BRITISH MUSEUM (NATURAL HISTORY). 109 



The increase in routine work has, however, seriously- 

 delayed this undertaking. 



An exhibition of old Natural History Books, illustrating 

 the origin and progress of the study of Natural History up 

 to the time of Linnaeus has been temporarily placed on show 

 in the Central Hall, and a guide thereto has been prepared 

 and put on sale. 



The compilation of a list of Books, »fec., published by, or 

 relating to the Natural History Departments of the British 

 Museum, has been begun. 



Seven sets of sheets 131-136 of the Catalogue have been 

 stamped with index-letters showing in which Department 

 the various works are to be found, and copies have been 

 supplied to each Department. 



The permanent card-catalogue has been mounted as far as 

 the end of sheet 140, and the work of transferring to it 

 the press-marks and other memoranda from the old temporary 

 slips has been carried on as far as the end of sheet 118. 



The number of visits paid to the Library during the year 

 by students and others (irrespective of the staff and persons 

 to whom the use of a key is granted) was 1,157. 



Index Museum and Morphological Collections. 



Of the additions made during the past year to the 

 exhibits in the Central Hall, the most noteworthy is a series 

 of hybrid Maize cobs grown in Ceylon by Mr. R. H. Lock for 

 the purpose of verifying Mendel's theory of heredity, and 

 presented by him to the Museum. 



In the " Malaria Case " the various parts of the head, legs 

 and wings of the enlarged models of Culex, Anopheles and 

 Ghironomus have been labelled, and the series has been 

 augmented by the addition of a model of the piercing 

 apparatus of Culex, drawings of the head of Ghironomus, * 

 male and female, and drawings of the piercing organs of 

 Culex and Anopheles. 



Eight specimens have been added to the osteological series 

 in the wall-cases of the first recess on the west side of the 

 Hall ; a map showing the distribution of the known species 

 of Glossina in Africa has been mounted ; and the case 

 containing the specimens illustrating the anatomy of the 

 Lancelet has been removed from its position upon the ill-lit 

 end wall of the fifth recess on the west side to a prominent 

 position at the entrance to the recess. A considerable amount 

 of work has also been done in the way of remounting and 

 respiriting such of the anatomical preparations in the Hall 

 as were in need of attention. 



