1862.] MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY. 73 



[A.] 



THIRD ANNUAL REPORT 



Of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, by Louis Agassiz, presented to 

 the Board of Trustees at their meeting in October, 1861. 



Thanks to the liberality of the Legislature, the year which opened 

 under such threatening auspices has been thus far one of the most 

 successful and prosperous through which our young institution has 

 passed. The $20,000 appropriated in the last regular session of the 

 General Court, added to the income from the Gray Fund and from 

 the Back Bay land, has made it possible to carry on all the operations 

 of the Museum with unabated activity. During this year, two hundred 

 and seventy-five boxes, barrels, cans, etc., containing specimens of all 

 kinds from different parts of the world, have been received, — twenty- 

 five more than have been sent to us in any previous year. For these 

 fresh supplies we are indebted to the efforts of eighty-one different 

 individuals, showing how strong an interest is felt in the progress of 

 our institution. 



The Gray Fund was applied chiefly to the expenses incident to the 

 arrival of these specimens and to the purchase of new collections. 

 Among the latter, the most interesting are collections of fossils from 

 Dr. Campiche and Messrs. Ebray and Sseman, collections of insects 

 from Dr. Imhoff, and collections of shells from Messrs. Bartlett and 

 Parreyss. A private subscription from some friends of the Museum 

 has been devoted to the formation of a special natural-history library, 

 now arranged in the gallery of one of the laboratories. To this col- 

 lection the Hon. Charles Sumner has added a series of the scientific 

 works published by order of the Federal government. The books 

 relating to palaeontology were for the most part obtained from Dr. de 

 Koninck. The library numbers already more than 6,000 volumes. 



It has been one of my aims to obtain from original investigators 

 well-authenticated specimens of species already described, in order to 

 incorporate in our Museum the traditions of our science, and make it 

 as far as possible a standard for the identification of species. The 



