REPORT OF ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 47 



Dr. W. II. Eiisb, IT. S. N., sent iii oxchauge a number of typical S])ecimeu8 of inter- 

 esting shells from the Parana River and adjacent parts of South America. 



The U. S. Department of Agriculture presented a number of interesting jNIexican 

 species collected by Mr. K. W. Nelson. Several of these were now and most of the 

 others were not previously represented in the Museum series. 



Dr. DeWitt Woltb, St. Augustine, Florida, presented negatives of photographs of 

 a sea monster stranded near that place, named Octopua g'ujantcits by Professor Verrill. 

 Portions of the remnins, preserved in formalin, were also transmitted. 



Col. L. Worthington Wilmer gave a miscellaneous lot of shells from various 

 localities, some ()f wliicli were very acceptable. 



Mr. Berlin H. Wright, Penn Yan, New York, contributed a large number of inter- 

 esting Naiades, all of which filled gaps in the geographical series and several of 

 which were author's cotypes of new sjiocies. 



In the chapter entitled " Development and arrangement of the exhi- 

 bition series" will be found a statement relating to the exhibition 

 series in this department. A series of mounted specimens, illustrating 

 the families of mollusks, was sent to Nashville for exhibition at the 

 Tennessee Centennial Exposition. The study or reserve series has 

 been considerably increased during the year, and the whole collection 

 is in condition for reference by means of a card catalogue of the genera. 

 The material received from Professor Yerrill is now all labeled and 

 listed, but it will not be incorporated with the regular study series until 

 the remainder of the specimens have been received from him. The 

 work of registering the Jeffreys collection has progressed, althongh 

 slowly, on account of the extreme care which it is necessary to exercise 

 in handling the material. The reserve collection of alcoholics, except 

 the most recent accessions, is now catalogued on cards, more than 

 2,000 of the latter having been filled out dnring the year. The collec- 

 tion of duplicates is also fully catalogued and in perfect order. The 

 number of species represented is 4,174. The collection of minute 

 Helicida^ — Pupa, Vertigo, ri.si<(iuin, etc. — has been worked over and 

 named by Dr. V. Sterki, and may now be regarded as in complete 

 order for reference. 



The honorary curator makes the following statement regarding the 

 scientific work accomplished by members of the staff and by others not 

 connected with the department: 



The report on the land shells collected by the Mexican Boundary Commission has 

 been printed. The discussion of tlie insular land fauuic illustrated by the collec- 

 tions at the Galapagos Islands, by Dr. (J. liaur and others, is likewist; printed. 



The descriptions of the Autilleau Tertiary fos.^ils prepared by the curator from 

 the collections of the National Museum, including a revision of the mannscriiit sub- 

 mitted by Mr. R. J. L. Guppy, of Trinidad, West Indies, have also been published. 



Work has been continued by Mr. Chas. T. Simpson on his proposed monograph of the 

 Naiades, and fair progress has been made. The curator has continued to devote con- 

 siderable time to the Neocene fauna of Florida. The Pelecypods, up to and includ- 

 ing the PeetinidiB, are practically finished. This work involved complete revision of 

 the reserve series belonging to the Museum, as far as the work has gone. 



-Mr. II. A. Pilsltry, of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, has been 

 studying the collection of Scaplio)>ods, which is one of the largest in the world, in 

 connection with liis monograph of that grouj), now in prei)a ration, lie has also 

 luilized the collection of the genus JiiiUinns for the same purpose. 



