Tlie Chicago Academy of Sciences. 27 



damaged by the fire of 1866, were still one of the most 

 important collections of the museum. 



The general collection contained about 2,000 mam- 

 mals; 30 mounted skeletons, including two mastodons, 

 an African elephant, sea otter and an elephant seal; 

 10,000 birds; 1,000 nests, with the eggs, and a great 

 quantity of eggs without the nests; 1,000 reptiles; 5,000 

 fishes, including many large sharks and rays; 15,000 

 species of insects and other articulates; 5,000 species 

 of mollusks, with a large number of duplicates; 3,000 

 jars of radiates, including several hundred corals; 1,000 

 jars of mollusks in alcohol; 8,000 species of plants; 

 15,000 species of fossils and 4,000 minerals. Besides 

 these there were 1,000 specimens illustrative of Amer- 

 ican archaeology and ethnological collection, which 

 embraced a very fine series of the clothing and imple- 

 ments of the Esquimaux of the Anderson river, col- 

 lected by Robert Kennicott and others, and presented 

 to the Academy by the Smithsonian Institution. 



The library contained about 2,000 volumes, and over 

 5,000 pamphlets and maps. Besides these, there were 

 in the building and destroyed with it the library of the 

 Audubon club; the valuable conchological library of 

 Mr. George C. Walker, which included colored copies 

 of the works of Sowerby, Reeve, Philippi, Dunker, 

 Romer and Kuster, Martini, Chemnitz and others; the 

 library of works on the marine invertebrates belonging 

 to Secretary Stimpson, which practically included all 

 the extant works on this subject. 



A number of valuable manuscripts, representing 

 the study and investigation of the various collections, 

 were destroyed. Some of these were to be published 

 by the Smithsonian Institution, and some through 

 other sources. There were several hundred accurate 

 drawings, illustrating different forms, which had been 

 made at a considerable expense, and belonged to the 

 manuscript reports. 



As the building was considered fireproof, no insur- 



