10 REPORT OF THE 



greatest care and judgment for its execution, and Mr. Dew has 

 effected it so satisfactorily as to have added far more to the 

 value of the specimen than the sum of £18, which was paid 

 to him for his services. It is now one of the most interesting 

 and valuable fossils in the Museum. Mr. Dew also found time 

 to operate upon one or two other specimens of Saurian remains 

 in the collection, one of which, the large Teleosaurus Chap- 

 manni, formerly placed in the Vestibule, has been greatly 

 improved. 



In fitting up the new rooms, the Council have necessarily 

 been somewhat straitened by the feeling that they were incur- 

 ring a heavy responsibility in exceeding the amount subscribed 

 to the " Museum Enlargement Fund." They nevertheless 

 considered it to be their duty to push forward the work, feeling 

 convinced that nothing can tend so much to the welfare of the 

 Society, as a proper degree of activity in promoting the objects 

 for which it exists. With this view they proceeded early in 

 the year 1859 to fit up the new room at the end of the Osteolo- 

 gical room, for the reception of Mr. Rudston Read's valuable 

 collection of British Birds, which during the spring was moved 

 into its new position by Mr. D. Graham. Here the birds are 

 better displayed than in the apartment formerly devoted to 

 them ; and the change has this further advantage, that one of 

 the greatest ornaments of the Museum is placed in an appro- 

 priate and prominent position. A large glass case which 

 occupies one corner of the room will serve for the reception of 

 most, if not the whole, of the British Mammalia, and as the 

 Council are most anxious to fill up this void in the collections, 

 they earnestly beg any of the members who may have the 

 opportunity, to assist them in procuring specimens, especially 

 of the smaller British Quadrupeds. The collections of British 

 Echinodcrmata and Crustacea, which are very imperfect, have 

 been placed in one of the table cases in this room. They will 

 eventually be transferred to the gallery cases, where they will 

 be accompanied by collections of other groups of invertebrate 

 animals, when the table cases will be vacant to receive the 

 collection of British shells. Wall-cases in the gallery will be 

 occupied by specimens of British Reptiles and Fishes, and thus 



