EEPOET OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMlTTEr.. 77 



NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



Until the year 1870, the support of the "National Museum bad princi- 

 pally devolved on the Smithsonian Institution, only $4,000 having been 

 annually appropriated by Congress for this purpose. Since that date, 

 however, Congress has indicated the intention of providing for the full 

 support of the Museum, as is evident from the following extracts from 

 the annual appropriation acts: 



Smithsonian Institution : For preservation of the collec- 

 tions of the surveying and exploring expeditions of the 



Government, ten thousand dollars $10, 000 00 



41st Cong., Sess. II, Chap. 292, Stat, at Large 1809- 

 '71, p. 295. Act (July 15, 1870) making appropria- 

 tions for sundry civil expenses, t&c, for the fiscal year 

 ending June 30, 1871. 



Smithsonian Institution : For preservation of the collec- 

 tions of the surveying and exploring expeditious of the 



Government, ten thousand dollars 10, 000 00 



41st Cong., Sess. Ill, Ch. 114, Stat, at Large 1869-'71, 

 ]). 500. Act (March 3, 1871) making approi^riations 

 for sundry civil expenses of the Government, «S:c., for 

 the fiscal year ending June 30, 1872. 



Smithsonian Institution: For i)reservation of the collec- 

 tions of the surveying and exploring expeditious of the 



Government, fifteen thousand dollars 15, 000 00 



42d Cong., Sess. II, Ch. 415 Stat, at Large 1871-'72, 

 p. 361. Act (June 10, 1872) making appropriations for 

 sundry civil expenses, &c., for the fiscal year ending 

 June 30, 1873. 



It should be noted in regard to the above appropriations that the fiscal 

 year of Government is not the same as that of the Institution, the 

 former ending on the 30th of June, and the latter on the 31st of Decem- 

 ber. From this fact it follows that although the last appropriation of 

 Congress is $15,000 for the care of the Museum, yet the amount available 

 from this appropriation, in 1872, was only $7,500, or the first half of 

 the appropriation for the fiscal year ending 30th June, 1873. 



Besides this, however, there w^as drawn the whole appropriation for 

 the fiscal year ending 30th of June, 1872, viz, $10,000, the first half of 

 which should have been drawn the previous year, and thus have dimin- 

 ished the expenditure from the Smithson income for the Museum in 

 1871. 



