1861.] MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY. 59 



[E.3 



KEPOKT 



Of the Director of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, for the Year 

 1860, submitted to the Board of Trustees at their Meeting of January 

 Wth, 1861. 



Gentlemen, — Your Committees on Finance and on the Museum 

 have lately made you acquainted with the general condition of our 

 institution. It remains for me now to inform you of what has been 

 done in the Museum to advance its arrangement, to preserve its con- 

 tents, to increase its collections, and to render it as useful as possible 

 to special students of Natural History, to the students of the Univer- 

 sity generally, and to the public at large. 



From the statements made on the day of the Inauguration of the 

 Museum, you already know that the collections are so far arranged as 

 to have been rendered accessible to the public in all the rooms which, 

 in the building thus far erected, are destined to their exhibition. 

 Since the Museum has been opened to the public, however, much has 

 been done to render the specimens more instructive, by labelling as 

 many of them as could be furnished with labels during this time, 

 and this work will go on steadily and uninterruptedly till the whole 

 is accurately labelled. 



As I consider the most careful criticism in identifying the specimens 

 indispensable, and since the character of the .Museum as a scientific 

 establishment will depend chiefly upon the care bestowed on this part 

 of its arrangement, it is impossible that the labelling should go on as 

 fast as might be desired by those who would only seek for general in- 

 formation in visiting the establishment. In order, however, to meet 

 all reasonable expectations, I shall do my best to have provisional 

 labels attached to those specimens of which the critical identification 

 would require too much time at the present moment. 



The work which has to be done in this arrangement is very varied, 

 the specimens passing through many hands before they can be prop- 

 erly exhibited. That I may do justice to all those who have been 

 connected with me in this work, allow me to state briefly what has 

 been the share of each. 



