LIBRARY 



NEW YORK 



MUSEUM BULLETIN 



GARD6N 



OF THE 



Staten island Association of Arts and Sciences 



EDITED FOR THE PUBLICATION COMMITTEE 



BY CHARLES LOUIS POLLARD, CURATOR-IN-CHIEF 



No. 7. PUBLISHED MONTHLY. FEBRUARY, 1909. 



THE NEXT MEETING OF THE ASSOCIATION 



will be held in the reading room of the St. George Branch, New York Public 

 Library, on Saturday evening, February, 20, 1909, at eight o'clock. Members 

 wishing to present communications as part of the regular program, are request- 

 ed to notify the undersigned in advance of the meeting. 



ARTHUR HOLLICK, 



Secretary. 



WE ANNOUNCE with great pleasure two important accessions to the 

 Museum. The first is a gift from Mr. Alanson Skinner, and consists of a large 

 collection of ethnological material illustrative of the life and customs of the 

 Iroqouis Indians of Central New York. This has been on exhibition in the 

 Museum since the public opening, and has attracted very great interest. It will 

 now be withdrawn for cataloguing, and will later be again displayed and pro- 

 vided with full descriptive labels. In consideration of the value of this gift, the 

 Board of Trustees elected Mr. Skinner a Patron on January 23. 



The other collection is a large and very representative series of alcoholic 

 specimens, including snakes, lizards and batrachians from all parts of the world. 

 It was made by Mr. Charles Myers, of New York City, who offered it for sale 

 at a price considerably below its actual value. As the funds of the Association 

 were not available for the purchase, the Curator-in-chief was authorized to 

 solicit special subscriptions, and the following members of the Association gen- 

 erously responded to his request: Mrs. George William Curtis, Messrs. Howard 

 R. Bayne, Charles P. Benedict, Read Benedict, Bruno Benziger, Thomas Craig, 

 William T. Davis. S. M. Dix, Philip Dowell, L. W. Faber, J. D. Hage, Arthur 

 M. Harris, Samuel A. Henszey, George S. Humphrey, C. W. Hunt, A. K. 

 Johnston, Walter C. Kerr, William H. Mitchill, W. A. Shortt, S. McK. Smith, 

 L. L. Tribus, William S. Van Clief, and William G. Willcox. The thanks of 

 the Curator-in-chief are extended to these members for making possible the ac- 

 quisition of this important collection, which includes some specimens not to be 

 found in other New York museums. We have no doubt that many other mem- 

 bers of the Association would have gladly contributed, if it had been necessary 

 to ask their assistance. 



An exhibit will soon be prepared illustrating the important poisonous and 

 non-poisonous snakes of this vicinity, so that those interested may have an op- 

 portunity of learning how to distinguish between them. In addition to the 

 reptiles, there are included in the Myers' collection about 300 beetles and other 

 insects; some birds' eggs and nests; a 20-drawer cabinet; and numerous entomo- 

 logical implements. 



AT ITS LAST MEETING the Board of Trustees elected the following 

 persons to membership: Mrs. John Quincy Adams, New Brighton; Mrs. 

 William G. Willcox and Frank G. McCreery, West New Brighton; Miss Annie 

 Fraser Wood, Tompkinsville; and Mrs. Park J. White, Green Ridge. 



THE NEW HOURS for the Museum have been announced in the local 

 press. It is open from 1 to 5 p. m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and 

 Fridays; and from 10 a. m. to 5 p. m. on Saturdays. It is closed on Sundays, 

 Mondays, and holidays. The office of the Curator-in-chief is open for business 

 purposes daily during the regular city hours. 



