XIII -DEPARTMENT OF FOSSIL PLANTS. 



By Lester F. Ward, Honorarii Curator. 



Only a few scattering accessions have been made to the department 

 during the year, and no work strictly appertaining to the cnratorship 

 was undertaken until tifter the beginning of November, owing to my not 

 having anj' assistants and to being constantly employed in the prepara- 

 tion of reports for the Geological Survey. The material which I am 

 elaborating for these reports will, however, be ultimately turned over to 

 the Museum, and will largely increase its collections. 



On November 5, Mr. Frank H. Knowlton was assignetl to duty in the 

 Department of Fossil Plants, and since that date he has been employed 

 in devising and perfecting a system of cataloguing and installing the ac- 

 cessions. A large amount of miscellaneous and undetermined material 

 had accumulated which it had been impossible for me to attend to, and 

 this he has carefully and intelligently examined, classified, and cata- 

 logued. This material, therefore, I am now able, for the first time, to em- 

 brace in my enumeration of stock in hand. Mr. Knowlton has also 

 performed a large number of minor duties incident to the routine work 

 of the department which had been deferred for want of time, and is in- 

 trusted with the care of specimens as they ariive, and with all clerical 

 work, which I hope may hereafter be attended to without delay. 



^Ir. A. L. Schott, formerly of the Botanic Garden, who has been em- 

 ployed in the Museum to attend to the palms and other ornamental 

 l)lants in the rotunda and on the adjacent balconies, was also assigned 

 to mj' department early in November, and the permit-^sion given me to 

 command his services during such portion of the time as they were not 

 required in the care of the plants intrusted to his charge. The great 

 need I was laboring under of specimens of living plants for comparison 

 with fossil impressions, coupled with Mr. Sehott's peculiar fitness for 

 collecting the exotic plants of the parks, streets, and greenhouses of 

 the city, determined me to intrust him with the duty of making such a 

 collection. It gives me pleasure to testify to the intelligent and satis- 

 factory manner in which he has performed this duty. The specimens 

 he daily brings, and which are carefullj' dried and preserved, represent 

 species from all parts of the world, and especially from the tropics and 



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