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donations or exchanges, or arrears of past years, which are still formidable; there is the administrative work of the department. This includes its relation to the Museum as a whole, and to the objects of the Museum as exemplified in the use of the material in its possession.

The mere piling up or accumulation of named, labelled and classified shells is, of itself, of value only to the person who goes through with the mental and physical exertion it requires. To justify the existence of a public museum it is generally admitted it must do more than this.

In the Department of Mollusks the following objects are steadily kept in view and the progress made is directly or indirectly instrumental toward the attainment of them.

1. The preservation of types, which have served for previous study, as a means of verifying the accuracy of past work or the proper orientation of new researches.

2. The full representation of American forms in the study collection, not only that the fauna of our own country may be fully known, but for ease in assisting American students to recognize the forms of their local collections and the benefit of the foreign student who may thus make his comparisons or researches in one place with the least expenditure of time, travel, and expense.

Under the two previous heads the Binney collection of North American Landshells