10 



MUSEUM. 



In last year's Report mention was made of the " Argo " Expedition to 

 the West Indies. 



During the past year a A^olume has been published, entitled Notes of a 

 Field Naturalist in the Western Tropics, by the Eev. H. H. Higgins, who 

 accompanied Mr. Cholmondeley on behalf of this Committee, giving a 

 very interesting account of the results. 



Professor Alexander Agassiz, Curator and Trustee of the Museum of 

 Comparative Zoologj' at Harvard College, Massachusetts, spent two days 

 at the Museum, in February, examining the collection of Sea Urchins, 

 Starfishes, &c. ; and was entertained at a special lunch by the Mayor 

 and at a dinner by the Liverpool Art Club, both given in honour of hia 

 visit and of the friendly relations existing between the two Museums. 



Dr. Franz Steindachner, Director of the Imperial Royal Zoological 

 Museum of Vienna, paid a visit to the Museum in August, and 

 spent four days in the examination of the collection of Fishes. 



A very important accession has been made during the year to the 

 Mineralogical Department by the presentation of the Rutter-Phillips 

 Collection of Minerals, formerly in the Medical Institution of Liverpool. 

 This collection was made and classified by the late William Phillips, 

 F.L.S., and at his decease was purchased by Dr. Rutter, formerly an 

 eminent physician in the town. It was bequeathed by him to the Medical 

 Institution under certain trusts, which, by the consent of the Trustees, 

 have been superseded, and the collection has been unconditionally 

 handed over to this Institution. Its value is estimated at about £1,300. 



STATISTICS. 



The visitors to the Museum during the year have been as follow : — 



1875-6. 1876-7. Decrease. 



Total Day Visitors . : 477,582 435,012 42,570 



Weekly Average 9,010 8,365 645 



Daily Average 2,211 2,051 160 



The general depression of trade throughout the country has very 

 probably tended to diminish the number of visitors during the present 

 year. It is known to have done so at other similar institutions, by 

 diminishing the number of excursionists and visitors from a distance. 



The 18th of October, 1877, was the sixteenth anniversary of the 

 opening of the Museum in the present building. During that time the 



