BRITISH MUSEUM (NATURAL HISTORY). 79 



extensive collection of Fossil Invertebrata. The whole of the 

 British Mollusca and British Brachiopoda have been mounted, 

 named, and arranged by him. 



At the time of his superannuation, Mr. Etheridge was 

 engaged in preparing for exhibition an important strati- 

 graphical collection to illustrate all the British sedimentary 

 rocks, with their characteristic fossils ; and the Lords Com- 

 missioners of the Treasury have authorised the temporary 

 retention of his services in order to enable him to complete 

 this work. 



Swiney Lectures. 



Professor H. Alleyne Nicholson selected as the subject for 

 his second course of lectures on the Swiney Foundation, "The 

 Great Agents of Geological Change." The lectures were 

 delivered during October, as in the previous year, and were 

 attended by 2,-565 persons, being an average of 214 at each 

 lecture. This is a far larger attendance than these lectures 

 have had since they have been given at the Natural History 

 Museum, a testimony to their increasing popularity. Un- 

 fortunately, the want of an adequate room for their delivery 

 has made itself felt. The only room in the building available 

 for the purpose is the library of the Geological Department, 

 which, apart from its general unsuitability as a lecture-room, 

 proved, in the past year, to be far too small, and numbers of 

 persons desirous of hearing the lectures could not be admitted. 

 If the attendance is maintained in future years it will be 

 necessary for the Trustees to take the question of providing 

 a properly constructed lecture-theatre into consideration. 



Spirit-Building. 



With the concurrence of the Lords Commissioners of the 

 Treasury, an extension has been made, eastwards, of the 

 building for specimens preserved in spirit, situated on the 

 north side of the Museum. This addition has been neces- 

 sitated in consequence of the rapidity of the growth of these 

 collections. Large collections made during various surveys 

 and expeditions, such as the Transit of Venus and Arctic 

 expeditions, the surveys of Her Majesty's ships '' Alert," 

 " Petrel," and "Penguin," and especially the "Challenger" 

 expedition, have been deposited in the Museum. By 

 far the greater part of these consists of specimens 

 preserved in spirit. Moreover, a considerable further 

 increase of such specimens (especially the smaller mam- 

 malia and marine animals) must always be expected, 

 in consequence of the changes and improvements con- 

 tinually being made in the methods of zoological inves- 

 tigation. Greater attention is now paid to anatomical cha- 



0.108. racters. 



