170 Stone, Some Philadelphia Collections and Collectors. [ (^ 



Peale is the son of the original proprietor of the Philadelphia 

 Museum, and one who visited the Rocky Mountains with Major 

 Long; he is a young man, and has no remarkable indications of 

 countenance to distinguish him. Say, who was his companion 

 in the same expedition, is an extremely interesting man ; to him I 

 am particularly obligated for showing me their Museum and 

 Library. I think he told me that their society had published 

 nine volumes. . . . Bonaparte is the son of Lucien Bonaparte and 

 nephew to the Emperor Napoleon ; he is a little set, blackeyed 

 fellow, quite talkative, and withal an interesting and companion- 

 able fellow. He devotes his attention to ornithology and has pub- 

 lished a continuation of Wilson's work on the above subject. . . . 

 Hays, an interesting Jew, delivered a lecture on mineralogy. He 

 had collected his specimens in the Catskill Mountains. C. L. 

 Bonaparte read a memoir on the 'Golden Plover.' To a novice 

 it seems curious, that men of the first intellect should pay so 

 much attention to web-footed gentry with wings. 



" A Latin letter was read by Mr. Col/ins descriptive of a certain 

 plant, growing on the waters of the Arkansaw ; for my part I did 

 not understand much of it — however it was to those who did not 

 the less valuable. " 1 



The attendance at this meeting was indeed a remarkable 

 assemblage. As an ornithologist Bonaparte was by far the most 

 celebrated, and though at this date he was but twenty-two years 

 of age he had already published the first volume of his ' American 

 Ornithology ' and laid the foundations for the study of nomencla- 

 ture and synonymy which has to day developed to such formidable 

 proportions. Say and Peale both made their mark in ornithology, 

 the former in his descriptions of the birds obtained on Long's 

 expedition and the latter in the report on the birds of 

 the U. S. Exploring Expedition to the South Seas. Peale was 

 also famous as a collector, and many of the novelties described 

 by Bonaparte owed their discovery to his energetic labors in 

 the field. 



1 Penna. Mag. of Hist, and Biography, Vol. XVI, p. 249 (July 1S92). 

 Reference to the manuscript minutes of the Academy shows that this meeting 

 occurred on Oct. n. George Ord presided, and among the other members 

 present were Dr. Godman and S. G. Morton. 



