CIk Uktorian naturalist 



Vol. XXXIL— No. 3. JULY 8, 1915. No. 379. 



FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. 



The thirty-fifth annual meeting of the Club was held at the 

 Royal Society's Hall on Monday, 14th June, IQ15. 



The president. Mr. J. A. Kershaw, F.E.S., occupied the chair, 

 and about 40 visitors and members were present. 



REPORT. 



A report of the excursion to the National Museum on Satur- 

 day, 12th June, was given by the leader, Mr. J. A. Kershaw, 

 F.E.S., who intimated that twelve members attended at the 

 time appointed. A visit was first made to the library, and thence 

 to the cataloguing department, where the system adopted by 

 the Museum for the identification and particularization of each 

 specimen purchased, presented, or received by exchange was 

 explained. The carpenters' workshop was next inspected, and 

 the details of the construction of a large show-case, nearing 

 completion, gone into. The party then proceeded to the work 

 and finishing rooms. In the former the various processes of 

 skinning the animal received and preparing the skin and 

 skeleton for mounting were illustrated by means of the remains 

 of a young hippopotamus and an alligator. In the latter, 

 finished specimens — one being an albatross having a wing spread 

 of over nine feet — and others in the course of completion were 

 examined. An inspection of a small portion of the entomo- 

 logical collection was made, and the manner of mounting and 

 particularizing specimens demonstrated. A collection of 

 butterflies, and some rare skins of Birds-of-Paradise, were 

 shown, and occasioned considerable interest — the former by their 

 iridescent play of colour, and the latter by the delicate nature 

 of the rich-hued plumes and the varied forms assumed by the 

 naked feather-shafts. A visit was next paid to the basement 

 of the Museum, in the bays of which are stored thousands of 

 specimens of fishes, crustaceans, &c, in spirit. These speci- 

 mens, it was pointed out, were not made available for inspec- 

 tion by the general public. In order to preserve the natural 

 colouring of the specimens, and to conserve the spirit in which 

 they were placed, it was necessary to eliminate daylight as 

 far as possible; hence their storage in the dimly-lighted 

 recesses. The Australian Court was finally visited, and partially 

 inspected, and about 5 o'clock the party dispersed, after having 

 expressed themselves well pleased with their visil 



