NATIONAL MfTSEtTM BUILDTNOR. 275 



Besides the iiatiinil history coUections, tliere are eijually iniportaiit anthropological 

 eolleetioiis whieli ilhistrate tlie liistory of niankind at all periods and in every land, 

 and which serve to explain tiie development of all hinnaii arts and industries. In 

 everything that relates to the j>riinitive inhabitants of North America, Eskimo as 

 well as Indian, these collections are by far the richest in the w'orld, an<l with the 

 necessary amount of exhil)ition space the material on hand will be arranged in a 

 manner wdiich will produce the most impressive and magnificent effect, the educa- 

 tional importance of which can not be overestimated. Again there are collections 

 of considerable extent wliich illustrate the processes and products of the various arts 

 and industries, as wi-U as what are termed the historical collections, which are of 

 especial interest to a very large number of the visitors to the ]\Iuseum on account of 

 the associations of the o])jects exhi))ited with the personal liistory of representative 

 men or with important events in the history of America. 



The collections illustrating the arts and the art industries are relatively small, and 

 although in themselves of great interest and value, not to be compared in importance 

 with those in natural history and ethnology. 



In a letter addressed on June 7, 1888, to the Hon. Justin S. Morrill, ami which 

 will be found in a report of June 12 of the same year from the Senate C'onnnittee on 

 Public Buildings and (irounds, I maile a statement of the rapidity of the recent growtli 

 of the Museum, mentioning that in tlie five years from 1882 to 1887 the number of speci- 

 mens in the collection have multiplied no less than sixteen times, and endeavored 

 to give an idea, though perhaps an inadequate one, of the extent to which the 

 pressure for want of space was felt. The evil has grown rapidly worse, and, as I 

 have had occasion to mention, it has been felt in the last year in a partial arrest of 

 the growth of the collections, which emphasizes the demand for more room. The 

 present Museum building is not large enough even for the natural history collections 

 alone, a number of which are without any exhibition space whatever. The proposed 

 building will afford accommodations for the ethnological and technological material 

 already on hand and for a large part of the natural history material also. The collec- 

 tions are still increasing, and the number of specimens, as estimated, is now not far 

 from 3,000,000. 



Unless more space is soon provided the development of the (Government collec- 

 tions will of necessity be almost completely arrested. 



So long as there was room for storage, collections not immediately rerpiired «(iuld 

 be received and packed away for future use. This can not longer be done. 



The Armory building, since 1877 assigned to the IMuseum for storage and work- 

 shops, is now entirely occupied by the U. S. Fish Commission, with the exception 

 of four rooms, and by some of the Museum taxidermists, who are now working in 

 Very contracted space, and wliom it is impossible to acconiinodatt> elsewhere. 



Increased space in the exhi))ition halls is needed, the educational value of the col- 

 lections being seriously diminished by the present crowded system of installation. 

 Still more necessary, however, is room for storage, for rearranging the great reserve 

 collections, for eliminating duplicate material for distribution to college and school 

 museums, and for the use of the taxidermists and preparators engaged in preparing 

 objects for exhibition. Space is also required for the j)roper handling of the costly 

 outfit of tlie museum cases and appliances for installation, of which there is always a 

 considerable amount temporarily out of use or in jirocess of construction. 



In summarizing what has just been said, it may be stated in general terms that the 

 amount of space already retpiired for exhil)ition })urposes alone, being 207,500 feet 

 as against 100,675 now occupied, and this being exclusive of the 108,000 square feet 

 needed for other objects, the acicumulations have now reached such a point of con- 

 gestion tliat the actual space needs to be doubled, even indt'iiendently of future 



