New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-08-11

specimens all placed, Will be somewhat as follows;
Primates Chiefly monkeys and lemursl Mastodo MANI
moth Dinocerata Drontotlerida Perssodacyls horse
and rhnOccr0s families. etcl; Artlodaciyis camel Pig
deer families etc); Camvora; Tnlodontia; Bats 10
dents Marsupais etc; Turtles; Dinosaurs Mosasaurs'
PlcSiosaurs: Ichthyosaurs; Crocodes, Lizards, etc.
Fossil Fishes; ptcrodacyls and Pteranodons; Creace-
Birds (Hcspcrorr oh0yornis, ctc; Tertiary ana
Post-iortiary Birds The last mentioned division may i'll
extinct birds Of tho present epoch which are here
represented by about dozen skeletons OF the dors
or m0a G'c.ng q much more complete series th"h Is
owned by any other museum, with the possible e1ceP
ous Of that m the British Museum and one in New-Hea
land several skeletons Of the great aux and va1ous re
mains OF the dodo The perfect skeleton o. the gigantic
Iish elk as the animal is extinct, viii piohapy ma
place m this room; but certainly none OF the eases can
contain Die line specimen since the spread of Its anlers
IS Is feet inches.
INVERTEBRATES AND FOSSIL Footprints.
In the west room Of this second story the system of AZ
raneeut is that OF the cart and the standard
Textbook Dauas Manual Of Geology, is essentially fol-
lowed Tie fossils Of this mainly the inverte-
bratcs ana plants many OF them arc type fossils Sc
lected the finest, and fixed permanently N scientific
literature, by being drawn and figured large NUMBER
OF the originals which illustrated IN Danas Geology,
may DE found il these casos BY simply walking around
the and looking 10 the specimens succes5Yey he
student or even lie ordinary visitor would set an idea OF
te order Of the layers ia the crust Of the earth, since
contains tho repreSe NATIVE fossils OF an epoch
ana the cases arranged and labelled as follows;
suran Dcyonian, Carbonerous, Perniian, Tnas, Jur-
assic Cretace0us eston ctc) CretGceOus ng. chalk,
ctc) E0ccnc. MlOccne Picceno, P0stpliocone Recent
large case devoted to Fossil Fishes another to
tmct Insects, CIustacca. Brach.opods and Cephao-
pods: another TO Tlilohites, Corals Cginoids and
spongcs In each case. there are Subdivisions
which serve TO make the sys,ematizcd character
Of the collection more impressive This room has been
further made of service by tao addition OF extensive
gallery which viii contain largo collection Of fossil
Iau-a. and also great saurian monstcIsver.a
be rpcuts-whch too long TO be accommodated
the OF the South While on the subject OF
palUonO.ogy, Il may bo wei to mention here that The
collection OF fossil footprints from the Connecticut Val
ley, which stored aud partly exhibited in the basement
OF the building. is ~ far tho largest of us kind These
originally supposed to be bird-tracks. They al
that is left 90 tell OF many thousand. of animals which
have walled upon that beach The rocks
OF Tie epoch which they lived not o formation
that favorable for preserving their fossil bones, and
II hardly be said that any of Tie animals that MADE
the tracks identified But is known, or
at all events generally admitted that these numer-
Gus aud varied footprints were made, not by birds
mainly mt by reptiles probably dinosaurs. The de-
partInent Of paleontoogy III the Museum thus includes
fossil vorcbFaes. Invertebrates plants ara footprints
Mr.. Oscar Harger, who accompanied Prof Marsh on Two
expeditions across continent. has been h assist
ant in palpoutoogy several years still occupies that
post, ana thus renders good service TO science.
RlRr MINERALS
Most visitors on entering The Museum 20 at into
the room the story. which contains the mineral
ogcal collection This is charge Of Prof L. :. Dana,
and far advanced toward completeness OF arrange
meut. Hore o;ner ROOMS. tho feature is
classified, orderly display this occupies TWENTY-FIVE
cases. Certain special objects and peculiar collections
are shown in separate Beside, the minerals cis
tl..
boards attached 10 the cases. and tho aIar-emcnt Of
these is rs complete rs which under glass.
Tho general system may be described being chem
zeal basis the first Of cases containing elementary
substances such thc metals the next series, the
pounds with sUluhdr, arsenic. etc. then the minerals
which chlorine Hu0ruc, etc. form Uaft next the
ides next, scacs finally phcsphates cgrbonaies,
etc The number OF choice and specimens Is mu-
sually great. have many cabinets Of minerals but
90 not recall having large systcnati display
that bright ana attractive in a its parts. Small
specimens those containing curious costly crystals
the glass of The and with nagnifyme
lens iu front OF each; This simple courivaHce enables
the visitor such specimens ut once, without
opening tie cases. North America Us not famous
land precious stones but il is ~ barren Of
them aud in SNOWY minerals is not 10 be- despscd. The
Labrador iosp as hciunfu III It's pri,IuAc coors
its aqua-llarne blue the noted stones nom Eu
roucdi quarres, ta., carved shaped for ornamental
use made feature 81 tie foreign exhibits last year
Phadclpna From Mexico there strange opss, vita
! q peculiar scinnaiiOn quite unlike tie irc 81 the Hun
gaiian gem Ncw-IIdmpshire furnishes hcry fifteen
inches high and thirteen more regular crystal
o. this sort about twelve lay ten inches. NewYork SUB
plies great crystal of caicIte from tho Rosse lead
mines st. Lawrence COunty)s!zc in ncics. sixteen by
twelve by eight; and almost equally large specimen
OF fuolite from Muscalongc Lake, Jefferson County.
A Prof Olsted OF Yale first proclaimed the accepted
theory meteJIic showers, it is NEE; thai tbs Museum
should DO well stocked with moteores. Its collection is
the second Importance IN the country; DR.. g. L. SAci
ards at Amherst ranking as the first and Prot D. Law
renee Smiths Louisville, tie third ono OF the
teoltes under Prof Danas has history that points
moral for NcwY Workers. Ii had been deposited with
| tue Lyceum OF Natural History IN New-YOrk by Mr.
Ccorse Gibbs but by iucXpcable neglect wa. al
lowed to lie fOr years uncared for ia City Hall Park
one day, when f election made IT necessary TO lind
wori. for unemployed voters, some irshmcn were Or
dercd to bury tas great black ont Of sight They
had dug hole Tor the purpose and the meteOrte
/ lust about 10 disappear fot ever from human view
| when MIS-. Gibbs lnerposed, rescued il aud sent
il 10 Yale College where it has since borne the
OF the donor being known as tie Gibbs MecOTitc It's
weight is 1G35 pounds When the history OF science in
Ncw-Yoik Cty is be compiled the adventures Of the
Gibbs me,corite should be coupled with the tural III
Central PARK that effected hy the Tweed ynasty Tor
the fossil models OF Prof t. Mataih0use Hawkins. Be
fore leaving the Of Mueralo-Y the visitor the
Peabody Museum should carefully examine the Blum
collection Of pscudomoIls." These curJsiiies
CRYSTALS shapes entirely foreign aud unnatural to The
mineral substances that compose them. Thoy have been
formed 10y series OF occurrences thai mag Dc thus
MARRIED; first % crystal OF given knd,af forming
In The shape that is natural 80 II, became mbcddcG in
rock; second the crystal dissolved ont, leaving
mould or cavity OF it, shape; third into this mould
some other mineral has penetrated while plastic
state and thus cluired cry stllue form that
r.ltfuy claim. The number uud variety OF thcse pa,U