SYNOPSIS OF PROCEEDINGS. 



303 



who choose to place themselves within the reach of its exercise. The 

 year has certainly shown what may be accomplished in this direction. 

 Definite ideas are thus gathered as to the varied objects of natural his- 

 tory upon our shelves. As a consequence visitors go away satisfied 

 with and emphasizing their satisfaction with what they have learned. 

 A new interest is thus awakened which it is hoped will go on deepen- 

 ing, and doubling in intensity, and in time it is hoped it may become 

 a powerful factor for permanent good to the Academy. 



I need not say this has been a work of time, and has interfered most 

 materially with the special labor which the curator most desired to ac- 

 complish. This labor was partially outlined in his last report. He 

 there emphasized the necessity of a thorough revision of the fossils con- 

 tained in our collection. It will be remembered that many of the 

 specimens gathered at an early date were deposited on the shelves 

 with scarcely any notice other than that of locality, some Avanting even 

 that. These required study and identification. No science has made 

 more rapid advances during the past twenty years than that of palaeon- 

 tology. New genera and new species are constantly being discovered 

 and described, so that the nomenclature of to-day is widely different 

 from that of a few years ago. This change calls for an entire and rad- 

 ical change in the classification of our fossils. The work is in satis- 

 factory progress and would have been finished but for the frequent 

 interruptions to vvhich reference has been already made. The curator 

 has procured a book in which will be recorded the names of fossils as 

 given years ago and then the new names by which they are now known, 

 with full references to the authorities in accordance with which the 

 changes have been made. 



Thus, it seems from the standpoint of the curator the past year has 



brought with it much to encourage us. It has witnessed the gradual 



increase of the museum, as well as valuable additions to its collection. 



It has ministered to the necessities of those who most needed its aid. 



Its teaching power has been brought into contact with every visitor 



and its efficiency abundantly proven, and it is hoped the special 



work of the curator in the palseontological department will issue in a 



thorough scientific classification of the palaeontological treasures now 



scattered over its shelves. , ^ 



T^ , o W. H. Barris. 



h ebruary 3, 1892. 



librarian's report. 



To THE Officers and Members of the Davenport Academy of 

 Natural Sciences : 



The library of the Academy for the year just closed has exhibited a 

 very gratifying growth, the accessions numbering 1,702, exclusive of 

 the daily papers, the present total being 26,203. ^t was thought best 

 at the beginning of the year to discontinue registering a great amount 

 of matter which daily comes to us and is of no value or interest on 

 the shelves, else the number would have been much larger. 



