6o NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



in the present collection have been carefully cleaned, and in many 

 cases relaxed and improved or remounted, so that they will remain 

 presentable for many years to come, and the expense and trouble of 

 replacing them with new specimens may be postponed for a long 

 time. To accomplish this, the taxidermist has installed a compressed 

 air cleaning outfit and has made a plaster-lined chest for relaxing 

 specimens, as well as a number of storage chests. 



The large amount of work to be done in the Museum has pre- 

 vented any field work by the staff, but additions to the collection 

 have been made by purchase as far as funds were available, and to 

 a less extent by exchange, or received as gifts. The moose group, 

 consisting of three individuals, 'previously ordered from Ward's 

 Natural Science Establishment, has been delivered to the Museum 

 and placed in storage. The specimens are fine ones and unusually 

 well mounted. Work on the other large groups ordered has also 

 made progress. In the purchase of new material the want of speci- 

 mens of the larger birds and animals has been kept in view, both 

 because the collections have been deficient in good specimens of them 

 and because of the importance of rendering the Museum interesting 

 and attractive to the general public at the time of opening, and of 

 adequately filling the large exhibition space. 



Among the more generally interesting specimens acquired should 

 be mentioned the materials (mounted young and old birds, nests, 

 eggs and accessories) for arranging nesting groups of the larger and 

 more conspicuous birds that breed in New York State, purchased 

 from Mr S. H. Paine of Silver Bay, and Mr Fred Barker of 

 Parker's Prairie, Minn., a group of opossums consisting of the 

 mother and nine young, also some casts and models of reptiles and 

 small cetaceans (porpoises and dolphins) from Ward's Natural 

 Science Establishment, and several fine elk skins suitable for mount- 

 ing, from Rhodes and Gilbert of Lander, Wyoming. In the material 

 acquired this Museum has the basis of exhibits which will be hard 

 to duplicate in view of the increasing rarity of many of the 

 species. 



Monograph of the New York Mollusca. Dr H. A. Pilsbr}^ has 

 continued his work on this subject and reports that the land mollusks 

 are now completed in manuscript and good progress has been made 

 on fresh water forms. The land snails have required very special 

 attention for the reason that great progress has been made here and 

 abroad in classification during the last twenty years, while there has 

 been no critical examination of our northeastern fauna since Mr 



