ADVERTISEMENT. 



The object of the General Appendix to the Annual Report of the 

 Smithsonian Institution is to furnish Ijrief accounts of scientific discov- 

 ery in particular directions; reports of investigations made by collab- 

 orators of the Institution; and memoirs of a general character or on 

 special topics that are of interest or value to the numerous correspond- 

 ents of the Institution. 



It has l)een a prominent object of the Board of Regents of the Smith- 

 sonian Institution, from a very earlj- date, to enrich the annual report 

 required of them by law with memoirs illustrating the more remarka- 

 l)le and important developments in physical and V)iological discovery, 

 is well as showing the general character of the operations of the Insti- 

 tution; and this purpose has, during the greater part of its history, 

 l)een carried out largely ))v the publication of such papers as would 

 possess an interest to all attracted by scientific progress. 



In 1880 the Secretary, induced in part by the discontinuance of an 

 annual summary of progress which for thirty 3'ears previous had been 

 issued by well-known private publishing .firms, had prepared by com- 

 petent collaborators a series of abstracts, showing conciseh' the prom- 

 inent features of recent scientific progress in astrononn-. geology, 

 meteorolog}', physics, chemistry, mineralogy, botany, zoologv, and 

 anthropology. This latter plan was continued, though not altogether 

 satisfactorily, down to and including the year 1888. 



In the report for 1889 a return was made to the earlier method of 

 presenting a miscellaneous selection of papers (some of them original) 

 embracing a considerable range of scientific investigation and discus- 

 sion. This method has been continued in the present report, for 1901. 



143 



