the Museum may be expected to continue to exceed the capacity 

 of the Extension for expansion, as they do under present conditions. 



The year 1943 was the first full year of operation of the Exten- 

 sion's delivery trucks under the restrictions imposed by the Office 

 of Defense Transportation. The requirements were met by an 

 increase in the loan period for cases from ten to thirteen school 

 days, with the interposition of a three-day non-operating period for 

 the trucks, rather than by a reduction in the number of schools 

 reached. The time of the men thus periodically released from their 

 regular duties in circulating exhibits was employed in repairing and 

 reconditioning cases, in the preparation of parts for new models, 

 and in the numerous miscellaneous tasks involved in the maintenance 

 of the Extension. Inquiries in a number of schools of different types 

 in contrasting neighborhoods revealed that the longer loan period is 

 an advantage in large schools where the cases are moved to all 

 classrooms. 



Of the 438 cases that received repairs or reinforcements during 

 the year, only sixty-one had been damaged by accident or careless 

 handling while in schools. Although the sliding label frames are 

 the weakest element of the case assembly, the addition of reinforcing 

 parts, and the replacement of case bottoms and entire back assem- 

 blies continue to be the largest part of maintenance work. 



Twenty-five new exhibits were prepared during the year, seven 

 old exhibits were completely revised and reinstalled, and five were 

 permanently withdrawn from circulation. The total number of 

 usable exhibits at the end of the year was 1,118. Of particular 

 interest among the new exhibits are those designed specifically to 

 supply illustrative material for a fifth grade unit of study on the 

 relationship of the shape of a bird's beak to its feeding habits. Other 

 exhibits deal with the subject of sharks, the Galapagos penguin, the 

 ecological relationships of ducks, the witch-hazel tree, dyewoods 

 and mordant dyeing, and the economically important soybean. 



Department of Anthropology 



Research . . . 



In February, the Museum Press published Dr. Martin's report, 

 The SU Site; Excavations at a Mogollon Village, Western New Mex- 

 ico; Second Season, 19^1. A brief resume of this monograph was 

 presented in the Annual Report of the Director for 1942. 



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