﻿144 
  . 
  [Senate 
  

  

  logue 
  be 
  of 
  any 
  value 
  until 
  some 
  permanent 
  arrangement 
  of 
  the 
  

   specimens 
  be 
  made. 
  They 
  are 
  now 
  placed 
  in 
  drawers, 
  sometimes 
  

   piled 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  tiers 
  deep, 
  and 
  others 
  are 
  packed 
  in 
  boxes. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  past 
  summer, 
  the 
  rooms 
  formerly 
  appropriated 
  to 
  

   this 
  department 
  were 
  otherwise 
  disposed 
  of, 
  and 
  the 
  specimens 
  

   removed 
  to 
  a 
  basement 
  room, 
  damp 
  and 
  dark, 
  under 
  the 
  westeud 
  

   of 
  the 
  main 
  building. 
  This 
  place 
  is 
  eiitirely 
  unfit 
  for 
  such 
  pur- 
  

   poses 
  ; 
  from 
  its 
  dampness 
  it 
  is 
  impossible 
  to 
  use 
  it 
  as 
  a 
  working 
  

   room, 
  and 
  there 
  is 
  not 
  light 
  enough 
  to 
  examine 
  carefully 
  and 
  ar- 
  

   range 
  the 
  specimens. 
  Under 
  these 
  circumstances 
  I 
  have 
  not 
  

   opened 
  boxes 
  where 
  the 
  specimens 
  are 
  mucli 
  better 
  protected 
  and 
  

   safer 
  than 
  they 
  can 
  be 
  otherwise. 
  All 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  

   do, 
  is 
  to 
  endeavor 
  to 
  arrange 
  in 
  some 
  order 
  the 
  drawers, 
  at 
  least 
  

   so 
  far 
  as 
  to 
  place 
  them 
  in 
  a 
  temporary 
  case, 
  on 
  one 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  

   room. 
  

  

  More 
  than 
  a 
  year 
  since 
  I 
  began 
  a 
  system 
  of 
  numbering 
  for 
  all 
  

   the 
  duplicate 
  specimens, 
  with 
  a 
  view 
  to 
  catalogue 
  them 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  

   reference 
  to 
  the 
  different 
  rocks 
  and 
  groups, 
  and 
  known 
  genera, 
  

   could 
  be 
  made 
  ; 
  and 
  I 
  had 
  procured 
  cases 
  for 
  the 
  arrangement 
  of 
  

   the 
  specimens. 
  Wlien 
  the 
  rooms 
  were 
  otherwise 
  appropriated 
  

   last 
  summer, 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  drawers 
  of 
  these 
  cases 
  were 
  piled 
  up 
  on 
  

   the 
  floor 
  of 
  the 
  basement 
  room, 
  and 
  the 
  cases 
  tliemselves 
  con- 
  

   verted 
  into 
  other 
  uses. 
  In 
  the 
  present 
  uncertain 
  and 
  disordered 
  

   state 
  of 
  this 
  collection, 
  with 
  no 
  place 
  to 
  arrange 
  the 
  cases 
  of 
  

   drawers, 
  this 
  system 
  of 
  cataloguing 
  cannot 
  be 
  continued. 
  

  

  You 
  will 
  perceive 
  by 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  boxes 
  and 
  drawers 
  enu- 
  

   merated, 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  large 
  collection 
  ; 
  the 
  drawers 
  alone 
  con- 
  

   tain 
  more 
  than 
  three 
  thousand 
  specimens. 
  Many 
  of 
  these 
  are 
  

   duplicates, 
  and 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  not 
  the 
  most 
  perfect 
  specimens 
  ; 
  

   but 
  they 
  are 
  such 
  as 
  a 
  collector 
  does 
  not 
  pass 
  by 
  ; 
  and 
  many 
  or 
  

   all 
  are 
  useful 
  in 
  making 
  out 
  the 
  description 
  of 
  species. 
  

  

  The 
  collection 
  contains 
  many 
  good 
  and 
  valuable 
  specimens 
  ; 
  

   wliich, 
  after 
  selecting 
  a 
  very 
  perfect 
  suite 
  could 
  be 
  made 
  availa- 
  

   ble 
  eitlier 
  for 
  collections 
  for 
  the 
  colleges 
  and 
  academies, 
  or 
  for 
  

   exchanges, 
  should 
  it 
  ever 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  desirable 
  to 
  extend 
  the 
  

   collections 
  in 
  this 
  department 
  beyond 
  the 
  limits 
  of 
  the 
  State. 
  

  

  