About  this  time  Mrs.  Ida  F.  Kenyon  arranged  to  build  a
small  home  just  north  of  ours.  After  the  land  was  surveyed,
the  design  selected,  and  the  foundation  laid,  the  idea  was  given
up.  Mr.  Allen  had  long  desired  a  suitable  building  for  his  col-
lection. This  being  a  convenient  location,  he  bought  it  and
went  on  with  the  building.  When  completed,  he  found  there
was  not  sufficient  room  for  advancement,  so,  without  much
change,  he  built  on  in  front  and  at  the  rear,  nearly  doubling  the
extent  ot  museum  room,  yet  keeping  all  so  in  harmony  that  the
beauty  of  the  building  was  thereby  enhanced.  The  whole  is  ot
native  rock,  or  that  found  in  the  drift,  within  a  circuit  of  three
miles.  It  was  Mr.  Allen's  idea  to  have  the  exterior  of  the
building  an  exponent  of  the  geological  formation  of  this  region,
and  the  finish  ot  the  interior  representative  of  the  native  woods,
and  also  of  as  many  kinds  as  could  be  gathered  from  other  parts
of  the   world.      There  are  between  seven  and  eight    thousand


STEINHEIM.  97

samples  of  different  rocks  in  the  outside  walls,  and  several  hun-
dreds of  woods,  including  that  of  fruit  trees  and  shrubs,  worked
into  the  rooms  of  the  building.'  It  was  the  plan  also  to  make
each  collection  a  typical  one  in  itself.
ARCHEOLOGY.
