14 THE AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL 
Gold from placer diggings in Alaska aggregating about 4 pounds troy 
in weight; a wonderful crystal and a magnificent group of ruby-red 
Tourmaline (Rubellite) of gem quality and deep color from the noted 
locality at Pala near San Diego, California; and a block of quartzite 
from New South Wales bearing a surface of more than 90 square 
inches of Precious Opal. 
Turespay, October 30, the National Association of Audubon Socie- 
ties for the Protection of Wild Birds and Animals held its annual meeting 
in the West Assembly Hall. 
THe Museum recently acquired by purchase a fine collection from 
the Samoan Islands. Among other things this contains a complete 
outfit for the manufacture of bark or “‘tapa” cloth. In the manufacture 
of this cloth, single strips of bark from a species of mulberry are pre- 
pared by scraping and soaking in water, after which they are beaten 
out very thin by means of small wooden clubs. ‘These thin sheets, 
while still wet, are laid one over another and the whole beaten together 
to form a large sheet of uniform thickness. Such bark cloth is in some 
respects a kind of paper, but it is serviceable as cloth since it is not easily 
damaged by water. ‘The finished cloth is often ornamented by printing, 
orrather rubbing. For this purpose designs in relief are carved on wood 
or built up of palm-leaf cuttings, upon which the cloth is laid and 
rubbed with sticks of coloring matter, like crayon. ‘This leaves an 
impression of the raised portion of the carving similar to that produced 
when a school-boy rubs the impression of a coin into the fly-leaf of his 
book. Aside from the tapa outfit, the collection contains several hand- 
some pieces of finished cloth and a number of costumes, household 
utensils and other implements. It is proposed to install this collection 
together with other material in the Museum as a special exhibit from 
one of the colonial possessions of the United States. 
Dr. E. O. Hovey of the Department of Geology returned in the 
latter part of October from the convention in Mexico of the Tenth 
International Geological Congress to which he was sent as the delegate 
of the Museum. ‘The convention met in Mexico City September 6 to 
14, inclusive, and was attended by many of the prominent geologists 
of Europe as well as of the United States. Dr. Hovey brought back 
with him a large series of specimens of ores, rocks and fossils and 
many photographs (negatives) for the Museum collections. 
