48 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1918. 



cataloguer for a period of about five months. This made possible, 

 also, the cataloguing of a considerable portion of the grass herbarium 

 which was unstamped when transferred to the Museum by the De- 

 partment of Agriculture. Of the 70,000 previously unstamped grass 

 specimens fully one-half are now stamped and recorded. 



Mr. Frederick V. Coville, curator, continued his studies of 

 Yaccinium, and in collaboration with Mr. Standley he is engaged 

 in the preparation of manuscript of the family Vacciniaceae for the 

 North American Flora. Dr. J. N. Rose, associate curator, carried 

 forward his investigations of the Cactaceae in collaboration with Dr. 

 N. L. Britton, director-in-chief of the New York Botanical Garden, 

 work which was undertaken in 1911 under the auspices of the Car- 

 negie Institution of Washington. In addition he completed a sup- 

 plementary treatment of the family Crassulaceae for the North 

 American Flora, the volume of which this family forms a part hav- 

 ing been otherwise finished. Mr. William R. Maxon, associate cura- 

 tor, in addition to curatorial and administrative duties, continued 

 his researches on the North American ferns, especially those of the 

 western United States. He has recently undertaken the preparation 

 of a descriptive account of the ferns of Porto Rico. Mr. Standley 

 carried forward his study of the North American representatives of 

 the family Rubiaceae in connection with the North American Flora 

 and completed manuscript for about half of the family. He made 

 substantial progress also on a synoptical work dealing with the trees 

 and shrubs of Mexico. A manual of the flora of the vicinity of 

 Washington was finished during the year and accepted for publica- 

 tion. Undertaken cooperatively by a majority of the Washington 

 botanists primarily interested in systematic botany, the manual was 

 completed under the editorship of Mr. A. S. Hitchcock and Mr. Paul 

 C. Standley, who brought into general agreement the manuscripts 

 of the other contributors associated with them. The volume will 

 appear under their joint authorship, due credit being given to collab- 

 orators. Mr. E. S. Steele, editorial assistant, who toward the end 

 of the year was transferred to a position in the Department of Agri- 

 culture, brought well toward completion his work on the Lccclniarla. 



Capt. John Donnell Smith, associate in botany, continued his stud- 

 ies of tropical American plants during the past year, making use of 

 material in the National Herbarium. As heretofore the herbarium 

 was used freely by members of the scientific staff of the Department 

 of Agriculture, and botanists from elsewhere who visited the her- 

 barium during the past year were : Prof. Kwan Koriba of the College 

 of Agriculture, Hokkaido Imperial University, Sappore, Japan ; Dr. 

 John K. Small of the New York Botanical Garden, New York City ; 

 Prof. O. E. Jennings of the Carnegie Museum of Pittsburgh; Mr. 

 F, S. Collins of North Eastham. Massachusetts; and Mr. C. A, 



