THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM MAGAZINE. 



Australian, and one important function of the Magazine will be to make these 

 collections better known to their owners, the public, and not merely to those 

 who are able to visit the Museum in person, but also to those in distant parts 

 of the State, who have not that privilege. From time to time new exhibits of 

 more than usual interest are placed on view in the "alleries ; these will be 

 described and illustrated in the pages of the Magasine. 



Every child, and many grown-ups also, find much pleasure in collecting 

 natural objects, and in future numbers we hope to assist them by a series of 

 articles on the best methods of collecting and preserving animals, and record- 

 ing observations on animal life. 



Many of our readers may have opportunities of making interesting and 

 valuable observations on wild life in Australia, and we shall willingly find room 

 in our pages for such observations. 



A lively curiosity is one of the best hand-maidens to knowledge, and 

 fortunate is he who preserves in his manhood the enquiring mind of the 

 child ; we shall be pleased at all times to answer any queries addressed to us. 



We propose, too, to describe for our readers the collecting trips which 

 members of the Museum Stafif make to various parts of Australia, and even to 

 distant Pacific isles. If our collectors seldom encounter moving accidents by 

 flood and field, yet their experiences on these expeditions are often interesting 

 and entertaining. 



NOTES 



The first of the series of popular 

 lectures arranged for this session will 

 be delivered on April 14 by Mr. C. 

 Hedley, F.L.S.. his subject being "The 

 Depths of the Sea." Succeeding lec- 

 tures will be as follows: — ]\Iay 12, 

 "The Natural History of the Hawkes- 

 bury \'^alley," by C. T. Musson, 

 F.L.S. ; June 9, "A Seashore Ramble," 

 F. L. Grutzmacher. F.C.S.. F.L.S. ; 

 July 14, "Monotremes and Mar- 

 supials," L. Harrison, B.Sc, B.A. ; 

 August II, "Lord Howe Island; a 

 South Sea Tragedy," A. R. ^IcCul- 

 loch ; September 8, "Snakes and Their 

 \'enom." J. R. Kinghorn ; October 13, 

 "Ants and Ant Communities," A. Mus- 

 grave ; November 10, "Primitive Man," 

 L. Harrison, B.Sc, B.A. 



Mr. Ernest Wunderlich, a member 

 of the Board of Trustees, announces 

 his intention to supply funds to defray 

 the cost of preparing and installing an 

 Australian Aboriginal group in the 

 ^luseum. The thanks of the com- 

 munity are due to ]\Ir. W^mderlich for 

 his generous and ])atriotic gift, and it 

 is to be hoped that this example will 

 be followed by other public-spirited 

 citizens. 



Messrs. A. R. McCulloch and E. L. 

 Troughton, of the Scientific Staff, 

 have just returned from a holiday trip 

 to Lord Howe Island, and have 

 brought back with them a valuable 

 zoological collection and many inter- 

 esting notes on the natural history of 

 this outlying dependency of New 

 South Wales. Thev secured a fine 

 series of photographs, some of which 

 will be used to illustrate a future 

 issue. 



Two valuable gifts have recently 

 been made to the Museum. Mr. G. A. 

 Waterhouse. B.Sc, well known as a 

 lepidopterist, has presented his col- 

 lection of Australian butterflies, which 

 represents the gatherings of many 

 years and is recognized as the finest in 

 the Commonwealth. The standard 

 work, The Butterflies of Australia, 

 written by Mr. Waterhouse, in col- 

 laboration with Mr. G. Lyell, was 

 largely based on this collection. Pro- 

 fessor A. Liversidge. a former 

 Trustee, now resident in London, has 

 presented his collection of crystals, 

 the main part of which formerly be- 

 longed to General Cathcart. The col- 

 lection is specially rich in Indian and 

 Cevlonese minerals. 



