Jan., 1920. Annual Report of the Director. 327 



Previously to crating, the bones were covered with tissue paper to pre- 

 vent the plaster from adhering to their finished surfaces, 2x4 inch timbers 

 were fitted to the surfaces thus prepared, and all was lashed fast with 

 plaster and burlap bandages. A similar treatment was given the large 

 skull of Triceratops, which, owing to its thin and brittle substance, re- 

 quired especial care. Secure packing of the six hundred specimens of 

 crude petroletmi also presented a problem of some difficulty. These 

 oils were exhibited in glass-stoppered bottles eighteen inches high and 

 an inch and a quarter in diameter. No practicable method of sealing 

 the stoppers oil-tight without defacing the bottles was fotmd, since 

 leakage was to be expected if the bottles were not maintained in an 

 upright position. It was necessary also to avoid the use of excelsior 

 or other finely divided packing material which might, in case of accident, 

 become saturated with oil. Accordingly the stoppers were secured against 

 loosening by tying caps of cheesecloth over them. The bottles were then 

 placed in light, wooden boxes each of a size to hold thirty and of a 

 height to allow one-quarter of the length of each bottle to project. To 

 each box two pieces of heavy straw board were fitted, one two inches 

 from the bottom and one over the top, and in these boards holes slightly 

 larger than the diameter of the bottles were cut. When the bottles were 

 threaded through these holes they were held flexibly but securely in 

 position, and the upper quarter of the bottles projecting above the box 

 was covered by crating which permitted a free view of the character of 

 the contents and will protect the box from being inverted or roughly 

 handled. To further facilitate carrying the bottles in proper positions, 

 each box was equipped with suitable handles. The larger bottles of 

 the collection, some of them eighteen inches in diameter, were similarly 

 packed, though in specially made crates. Boxes of special sizes were 

 also provided for the collection of marbles, the size chosen being such 

 as to permit rapid packing and avoid too great weight. Of the series on 

 exhibition in the West Court, the relief maps and the large model of 

 the moon have been taken down and packed, leaving only the mete- 

 orite, crystal and gem collections now on exhibition. 



Packing has been actively pursued in the Department of Zoology dur- 

 ing the year. The only material in the Division of Mammalogy and 

 Ornithology not ready for moving consists of the large habitat groups 

 and the study collection of birds. The entire serial exhibition col- 

 lections of mammals and birds have been secured in situ in their cases 

 by means of cleats and braces or other devices to hold them securely in 

 place. The study collection of mammals has been fully packed, mostly 

 in original containers and the rooms in which they were kept have been 

 dismantled. When not engaged in packing, one assistant has continued 



