Annual Eeport.] 6 [May 6, 



near Ithaca, K Y., by the late Prof. Win. C. Cleveland, one 

 of the most accomplished observers it has been my good 

 fortune to know. These fossils unfortunately were still un- 

 named, but this has been in a great measure remedied by the 

 kindness of Mr. Richard Rathbun, who has named for us a 

 large proportion of them, and about all our Chemung speci- 

 mens from other localities. The Society owes this collection 

 partly to the donations of Mr. Bouve and Mr. Cummings, 

 and partly to purchase. 



A considerable proportion of the year has been taken up 

 with the alterations now going on in the building. By these 

 alterations it is proposed to obtain the desirable results of 

 arranging the collections according to their natural order. 

 A visitor when entering the building, will be directed by a 

 guide-book to find the different departments. Usually speci- 

 mens are put in, like the plastering, to suit the inside of the 

 building, and their natural affinities sacrificed more or less to 

 every corner or inconvenient angle. We shall, undoubtedly, 

 experience some difficulty in the arrangement of details in 

 the separate collections, but we can rest assured that the nat- 

 ural sequence of forms, whether Mineralogical, Geological, 

 or Zoological, will be as fully and better illustrated than it 

 ever has been in any printed work embracing similar grounds, 

 an achievement heretofore considered unattainable in Muse- 

 ums of the size of ours. I by no means desire to assume for 

 myself the whole credit of this really extraordinary success ; 

 the peculiar construction of this building alone made it pos- 

 sible to adopt such a plan of arrangement, and reflects great 

 credit upon the judgment and capacity of the gentlemen 

 who superintended its erection. The President not only 

 urged the adoption of the Plan of Organization which was 

 announced in the Report of 1870-1871, but has ever since 

 given it his most energetic support, and to his efforts the 

 Society owes the great progress made at the present time. 



The expense of these alterations necessarily came upon us 

 all at one time, but it must be remembered that they will 



