13 



and Crustacea, and Mr. Fewkes has done the same with the Ra- 

 diates. This now leaves in the basement only the alcoholic 

 collections of Birds and Mammals, which have not yet been 

 thoroughly examined ; the other alcoholic collections having 

 all received the revision they so greatly needed. 



I may mention among the more important accessions, ex- 

 changes with the Museums of Bergen, Milan, Gottingen, and the 

 British Museum. From the " Challenger" office we have received 

 a series of duplicates of their Stalked Crinoids, in exchange for a 

 similar series of the " Blake " expedition, intended for the British 

 Museum. From the Paris Museum we have received a collec- 

 tion of Patagonian birds, — a valuable addition to our American 

 faunal series. We have continued a o-eneral svstem of ex- 

 changes with the Smithsonian, as well as, to a limited extent, our 

 purchases from Professor Ward, the principal additions belong- 

 ing to the African Faunal Room. We have also received in 

 exchange casts from the Museums of Oxford and of Munich. A 

 collection of Palaeozoic Fossils was made by our collector, under 

 the direction of Mr. C. D. Walcott, in the Eureka District, with 

 the permission of Major Powell, the Director of the Geological 

 Survey. 



During my visit to the Sandwich Islands I devoted consider- 

 able time to the study of the recent and extinct reefs of the 

 group, and am now preparing a short paper on the subject for 

 the Museum Bulletin. I made an extensive and interesting 

 collection of the various limestones characteristic of the modern 

 and ancient reefs. 



From the Peabody Museum of Salem we have received in 

 exchange the most important addition to our Entomological 

 Department ever received. It contains a large number of types 

 described by prominent American and European entomologists. 

 I must confess that I accepted this collection with great reluc- 

 tance, as it will involve a considerable outlay in the way of 

 boxes and cabinets, as well as a good part of the time of the 

 Assistants of the department to preserve it from deteriorating. 

 The same is true for other collections we have received, and 

 which do not all fill some important gap. A few such additions, 

 entailing increased expense and care, will materially cripple the 

 usefulness of the institution. It becomes a serious question how 

 far we can allow our resources to be absorbed in the future by 



