392 SPENCER FULLERTON BARID 
ill a large part of the time. Professor Baird’s sister Lydia 
died October 30th at Carlisle, and his old friend and col- 
laborator at the Institution, Fielding B. Meek, the paleon- 
tologist, on the 21st of December. Professor Baird notes 
in the Journal that in September he was obliged to put 
on spectacles for the first time. He was vigorously en- 
gaged in his plans for a new building for the Museum, now 
outgrowing rapidly all the capacity of the Smithsonian 
structure. 
In 1877 the work on architectural plans was progress- 
ing. At first it was proposed to extend the Smithsonian 
building either to the south, connected by an arch over 
the roadway bordering the original building, or to the 
west by cloisters extending from that end. Meanwhile 
the old Armory building in the Mall east of the Smith- 
sonian was utilized to hold the carloads of valuable 
material bought from or donated by the exhibitors at 
Philadelphia. 
The natural result of these activities was a physical 
condition urgently demanding rest. On the 15th of March 
he started for Florida, travelling with Senator Edmunds 
and his family. 
Even the fact that it was supposed to be a period of 
rest did not prevent every accessible fisherman or fishing 
station from being studied on the way. They returned 
refreshed, April 4th, to Washington. The Fish Commis- 
sion station this year was fixed at Gloucester, Massa- 
chusetts, the steamer ‘‘ Speedwell”’ being assigned to the 
party for use during the season. In midsummer he was 
required to go as an expert witness to Halifax, Nova 
Scotia, where an arbitration of questions relating to 
fisheries between the United States and Great Britain 
was to be held. The “Speedwell” and some of the Fish 
