REPORT ON THE DEPARTMENT OF FOSSIL PLANTS 

 IN THE U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1891. 



By Lester F. Ward, ffonornri/ Curator. 



The work dui'ingr the year lias beeu devoted ahnost entirely to the 

 installation and eare of Sfiecimens, and the collections are now in better 

 condition, for purposes of consultation and study, than ever before. 



IMPORTANT ACCES.SIONS. 



Undoubtedly the most important accessit>n during- the year is a col- 

 lection of Dakota j)lants sent by Prof. F. H. Snow, of the University of 

 Kansas. This collection, which embraced 135 specimens, representing 

 75 species, consists of especially fine specimens from the Dakota Group 

 of the central and western counties of Kansas, and had all been deter- 

 mined by Prof. Leo Lesquereux. A few are type specimens and many 

 are duplicates of tyi)es used by Prof. Lesquereux in ])reparing his elabo- 

 rate tiora of the Dakota Group about to be published by the U. S. 

 Geological Survey. 



Another highly important collection was that made by Capt. Bendire 

 in 1883, but now for the first time studied and identified. This collec- 

 tion, which embraces over 700 sjjecimens and 150 species, was made 

 by Capt. Bendire, at Bridge Creek, Wasco County, Oregon, and had 

 been ])la('ed in the hands of Prof. Les(iuereux for determination. Sev- 

 eral new species were detected among them, as well as others of con- 

 siderable interest. While not in the strictest sense a new accession, this 

 collection may be so regarded, since it first 1)ecame available for study 

 during this year. 



Collections or specimens of mor«* or less inqiortance were also received 

 from Mr. John IST. Sage, Mr. (x. van Ingen, Mr. Thomas Charlton, and 

 Messrs. J. S. Diller and J. Stanley-Brown. 



ROUTINE WORK. 



During the early part of the fiscal year the Museum was AA'ithout an 

 assistant for this department. 



The first week in August I sj)eiit in conipany with Mr. David White 



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