ON NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUMS. 11
with Museums was that of a writer who, otherwise uttering
much common sense, held that "the drowsy appearance
of a Museum peculiarly adapts it to the requirements of
students."(10)
If I might be bold enough to throw out a hint as to what
I should like to see in the Forest Museum of the future, I would
venture to say that in my opinion the present building, with
its interesting associations, should be used as a small antiquarian
Museum and that the Natural History collections should be
removed to a neighbouring building to be specially erected for
their reception—a building which may be severely simple in
architecture, but which shall be spacious and light.
The exhibits at present at Chingford may be regarded, for
convenience, as falling into two groups—one scientific, the other
archaeological ; though I do not for a moment intend to suggest
by this conventional arrangement that archaeology is not to be
treated on scientific principles. The display of scientific objects
in an ancient building always strikes me as rather incongruous,
whereas objects of archaeological interest readily harmonize with
their antique surroundings. If I may dare to introduce just one
word of criticism respecting another museum in Essex, I would
refer to that at Colchester. There the archaeological treasures,
which everyone knows are of surpassing interest and inestimable
value, including the famous Joslin and Jarmin collections, may
not be considered altogether out of keeping with the venerable
castle in which they are housed, but the small Natural History
collection in the same building seems to me quite out of place in
such an edifice.
Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge, the present home of the
Epping Forest Museum, is an example of early Tudor archi-
tecture, which itself forms a fine specimen for an "Open Air
Museum." By the restoration of this building, the Corporation
of the City of London has earned the gratitude of every lover of
antiquity. It seems to me that the ideal way of utilising the old
building would be to furnish it with appropriate objects of
corresponding age, so that the whole might form a grand historical
object-lesson. But as such an ideal is never likely to be
reached, the next best thing is to use the building for the
(10) Principles which should govern the classification and arrangement of Public
Museums. By Henrie O'Hara. Dublin : 1862, p. 3.