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Appointments.—Mr. C. McCann, as Vertebrate Zoologist and Display Adviser on Ist April, 1948 ; Miss P. A. Lush, M.Sc., as Assistant Botanist on 29th November, 1948. Temporary appointments were Miss N. Fitchett, Art Assistant in the Department of Entomology ; Mi*. C. Tuarau, Maori Carver ; and Mr. T. Barrow, General Assistant in Ethnology. Accessions The Accession Register records 150 items in all sections, and the most important of them are mentioned in sectional reports. Restoration of Building The contractors for the work of restoration commenced work in the Museum galleries late in July, 1947. In addition to the original contract, they were authorized to increase library shelving, add a gallery and shelving in the main ethnology store-room, construct a small room for moa bones, provide new lockers and benches in several departments, and repaint all walls and ceilings, including the Royal room. The offices and reference rooms on the ground floor were completed in November, and the Museum staff then transferred all equipment and study collections to their permanent places. The painting of the public galleries and laying of linoleum were not completed until March. The normal routine care of collections; therefore, has this year involved a complete transfer of everything to the ground floor accommodation. Education Section Until the workmen came into the building the Education Officer, Mr. L. Stannard, and his assistant, Miss M. Lawson, continued to provide organized instruction for visiting classes, June being the peak month with over 2,000 children spending at least a full morning or afternoon at the Museum. As from the beginning of September, however, all class visits were cancelled, and the staff, with Museum assistants who had been attached to the section, turned their attention to the permanent displays in the Maori hall and the general work of moving the collections. This was a matter of voluntary choice on the part of the Education Officer and his assistant, who are not under direction as members of the Museum staff, and their assistance has been greatly appreciated. Some training of student teachers was continued and loan cases kept in circulation in the Nelson, Hawke's Bay, Horowhenua, and North Wairarapa districts. Ethnological Section The year has been one of important accessions, the most notable of which is the Oldman Collection of Maori and South Pacific ethnological material. After years of negotiation, Mr. W. 0. Oldman, of London, agreed to sell his entire collection to the ; Government of New Zealand. Following approval by Cabinet, the purchase was negotiated by the New Zealand High Commissioner, Mr. W. J. Jordan, and the UnderSecretary of Internal Affairs, Mr. J. W. Heenan. Mr. K. A. Webster, of London, and Mr. R. S. Duff, Director of the Canterbury Museum, assisted in listing and packing, and the cases arrived in good order late in October. They have since been unpacked, checked, labelled, and stored pending distribution of some material to other museums. The collection remains the property of the Government and is to be administered by the Dominion Museum ; its extent already is well known from the illustrated catalogues published by the Polynesian Society. Another important collection sent from London on deposit is that of Mr. K. A. Webster ; it includes fine series in greenstone and bone. Pacific collections also have been strengthened by a valuable gift of Rarotongan material, books, and manuscripts made by the family of the late Rev. T. K. Hutchings. There have been several notables

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