36 ON NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUMS.
from room to room ; but the practice does not appear to have
been always satisfactory. At any rate a visitor in the beginning
of the last century, was led to complain that the conductor
treated the company to "witticisms on various subjects of natural
history, in a style of vulgarity and impudence, which I should
not have expected to have met in this place."52
Formal demonstrations in a museum are generally attended
with more difficulty than most people imagine ; and after much
experience, both as a listener and as a demonstrator, I was led
some years ago to suggest that the formal demonstration, or
lecture, should be given in a neighbouring room rather than in
the midst of the cases.53 It is gratifying to find that at the Essex
Museum arrangements are now being made, whereby a
convenient room, with electric lantern and screen, will be placed
at the disposal of those who desire to give demonstrations in
illustration of the contents of the museum.
In a paper on the utilization of local museums read at the
last meeting of the British Association, the Rev. W. Johnson, of
York, described the excellent work of Mr. Crowther, the Curator
in Leeds, in lecturing to the schools, which systematically visit the
museum ; and considering the great value of such work he
strongly advocated its extension, with payment by the local
authorities for the additional labour thus thrown upon the
Curator. "This work," said Mr. Johnson, "is at any rate as
well worthy of this support as are free libraries, or municipal
bands, or art-galleries."51
Apart from formal lectures and demonstrations, a visitor to
a Museum would often be glad of a description of some
particular object, or group of specimens, of exceptional interest,
and would be quite willing to pay a small fee for such a
description by some competent person. Prof. Anton Fritsch,
of Prague, has playfully suggested that the day may come when
a visitor, standing in front of some interesting specimen, will
have simply to drop a coin into a slot connected with a phono-
graph, and forthwith he will hear a short discourse on the
specimen in the very words, nay, even the very voice, of some
52 Journal of a Tour and Residence in Great Britain, in the years 1810-1811.
By Louis Simond. 1815. vol. i., p. 84.
53 " On the difficulties incidental to Museum Demonstrations." Report Museum
Association, Cambridge Meeting, 1891, p. 71.
54 Report British Association, Cambridge Meeting, 1904.