Correspondence bearing on the history of ornithologist M. A. Carriker Jr. and the use of arsenic in preparation of museum specimens

Correspondence in 1936 between the prolific ornithological collector M. A. Carriker Jr. and C. M. B. Cadwalader, director of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, reveals that Carriker, as well as certain other collectors, had abandoned the use of arsenic in specimen preparation by the early twentieth century and its disadvantages are detailed. The correspondence also discloses a professional rift between Carriker and other ornithological staff at the Academy that had important ramifications for Carriker's career.