arks, the two being separated by the immense Croton Reservoirs, which
occupy the central portion of the grounds. Thus far the Lower Park has
received the greatest amount of ornamentation. It is a miracle of
exquisite landscape gardening. Its principal features are its lawns, the
Pond, the Lake, the Mall, the Terrace, the Ramble, and the Museum of
Natural History. The main entrances are on Fifty-ninth street, those at
the Fifth and Eighth avenues being for vehicles, equestrians, and
pedestrians, and those at the Sixth and Seventh avenues for pedestrians
only. All these entrances will ultimately be ornamented with magnificent
gateways. Paths leading from them converge at the handsome Marble Arch
at the lower end of the Mall.

Near the Fifth avenue gate is a fine bronze colossal bust of Alexander
Von Humboldt, the work of Professor Blaiser of Berlin, which was
presented to the park by the German citizens of New York, and inaugurated
on the 14th of September, 1869, the one-hundredth anniversary of the
birth of the great man.

Near the Eighth avenue gate is a bronze statue of Commerce, the gift of
Mr. Stephen B. Guion.

At the extreme southern end of the park, and between the Fifth and Sixth
avenue gates, is a small, irregular sheet of water, lying in a deep
hollow. The surrounding hills have been improved with great taste, and
the pond and its surroundings constitute one of the prettiest features of
the park. The water consists mainly of the natural drainage of the
ground.

Along the Fifth avenue side of the park, near Sixty-fourth street, is a
large and peculiar-looking building, not unlike the cadet barracks at
West Point. This was formerly used by the State as an arsenal, but was
purchased by the city, in 1856, for the sum of $275,000. It has been
recently fitted up as a Museum of Natural History, and the first, second,
and third floors contain the magnificent collection of the American
Museum Association. This collection is in charge of Professor Bickmore,
and includes 12,000 birds, 1000 mammals, 3000 reptiles and fishes, and a
large number of insects and corals. It is the largest and most perfect
collection in the country. The famous collection of the Archduke
Maximilian forms the nucleus of this one.

In the top floor of the Museum building is the Meteorological Observatory
of the Central Park, under charge of Professor Daniel Draper. Here are
ingenious and interesting instruments for measuring the