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9 west end of the Smithsonian Institution, which continued during nearly the entire year, greatly interfered with the word of the department, and necessitated our vacating for that time about one-half of the space allotted to the alcoholic collections of marine invertebrates. The main part of the collections being thus crowded together in a much smaller area than they ordinarily occupied, it was impossible to give them all the care they required, but no serious losses appear to have been sustained during this period. Before the close of the year the small room and hall space assigned to this department in the west basement had been refitted with cases and the specimens were being returned to their old quarters. No changes have been made in the gallery of the main hall where the dried specimens are stored. The exhibition hall has necessarily been closed to the public, in consequence of the repairs to the fish hall through which access to it is gained. A small representative series of specimens was supplied to Mr. Frederick A. Lucas, as the nucleus of a synoptical collection of marine invertebrates,