Viewing page 20 of 100

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

19 

specimens of a species have been examined, and those required for the reserve series decided upon. Work of this character progresses slowly, especially in view of the many other duties of more immediate importance which belong to the department. Another way in which the extent of the alcoholic collections is being reduced, is by the drying of many specimens belonging to certain groups, possessing a hard covering, such as the sea-urchins, starfishes, corals, etc.  In many of these animals, the parts mainly relied upon for purposes of classification are shown nearly, or quite as well in the dried as in the alcoholic specimens, and the former are most convenient for reference. A fair representation of each species must, however, be retained in alcohol, and this necessitates the same careful identifications before drying as in the case of selecting duplicates. In nearly all the groups, except the corals, the majority of specimens received are preserved in alcohol, and this is especially the case with the collections of the Fish Commission. Collectors seldom have the means of making good dried preparations in the field and it is not always possible for them to decide what can best be studied dried and what best in alcohol. Seaside stations are generally characterized by a moist atmosphere, in which specimens dry with difficulty, if at all, and are apt to mould at any time; and for that reason the drying of most specimens is not now attempted at the stations of the Fish Commission.

The favor with which the distribution of duplicates is regarded by the public, fully justifies the amount of time spent upon this work. Its expense is but slightly additional to that demanded for the general maintenance of the collections, and the scheme is directly in accord with the