1836.] Asiatic Society. 25 1 



observations during several years, will enable me to correct many errors, both 

 of description and habit, that have been committed by the best naturalists re- 

 garding the birds of India. I may here state, that by following this plan, the 

 Catalogue of the Museum of the Asiatic Society may be made a work of autho- 

 rity, such as to do credit to the Institution by which it is published. 



The reptiles in the Museum are numerous aud valuable ; but they cannot at 

 present be properly displayed, owing to the want of jars, in which to place 

 them. Among them are many of the rarer Indian serpents. To my friend Lieut. 

 Chiisne, the Society is indebted for many specimens during the past year. 



In fishes the collection is not very extensive, though it contains some of 

 the rare kinds. These also cannot be shewn, until our supply of jars and bot- 

 tles shall arrive from Europe. In this branch, Lieut. Montriore, of the In- 

 dian Navy, and Mr. Shaw, of the Surveying Vessel Flora, have been the 

 principal donors. 



There was no cabinet of insects belonging to the Society. The whole of the 

 specimens in this department consisted but of a few preserved in spirits ; and 

 those purchased along with the Sylhet collection of shells. During the rains I 

 employed my servants to collect ; and they procured what may be considered a fair 

 sample of the Bengal Coleopterous and Hemipterous insects of the season. They 

 consist of very many genera and species, and in individual specimens amount to 

 several hundreds in number. The collection is purposely rich in duplicates, to al- 

 io w of some being placed in the cabinet of t be Society ; and sent to various societies 

 and scientific men. I am also selecting for the Society's cabinet a series of 

 duplicates from my own ; which, as it is the result of the labour of nine years in 

 Bengal, Behar, and Orissa, contains many specimens but rarely to be procured. 

 At present our whole collection is scarcely large enough for systematic arrange- 

 ment ; the specimens therefore are placed according to their locality and donors; 

 a plan which has also the advantage of marking their geographical distribution. 



The American land and fresh-water shells, presented by Dr. Lea, and those 

 from Sylhet; together with a few specimens presented by Lieut. Hutton, and a 

 small number of marine shells, composed the Society's collection of shells. We 

 have also had a few presented during the year ; and I have been enabled to add 

 considerably to this branch of the Museum, by collecting the land, fresh-water, 

 and marsh shells of the neighbourhood of Calcutta, and by transferring duplicates 

 from my own cabinet. 



I may sum up this part of the report by stating, that, during the past year 

 there have been added to the Society's Museum, in osteology, 19 crania, nine 

 complete skeletons, and between three and four hundred detached bones of 

 various animals ; 12 specimens of mammalia ; 133 mounted birds; from 30 to 

 50 reptiles, and 15 fishes ; in all upwards of 500 specimens of the vertebrated 

 animals ; and of the invertebrata, we have had 150 shells, several Crustacea, and 

 several hundred insects : that many of these are rare and valuable ; many as yet 

 undescribed, and one bird, the Urinorynchus Griseus, is all but unique. 



To facilitate the collection of specimens for the Museum, a paper of brief 

 directions for collecting and preserving them was written : this has been exten- 

 sively circulated. A paper on the same subject was also composed, in which ample 

 details were given ; and this was published in the Journal of the Society. We 

 are now reaping the benefit of these instructions, and we shall do so still more 

 as the seasons for collecting come round. 



With reference to catalogues, I have before stated that, that of the osteologi- 

 cal section of the Museum is now in the printer's hands ; as is also that of the 

 mammalia. The catalogue of the birds is in progress ; and in consequence of 

 the aid I shall derive from Mr. Smith's notes, it will, I trust, be valuable when 

 completed. That of the reptiles and fishes cannot be undertaken until we have 

 the means of displaying those objects. That of the shells must be delayed 

 until the promised description of the land and fresh water shells, by Mr. Ben- 

 son, shall be published. In the mean time, no want of a catalogue will be felt in 

 this branch of the Museum ; the name of each specimen being written, together 

 with its locality, on the ebony tablet, upon which the shell is placed. 



One very important object to the Society is, I conceive, to become the means 

 of extending a knowledge of the natural productions of India, to scientific men 

 in other countries. I have prepared duplicate specimens of land and fresh. 

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