Booh Notices. 



' Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Insti- 



!61 : Wasliington, D. C, 1862. 8vo, pp. 463.— In his Re- 



■ ~ " ' • " ■■ sonian, Prof. Henry remarks: 



during the existence of an intestine 



slioiikl be able to conduct its affairs with the same persistence and suc- 

 cess as in the tranquil years of its previous history. The interruptions 

 and embarrassments, however, although frequent, and in some cases per- 

 plexing, have not prevented the continuance of the general operations of 

 the Institution, or the prosecution of most of the special objects which 

 had previously been determined upon as falling within the scope of the 

 plan of its ore^anization." , . 



However this may be we are struck in examining this report with its 



the value of the important achievements made by the Institution itseh"'" 

 furtherance of the benificent design of its founder to " increase and diflfuse 

 knowledge among men." 



The Report of the Secretary addressed to the Regents, reviews the 

 present condition of the fund, the income of which has been diminished 

 by non payment of interest on about $6i>,000 of bonds of disloyal states, 

 while a substantial addition to the fund has occurred of about $25,000 

 from the falling in of an annuity heretofore paid to a relative of Smithson, 

 now deceased. While the active operations of the Institution will not be 

 curtailed by the existing state of civil war, no new undertakings of magni- 

 tude will at present be "begun. The Secretary, as is his custom, reviews 

 the contents of the publications of the Institution for the year, giving 

 an analysis of the concluding paper, discussing the results of Dr. Kanes 

 Arctic observations, and of a series of papers on the meteorological ob- 

 servations made during the voyage of Sir F. L. McClintock in search ol 

 Sir John Frankliu in the Fox— 1857-1859. These papers form part ot 

 theXIIIthvolumeof the "Contributions." . _ 



The Miscellaneous Collections include works intended to facilitate the 

 study of the various branches of natural history, to give instruction as ^ 

 the methods of observing natural phenomena, and a variety oi o i 

 matter connected with the progress of science. Very properly, '" J'^"* ° 

 its great value as a key to the accurate study of Geology, the Smithsonian 

 has published a series of valuable works on Conchology. They are nv« 

 in number as follows, viz.: t, p P 



1st. Elementary introduction to the study of conchology, oy i-- • 

 Carpenter, of England. , 



2d. List of the" species of shells collected by the United States explor- 

 ing expedition, by the same author. _ , Tt^Uprl 



3d. Descriptive catalogue of the shells of the west coast of the bniteu 

 States, Mexico, and Central America, by the same author. 



4th. Bibliography of North American conchology, by W. p- 1^'°"^^; 



5th. Descriptive catalogue of the air-breathing shells of North America, 

 by the same author. ^ 



The Secretary announces that the illustrations presented from the w 

 cuts of the British Museum Catalogue by Dr. Gray, and designed w^ 

 illustrate Dr. Carpenter's Elementary introduction, are now ready tor ai 

 tribution to all who have the work in a separate form. 



