THE NAUTILUS. 87 



occupies a separate tablet. On the under surface of the tablet, 

 H. C. in the corner, means that it was a part of the famous Hugh 

 Cuming collection. Besides, the under surface sometimes has a 

 wealth of scientific information ; critical notes by those who have 

 worked upon the collection. Here the specialists gather a harvest 

 of synonomy, references to literature, comparisons, collected notes 

 on habitat, and so forth. The register number, including the year 

 of accession, when it occurs, is given here. But the student may 

 glance over the face of the collection and miss the information 

 jotted down by his predecessors, but concealed below. Frequent 

 reversal of the tablets helps to dislodge the specimens. Types are 

 not invariably thus distinguished. I noticed several " Challenger " 

 shells, which though evidently types, were not so marked. There 

 is more strictness in this respect of late years than of former. 



After a lapse of time the gum becomes brittle, so that the opening 

 and shutting of a drawer or the lifting of a tablet may unfiisten a 

 shell. The loose shell may readily be returned to a wrong tablet 

 and thus originate error. For this reason it is to be hoped that the 

 whole collection will be ultimately transferred to boxes. Again in 

 boxes they are easier to examine, far safer from dust and from 

 accidental crushing. 



In former years no clear distinction prevailed between the range 

 in space of a species and the source of a particular specimen. So 

 " localities " were " added " rather recklessly and perhaps sometimes 

 erroneously to old specimens not provided with a " habitat." Even 

 upon the original tablet of a type subsequent specimens have some- 

 times been intruded. Again in the union of names, a species was 

 apt to be submerged under the name of another species with which 

 it was thought identical. Varietal names were disallowed, so that 

 an absolute synonym and a geographical race were treated alike in 

 elimination. 



On the whole, the nomenclature is well up to date. Recent sug- 

 gestions by Dall and Pilsbry, and the restored names of neglected 

 authors like Bolten and Perry, are incorporated. 



Compared with other large museums the staff is weak. Instead 

 of two or three or four naturalists that we find elsewhere, there is but 

 a single scientific officer. He is aided by a couple of attendants who 

 perform such mechanical work as labeling, registering or packing. 

 There is no departmental artist. 



