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REPORT OF THE CHAIRMAN OF THE SCIEN- 
TIFIC DIRECTORS 
To tHe Boarp or Manacers or tHE New Yorx Bo- 
TANICAL GARDEN. 
Gentlemen: I have the honor to submit the following re- 
port from the Scientific Directors for the year IgII. 
The meetings of the Board have occurred regularly during 
the year and the scientific work of the Garden has proceeded 
without interruption 
Among the events of special interest, may be mentioned 
the expedition of the U. S. ship “Albatross” to the Pacific 
coast of Mexico, upon which the Garden was represented, 
and by which its collections were greatly enriched. The 
Cactaceae obtained on this expedition were specially note- 
worthy, in connection with the study of this family, on 
which the Director-in-Chief is now engaged. A number of 
excellent colored drawings of cactuses have been made by 
Miss Eaton, who is still engaged in this work. 
With the appointment of Dr. Robert A. Harper as 
Professor of Botany at Columbia, and his consequent 
addition to our Board, the Garden staff has been further 
strengthened by the appointment as Director of the 
Laboratories, of Mr. A. B. Stout, Professor Harper’s 
former associate at the University of Wisconsin. Impor- 
tant improvements in the equipment of our laboratories 
have been made under Mr. Stout’s direction. 
Our explorations of the year have included, besides the 
expedition of the “‘Albatross” to western Mexico, already 
mentioned, one to Cuba by the Director-in-Chief, another 
to the same island by Dr. Shafer, one by Dr. Murrill to the 
Pacific coast of the United States, one into Utah by Dr. 
Rydberg, and we cooperated in one to the Caicos and Turks 
Islands by Dr. Millspaugh, and one into the south- 
eastern United States by Professor Ezra Brainerd, for the 
