BOSTON SOCIETY OF NATURAL HISTORY. 59 



work done in one year upon the Herbarium ; work, too, that was not only desirable in 

 order to make the collection useful, but absolutely necessary to prevent its destruction. 

 It was the first of a series of years during which Mr. Charles J. Sprague devoted almost 

 all hi.s leisure afternoons and holidays to bringing order out of disorder, with the view of 

 making available many thousand species before inaccessible to examination, and of pre- 

 serving the plants and increasing the collection. 



The report of the Treasurer exhibited a balance of $1102.69 in his hands, including that 

 belonging to the Courtis fund. 



Upon the election of officers Dr. J. B. S. Jackson was chosen Curator of Crustacea and 

 IJadiata. in place of Mr. W. 0. Ayres, and Mr. T. J. Whittemore, Curator of Conchology? 

 in place of Mr. William Stimpson. 



At this meeting a motion was made by Mr. Bouve and adopted, that a committee be ap- 

 pointed to take measures, if decided expedient by them, for the purchase of the collec- 

 tion of Ornithichnites, so called, belonging to the estate of the late Mr. Marsh, of Green- 

 field. 



The committee, consisting of Mr. James M. Barnard, Mr. Francis Alger, Dr. Brewer and 

 Mr. Bouve, feeling the great importance of securing for the Society the collection soon to 

 be disposed of at auction, obtained by subscription a considerable sum towards its purchase, 

 and detailed two of their number, Mr. Alger and Mr. Bouve, to be present at the sale. 

 They attended and bought a large part of the whole for about $ 1400. Thus the Society 

 became the possessor of several of the large and valuable slabs covered with footprints, 

 which now adorn the entrance hall of the Museum, and of many other specimens contained 

 in the Cabinet. One of these, Prof. Hitchcock of Amherst College pronounced the best 

 and largest slab of fossil footprints ever found, or that in his opinion ever would be found. 



The President had prepared an address for the annual meeting, but was prevented by 

 ill health from delivering it. It was, however, subsequently printed and distributed. In 

 it was given an account of the early efforts made in Boston to encourage the study of nat- 

 ural history, which finally culminated in the formation of the Boston Society of Natural 

 History. As there had been no previous annual address since 1850, a statement was ap- 

 pended giving an account of the proceedings of the Society during the three years since 

 that date. 



In November, by invitation, President Hitchcock of Amherst College addressed the 

 Society, giving some of the results of his examinations in the Connecticut Valley. His 

 remarks were replete with interest and instruction, and were followed by some on the 

 same subject by Prof. Henry D. Rogers. The views presented may be found in the pub- 

 lished Proceedings. 



In December of this year, the death of Mr. James E. Teschemacher, long an active and 

 very useful member of the Society, was announced, and the President was requested to 

 draw up such resolutions in reference to this event, as should be judged proper by him. 

 In accordance with this request, he presented at the next succeeding meeting, a notice of 

 his life and writings, much of which is given here as follows : 



" Our Society has experienced a great loss in the death of Mr. Teschemacher, one of its 

 most valuable members, and we must turn aside a moment from the path of science to 

 pay a tribute to his memory. This gentleman, who joined our Society in the year 1835, 

 and has since that time been an able associate in our labors, and a large contributor to 



