REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRKTAKY. ()7 



William Palmer iind Mr. Paul Haitsch, in the Dismal Swamp, Vir^-inia; 

 by Mr. Harold Heath, in Monterey Bay, California, and l»y the Bio- 

 log-ieal La])()rat()ry. at Cold Spring Harbor, New York. 



Mr. August Busek, of the Department of Agrieulture, wIkj accompa- 

 nied the Fish Commission expedition to Porto Rico, obtained tlu>re a val- 

 uable collection of insects, which has been transferred to the Museum. 

 Agents of the Department of Agriculture, collecting in Mexico, have 

 contributed small lunnbers of moUusks. som«^ of which are valual)le in 

 charactei'. 



At the close of the year Dr. .1. N. Rose was engaged in botanical 

 work in Mexico. Mr. Walter Evans, who visited Alaska for the 

 DepartnuMit of Agriculture, brought liack with him a tine series of 

 plants, which has been transferred to the Museum. The explorations 

 by memljers of the Biological Survey of the same department, chiefly 

 in the far West, have added much Aaluable material to the Herbarium. 

 Important collections in botany have been made in Europe by Mr. W. 

 T. Swingle and Mr. D. G. Fairchild. A number of Mexican plants 

 collected by ]\Ir. E. W, Nelson have been obtained by purchase. 



The Department of Geology acquired an extensive series of Upper 

 Silurian fossils, collected in the vicinity of Lockport, New York, for 

 the ]\Iuseum by Mr. H. E. Dickhaut, of the U. S. Geological Survey; 

 and a large lot of Hamilton corals from near Iowa City, and Kinder- 

 hook corals from the vicinity of Burlington, in the State of Iowa, col- 

 lected by Mr. Paul Bartsch. 



Explorations b}" the Geological Survey have been illustrated by two 

 collections of fossil plants, one representing the Lower Coal Measure, 

 of Henry County, Missouri; the other the Car))oniferous formation in 

 the vicinit}^ of McAlester. Indian Territory. Both of these lots have 

 been described by jNIr. David White, whose papers will be published 

 by the Survey. 



Geological material obtained in Europe l)y Mr. F. W. Crosby has 

 been added to the collection. 



Collectors'' outfits. — Outfits have Jjeen furnished to the following- 

 persons, who have undertaken to collect material for the ^Museum: 

 Mr. J. S. Holmes, Bowmans Bluff, North Carolina; Mr. D. W. 

 Prentiss, jr., Washington, District of Columbia; Dr. E. A. Mearns, 

 U. S. A.; Lieut. J. W. Daniel, Lynchburg, Virginia; Mr. Milton 

 Whitney, Department of Agriculture; Mr. M. C. Long, Kansas City, 

 Missouri; Dr. B. W. Evermann, U. S. Fish Commission; Rev. Paul D. 

 Bergen, Chefoo, China; Mr. A. B. Baker, National Zoological Park; 

 Lieut. H. E. Wetherill, Manila, Philippine Islands; Connnander 

 George E. Ide, U. S. N., Brooklyn Navy -Yard, New York; Sir Charles 

 Eliot, British commissioner to Samoa; Connnander J. C. Cantwell, 

 U. S. N., Seattle, Washington; Mr. Leon .1. Guthrie, Willemstad, 



