REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY, 33 



Florida; Mr. E. W. Yickers, Ellsworth, Ohio; Dr. Frank Furlong, care 

 of the steamship Galilee, Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Mr. Frank Burns, Suffolk, 

 Va. ; Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, for collecting in Arizona, and Mr. A. W. 

 Anthony, San Diego, Cal. 



DEVELOPMENT AND ARRANGEMENT OF THE EXHIBITION SERIES. 



In the department of mammals the exhibition series is practically 

 unchanged. A few specimens were withdrawn for a time for exhibi- 

 tion at Atlanta. The type of Ohanler's Reed Buck was put on a new 

 stand and added to the exhibition series, and a young lion and young 

 tiger were also placed upon exhibition. 



In tlie department of mollusks the exhibition series is in good condi- 

 tion, and has been beautified by the addition of a series of mounted 

 specimens illustrating the chief families of mollusks exhibited at the 

 Cotton States and International Exposition at Atlanta. A portion of 

 the exhibition series in the department of insects is now displayed in 

 the small room adjoining the hall occupied by the department of com- 

 parative anatomy. The work of renovating the mounted collection in 

 the department of birds, which was begun during the last fiscal year, 

 has been continued. The exhibition series of birds' eggs and nests is 

 in good condition, and it would be very desirable to increase it, were 

 this course now practicable. 



The synoptic series of invertebrates has been transferred from the 

 department of marine invertebrates to the department of comparative 

 anatomy, and the space which it formerly occupied will be devoted to 

 an exhibit of deep sea fishes. Some slight changes have been made in 

 the cases in the west hail of the Smithsonian building, and a number 

 of deep-sea sponges and corals, together with some holothurians in 

 alcoliol and a few starfishes, have been placed upon exhibition. Labels 

 have been printed for the holothurians, and labels for the starfishes 

 are in preparation. All of the named sponges on exhibition have also 

 been provided with printed labels. The table cases in this department 

 have been provided with casters, so that they may be readily moved 

 without danger of injuring the specimens. In the department of fishes, 

 there are five cases of plaster casts on exhibition, one case containing 

 stuffed fishes, a large number of casts on the tops of cases, and a small 

 group of land Gobies. 



The mounting of the exhibition series of Mesozoic and Tertiary 

 plants is now practically finished. In order to test the advantages of 

 mounting fossils upon tiles, the historical collection of fossils in the 

 department of geology was mounted in this manner. The results are 

 considered to be quite satisfactory. Although the tiles are necessarily 

 somewhat heavy, they are found to jjossess decided advantages over 

 paper, wood, slate, or ground-glass tablets. The study series of inver- 

 tebrate fossils has received attention, but much remains to be done 

 before an intelligent selection can be made for the final exhibition series. 

 NAT MUS 90 o 



