1.5(5 The Wilson Bulletin — No. (i+. 



The Summer Redbird may be, at the present time, extremely 

 rare, or extinct in the region referred to. Our bird men have 

 given the land birds of the southern interior onl\- a desultory 

 attention. My comment should not be taken as an indorsement 

 of the entire quotation from Wilson. That the conditions ex- 

 isting at the present time in certain parts of New Jersey are 

 more favorable to a richer southern bird life than soulheastern 

 Pennsylvania can offer, Mr. Stone testifies in his Summei' 

 Birds of the Pine Barrens of New Jers^ey. (Cf. Auk. \'ol. XI, 

 p. 134.) 



From a very reliable source I learn that the Peale collections 

 occupied a commodicus building at Ninth and Samson streets 

 in 183S. It was to be known thereafter as the Philadelphia 

 Museum, but it was built and managed by members of the 

 Peale family. The enterprise of the Peales was marvelous and 

 the city owes much to that name ; but at last they had over- 

 reached themselves, for after a struggle of about six years they 

 were obliged to dispose of a part of this great collection ; por- 

 tions going to Boston, Baltimore, and to Barnum for his Phila- 

 delphia and New York museums. An effort was made to con- 

 tinue to exhibit the better portion remaining, in Masonic Hall, 

 which also came to be known, as the Academy of Fine Arts and 

 Peale's Museum Theatre, on Chestnut street, between Seventh 

 and Eighth ; in August, 1846, by John Sefton, but it was closed 

 in July, 1847. The large collection of Peale portraits was not 

 disposed of until 1854. The Peale or Philadelphia museum 

 building at Ninth and Samson burned down the same year. 

 Barnum's museum, a larg'e five-story building at the southeast 

 corner of Seventh and Chestnut streets, had been reduced to 

 ashes three years before. The loss on collections and fixture 

 was stated to have been $50,000. (Cf. Scharf and Westcott's 

 History of Philadelphia. ) Mr. Stone has already stated how 

 Barnum's museum in New York city was destroyed. It is to 

 be hoped that we will have further enlightenment in relation 

 to the Wilson types discovered in Boston. 



As Mr. vStone infers, the last are typographical errors ; Wm, 

 P. Turnbull being correctly cited in the References. 



Frx\nk L. Burns. 



