Fkbeuaky 2, 1900.] 



SCmNGE. 



165 



definitely the organizatioa of the hind foot 

 of this rather abundant group of the Sauro- 

 podous dinosaurs. A description of this 

 limb, with some excellent illustrations, will 

 soon be published in the American Journal 

 of Science. Still another specimen of great 

 interest, from the underlying marine bed, 

 includes a part of the skeleton with a well 

 preserved skull, of the rare and curious 

 toothless ichthyosaur (Baptanodon) , origi- 

 nally described by the late Professor Marsh. 

 Besides these, many other specimens were 

 collected, the importance and scientific 

 value of which cannot be fully determined 

 until they are worked out and made ready 

 for study. 



The preparation of this material is under 

 the skilful direction of Mr. Arthur Cogge- 

 shall, who was for some years connected 

 with the American Museum of Natural 

 History in New Yoi^k, under the tutorship 

 of that veteran preparateur, Mr. Adam Her- 

 mann. The material is being rapidly 

 brought into shape for study and exhibition 

 and by the time the new paleontological 

 hall is ready for occupancy, we hope to have 

 a good representation of Jurassic dinosaurs 

 at least. 



The department has been exceedingly 

 fortunate of late in securing the services of 

 Mr. O. A. Peterson, late of Princeton Uni- 

 versity, and previous to that of the Amer- 

 ican Museum and the U. S. Geological Sur- 

 vey, as chief assistant curator of the 

 department. Mr. Peterson's skill and en- 

 ergy as a collector of vertebrate fossils, as 

 well as his extensive knowledge of the fos- 

 sil-bearing horizons of our western fields, 

 are well known ; he brings to bear a ripe 

 experience (oftimes too lightly valued in 

 the making of a paleontological collection) 

 which cannot fail to be of the greatest ad- 

 vantage to the department in the acquisi- 

 tion of materials. 



The work for the coming season will in- 

 clude, besides the continuance of the unfin- 



ished exploration in the Jurassic, two other 

 horizons, which will necessitate practically 

 three separate expeditions. From these 

 sources it is hoped to augment the collec- 

 tions very considerably during the present 

 year. 



It has been stated recently in the columns 

 of Science that the establishment of this 

 department in the Carnegie Museum was 

 due to the supposed discovery of a dinosaur 

 of extraordinary proportions in Wyoming, 

 in 1898, by Mr. Keed. While it may be 

 true that the newspaper accounts published 

 at the time may have hastened action in 

 the matter, yet I know it to be a fact that 

 ever since the founding of the Institute, 

 Mr. Carnegie has had it in mind to bring 

 together a first-class collection of verte- 

 brate fossils as a part of the Museum ex- 

 hibit. This is not at all surprising when 

 it is known thkt he had an intimate per- 

 sonal acquaintance with both Professor 

 Huxley and Professor Mai'sh, than whom, 

 perhaps, no greater exponents of the sub- 

 ject could have been found, whose opinions 

 and discoveries were calculated to make a 

 more profound impression upon his mind 

 relative to the importance and value of 

 such collections for the general advance- 

 ment of biological knowledge. 



The broad basis upon which he has 

 chosen to establish this undertaking, to- 

 gether with the liberal financial support 

 which he grants to it, are sufficient evi- 

 dences in themselves if no others could be 

 had, that its inception was not due to a 

 ridiculously exaggerated newspaper account 

 of a bogus discovery, but to a well-con- 

 ceived plan to carry into execution an im- 

 portant step in the growth of the Insti- 

 tute. It must be assumed that in thus 

 establishing and liberally endowing a de- 

 partment of learning and scientific investi- 

 gation of such a character, one whose re- 

 sults are destined to enter so deeply into 

 the foundations of our future philosophy. 



