712 president's address. 



control of the Macleay Museum has been vested by the Senate in 

 a Committee consisting of the Professor of Geology — Prof. David 

 — and myself as Professor of Biology, and we are fortunate in 

 having an able and zealous curator in Mr. George Masters. 



As this collection and its fate must be of special interest to 

 you on the present occasion, I propose to give some brief account 

 of it, the building in which it is housed, and of the way in which 

 it is proposed to utilise it. 



The collection is, as might be expected, richest in Australian 

 objects ; but many specimens from various parts of the South 

 Pacific region were obtained from various sources, and a consider- 

 able number of specimens from other Zoological regions were 

 purchased from dealers. To begin with the anthropological and 

 ethnological collections : there are over 200 crania of aboriginal 

 Australians, and natives of New Guinea and the South Sea 

 Islands, besides six entire skeletons of natives of Torres Straits. 

 There are many hundreds of specimens of weapons and utensils 

 from Australia, New Guinea, Melanesia, etc. 



The collection of Mammalia comprises nearly 500 specimens 

 (including skins, skeletons, and skulls) of Marsupials and Mono- 

 trenies, and nearly 400 specimens of other orders. The collection 

 of Birds is a particularly valuable one, comprising no fewer than 

 about 10,000 specimens — a fair number of representatives of the 

 Australian species mounted, the rest unmounted. There are 

 upwards of f>000 specimens of Reptiles of all orders, mostly in 

 spirits. The collection of Fishes is very extensive ; on a rough 

 estimate, there are about 13,000 specimens of all kinds, mounted 

 and in spirits. 



Of the Invertebrata the Insecta are the most largely repre- 

 sented, and it would be quite impossible to arrive at even an 

 approximate estimate of the immense multitudes of representa- 

 tives of all orders that fill the drawers of the insect cabinets. 



There is also a fine collection of Crustacea, comprising 7000 

 or 8000 specimens, and a good series of Australian Spiders. 



