Letters, Extracts, Notices, ^c. 661 



The rearrangement of the specimens in the Public Gallery 

 has made great progress^ and nearly one-half of this section 

 is now completed. The most competent taxidermists have 

 been employed, and every effort has been made to render 

 the specimens exhibited in the Public Gallery as true to 

 nature as can be achieved by the art of the bird-stuffer. 

 The mounting of the specimens has been mainly executed by 

 Mr. J. Cullingford, of Durham, and Mr. E. Pickhardt, of 

 London. 



Simultaneously with the reorganization of the exhibition 

 series in the Bird Gallery, the badly mounted and unsuitable 

 specimens have been removed, and have either been trans- 

 ferred to the duplicates, or, when of historical value, care- 

 fully unmounted and incorporated in the stady series. 



The groups illustrating the nesting-habits of British birds 

 are now so nearly complete that additions to this series can 

 be expected to take place only at rare intervals. During 

 1898 the nests of the Grey Lag Goose and the Common 

 Partridge have been added ; as well as a beautiful pair of 

 Glaucous Gulls with their nestlings, procured on Waigats 

 Island by Mr. Henry J. Pearson, and presented by him to 

 the Museum, 



The actual number of specimens registered during the 

 past year has been 30,144. All these have been incorpo- 

 rated, and the recent acquisitions have been neatly labelled. 

 Much assistance in the latter work has been voluntarily 

 given by Miss Dorothy Bate and Mr. Robert Reid. 



The following account of the additions to the National 

 Collection of birds is extracted from the same report : — 



The total number of additions to this group is 23,710, of 

 which the following deserve especial mention : — 



The Seebohm bequest of 13,460 specimens. Another 

 instalment of the Salvin-Godman collection, containing 3408 

 specimens, additional to those mentioned in previous reports. 

 The Blanford collection, consisting of 1344 specimens from 

 various parts of the Indian Empire; presented by Dr. W. T. 

 Blanford, P.R.S. 



33 birds from Eranz-Josef Land, obtained during the 

 SER. VII. VOL. V. 2y 



