(8) 



using the laboratories on the third floor has made it necessary 

 to supply additional tables and desks, which have been or- 

 dered, and will be available early in the year. The rapid 

 growth of the library has also required additional shelves for 

 the cases in the stack-room; these have been ordered and 

 will be ready to be put in place in a short time ; they will ac- 

 commodate the growth of the collection for a few months, but 

 it is clearly necessary that the walls of the reading room be 

 also shelved during the year, and I have caused a design to 

 be made for this casing by the architect. 



Pozuer House. The steam heating apparatus, after some 

 slight changes shown to be desirable by experience in using 

 it, is now apparently satisfactory and sufficient; it has been 

 found possible to heat both the museum building and the 

 conservatories with three boilers out of the five, in any tem- 

 perature yet experienced, although a fourth boiler has been 

 thrown in at intervals when the temperature fell below io°, 

 this being, however, apparently unnecessary. A few joints 

 of steam pipe, evidently of imperfect welding, have given 

 away from time to time, but have been promptly replaced 

 either by our own engineers, or by the Parker Company un- 

 der their guarantee ; with such a very extensive system of 

 pipes these defects were to be expected, and could only be 

 discovered by operating the plant. It has been found nec- 

 essary to supply new grate-bars in some of the furnaces 

 and other new fixtures and fittings, but nothing more than 

 the ordinary working of the steam plant would normally re- 

 quire. 



Stable. No changes have been made in this building dur- 

 ing the year. 



Public Comfort Station. This house built under the Parker 

 contract has not yet been connected with the water supply 

 and with the sewer, and consequently has not been operated 

 during the year. It was planned to make these necessary 

 connections, but more important work required the postpone- 

 ment of this construction. 



Tool House. No changes have been made in this building. 



