1887.] NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 423 



The Conservator's account of our progress in detail is attached as 

 part of this report. 



Respectfully submitted, 



Thomas Meehan, 



Vice-Director. 



Conservator's Report for 1887. The Conservator of the Botanical 

 Section reports that the donations to the Herbarium during the 

 year closing December 12th, are estimated to be 7921 species, of 

 which 2245 are Phanerogams and Ferns, 5601 are Fungi and 75 are 

 Lichens. Of the 2245 species of phanerogamic plants and ferns, 

 1078 are believed to be new to our collection, 98 of them represent- 

 ing new genera. 1099 are North American, 611 are from Mexico 

 and South America, 64 are from the Eastern Continent and 471 are 

 Australian. What portion of the Fungi may be new to the collec- 

 tion cannot be estimated until the completion of the catalogue of 

 this Order now in progress. 



For the principal part of the large additions to the Academy's 

 collection of Fungi, we are indebted to Mrs. Anna T. Martin, widow 

 of the late Dr. Geo. Martin of West Chester, who has presented to 

 us the entire collection made by her husband, consisting of 4040 

 specimens neatly mounted in pockets and placed in boxes, and all 

 numbered to correspond with MSS. catalogues accompanying^ 

 These were mostly collected by Ravenel, Rehm, Kunze, Rabenhorst, 

 and Winter and by Dr. Martin himself. The donation also included 

 Centuries I to XVII of Ellis' North American Fungi, of which 15 

 Centuries are duplicates to those possessed by us. Drs. Rex and 

 Wingate have also kindly presented Centuries XVIII and XIX of 

 the same series making it complete to the present time. These im- 

 portant additions taken in connection with the earlier collections of 

 Schweinitz, Ravenel, Michener and others, make this department of 

 our Herbarium of unusual value, and call for thorough re-arrange- 

 ment and critical examination of our material and the preparation 

 of such a catalogue of our Fungi, as shall make the whole readily 

 accessible and useful to students. This task has, by the Section, been 

 committed to Messrs. Stevenson, Rex, Brinton and Wingate, and 

 we may hope it will be completed within another year. 



The number of species of phanerogams and ferns, represented in 

 our Herbarium at date of last report, was .... 26,189 

 to which add the estimated accessions of the past year . 1,078 

 and we have the estimated present total .... 27,267 



