4 
As in former years many applications were received for infor¬ 
mation in various branches of Natural History, and every encourage¬ 
ment is given in this direction. Teachers requiring material in Nature 
Study borrowed 152 specimens. More might be done in this way if 
the course of lessons was known beforehand. Special facilities were 
given to several Art Students and Artists requiring the use of speci¬ 
mens. 
The Essay Competition on “ Birds and their Nesting Habits,” 
set by the Perthshire Society of Natural Science, resulted in 60'essays 
from the City and County Schools. The Essay set for the present 
year is “A Perthshire River.” 
A number of members of the International Phytogeographical 
Excursion in the British Isles honoured us with a visit on the 15th 
August, while on their way from Edinburgh to Atholl. The chief 
object of their visit to the Museum was the examination of the Perth¬ 
shire Alpine Plants contained in the herbarium. 
The Herbarium was consulted by several students engaged in 
plant distribution, and the type collection of Perthshire Willows formed 
by the late Dr. F. Buchanan White was in part examined by the Rev. 
E. F. Linton. 
The Committee desire to thank all donors and others who have in 
any way assisted in forwarding the work of the Museum ; also thanks 
are due to the Director of the Royal Gardens, Kew, for naming a number 
of critical Microfungi; to the Rev. James Waterston for working out the 
series of bird and mammal ecto-parasites collected by Mr. G. Hart and 
others ; to Mr. A. E. J. Carter for identifying a series of Perthshire Dip- 
tera, made by Mr. W. Wylie ; and to Mr. R. H. Meldrum for a further 
collection of Perthshire Mosses; to Lord Dean of Guild Henderson 
and Mr. R. Mitchell for allowing the Curator to examine, measure, and 
weigh a series of mountain hares ; and to Mr. J. H. Buchan for material. 
The collection of birds from Captain W. S. H. Drummond Moray 
is from the private Museum at Blair-Drummond, lately dispersed. It 
was formed in the first instance by George Stirling Home-Drummond, 
M.A., 8th Laird of Blairdrummond and 10th of Ardoch, 1813 to 1876, 
who interested himself in various. departments .of natural history, 
antiquities, etc. 
Observations on the weather were made daily at 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. 
The morning readings were available to the general public by means of 
a chart placed in the window alongside of the British Meteorological 
Forecast for the day. Returns were sent each week to the office of the 
Registrar General ; to the local press ; monthly returns to the Scottish 
Meteorological Society; to Dr. H. R. Mill, British Rainfall; to the 
Manager of the Perth Waterworks. An abstract for the year 1911 
appears at the end of this Report. 
