MUSEUM OF COMPAKATIVE ZOOLOGY. 25 



REPORTS OF SUB-COMMITTEES. 



The more formal departmental business has been carried on in 

 meetings that have been held on the evening of the second Tues- 

 day of each month, after the close of the geological conference. 

 The subjects thus discussed have been plans of courses for the 

 coming academic year, recommendations of applicants for graduate 

 scholarships and fellowships, and the development of the depart- 

 mental resources. Special consideration by sub-committees has 

 been given to several subjects. The field-work introduced in the 

 various courses has been carefully revised by Professor Shaler and 

 the instructors engaged in this branch of teaching, with the object 

 of securing for those students who give a large share of attention 

 to geology a systematic acquaintance with the features of our 

 neighborhood. A general revision has been made by Messrs. 

 Dodge, Jackson, and Woodworth of all the geological maps in 

 the various libraries and laboratories, in the hope of completing 

 a central collection : all the maps of this kind belonging to the 

 department have been arranged and catalogued, and a rough list 

 has been made of similar maps in the College Library. It is hoped 

 that a special appropriation may be made by the University Library 

 Council for the purchase of foreign geological maps during the 

 coming year, thus continuing the systematic growth of our collec- 

 tions in the manner already so successfully applied in the collec- 

 tion of foreign large-scale topographical maps. Mr. A. L. Rotch 

 of the Blue Hill Observatory has kindly acted with Mr. Ward in 

 looking over all our meteorological materials, in order to concen- 

 trate climatological works in the library of the Harvard College 

 Observatory, where a large collection of such material already 

 exists ; the College Library is thus relieved of a certain responsi- 

 bility, and enabled to extend its collection of general meteorological 

 publications. 



The report of the sub-committee on the Gardner Collection of 

 Photographs, Messrs. Woodworth, Griswold, and Dodge, shows a 

 great improvement in the condition of the collection, and a con- 

 siderable increase in its size. All the photographs are now 

 arranged in geographical order in large folios ; a list of accessions 

 and a systematic card catalogue are maintained. It is now pro- 

 posed to select those views that are most frequently used in teach - 



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