in our Museum his extensive and choice series of mounted skeletons of 

 mammals purchased in Europe, and transported by him to St. Louis at 

 great expense. 



Mineralogy. The cabinet of minerals consists of about 1,200 specimens 

 from all parts of the world. It embraces a pretty full suite of Missouri mine- 

 rals and ores, and therefore forms a valuable reference collection to those 

 engaged in mining pursuits in our State. For these specimens we are in- 

 debted to the old Western Academy at St. Louis. Prominent among the 

 treasures in this department, is the well known Nebraska meteorite, found 

 about twelve miles west of Fort Pierce, on the Upper Missouri River, and 

 presented to the Academy by Mr. C. P. Chouteau. It originally weighed 40 

 pounds, but it has been reduced several pounds by cuttings to supply the 

 principal cabinets of Europe and this country with specimens. For these, 

 the Academy has received in exchange valuable slices of meteoric irons from 

 both foreign and home localities. Our collection at this time contains speci- 

 mens of meteoric iron, representing thirteen different localities. 



Geology. The collection of rocks may be estimated at from 400 to 500 

 specimens. Among these we find a valuable series from our fellow-member 

 Dr. Wislizenus, collected by him during his memorable tour to Western 

 Mexico, in connection with Col. Doniphan's Expedition. The collection 

 also contains volcanic rocks from Italy, some of them neatly polished, and 

 donated by the old Western Academy of Natural Sciences. 



Palaeontology. The cabinet of fossils forms, perhaps, the most valuable 

 part of our Museum. But while the faunas of some of the great geologic 

 periods are well represented, others have scarcely a place in our Museum. 

 From the Post- Tertiary period, our Museum contains a number of teeth and 

 bones of Mastodon gig anteus and Elephas primigenius, in good preserva- 

 tion, from Missouri and other Western States; a very fine example of the 

 head and several vertebra; of Bos bomb'frons, an extinct fossil ox which was 

 exhumed by Drs. Pope and Stevens, several years since, from Chouteau's 

 Pond, and by them deposited in the Museum of the Academy. The fossil 

 is so rare that only two specimens have hitherto been discovered. We have 

 also a full skeleton of the great cave bear (Ursus spelceus) from Europe, 

 belonging to the same geological period. From strata of Miocene age, we 

 possess an extensive series of bones and teeth of extinct animals, col.ected 

 from the celebrated MauvaisesTerres of Nebraska, chiefly by Dr. F. V. Hay- 

 den, and presented to our Museum by C. P. Chouteau, Col. Vaughn, and 

 some liberal citizens of St. Louis. This collection contains three species 

 and 14 specimens of extinct fossil turtles, the remains of the gigantic Titano- 

 therium, two species of extinct rhinoceros, a hyena, and two species of 

 Oreodon. Of the latter, we possessm any specimens of the head and teeth 

 in fine preservation. Of Cretaceous fossils, a fine suite has been donated 

 by Drs. Stevens and Pope, and by Messrs. C. P. Chouteau and Charles Gil- 

 pin of the American Fur Company. From the Paheozoic strata, we have 

 a suite of Silurian fossils from Cincinnati, donated by the President (Dr. 

 B. F. Shumard), and a small display of species from the St. Louis Lime- 

 stone. 



