8 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 19 3 



to Mr. Manly was made in recognition of his pioneer contributions 

 to the development of the airplane engine, and that to Commander 

 Byrd for his pioneer flights over the North and South Poles, his non- 

 stop flight over the Atlantic Ocean, and the scientific discoveries 

 associated with these flights. 



The posthumous award to Mr. Manly will be presented through 

 the person of his son. Commander Byrd was notified of the award 

 to him by radiogram to Little America, Antarctica. The actual 

 presentation of the two gold medals had not been made at the close 

 of the year. 



ADDITIONS TO THE NATURAL HISTORY BUILDING OF THE NATIONAL 



MUSEUM 



An event of capital importance to the future of the Smithsonian 

 and the National Museum occurred on June 19, 1930, when Congress 

 passed the following bill : 



Be it enacted hij the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States 

 of A}nerica in Congress assembled. That the Smithsonian Institution is herebj' 

 authorized to extend the Natural History Building of the United States National 

 Museum by additions on the east and west ends thereof, in accordance with 

 plans to be approved by the Commission of Fine Arts, and to engage, if neces- 

 sary, architectural and inspection services, without regard to the restrictions 

 of existing law governing such services. There is hereby authorized to be 

 appropriated a sum not exceeding $6,500,000 for this purpose. 



The present Natural History Building has for years been over- 

 crowded, both as to exhibition halls and to laboratories and storage 

 rooms. The additions authorized by Congress, which will approxi- 

 mately double the present floor space, will not only permit of a more 

 satisfactory arrangement of exhibits for the benefit of the more than 

 one million visitors every year, but also will provide additional facili- 

 ties for the growing research work of the Museum staff. 



The bill quoted above is only an authorization and does not carry 

 an actual appropriation. Plans have not yet been prepared, but in 

 general the additions will conform in style and general arrangement 

 with the present structure. 



RESEARCHES IN EUROPEAN ARCHIVES 



Early in 1929 Ambassador Charles G. Dawes provided the Institu- 

 tion with a fund for the purpose of conducting researches among 

 European archives in search of documents relating to the early 

 history and ethnology of middle America. In April, 1929, Dr. C. U. 

 Clark was appointed by the Smithsonian to conduct this mission, and 

 early in October Doctor Clark began his work in Europe, Since that 



