290 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1889. 



The first six weeks of the fiscal year (which include;! a stay of two 

 weeks in Cincinnati) were devoted to the arrangement and labeling of 

 the exhibit of Biblical Archaeology for the Centennial Exposition of 

 the Ohio Valley. The last two weeks of August, as much time as could 

 be spared from the work at the Johns Hopkins University during the 

 winter, and the latter part of May and June were speut in arranging, 

 labeling and putting on exhibition specimens acquired, in conducting 

 correspondence with a view t > increasing the collection, in gathering a 

 working library for the use of the Section and of properly accredited 

 Orientalists visiting Washington, in the preparation of a report on the 

 progress of oriental science in America during 1S88, and in the trans- 

 action of the business connected with the meeting of the Eighth Inter- 

 national Congress of Orientalists at Stockholm. 



The collection of casts of Babylonian and Assyrian seals has grown 

 satisfactorily during the year. 



While attending the exhibition at Marietta, Ohio, in July 1888, Mr. 

 W. V. Cox, chief clerk of the Museum, and Mr. J. Elfreth Watkins, 

 Curator of the Section of Transportation and Engineering, noticed a 

 Persian seal; they secured an impression of this object, which was for- 

 warded along with the name of its owner, Maj. E. C. Dawes. The cor- 

 respondence which followed, resulted in Major Dawes offering his small 

 collection for copy, accompanied by the information of the expected 

 return to this country of their collector, the Bev. Dr. J. H. Shedd. Dr. 

 Shedd also sent a small collection for copy and gave information of the 

 existence of a collection made by himself, but sold some time since; 

 through the instrumentality of Mr. A. Van Name, Librarian of Yale 

 College, this collection was traced to the hands of Prof. O. C. Marsh, of 

 New Haven, who placed it at the disposal of the Museum for copy. 



The small but valuable collection of Miss M. W. Bruce, of New 

 York, to which attention was first called by Madame Zenaide A. 

 Bagoziu,* was secured for copy through the instrumentality of Madame 

 Ragozin. It includes three cylinder seals and six contract tablets. 



President D. C. Gilman, of the Johns Hopkins University called atten- 

 tion to a communication from Prof. Spencer F. Baird, under date of Jan- 

 uary 29, 1864, in which he referred to objects " collected at Babylon and 

 Nineveh, by my old pupil, Rev. Israel S. Diehl." A careful search 

 revealed no trace of their whereabouts, but with the assistance of 

 Bishop Newman, it was found that they were in possession of Mrs. 

 Anna Randall Diehl, of New York, who deposited the collection of 

 seals in the Museum, 



The manner of obtaining these small objects has been dwelt upon to 

 show how they are scattered throughout the country, and how the 

 kind assistance of friends of learning is necessary to rescue them from 

 their hiding places. 



'Media, in tlie Story of the Xations series, page 251, 



