EEPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 67 



Prof. T. I). A. Cockerell, of East Las Vegas, New Mexico, pre- 

 sented eight lots of insects of different orders, containing many new 

 species, and including types and cotypes of species described by him; 

 also three lots of amphipod crustaceans and leeches, the former rep- 

 resenting a new form foimd in a warm spring. 



An interesting collection of reptiles and batrachians from northern 

 Mexico and North Carolina was purchased from Brim ley Brothers, 

 Raleigh, North Carolina. It contained a series of a salamander 

 {DesnwgndthuH qaadrlniaGidata)^ which had not been recognized since 

 Holbrook's time. From the same source was obtained a small collec- 

 tion of North Carolina fishes, one of which was found to be unde- 

 scribed and was named Notropis hrlmleyi by Mr. B. A. Bean; also 

 eight specimens of the very rare skipper, Pamphlla Carolina Skinner. 



Among the most important purchases of the year were the zoological 

 collections made by Mr. William Foster in the vicinity of Sapucay, 

 a small town near Ascuncion, Paraguay. They comprise about 800 

 insects, 600 birds' eggs, and 350 small mammals. The mammals were 

 Drincipally bats. The specimens were all carefully prepared and 

 labeled and filled important gaps in the Government collections. 



Mammals. — In addition to Dr. Abbott's East Indian mammals and 

 uhose from Paraguay just mentioned, the Museum received several 

 other accessions which deserve mention. Dr. E. A. Mearns, U. S. 

 Army, added to his generous donations of previous years two collec- 

 tions of small mammals, one from the Yellowstone Park, comprising 

 about 300 specimens, and the other from Fort Snelling, Minnesota, 

 comprising about 200 specimens. The collections of European small 

 mammals, already very rich, was increased by two collections, one 

 from Switzerland and one from Norway. An excellent series of 

 Japanese rodents and bats, purchased during the year, represents the 

 first well-prepared collection of mammals received by the Museum 

 from that country. Mr. B. S. Rairden, United States Consul at 

 Batavia, Java, obtained for the Museum two specimens of a Javan 

 mouse-deer, which proved to be an undescribed species of much inter- 

 est, and was named Tragtdus focalinus by Mr. G. S. Miller, jr. A 

 somewhat imperfect but very valuable skeleton of a peculiar porpoise 

 from the Hawaiian Islands was presented b}^ Prof. Charles H. Gilbert 

 of the Stanford Universit3^ It represents the species Pseudorca cras- 

 sldens, a form intermediate between the killers and blackfish, which 

 has not been obtained hitherto from the vicinity of the Hawaiian 

 Islands. 



Birds.— My. Homer Davenport, of Morris Plains, New Jersey, pre- 

 sented to the Museum during the year 22 large and valuable birds 

 from his extensive aviary, among which were an Australian Goose, a 

 Javan Jungle-fowl, a Black-winged Peacock, Pavonigripennis., regarded 

 by some zoologists as a distinct species, and several beautiful pheas- 

 ants, including Diard's Fire-back Pheasant, Lopkura diardi. From 



