10 REPORT OF THE 



The House designed for the Sub-curator, is finished, lighted with 

 Gas, and occupied by that valuable officer. The whole of the lower 

 floor of the Museum thus becomes available for the Laboratory and 

 collections, and the Council recommend that immediate steps be 

 taken for rendering these extensive rooms practically useful. 



The condition of the Museum is satisfactory, the principal rooms, 

 now extremely well warmed by Hot Water-pipes, are suitable for 

 study at all seasons of the year. The collections are increased and, 

 what is of more consequence, the progress of order is observable 

 amongst them, 



Under the direction of the Secretary, the foreign Birds have been 

 remounted by Mr. Baines, after having been carefully examined, 

 discriminated, and catalogued by a highly competent authority — ^Mr, 

 Gould, The Society is thus put in possession of a nearly perfect 

 catalogue of the Ornithological collection, embracing more than a 

 thousand species. A duplicate copy of the catalogue has been 

 prepared, and the labelling of the Specimens will be proceeded with 

 forthwith. 



The collection of British Shells has been revised by the Keeper 

 of the Museum, who has commenced the enlargement of this at 

 present very limited series. 



The Society is indebted to Edward Hailstone, Esq. for a very 

 choice collection of Sponges and Corallines* and to the Rev. John 

 Blackburn for two excellent examples of the Animal which inhabits 

 the Paper Nautilus Shell. 



The Stormy Petrel, has been added to the AUis collection of 

 Bird's Skeletons, and the bones of the Polar Bear, Civet Cat and 

 Serval have been mounted and placed with the other osteological 

 treasures. Thus the Zoological collections, taken in general, are 

 undergoing improvement in completeness and in classification. 



No very important addition has been made to the Minerals, but 

 the Geological department of the Museum, by donation and 

 purchase, has been considerable increased. The Rev. A. Griesbach's 

 collection, purchased by the Council, has yielded some unique and 

 many very valuable specimens from Malton and Westow; inte- 

 resting Fishes, a rare Pentacrinite, and a remarkable series of 

 Ophiuridae, have been obtained by purchase from the Lias and 



• Collected by his late brother Samuel Hailstone, Esq., to whose labours the Society owes its 

 beautiflil series of British Crustacea. 



