No. 482] CATALOGUING MUSEUM SPECIMENS 87 



the specimens whether or not the collection contains any forms of 

 particular value (types, cotypes, etc.), as well as other general 

 information. 



General suggestions. — In order to record small collections, 

 which may come directly to a department, blank cards may be 

 provided for those in charge, and upon the arrival of such an 

 accession, these should be immediately filled out and handed to 

 the person keeping the Accession Catalogue. Blank cards to be 

 similarly filled out and returned, can be sent to a person from whom 

 an accession deficient in data is received. The system of cross 

 references can be arranged to meet any demand. The method 

 employed as noted above, appears adequate for ordinary purposes. 

 Thus the name of each department is placed on a tab assigned to 

 a particular position, and when the cards are filed, the accessions 

 of a department will be indicated by the corresponding row of 

 tabs. A further subdivision which may be applied to each depart- 

 ment is in the use of colored cards. If for example the department 

 of anthropology, possesses three separate appropriations upon which 

 to draw for as many purposes, e. g. : (a) Explorations on the North 

 Pacific Coast, (b) The purchase of Michigan Antiquities, and 

 (c) Collections illustrating the life of the Aztecs; all accessions in 

 Anthropology of (o) obtained by purchase, or at the expense of 

 the museum from the one fund, can be placed on salmon colored 

 cards, while similarly all accessions of (6) and (c) obtained from 

 the corresponding appropriations can be placed on buff and blue 

 cards, respectively. Thus at any time the general condition of 

 the various funds of the department can be readily ascertained. 

 Geographical Distribution {e. g. nearctic, neotropical, etc. may be 

 represented in a similar manner. 



Placing numerical guide cards at intervals of every hundred 

 cards, will greatly facilitate finding any desired accession number. 

 In a catalogue where the width of the tabs makes it possible to 

 have an area at the riglit fioiii wliich no tabs project, it is con- 

 venient to place the numerical lab as in Fi^^ 1. 



Inasmuch as tlie majority of accessions cover a quantity of 

 specimens, such a catalouuc as tlie one described can be easily 

 maintained, and the advaniai^es which result through always 

 having correctly classified data accessible are an important item 

 in the making up of reports. 



