HYATT: REPORT OF THE CURATOR. 
285 
and reports as follows: — The mammals of the general collection 
have been labeled. Attention has been given to the bird collec¬ 
tions, and they are in excellent condition. The Nuttall Club is 
continuing this season the work, which it began last year, of form¬ 
ing a New England collection of birds’ nests and eggs for presenta¬ 
tion to the Society. In anticipation of the probability that a 
portion of this collection will be received within a few months, 
preparations have been begun for new cases, which will give proper 
protection from insects, light, and dust, and at the same time afford 
the specimens suitable exhibition. 
Laboratory. 
The room of this department has been used, as in previous years, 
by the classes of the Boston University and the classes of the 
Teachers’ School of Science. Miss Martin has done a larger amount 
of work than usual in this department, owing to an extra demand 
this year for diagrams. 
Teachers’ School of Science. 
For some years past instruction has been given to a class from 
the Normal School of Boston by Prof. G. Id. Barton. In some 
cases this instruction has been free, in others it has been paid for. 
This season thirty dollars was all the money available for this work, 
and as each lesson embraces at least a half day, it is considered that 
this was essentially a free course. The class of 1897 consisted of 
thirteen ladies who came unusually well prepared for the work, and 
seven very successful lessons were given to them in the field. The 
present season a similar class of twenty ladies has already taken 
two lessons of a proposed course of ten or twelve under the same 
lecturer. 
A large amount of effective work in the direction of zoology 
has been done by Mr. A. W. Grabau with teachers of this city and 
suburban schools. A course of twelve lessons on “ The animals of 
the shores of New England ” was begun in April, 1897, and noticed 
briefly in my last report as having been successfully started with an 
attendance varying from forty to seventy-five persons. This was 
continued throughout the months of April, May, and June, by 
