REPORT 
OF THE 
Board of Directors. 
Philadelphia, April 26th, 1888. 
HE Board of Directors of the Zoological Society of 
Philadelphia, submit to the members and loan-cer- 
tificate holders, their Sixteenth Annual Report of the busi- 
ness and operations of the Society from 1st March, 1887, to 
1st March, 1888. 
Members. 
The number of members on 1st March, 1888, was — 
Annual members 901 
Life members 844 
Corresponding members 8 
Honorary members 13 
Perpetual members 93 
Total members (exclusive of loan-holders) . . 1859 
Five hundred and sixty-eight annual members have been 
added since the last report. This large increase of member- 
ship is a cause of congratulation, and it seems probable that 
the number of annual members will very shortly reach 1000. 
The present number is the largest in the history of the 
Society, having nearly trebled since the last year. 
The efforts to secure the loan of the Society in accord- 
ance with the plan mentioned in the last annual report are 
being continued with success. It will be remembered that 
all of the loan so secured is held in trust, and is not to be 
canceled until the entire issue is received. The Directors 
hope that the whole may be thus obtained in a short time, 
and they again appeal to the public spirit of the loan-hold- 
ers, and of the citizens of Philadelphia, for assistance in ac- 
complishing this end. 
The importance of increasing the permanent fund be- 
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