32 /REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 3899. 



Brewer, representing the types described in the Botany of the CaUfornia Survey, has 

 been most carefully prepared with all the original data mounted with the specimens, 

 which will be determined and distributed as rapidly as possible. 



The selection, verification, and marking of type specimens has been delayed, 

 owing to the resignation last December of the preparator employed on this work. 

 The total number of types thus far indicated is 1,619. It is important that this work 

 be continued, both for the advantage it affords to consulting Ijotanists and for the 

 desirability of ascertaining definitely the exact number of types in the collection. 



In the rearrangement of and research work on the collection considerable progress 

 has been made. We have introduced genus covers printed in colors to correspond 

 with the larger continental areas, the North American being black, the West Indian, 

 Mexican, and South American red, and the Old World blue. An extension of this 

 scheme is now under consideration. 



The herbarium is now in orderly arrangement as far as the Ericaceae, and the work 

 on it will be pushed during the coming year. 



The south tower room has been fitted up for the acconnnodation of the crypto- 

 gamic collections by the addition of an iron balcony supporting cases on three sides, 

 with a stairway leading to an attic room provided with cases suitable for storage 

 purposes. For several months Mr. O. F. Cook, now honorary assistant curator in 

 charge of Cryptogamic Botany, very kindly gave his services and those of his two 

 assistants in caring for these collections. Mr. Cook was commissioned to prepare an 

 exhil)it of algas for the Trans-Mississippi Exposition at Omaha, and this wdrk was 

 brought to completion in the early part of last summer. A supplementary series has 

 been placed on the exhibition front of the east balcony. It soon became evident 

 that an officer would shortly be required to devote his entire attention to the valua- 

 ble cryptogamic collections, many of which still remain inaccessible for study. 

 Early in January Mr. William R. Maxon was employed on a six months' contract 

 to put these collections in order, and he is now, after most faithful and painstaking 

 labor, able to report the practical completion of his task. In the three main groups 

 of the lower cryptogams, the mosses, fungi, and lichens, all undetermined material 

 has been sorted out and will be sent to specialists in those groups for identification 

 and return; while the large accumulations of unmounted material have been prop- 

 erly placed in pockets and labeled, ready for distribution on the shelves. Mr. Maxon 

 has also distributed several thousand mounted sheets of ferns and fern allies, read- 

 justing the covers and identifying dul)ious specimens. During the past few weeks 

 he has l)een engaged in caring for the large collection of alcoholic material sent in by 

 Messrs. Swingle and Fairchild. 



FIELD WORK. 



Several members of the scientific staff of the department engaged in 

 field work during the year. The fishes of the State of New York were 

 studied by Dr. T. H. Bean and Mr. B. A. Bean, on Long Island. 



Mr. W H. Dall, Mr. Robert Ridgway, and Mr. F. V. Coville joined 

 the Harriman Alaska expedition and made investigations of the mol- 

 lusks, birds, and plants of that Territory. Miss M. J. Rathbun spent 

 a month at Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick, studying the shore 

 invertebrates and dredging in shallow water. 



INVESTIGATIONS. 



A large number of scientific investigations were in progress, the 

 results of some of which were published during the year. Mr. G. S. 

 Miller, jr., published several short papers on mammals and partially 



