Oci. 1898. Annual Rkport of thk Director. 285 



ists and students in Ecology. In case of the records of an herbarium 

 as a whole, like that of a Schott or Bebb, a special seal is used, stat- 

 ing 'Herb. Schott' or 'Herb. Bebb,' in addition to the words 'Field 

 Col. Mus.,' in order that the sheets may ever be credited to the pre- 

 vious botanist through whose hands they have passed. These accjuired 

 herbaria are not distributed in the herbarium until each sheet has 

 been catalogued, numbered, and credited to the original collector. In 

 addition to the inventory books, a running card catalogue of locali- 

 ties and collectors keeps pace with the accessions of collections and 

 the reference data are thus made complete. Although this entails a 

 large amount of clerical work, and draws upon the time of the 

 Curator, yet the result in usefulness, it is felt, will amply repay in the 

 end. This method also extends to and includes the economic collec- 

 tions upon the walls and in the cases of the department. So com- 

 plete is the record that, should the whole collection be taken frorathe 

 cases and thrown together in chaos, a new incumbent could readily 

 reinstall the whole without loss of time or confusion of records or 

 labels. Within the herbarium another method has been adopted, 

 destined to save a vast amount of time to those who consult the col- 

 lections, each large biological division of the world being represented 

 by a different colored genus cover ; temperate American specimens 

 being in manilla covers, tropic and sub-tropic American in orange, 

 European in green, Asiatic in red, African in blue, and Oceanian in 

 }'ellow." In the Department of Ornithology, Hall No. 27 has under- 

 gone needed alterations in reducing the depth of the cases, thus 

 bringing the individual specimens closer to the glass and rendering 

 them more easy of inspection and the labels more readily consulted. 

 In the Department of Zoology, the contents of Halls Nos. 19 and 20 

 have been rearranged in the cases, which were new one year before, 

 and by constructing partitions with shelf brackets and including more 

 specimens in the same case, room has been provided for the installa- 

 tion of new mounted specimens. In the west court two great 

 groups have been installed in large mahogany plate-glass cases — 

 the Oryx and Waller's Gazelles. As stated, the offices, work- 

 room and laboratories of the department in the third gallery 

 of the south court have been enlarged and entirely refitted. A 

 large number of improved storage cans has been provided for the 

 laboratories, and immense racks for alcoholic specimens have been 

 constructed in one of the new rooms. The suite of apartments 

 thus provided and equipped furnishes the best example of conven- 

 ience and economy of time in the conduct of work for which it is 

 intended. During the past year nearly all the poUections in the 



