NATURE 



117 



THURSDAY, JUNE 13, 1S72 



THE BRITISH MUSEUM 



THE Return published by order of the House of Com- 

 mons on April 19, 1872, of the progress made in the 

 arrangement of t' :; collections, and of the objects which 

 have been added during the past year to the National 

 Museum, is a document which, although only seen by a 

 very few persons, cannot fail to be of interest to a very 

 large proportion of English people, and also to those 

 engaged in scientific pursuits all over the world. 



Confining our attention to the Natural History Depart- 

 ment, and commencing with Prof. Owen's general report, 

 we find that, although every care has been taken on the 

 part of Heads of Departments to limit in all possible ways 

 by declining or postponing all acquisitions not absohudy 

 and immediately pressing, the annual tide of new speci- 

 mens still flows in, and during the past year 15,879 speci- 

 mens have been added to and incorporated with the 

 present crowded series. 



Everywhere throughout Prof. Owen's report the old 

 grief of " want of space " is introduced and persistently 

 pressed upon the attention of the Legislature ; but at the 

 same time allusion is also constantly made to the time 

 when the requirements for increased exhibition-space, 

 and more adequate store-rooms and cabinets, will have 

 all bsen met by the galleries of the new Museum. 



We are glad to see that Prof Owen puts forward other 

 very good and sound reasons, besides the mere over- 

 crowding, in favour of a speedy release from the too-re- 

 stricted galleries and studies to which the collections 

 under his care are at present restricted. " Inadequacy of 

 space," writes the Superintendent, " is associated with loss 

 of time." Thus : " To meet the wishes and expectations 

 of scientific visitors and students in regard to opportunities 

 of study and inspection of specimens relating to the latest 

 advances in natural history, the well-filled or crowded 

 exhibition-galleries and cases have to undergo more or 

 less of re-ariangemcnt with removal and interchange of 

 specimens, in order to allow place and access to the 

 novelties." 



Again, in the case of the delicate and brittle specimens, 

 the risk which is now incurred in frequently shifting these 

 will then be reduced to its minimum, and, consequently, 

 the chances of preserving such treasures will be greatly 

 increased. It now not unfrequently happens that an en- 

 tire series of objects have to be removed and rearranged 

 to gain a few feet or even inches of space in some cases. 



All this labour and care in the re-adjustment of series, 

 which would be needless if there were abundance of 

 exhibition space, will be removed in the new Museum, 

 and the same amount of labour can be devoted to the 

 more satisfactory task of classification and the true ad- 

 vancement of Natural Science. 



Prof. Owen gives in a tabulated form the annual addi- 

 tions made to each Department during the twelve years 

 from 1859-70. Tiie total increase for each is as under : — 



Zoolo^ Geology Mineralogy Botany Total 

 Total increase ),, ..o _ /-.:o» 



for 12 years., i 435.492 78,434 24.945 123,409 662,280* 



* The total numbers arc wrongly cast in the printed return. 

 VOL. VI. 



Of course, in certain years the increase in one or other 

 of these Departments has bed.i specially large ; thus in 

 1863 98,754 specimens were added to the Zoological De- 

 partment, whilst in the following year only 7,688 specimens 

 were acquired. After all, numbers only convey a very 

 imperfect idea of increase, so much depends upon 

 the size of objects themselves. Thus, for instance, a 

 collection of Coleopterous insects, comprising many 

 thousands of examples, may all be contained in a small 

 cabinet of twenty drawers ; whilst a tapir, antelope, or other 

 quadruped may when stuffed need a case all to itself, or a 

 whale may require an entire gallery 9ort. long for its proper 

 display. We are glad to hear that the birds and shells 

 are better off for room than the other Natural History 

 divisions ; we have always felt when passing through 

 this gallery with its fine series of table-cases, and the 

 birds occupying the wall-cases, that these two groups 

 were specially favoured ; whilst the adjoining mamma- 

 lian-salooa but very inadequately represented the actual 

 exhibition needs of the higher animals. All this Prof. 

 Owen tells us will be set right in the new Museum. 



The use of methylated spirit for the preservation of 

 Reptilia and fishes has produced in some cases injurious 

 results to some of these specimens. Dr. Gunther will, no 

 doubt, speedily remedy this mischief, and the purer 

 medium must in future alone be used. All the other col- 

 lections are reported as in good preservation. 



There is a long list as usual of additions to each of the 

 Departments. Dr. Gray reports a fine series of Lemurs 

 from Madagascar ; a Grampus Rissoanus, and a Pike 

 whale {Balanoptera rostratd), from the English coast. 

 Various Mammals from Abyssinia, chiefly of the Antilope 

 family. Among the Birds we find Pheasants, Hornbills, 

 and Pigeons, and many lesser members of the feathered 

 tribe. Fishes, Reptiles, MoUusca, and tribes of Insects, 

 have also been added, likewise specimens of the " Glass- 

 xo^z-sponge" (called a " Coral" in the Report), the Hya- 

 loneina from Japan, and the beautiful vitreous sponge, the 

 Phcroncma Grayi, from the coast of Portugal. Making 

 a total in all of 10,577 specimens added during the past 

 year to the Zoological Department. 



Of Fossils there seems to be a goodly supply. From the 

 La Plata come bones of the Toxoioii, Mylodou, and 

 Macrauc/icnia, the Drspanodon, and the Glyptodoii ; 

 from Australia remains of the Thylacolco (that queer 

 marsupial which Prof. Owen demonstrates to be a 

 carnivore, and Prof. Flower essayed to make out to be 

 only a great root-feeding Wombat), the Diprotodon (a 

 gigantic kangaroo, which probably did not hop, like the 

 modern kangaroo, but went on all-fours), the Nolotheriunt, 

 Macivpus, and many others. The most important 

 acquisition during the past year is that of the \'an Breda 

 collection from Haarlem. This well-known collection, 

 commenced by Dr. Peter Camper, the celebrated Dutch 

 anatomist, more than 100 years ago, has since been largely 

 increased by his grandson, the late Prof. Van Breda, 

 secretary for more than fifty years to the Royal Dutch 

 Society in Haarlem, who inherited Camper's original 

 collection. 



The series of specimens is particulary rich in remains 

 of the great Meuse lizard, the Mosasaiinis Iiofmaiii, and 

 of a giant tortoise, the CJicloiie hofina?n, and many fine 

 remains of fishes and reptilia from the Maestricht chalk, 



