(4) 



under a contract awarded by the Commissioner of Parks to 

 John B. Devlin on January 3, 1901. The screen along 

 the north border of the grounds has also been strengthened 

 by additional planting, but it has not as yet been desirable to 

 develop the eastern boundary border to any considerable ex- 

 tent, nor is it likely to be in advance of the building of the 

 boulevard, planned by the department of Public Works to 

 bound the Park on its eastern side from West Farms to 

 Williamsbridge, owing to the necessary modifications of the 

 surface along this line required by the building of this road. 

 It is desirable from the standpoint of improving the eastern 

 side of the Park, that this boulevard should be built at as 

 early a time as is practicable. I have had some consultation 

 with officials of the Department of Public Works relative to this 

 matter, but nothing tangible has yet been developed. 



8. Temporary Greenhouse. The plants growing for 

 several years in the greenhouse of Columbia University on 

 Morningside Heights were moved into the new main con- 

 servatories during the summer and furnished an important 

 nucleus for the collections in those buildings ; the decision of 

 the University Trustees to demolish the old greenhouse made 

 it possible for us to obtain from them a considerable number 

 of plants additional to those actually grown by us. The use 

 of this old greenhouse has been an important adjunct in our 

 work of preparation and I have expressed to the President of 

 the University our appreciation of the permission to use it. 



9. The Main Conservatories. The eight houses of this range 

 built under the contract of the Department of Parks with John 

 R. Sheehan were completed in June and the buildings turned 

 over to us by the Department for operation. In addition to 

 the plants derived from the Columbia University greenhouse, 

 a number of specimens obtained by gift and exchange sufficient 

 to effect a preliminary installation of the collections have been 

 reported in the successive numbers of our Journal ; it is most 

 gratifying to know that the whole collection has been brought 

 together without the actual purchase of more than $100 worth 

 of specimens. The number of species contained in the collec- 



