52 EEPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 



12. Astronomical expedition to Peru. — The expedition to Peru, for 

 the purpose of observing the total eclipse of the sun of September, 

 1858, by Lieutenant Gilliss, United States navy, under tlie auspices 

 of the Smithsonian Institution, was accompanied by Mr. Carrington 

 Raymond, who made such collections of birds, reptiles, and fishes as 

 his time and opportunities would allow, and succeeded in obtaining 

 several species not previously in the collection. 



Among the collections received during the year, not strictly made 

 by single expeditions or individuals, one presented by the Museum 

 d'Histoire Naturelle of Paris deserves especial mention. This consists 

 of the types of many of the genera of serpents described by M. Dumeril, 

 selected with special reference to American forms. A labelled collection 

 of land shells from Mr. Binney, and of rare eggs of North American 

 birds from Mr. John Krider, are also worthy of particular notice. 



PRESENT CONDITION OF THE MUSEUM. 



The museum of the Smithsonian Institution, as at present c )nstituted, 

 has been supplied with materials chiefly from the following sources : 



First. The collections brought from the Patent Office, and made up 

 principally of the results of various explorations. They are as follows : 



1. United States exploring expedition, under Captain Wilkes, 

 United States navy, 1838-1842. The collections made by this naval 

 expedition are supposed greatly to exceed those of any other of similar 

 character ever fitted out by a foreign government, no published 

 series of results comparing at all in magnitude with that issued under 

 the direction of the Joint Library Committee of Congress.* 



The collections made embrace full series of the animals, plants, 

 minerals, and ethnological material of the regions visited, such as 

 the coasts of South America, the islands of the South Seas, &c. 



2. Exploration of the Amazon and its tributaries, by Lieutenant 



* The following reports relating to the operations and collections of the expedition have 

 been published or are in press, the text in quarto, the plates in folio : 



1. Narrative of the expedition by Captain C. Wilkes, 5 vols, text, one of plates. 



Zoophytes. By Prof. J. D. Dana, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Geology and Mineralogy. By Prof. J D. Dana, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Crustacea. By Prof. J. D. Dana, 2 vols, and atlas. 



Philology. By Mr. Hale, 1 vol. 



Races of Man, By Dr. C. Pickering, 1 vol. 



Geographical Distribution of Species. By Dr. C. Pickering, 1 vol. 



Mammals and Birds. By T. R. Peale, 1 vol. 



Mammals and Birds, 2d edition. By J. Cassin, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Meteorology. By Captain Wilkes, 1 vol. 



Shells. By Dr. A. A Gould, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Reptiles. By Dr. C. Girard, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Ferns. By Mr. Breckenridge, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Botany. By Dr. Gray, 2 vols, and atlas. 



Botany of Western America. By Dr. Torrey, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Mosses. By Mr. Sullivant, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Fungi. By Messrs. Berkeley and Curtis, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Algae. By Prof. Bailey, 1 vol. and atlas. 



Charts. 2 vols, folio. 



In addition to these, the reix)rt on the fishes, by Professor Agassiz, is stated to be nearly 

 ready for the press. 



