126 . REPORT ON NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1885. 



plieates, but the latter cannot be selected out until all the specimens 

 of each species have been examined, and those required for the reserve 

 series decided upon. Work of this character progresses slowly, especi- 

 ally in view of the many other duties of more immediate importance 

 which belong to the department. Another way in which the extent 

 of the alcoholic collections is being reduced is by the drying of many 

 specimens belonging to certain groups possessing a hard covering, such 

 as the sea-urchins, star-fishes, corals, &c. In many of these animals the 

 parts mainly relied upon" for purposes of classification are shown nearly 

 or quite as well in the dried as in alcoholic specimens, and the former 

 are the most convenient for reference. A fair representation of each 

 species must, however, be retained in alcohol, and this necessitates the 

 same careful identifications before drying as in the case of selecting 

 duplicates. In nearly all the groups, except the corals, the majority of 

 specimens received are preserved in alcohol, and this is especially the 

 case with the collections of the Fish Commission. Collectors seldom 

 have the means of making good dried preparations in the field, and it is 

 not always possible for them to decide what can best be studied dried 

 and what best in alcohol. Seaside stations are generally characterized 

 by a moist atmosphere, in which specimens dry with difficulty, if at all, 

 and are apt to mould at any time ; and for that reason the drying of 

 most kinds of specimens is not now attempted at the stations of the 

 Fish Commission. 



The favor with which the distribution of duplicates is regarded by the 

 public, fully justifies the amount of time spent upon this work. Its expense 

 is but slightly additional to that demanded for the general maintenance 

 of the collections, and the scheme is directly in accord Avith the policy of 

 the Smithsonian Institution, as expressed by the founder. The dupli- 

 cates hitherto distributed have been derived mainly from the collections 

 of the Fish Commission, examined and described by Professors Yerrill 

 and Smith, of Yale College. These have been put up in sets, covering, 

 so far as possible, all the groups of marine invertebrates common to the 

 New England coast, and have been especially adapted to the use of in- 

 stitutions of learniug. Over 200 such sets have already been distrib- 

 uted, and applications for others of the same kind are constantly being 

 received. The researches now being carried on in this department 

 have reference ihainly to the identification of all the materials belong- 

 ing to certain groups, from whatever source obtained. The collections 

 of sea-urchins have, in this manner, been carefully examined during 

 the past two years, and those of the star-fishes and ophiurans are now 

 under way. The duplicates selected in the future will, therefore, for 

 the most part, represent limited groups, and the sets prepared for dis- 

 tribution will be of a special rather than a general nature, thereby 

 possessing greater scientific value. 



It is unfortunate that more inducements cannot be offered to special 

 workers in this department, for, as will be seen by the present and 



