﻿THIRTY-NINTH 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT. 
  

  

  To 
  the 
  Trustees 
  and 
  Members 
  of 
  The 
  American 
  Museum 
  of 
  Natural 
  

   History 
  : 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  the 
  sad 
  duty 
  of 
  the 
  President 
  to 
  open 
  this 
  report 
  with 
  

   the 
  record 
  of 
  the 
  death, 
  on 
  the 
  morning 
  of 
  January 
  22, 
  1908, 
  

   of 
  Morris 
  Ketchum 
  Jesup, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  original 
  incorporators 
  of 
  

   the 
  Museum 
  in 
  1868, 
  for 
  forty 
  years 
  devoted 
  to 
  its 
  promotion 
  

   and 
  welfare 
  and 
  for 
  twenty-seven 
  years 
  its 
  President. 
  

  

  The 
  minute 
  of 
  the 
  Board 
  of 
  Trustees, 
  adopted 
  at 
  the 
  

   Annual 
  Meeting, 
  February 
  10, 
  1908, 
  is 
  as 
  follows: 
  

  

  As 
  Trustees 
  of 
  The 
  American 
  Museum 
  of 
  Natural 
  History, 
  

   we 
  record 
  with 
  profound 
  sorrow 
  the 
  loss 
  we 
  have 
  sustained 
  in 
  

   the 
  death 
  of 
  

  

  MORRIS 
  KETCHUM 
  JESUP 
  

  

  As 
  President 
  for 
  the 
  last 
  twenty-seven 
  years, 
  Mr. 
  Jesup 
  has 
  

   guided 
  the 
  development 
  of 
  the 
  Museum 
  with 
  rare 
  ability 
  and 
  

   devotion 
  and 
  has 
  become 
  united 
  to 
  us 
  by 
  many 
  warm 
  ties 
  of 
  

   personal 
  friendship. 
  He 
  carried 
  into 
  the 
  office 
  all 
  of 
  his 
  finest 
  

   qualities 
  of 
  character; 
  he 
  was 
  sanguine, 
  constructive, 
  deter- 
  

   mined, 
  trustful, 
  appreciative 
  and 
  most 
  kindly 
  disposed 
  toward 
  

   those 
  closely 
  associated 
  with 
  him 
  in 
  the 
  administration 
  of 
  the 
  

   Museum. 
  We 
  realize 
  now, 
  even 
  more 
  clearly 
  perhaps 
  than 
  

   when 
  he 
  was 
  actually 
  with 
  us, 
  his 
  keen 
  patriotism 
  and 
  con- 
  

   trolling 
  sense 
  of 
  the 
  duties 
  of 
  citizenship, 
  his 
  idealism 
  and 
  his 
  

   faith 
  in 
  the 
  future 
  development 
  of 
  our 
  city 
  and 
  country. 
  

  

  A 
  review 
  of 
  our 
  minutes 
  shows 
  that 
  Mr. 
  Jesup 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  

   the 
  original 
  incorporators 
  of 
  the 
  Museum, 
  December 
  30, 
  1868; 
  

   that 
  he 
  was 
  elected 
  a 
  Trustee, 
  February 
  1, 
  1869; 
  that 
  he 
  

   became 
  a 
  Fellow 
  in 
  perpetuity, 
  February 
  13, 
  1871 
  ; 
  that 
  he 
  was 
  

   elected 
  First 
  Vice-President, 
  May 
  10, 
  1880; 
  that 
  he 
  was 
  elected 
  

   President, 
  February 
  14, 
  1881. 
  He 
  was 
  an 
  active 
  member 
  of 
  

   all 
  committees 
  from 
  the 
  inception 
  of 
  the 
  Museum, 
  including 
  

   the 
  committee 
  appointed 
  to 
  select 
  the 
  present 
  site 
  which 
  has 
  

   proved 
  to 
  be 
  most 
  advantageous. 
  He 
  was 
  always 
  actively 
  

   engaged 
  in 
  furthering 
  the 
  interests 
  of 
  the 
  Museum 
  at 
  the 
  State 
  

  

  J 
  5 
  

  

  