62 
The Ohio Naturalist. 
[Vol. IV, No. 3 , 
THE CATALOGUING OF MUSEUM COLLECTIONS. 
L. B. Walton. 
The sj’stem by which sjieciniens are catalogued in most muse- 
ums of natural history is open to criticism. Insufficient data 
concerning the collections are buried in bulk}- volumes or files to 
such an extent that one may usually be considered fortunate if 
after a period of several hours the locality and date of collection 
of a specimen can be ascertained. Notes concerning the name of 
the person by whom the specimen was identified, date of identifi- 
cation, etc., are rarel}- pre.seut. The task of a systematist wishing 
to find the material in a given mu.seum belonging to a particular 
group (phylum, class, etc.), or obtained from a given locality 
(countr}-, state, etc.) is usually a most difficult and oftentimes an 
impossible one. 
The use of the card index system, the value of which was long 
since recognized in business methods, will go far toward obviating 
the difficuties mentioned. A standard card of 4x6 inches has 
proved to be the most servicable. Following a chronological 
order the data which should be rendered accessible in an ade- 
quately catalogued collection, can be separated into three groups. 
These are : 
(a) The Accession Catalogue, arranged numericalh’, containing 
a general record of all material received as whole. Consequently 
one accession card usually covers a large number of specimens. 
(b) The Department Catalogue, arranged numerically, giving a 
complete history of each specimen or group of specimens (of a 
given species) acquired by each department (Zoology, Botany, 
Anthropology, etc. ). 
(c) The Reference Catalogue , arranged alphabetically, having 
the names of all sirecimens (genus and species in Zoology and 
Botaii}-) in a given department at the top of the card. 
The final disposition of each .specimen is indicated, consequently 
it is an easy matter to at once locate any desired material. 
While the Department Catalogue is the principal one, the other 
two are important and represent a comparativeh- small amount of 
labor, inasmuch as a single card contains data for a large number 
of .specimens. Classification of material into groups (e. g.. 
Protozoa, Porifera, etc., in Zoology) can be indicated by using 
cards with appropriate tabs in different positions, while geo- 
graphical distribution can be represented, if desired, b}- different 
colored cards. 
Kenyon College. 
