70 ILLINOIS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE 



tion of the wealth of the fauna, the flora and the mineral 

 resources of the State. 



During the past few years there has been a substantial 

 growth of our museum materials in many lines both by 

 gift, purchase and collecting in the field. 



The collections of invertebrate paleontology number- 

 ing more than 30,000 specimens, Avhich have been in stor- 

 age for many years, are being worked over and put in 

 shape by Mr. A. W. Slocom of the University of Chicago 

 and Dr. A. F. Foerste of Dayton, Ohio. 



The mineral collections have been greatly increased 

 until now about 50 per cent of the commonly known min- 

 erals are represented, some of them by handsome speci- 

 mens, some by many pounds of material, and some by 

 minute examples. A case 15 feet long, 3 feet deep, 10 

 feet high has just been filled with Illinois mineral pro- 

 ducts of major importance. A "Guide to the Mineral 

 Collections in the Illinois State Museum," forming a 

 book of some 300 pages, is in the hands of the printer 

 at the University of Chicago Press. 



Minor advances have been made in conchology, ento- 

 mology, ichthyology^, herpetology and ornithology. The 

 ornithological collections now contain most of the species 

 of Illinois birds and there are six handsome groups with 

 transparent backgrounds and one group of wild turkeys. 



Two cases have recently been placed in the entrance 

 hall containing casts showing the development of the 

 horse in North America as worked out by Prof. Osborn 

 of the American Museum and others, and of the human 

 race, from the time of the Pithecanthropus to the Cro- 

 magnon man as represented by skulls found, in many 

 places by various anthropologists and by busts prepared 

 by Prof. J. H. McGregor. 



The general plan being followed in the museum is to 

 present Illinois materials chiefly, and when expenditures 

 are made to do a few things well rather than many 

 things. As the result of this plan a number of groups 

 have been completed and others are in preparation. The 

 deer group, with Avhich many of the members of the Acad- 

 emy are familiar has been followed by the completion of 



