46 REPORT Ob 1 THE SECRETARY. 



bition of Jewish religious rites and ceremonials, which is probably the finest in 

 the country. 



Some changes and improvements are to be noted in the storage and classifi- 

 cation of several groups of mammals and birds. The systematic arrangement of 

 the reserve series of fishes has been "continued, and fair progress has been made 

 in the installation of the new system of steel racks and hard-wood drawers 

 for insects. The labeling and registering of marine invertebrates has kept 

 pace as nearly as possible with the receipt of material, and much has been done 

 toward completing the card catalogue of identified specimens. In April, 1907, 

 two assistants were detailed to the Yale University Museum to engage in 

 separating the large collection of marine invertebrates from the earlier Fish 

 Commission explorations, which have remained in the charge of Prof. A. B. 

 Verrill. The first set of duplicates will become the property of Professor 

 Yerrill, the reserve series and other duplicates coming to the National Museum. 



The researches by members of the zoological staff and others were extensive 

 and varied, the principal subjects being briefly as follows : Fossil cetaceans, by 

 Doctor True ; the birds of North and Middle America, by Mr. Ridgway ; and 

 those of Malaysia and the China Sea, by Mr. Oberholser ; the reptiles of Japan, 

 the Philippines, West Indies, and Costa Rica, by Doctor Stejneger ; fishes from 

 Argentina, the Philippines, and the west coast of North America, by Professor 

 Evermann ; from the Philippines, by Mr. Bean and Mr. Seale; and from the 

 Pacific region generally by Doctor Jordan and Doctor Gilbert ; a monograph 

 of the mosquitoes by Doctor Dyar ; the Pyramidellida? of Oregon, by Doctor 

 Dall and Doctor Bartsch ; crabs of North America, the North Pacific Ocean, and 

 the Gulf of Siam, by Miss Rathbun ; isopods of the North Pacific Ocean, by 

 Doctor Richardson ; the entire Museum collection of stalked barnacles, by 

 Doctor Pilsbry ; the crinoids from the North Pacific Ocean and elsewhere, by 

 Doctor Clark. 



The systematic rearrangement of the herbarium, which has been in progress 

 for several years, was nearly completed, and experiments were carried on look- 

 ing to the construction of fireproof herbarium cases for the new building. 

 Doctor Rose continued studies on Mexican plants and the cacti, Mr. Maxon on 

 American ferns, and Mr. Painter on water lilies. 



The principal routine work in the department of geology comprised the 

 systematizing of the petrographic material recently received, the separation of 

 duplicates from the reserve series,' the renovation of the exhibition series of 

 minerals and gems, the arrangement of the Pate and Ulrich collections of fossil 

 invertebrates, and the working out of specimens, and the designation of types 

 and illustrated specimens of fossil vertebrates. Doctor Merrill, in collaboration 

 with Mr. Tassin, made studies upon meteorites and associated phenomena, and 

 many specimens of minerals were identified. The investigations by Doctor 

 Bassler related mainly to the bryozoa and ostracoda of several geological 

 horizons, and those of Mr. Gidley and Mr. Gilmore to both mammalian and 

 reptilian forms. 



EXHIBITION COLLECTIONS. 



The crowded condition of the public halls has rendered it impossible for 

 -several years past to make any material additions to the exhibition collections, 

 and practically nothing more can be done in this direction until the new build- 

 ing has been completed. During the past year, however, an interesting series 

 of specimens has been made accessible to the intelligent visitor in the laboratory 

 of physical anthropology. A group of Roumanian peasants has been installed 

 in the west hall, and a number of recently acquired antiquities have been pro- 

 vided for in the hall of archeology. The entire collection of firearms has been 

 brought together in the east hall, in which also one of the original Lilienthal 



