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it were very grand. On different sides were various passages, with doors
leading to the several apartments and ranges of apartments of the
museum. These doors were all open, but the entrance to each was closed
by an iron gate, and each gate had a man standing near it to guard it.
Over each of these doors was an inscription containing the name of the
particular department of the museum to which it led.

By the side of the great door of entrance was a small room in a corner,
kept by two men in uniform. This was the place for the visitors to
deposit their canes and umbrellas in. It is not safe to allow people in
general to take such things into cabinets of curiosities, for there are
many who have so little discretion, that, in pointing to the objects
around them, they would often touch them with the iron end of the
umbrella or the cane, and so scratch or otherwise injure them.

Rollo took Mrs. Gray's parasol from her hand and gave it to one of the
men. The man put a strap around it. The strap had a ticket with the
number 49 upon it. He gave another ticket, also marked 49, to Rollo, and
Rollo put it in his pocket.

At this moment Rollo saw Mr. George and the two students coming in at
the door. The three gentlemen deposited their canes at the little office
just as Mrs. Gray had done with her parasol, and then the whole party
advanced into the great hall.

Mr. George and the students went with Mrs. Gray and the children into
the first room, but they soon left them, and after that Rollo was the
sole guide.

Each department of the museum was contained in a separate suit of
apartments, at the entrance to which, as I have already said, there was
a small iron gate across the doorway. This little gate was kept shut and
locked; but there was a man who stood by it, inside, always ready to
open it whenever he saw any visitors coming. He always shut and locked
the door again when the visitors went in. Then, finally, when they were
ready to come out, he unlocked the gate for them, and it was then that
they were expected to pay the fee for visiting that part of the museum.
Rollo had taken care to inquire about this beforehand, and he had
provided himself with a sufficient number of pieces of money of the
right value, so as not to have any trouble in making change.

In most of the rooms there were men who had pictures for sale,
illustrating the objects contained there, for visitors to buy, in order
to carry them home as souvenir