REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1910. '35 



previously described, representatives of all of which were donated by 

 liim to the Museum. The Geological Survey of Canada, through Dr. 

 JohnMacoun, contributed a series of mollusks, including cotypes of 16 

 new species, dredged in Barclay Sound, Vancouver Island. Types of 

 new species and other specimens from the coast of California were 

 presented by Miss J. M. Cooke, Dr. Fred Baker, Mr. C. W. Gripp, Mrs. 

 E. E. Johnston, and Dr. R. H. Tremper. Mr. and Mrs. T. S. Oldroyd, 

 of California, long-time contributors to the Museum, transmitted very 

 acceptable material at various times during the year. A miscellane- 

 ous collection of shells, chiefly European, was received from Lieut. 

 Col. L. Worthington Wilmer, of Ryde, England, to whom the Museum 

 has also become indebted for many past favors. 



The entire collection of the division of mollusks, to which the 

 third story of the west range had been assigned, was moved to the 

 new buildmg in August, 1909. The study or reserve series has 

 already been arranged in new metal cases specially constructed 

 for the purpose, but the exhibition series remains in the condition 

 as transferred, awaiting the determination of a plan for its enlarge- 

 ment and installation on a more comprehensive basis than hereto- 

 fore. 



About 5,300 lots of specimens were catalogued, labeled, and added 

 to the reserve series. The Philippine collection, mainly from the 

 Albatross explorations of 1910, is gradually being cleaned and made 

 ready for study, and much progi'ess has been made in preparing 

 the west American material with the view of monographing the 

 faima. In the preliminary work of sorting the dry Philippine 

 specimens about 29,000 labels were %\Titten. From deep sea dredg- 

 ings, chiefly by the vessels of the Bureau of Fisheries, there has 

 accumulated a large amount of fine material from the ocean bottom 

 in different parts of the world. While consisting chiefly of the 

 remains of the lowest forms of life, such as foraminifera, this material 

 also contains immense numbers of small and even minute mollusks. 

 The sorting out of the specimens is a slow and tedious task, in which 

 something has been done from year to year. With special assistance, 

 however, 90 lots of the material were completely and carefully 

 gone over during the past year, with the result of obtaining not 

 less than a quarter of a million specimens, representing a great 

 number of interesting and mostly new species. Many specimens 

 of mollusks from the western coast of America as far north as Alaska, 

 principally obtained during the expeditions of the steamer Albatross 

 and those of Dr. Dall, were cleaned and prepared for incorporation 

 in the study series of dried specimens. About 8,000 catalogue 

 cards were written, representing partly the beginning of a revised 

 catalogue of the reserve collection, and partly a species catalogue 

 of Philippine moUusks. 



