REPORT OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 11 



1>,._()RGANIZAT10N AKD SCOPE. 



The National jMuseuiii is uiuhM- the charjje of tlie Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution, and its operations are supervised by the Board of Eegents of 

 the Institution. 



The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution is by law the '* keeper 

 of the Smithsonian Museum," and the Assistant Secretary, by the 

 usage of nearly tifty years, its executive head. 



In the act of Congress passed in 184G to establish the Smithsonian 

 Institution are contained the following provisions concerning the scope 

 of the museum to be placed under its charge: 



1. The act above referred to provides that ''all objects of art and 

 of foreign and curious research, and all objects of natural history, 

 plants, and geological and mineralogical specimens belonging, or 

 hereafter to belong, to the United States, which may be in the city 

 of Washington," shall be delivered to theKegents of the Smithson- 

 ian Institution, and together with new specimens obtained by 

 exchange, donation, or otherwise, shall be so arranged and classified 

 as best to facilitate examination and study. 



2. It provides that, in proportion as suitable arrangements can 

 be made for their reception, these objects shall be delivered to such 

 persons as may be authorized by the Board of Begeuts to receive 

 them. 



.'>. It provides that they shall be arranged in such order and so 

 classified as best to facilitate their examination and study. 



4. It provides that they shall thus be arranged in the building 

 to be inclosed for the Institution. 



5. It authorizes the Regents to obtain new specimens, by exchange 

 of duplicate specimens, and by gift, and directs also that they shall 

 be appropriately classed and arranged. 



The National Museum thus became the authorized place of deposit 

 for all objects of art, archa'ology, ethnology, natural history, miner- 

 alogy, geology, etc., belonging to the United States or collected by any 

 agency whatsoever for the Government of the United States, when no 

 longer needed for investigations in progress. 



The collections in the ^Museum are intended to exhibit the natural 

 and industrial resources, primarily of the United States and second- 

 arily of other parts of the world, for purposes of comi)arison. 



The activities of the Museum are exerted especially in three 

 directions : 



1. The permanent preservation of the collections already in its 

 possession, which depends chiefly upon the vigilance of the curators 

 and the skill of the preparators. 



2. The increase of the collections which are acipiired — 



(1) From the various Government surveys and expeditions, in 

 accordance with law; 



(2) By gift from individuals, from other institutions, and from 

 foreign governments; 



(o) By exchange for its duplicate specimens or publications: 

 (4J By the efforts of officers of the Museum, who make collections 



