Director s Annua/ Report. 9 



eni Pacific, and has with care and energy explored the high islands 

 of the Marquesan and Tahitian groups, and also the low coral 

 groups of the Paumotus. Many of his collecftions hav^e arrived 

 safely at the Museum ; some of them are already placed in the 

 cases; others, as the fishes, etc., await his return for further study 

 and identification. 



During the summer Mr. Bryan had an opportunit}' offered for 

 the exploration of Marcus Island in the western Pacific, a region 

 particularly interesting to naturalists as the probable meeting place 

 of distinct faunas. B}^ the permission of the Trustees he availed 

 himself of the kindness of the owners of the island, but the Japan- 

 ese government claiming the little island prevented by armed force 

 any proper exploration, wrongfully, as that government now ad- 

 mits, and the results were not all that we had hoped ; still the birds 

 and other material colle(fled prove interesting, and what has been 

 done will be seen b}' Mr. Bryan's account appended to this report. 



Mr. Thompson has continued the fine series of castings of 

 native fish, coloring them with great skill and accurac}'. This 

 seems the most successful means of preserving the rapidl}' evan- 

 escent colors of the remarkable inhabitants of our waters, and it is 

 to be hoped that the work may go on until all the fish are as beaviti- 

 fully preserved as those already in the Museum. In all cases the 

 fish, after the casting, are preserved in spirits for dissecftion or 

 further examination. With the specimens sent by the Fish Com- 

 mission, these casts and their originals, and the considerable col- 

 ledlions of our staff, we may hope to have in the immediate future 

 a fine representation of the fisli fauna of these waters. Some of 

 this artist's skill has been given to preserving the fruits of excep- 

 tional interest, and now visitors at an}' season can see good speci- 

 mens of the tropical fruits grown here, a matter of no little interest 

 to intending settlers. 



The mention of these fruits calls to mind another attempt that 

 the Museum has been making to illustrate the vegetable and 

 mineral products of this group. All accessible fibres have been 



