Annual Reports 121 



creditable, and which incidentally assisted very materially in attracting 

 visitors and thus aiding our attendance record. 



The Section of Biology has met, presented papers and recorded and dis- 

 cussed facts of local and general scientific interest. 



The Section of Historical Research has again become an active factor 

 in our affairs. 



Two important innovations were made during the year in connection 

 with the meetings of the Association which it may be pertinent to here 

 recall to the attention of the members. The first of these was the change 

 in the meeting night from Saturday to Friday, and although the vote 

 showed a considerable majority of the members to be in favor of the 

 change, the records for the five meetings held under the new conditions 

 show the attendance to average exactly the same as previously. 



The second was the appointment of a program committee, consisting of 

 the chairmen of the sections and the secretary of the Association — the 

 object being to enlist the cooperation of the sections with the general 

 activities of the Association and to provide programs in advance for all 

 regular meetings of the Association. This experiment, however, has not 

 yet been in force for a sufficient length of time to produce results from 

 which conclusions may be deduced. 



The enlargement of the Bulletin to two regular pages of notes and 

 news each month is another feature of the year which deserves mention. 

 Its improvement in appearance and general text arrangement is highly 

 creditable to the publication committee. It is invaluable for keeping all 

 the members of the Association in touch with its activities and with the 

 work of the museum staff. It has received complimentary notice from 

 other institutions and is evidently regarded as a valuable addition to their 

 libraries, and it has materially assisted in making us well and favorably 

 known, not only in our vicinity but throughout the world, wherever it is 

 sent as a medium of exchange or information, and it could be still further 

 enlarged to advantage if our finances permitted. 



The administration of the museum has been eminently satisfactory, and 

 its growth and development has steadily continued. The total number of 

 visitors to the Museum during the year was 11,744. Accessions to the col- 

 lections and to the library numbered 2,860. Some of the most interesting 

 of these have been exhibited from time to time at the meetings of the 

 Association and a few others have been placed on display ; but by far the 

 larger part has, of necessity, been placed in storage. The limit of available 

 exhibition space has long since been reached and it is impossible, under 

 present conditions, to utilize more than a fraction of the valuable and 

 interesting material in our possession. 



An analysis of our recent records of accessions shows a marked increase 

 in those of an historical and antiquarian nature — particularly old engrav- 

 ings, woodcuts and legal documents relating to our local history, and other 

 relics of a similar kind — and now that we have an available repository, in 



