ors from books-and most or them have had nothing else to work with-"iii
 appreciate the value or such iiius''" tive material.
 we hope to send out the first in- staIlment in December, or early next January. Probably it will include about % species, most or all of them marine shel1s This is not because we con slider shells more important but ne- cause that part of our duplicate ma tarial is most readily available. .orhe cheap school collections soio
 L.. a.alers are almost always made up