EEPORT ON NATIONAL MUSEUM. 149 



safety of the collections will be greatly improved by keeping them open to daily 

 inspection. 



A great desideratum in this department is a supply of authentic foreign collection 

 for the purposes of comparison in making identifications, and an attempt will be made 

 this spring to remedy this deficiency in part by soliciting exchanges from several 

 European authorities. For this purpose, ten very superior sets of duplicates of Fish- 

 Commission specimens have been prepared and will be sent to the London Fishery 

 Exhibition, where they can probably be disposed of to the best advantage of the 

 Museum. 



DEPARTMENT OF FOSSIL INVERTEBRATES. 



The department of fossil invertebrates has been under the charge of 

 Dr. C. A. White, who during part of the year was directly in the em- 

 ploy of the Museum, and who now, having accepted the position of pa- 

 leontologist of the United States Geological Survey, continues his work 

 in the Museum as honorary curator. Unlike most of the honorary cu- 

 rators, however, his whole time, except when in the field with the survey, 

 in summer, is devoted to administrative work and investigation upon 

 the collections, and his office is in the laboratory of the department. 

 This department is now installed in the west-south range of the new 

 Museum, being deposited in the drawers of thirteen unit table-cases, 

 the laboratory being in the two adjoining rooms at the west side of the 

 south entrance. No part of this collection is on exhibition, and consid- 

 erable portions of it are still in the storage rooms. The most valuable 

 specimens, particularly those which have been studied and have served 

 as types for the publication of the late Prof. Fielding B. Meek, have 

 been cleansed of the accumulated dust of long storage and put in excel- 

 lent order. 



Dr. White's own specialty is in the study of the invertebrates of the 

 Mesozoic and Cenozoic periods, and Mr. C. B. Wolcott, also of the Geo- 

 logical Survey, has been assigned by its director to work in this depart- 

 ment, and is acting as assistant curator, under the direction of Dr. White, 

 having special charge of the Paleozoic fossils. His work in the field 

 extends over more than half the year, and work upon this section of the 

 collection is not so far advanced. Mr. L. M. Garrett, U. S. N., has 

 acted as assistant in this department and accompanied the curator to 

 the field upon the work of the United States Geological Survey from 

 July to October. Dr. White has already devoted much time during the 

 year to duties as chief of the Artesian Wells Commission. 



Of this department of the Museum it can be said that its material is 

 in excellent order for scientific investigation, and that it is being exten- 

 sively used for that purpose. 



I quote from Dr. White the following statements and recommenda- 

 tions : 



The present state of the collection is that of only partial arrangement, and there- 

 fore the number of specimens cannot be given, even approximately. Their condi- 

 tion, however, is favorable to their complete arrangement and division into series as 

 soon as I shall get time and suitable assistance to do the work. A few years ago a 



