60 Report of the President 



each girl had had the impression that a trench was but a mound 

 of earth like a hill. 



During the fall, 27 talks were given to the blind, at which 

 245 pupils were present. 



The sight conservation classes have made use of the regular 

 natural history collections sent out by the Museum to the pub- 

 lic schools. Many of the classes have also been supplied with 

 large relief globes of the world, which the teachers recom- 

 mend highly for their work in geography and history. 



In the service to the adult blind, the Museum was enabled to 

 extend a rare treat. In cooperation with the other agencies of 

 the City, working with and for the blind, the Museum invited 

 the blind of the City to hear Sir Arthur Pearson, the Blind 

 Founder and Director of St. Dunstan's Hostel for Blinded 

 Soldiers, London, England, in the auditorium of the Museum 

 on February 5, 1919. More than 700 gathered to hear him' 

 and were greatly inspired by his address. Before this address, 

 Sir Arthur examined the models, specimens and other means 

 employed by the Museum in giving instruction to the blind and 

 expressed his appreciation of the work. One typical incident 

 of the evening illustrates the value of this material in correct- 

 ing misconceptions. While waiting for Sir Arthur's arrival, 

 the blind were examining the specimens on exhibition. One 

 blind boy of twenty or twenty-five was "looking" the owl over 

 carefully and expressed astonishment that it had only two legs 

 and asked where the other two were. He examined the swan 

 and found only two. The assistant had some difficulty in con- 

 vincing him that all birds have only two legs, not four. He 

 said that the only animal he knew was a cat and since a cat 

 had four legs, he supposed all animals had four. 



Loan collections, illustrating different phases of geography 

 and natural history, have been in constant circulation among 



the branch libraries of the city. These collec- 

 Loans to tions include Museum specimens, models, photo- 



Libraries g ra P ns > labels and maps, and were prepared 



largely through the generosity of the Depart- 

 ment of Anthropology in furnishing both material and infor- 

 mation. They are delivered to the libraries by the Museum 



