PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 235 



Yesterday', hearing that the bones of a hirge animal were washing- 

 out of a clay bank at Eeef Point, on the eastern side of the Pleasant 

 liiver, 3 miles below this village, I visited the spot to see some of the 

 remains in situ. I then dug out several pieces of rib and a forearm. 



The Point, which is iu cultivation, is 15 feet above high water, and 

 has been washing away for many years. Mr. Oliver Look, the owner of 

 the property, informs me that it has washed off 100 feet within the last 

 sixty years. He also showed me a tusk with a portion of the socket 

 attached, which he dug out here a few days since, and from whicli 1 

 judge the remains to be those of a walrus. I inclose a rough sketch 

 and also a small piece of scale from the tusk that Crime off in my hand 

 while milking the sketch. These bones are in stiff blue clay about 2 

 feet above high water iu a nearly vertical bank, there being feet of 

 the clay above them and above that some G feet of gravel and soil. 



Nearly opposite, on the west side of the bay, I found a kitclien mid- 

 den, now covered with a growth of hard wood. From it I obtained, by 

 digging, three pieces of chipped flint and a bear's tooth. 



The exact location of both these "finds" can be obtained, if desired, 

 from our topograpliical sheet now in progress, by application to Profes- 

 sor Hilgard, assistant in charge of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. 

 Very i^espectfully, your obedient servant, 



C. H. BOYD, 

 Assistant, C. and G. Survey. 



Prof. Spen€ER F. Baied, 



Secretary Smithsonian Institution. 



nRWtECTJOTiH FOB COLLiECTIKG AIVD PKESERTllVG FISH. 



By TARLETON H. BEAN. 



1. Wash the fish thoroughly in water, to remove the slime and dirt 

 that are almost invariably present ujion them, not omitting the inside 

 of the mouth and the gills. In cleansing fish tliat have a tough, scale- 

 less skin, or such as have the scales firmly fixed, use a stiff' paint brush 

 or a scrubbing brush; for thin-skinned fish and such as have deciduous 

 scales, a softer brush must be taken. Some fish are covered plentifully 

 with tenacious mucus that is with great difficulty removed by water 

 alone; in such cases a solution of two fablespoonfuls of alum in a pint 

 of lukewarm water will be found efficacious. 



2. It is often necessary to preserve fish that are stale, or partially 

 digested, and ott'ensi^'e to the smell. Such examples may be thoroughly 

 disinfected by the use of the disinfecting solution of chloride of soda. 

 Use a tablespoonful of the solution in one pint of water. With this 

 wash the gills, and pour it into the mouth and stomach, allowing it to 

 return by the mouth. 



