liilPOJJT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 7 



Profe.ssor in tlie LTaivcrsity of Osaka, departed ou bis '.uifjsiou in July, 

 1S80. 



Mr. W. V. Cox was designated Cliief Clerk in Deeeniber, 1885. Mr. 

 ]i. 1, Geare has been placed in charge of Correspondence and Eeports; 

 and Mr. A. Howard Clark is Assistant in charge of Pnblications, Sta- 

 tionery, and Labels. Mr. S. C. Brown, as Kegistrar, has charge of 

 Transportation, Kegistry, and Storage. Mr. John Mnrdocb bas been 

 designated Assistant Librarian. 



By the death, March 19, 188G, of Mr. James Teinpleninn Brown, the 

 Museum suffered the loss of an eutbusiastic worker, who had rendered 

 efficient service in the development of tbe Museum. Mr. Brown bad 

 made an exhaustive study of tbe wbale fisberies of tbe world, and tbe 

 collection formed by him to illustrate tbe bistory of tlie Xew Englaiul 

 whale fisbery, will always be a prominent feature in the fisheries court. 



Tbe Museum staff, as now organized, consists of two classes — tbe 

 scientific officers or curators, and tbe administrative officers. 



There are at present 28 cnratorsbips, some of which are divided, so 

 that the number of beads of departments or sub-departments is L'O, 

 and tbe totiil number of men in tbe scientific stntt" 30, of whom 13 are in 

 the pay of the Museum, and tbe others are honorary (or unpaid), some 

 being detailed for tbis duty by tbe Director of tbe Geological Survey, 

 by tbe Director of the Bureau of Etbnologj^, otbers by the Commis- 

 sioner of Fisb and Fisheries, and by the Secretary of the Navy, while 

 two are volunteers. Tbese details are in every instance made in the 

 interests of co-operation by those Bureaus of tbe. Government engaged 

 in work closely connected witb that of tbe Museum. The paleontol- 

 ogists of tbe G^eological Survey bave found it to be so mucb to their 

 advantage to bave access to tbe paleontological collections of the ]Mu- 

 seum and tbe use of tbe laboratories, storage cases, and general ad- 

 ministrative appliances of the Museum, that they are permitted by 

 tbe Director to assume the responsibibties of curatorships and perform 

 a general work of supervision. It is intended, however, that tbe Museum 

 shall provide paid assistants, to relieve tbe bonorary curators of most 

 of tbe routine work of tbeir departments. 



B.— THE CONDITION OF THE COLLECTIONS. 



Tbe reports of tbe curators indicate tbat tbe collections under tbeir 

 charge are in an excellent state of preservation. 



Tbe perishable objects, su(5b as skins of birds and mammals, tbe in- 

 sects, certain ethnological materials, and tbe objects preserved in spirits, 

 bave in most cases been provided witb improved case accommodations, 

 and a decided advance bas been made in tbe methods of preventing in- 

 sect ravages. 



During tbe year tbe collection of aboriginal American pottery in the 

 nortbwest court bas been opened to the public, and a series of casts of 



