OPERATIONS OF THE YEAR. 



APPROPRIATIONS. 



The maintenance of the National Museum for the fiscal year end- 

 ing June 30, 1923, was provided for in the following amounts 

 appropriated in the Executive and Independent Offices Act approved 

 June 12, 1922 : 



Preservation of collections $312,620 



Furniture and fixtures 20,000 



Heating and lighting 73,000 



Building repairs 10, 000 



Books 2, 000 



Postage 500 



Printing and binding 37,500 



During the World War Congress recognized the inadequacy of 

 the salary scale in the Government departments and independent 

 offices in the Capital City by granting a small bonus to employees of 

 the lower grades, where salaries were wholly inadequate to provide 

 the necessities of life in Washington. The system has since been 

 continued pending the establishment of a more adequate and uniform 

 salary scale. The bonus has heretofore been provided by an indefi- 

 nite appropriation, but for the fiscal year 1923 the Executive and 

 Independent Offices Act contained an item of $78,036 to provide 

 bonuses for Museum employees during the year. 



The year just closed was the second since the Budget and Account- 

 ing Act went into effect and necessarily involved changes in methods 

 of planning and keeping accounts. The Museum has difficulty in 

 making both ends meet, operating as it has had to on practically 

 the same appropriations for the past 10 or 15 years. It is only by 

 rigid economy and by the omission of many things that should be 

 done that the 3"ear ends without a deficit. 



COLLECTIONS. 



The number of specimens acquired by the Museum during the year 

 was approximately 217,611. Received in 1,709 separate accessions, 

 the specimens were classified and assigned as follows : Anthropology, 

 1,583; zoology, 94,887; botany, 54,837; geology and mineralogy, 

 1,165; paleontology, 35,533; textiles, wood technology, organic chem- 



