90 ACCOUNTS, ETC., OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 



Invertebrate Animals." The lectures were again delivered, 

 by permission of the Lords of the Committee of Council on 

 Education, in the theatre of the South Kensington Museum. 

 The attendance at the twelve lectures, which were given, as 

 usual, during October, averaged 127 persons per lecture. 



Marine Botanical Investigation. 



With the sanction of the Trustees, and with the aid of funds 

 provided by the Government Grant Committee of the Royal 

 Society, Mr. George Murray, Keeper of the Botanical Depart- 

 ment, accompanied by Mr. V. H. Blackman, one of his 

 Assistants, undertook a voyage across the Atlantic to Panama, 

 for the purpose of obtaining during the cruise a collection of 

 pelagic Algae, —organisms as yet imperfectly studied and 

 almost unrepresented in any Museum. All the specimens 

 secured have been retained for the Museum collections. 



Expedition to Christmas Island. 



Early in the year an advantageous offer was received from 

 Dr. John Murray, f.r.s., to pay the expenses of sending 

 Mr. C. W. Andrews, an Assistant in the Geological Depart- 

 ment, to Christmas Island, a hitherto unexplored islet 

 situated about 200 miles south of the western end of Java, 

 for the purpose of making a collection of natural history 

 specimens before the native fauna and flora shall have been 

 displaced by species introduced by man. In the event of 

 Mr. Andrews being despatched on this mission, Dr. Murray 

 agreed to the first set of the collections made becoming the 

 property of the Trustees. 



In view of the valuable results likely to accrue to the 

 Museum from the projected expedition, the Trustees cordially 

 accepted Dr. Murray's generous offer, and Mr. Andrews 

 accordingly left England on this service in May. 



International Geological Congress at St. Petersburg. 



-At the invitation of the Russian Ambassador at this Court, 

 communicated through the Foreign Office, the Trustees 

 appointed Mr. L. Fletcher, Keeper of the Department of 

 Minerals, and Mr. F. A. Bather, Assistant in the Department 

 of Geology, to act as their delegates at the International 

 Geological Congress held at St. Petersburg last summer, and 

 special leave of absence was accordingly given to these gentle- 

 men to enable them to attend. 



Purchases. 



Among the more important acquisitions by purchase during 

 the year, special mention may be made of the Whitehead 



