44 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1898. 



(For a detailed list of loans see page 64.) The loans of botanical 

 material liave been very nnmerous, aggregating in all abont 3,900 

 specimens. Included in the records of loans are the names of the 

 botanical departments of (Columbia, Cornell, and Harvard universities 

 and other universities and colleges, together with botanical gardens 

 and museums at home and abroad. In addition to these loans of 

 specimens the collections have been studied in Washington by numer- 

 ous specialists during the j^ear. The naturalists of the U. S. Fish Com- 

 mission and of the Biological Survey and other bureaus of the Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture have of course had free access to the collections, 

 and have made use ol" them to a considerable extent. 



The publications for the year (a list of which will be found in the 

 Bibliography) show a gratifying activity on th'e part of the scientific 

 staff of the department, and indicate also the large extent to which 

 the collections are being used by naturalists generally. 



Considerable time was occupied during the year in preparations for 

 an exhibit at the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition, at 

 Omaha, Nebraska. The exhibit which was planned by the head cura- 

 tor, and assembled with great success by the heads of the several divi- 

 sions, consists of a representation of the aquatic faunas and marine 

 plants of the United States. Ever}^ group of aiiimals inhabiting our 

 waters is included, from the lowest to the highest, and an extensive 

 and most excellent series of seaweeds. The large mounted birds and 

 the casts of fishes and reptiles are displayed in a large wall case con- 

 structed for the purpose. The remainder of the exhibit is shown in 

 narrow floor cases, with full plate glass fronts. It includes some novel- 

 ties, such as jelly fish preserve 1 in formalin, which have probably not 

 been seen at any previous exposition. The whole series is carefully 

 labeled. 



