202 
PROCEEDINGS OF THE PERTHSHIRE SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE, 
where a few hours may be passed at least inexpensively | 
and harmlessly, I think we will not be considered as 
claiming too much if we Bay that the Society, by means of j 
its Museum, is doing a good work. 
To return, however, to our proper subject. As you will 
remember, we did not enter into possession of this building 
till the end of 1881. At that time we had not in hand 
many museum specimens, for though in its earlier days 
the Society had been getting from time to time examples 
of the local animals and plants, yet from the want of 
accommodation it did not make any great efforts to form 
a collection until after the present building had been 
acquired. 
After the building was ready for occupation cases had 
to be made, so that it was not till towards the end of 1882 
that the arrangement of the collections could be begun, 
while another year elapsed before the Museum could be 
opened to the public. It will thus be seen that it is barely 
three years since the formation of the Museum may be 
said to have really commenced. That in these three 
years we have not been idle the following census of the 
number of specimens will show:—In the Index Collection 
there are upwards of 2000 specimens (including models 
and drawings), of which about 900 belong to the Geologi¬ 
cal Index Collection, 400 to the Botanical, and 700 to the 
Zoological. In the Perthshire Collection we have about 
15,000 specimens, belonging to 1712 species, out of about 
2300 species known to occur in Perthshire. 
The following table shows how these are apportioned 
among the different groups :— 
Group. 
Total 
Perthshire 
Species. 
Species 
in 
Museum. 
Specimens 
in 
Museum. 
Mammals,. 
39 
26 
109 
Birds, . 
219 
169 
329 
Birds' Eggs,. 
111 
62 
420 
Birds’ Nests, . 
111 
48 
92 
Reptiles and Amphibians,. 
s 
6 
15 
Freshwater Fishes,. 
23 
IS 
48 
Marine Fishes. 
Band and Fitsh water Mol- 
ii 
14 
lusca, . 
5S 
54 
3G04 
Lepidoptera. 
849 
447 
2085 
Flowering Plants & Ferns,. 
about 900 
nearly all 
about 8900 
Native Timber Trees,. 
19 
19 
197 
In the above table, the figures in the first column must 
be taken as indicating the number of Perthshire species 
so far as at present known, and in some cases only ap¬ 
proximately. The remaining species of mammals we are 
not likely to get soon, as some are now extinct in Perth¬ 
shire, and among the others are 6 or 7 species of whales 
which have been found, but very rarely, at the mouth of 
the Tay. The 319 species of birds include those of the 
whole basin of the Tay, and of the total, 9 or 10 are of 
very rare occurrence. The number placed opposite the 
nests and eggs (111) indicates of course the number of 
birds known to breed in the district. In regard to the 
collection of fishes, it is only quite lately that we have 
determined to include the fishes of the mouth of the Tay, 
as belonging really to the fauna of the basin of the Tay. 
The collection of mollusca includes specimens of 36 
varieties of the 54 species represented. Of the 849 Perth¬ 
shire Lepidoptera, 431 belong to the Macrolepidoptera 
and 418 to the Microlepidoptera. The collection of the 
latter is by far the most deficient, and I take this oppor¬ 
tunity of pointing out the absence of many common species. 
In addition to the specimens enumerated above there is 
also the nucleus of our Geological Collection (which has 
not yet had much attention paid to it), including 166 speci¬ 
mens; and we have also a considerable number of un¬ 
arranged specimens of the other orders of insects and other 
invertebrate animals, and of the cryptogamic plants, 
amounting in all to several thousand additional specimens. 
That the latter remain unarranged is due to several causes, 
but chiefly for the reason that the time and energies of 
those members by whom the Museum has been arranged 
have been fully occupied by the work that has been done. 
Those who inspect the Museum will see that a large 
amount of time and labour must necessarily have been 
expended on the arrangement, but unless they have 
actually taken part in it, it is doubtful if they can really 
estimate the amount of each that has been given. Let me 
—with an ulterior object in view—endeavour to sketch 
briefly the work that has been required in one department 
alone. Let us take the birds, since they not only form a con¬ 
spicuous feature of the collection, but are the special charge 
of the Curator, whose devotion to the museum work has been 
second to that of none. In the first place, and before any¬ 
thing could be done, a competent knowledge of the classifi. 
cation, and an acquaintance with the characteristics of the 
species, would have had to be acquired, had not the arraDger 
of this department possessed these in an eminent degree al¬ 
ready as the result of life-long study. In the next place the 
principles on which the arrangement was to be made, an 
idea of the space required, and of the room to be allocated 
to each family, had all to be planned out. Then, to obtain 
the necessary specimens, much labour had to be expended 
in the preparation of lists and in correspondence with per¬ 
sons likely to be able and willing to render assistance in 
procuring examples of the birds. After the specimens 
had been obtained instructions had to be given for their 
preservation, if the arranger did not undertake this also 
himself (and in all the departments the arrangers have 
