90 
Dr. Arthur Hollick, assistant curator, has been granted leave 
of absence to carry out some investigations for the U. S. Geolog- 
ical Survey on the fossil flora of Alaska. The special purpose 
of the work is to secure material which will afford additional in- 
formation as to-the ancient flora of this region, and which will 
also throw some additional light on the probable age of the prin- 
cipal geological formations exposed. Dr. Hollick will sail from 
Seattle on May 25, and will start overland for the headwaters 
of the Yukon from Skagway. A boat and outfit with helpers 
will be procured at Dawson from which point the Yukon River 
will be traversed to its mouth, a distance of about two thousand 
miles. 
At the meeting of the Board of Managers of the Garden, held 
at the Museum Building April 28, 1903, the action of the Sci- 
entific Directors in electing on January 13, Mr. C. F. Cox, and 
Professor Frederic S. Lee, as additional Scientific Directors, 
was approved. The Board also approved plans for six sets of 
cut stone steps for the terrace of the public conservatories, de- 
signed by Mr. John R. Brinley, Landscape Engineer of the Gar- 
den, and directed that these approved plans be transmitted to the 
Commissioner of Parks for his approval. The Board also voted 
a preliminary appropriation, and authorized the Director-in-Chief 
to invite contributions for a botanical exploration of the Philip- 
pine Archipelago, in codperation with the Bureaus of Agricul- 
ture and of Forestry of the Insular Government at Manila. The 
object of this exploration is to secure for the Conservatories, 
museums and herbarium, as complete a collection as possible of 
the plants and plant products of the Philippines. There is at 
present only a fragmentary representation of this interesting and 
important flora in the collections of the Garden; it is believed 
that the survey now authorized will bring out much of novelty 
and of scientific and economic interest and value. It is hoped 
that field operations may be commenced this autumn. 
The total precipitation in the Garden during April, 1903, 
amounted to 3.49 inches, of which 2.14 inches fell on the 14th. 
Maximum temperatures of 69° on the 3d, 65° on the gth, 63° on 
the 18th, 66° on the 2oth, and 85° on the 29th were observed ; 
