REPORT OF THE SECRETARY 9 



tory, located in the Arts and Industries Building of the National 

 Museum. To show the quantity of work produced I will give a few 

 statistics : Negatives made, 2,449 ; prints, 14,521 ; enlargements, 2,082 ; 

 lantern slides, 264 ; cloth mounts, 174 ; also a smaller number of other 

 types of work involving photographic processes. 



In addition to the routine operations of the laboratory, the staff 

 spent considerable time in assisting scientists of the Institution in ob- 

 taining photographic illustrations for their publications, as weU as in 

 aiding representatives of other governmental agencies and private 

 individuals in their search for needed photographs. 



The photographer in charge served as the Institution's representa- 

 tive on the photograph supplies committee. Federal Specifications 

 Board. He attended monthly board meetings and conducted special 

 investigations for various subcommittees of the Board. While rep- 

 resenting the Institution at the annual convention of the Photogra- 

 phers' Association of America in Chicago, the photographer in charge 

 visited the Chicago Natural History Museum in the search for im- 

 proved methods of photographing art objects, silverware, and glass- 

 ware. 



The greatest needs of the laboratory are a complete catalog of file 

 prints, so that the large and valuable collection of negatives would be 

 more readily accessible to the Institution's staff as well as to the gen- 

 eral public ; certain items of modern photographic equipment ; and the 

 fitting up of a room to be devoted to color photography. 



BUILDINGS AND EQUIPMENT 



Repairs and alterations. — Among important projects in comiection 

 with the several buildings, the following were completed during the 

 year: 



Smithsonian Building : The metal finials on top of the northeast and 

 southeast towers were removed and new copper finials were installed ; 

 removal of the wooden louvres on four sides of the flag tower (begun 

 in 1946) was completed and new copper louvres were installed in their 

 place; the rooms formerly occupied by the property clerk were dis- 

 mantled and converted into additional space for the accounting office. 



Arts and Industries Building : Provision was made for office rooms 

 for the National Air Museum by partitioning off room 30, formerly 

 occupied by the division of engineering ; major alterations and repairs 

 were made in the southwest and west south ranges to provide exhibit 

 areas for the section of manufactures and the section of aeronautics 

 (now the National Air Museum) ; a photographic dark room was con- 

 structed in the section of photography ; the coin hall ceiling and walls 

 were repaired and repainted and all exhibit cases were revarnished. 



