6 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 



at a disproportionate outlay of money from the limited Smithsonian 

 fund (which was here, in fact, expended largely for the benefit of the 

 city in furnishing' it with such a picturesque building), but at a cost of 

 an amount of perm;iuent discomfort to the inmates which those who 

 are not there employed can liardly appreciate. 



In particular, the narroAV windows and the small diamond panes of 

 glass admit so little light that in winter days some of the rooms where 

 clerical work is carried on, need to be artificially lighted, and in all 

 cases the occupants lose the advantage of what ought to be abundant 

 light, considering tlieir open surroundings in the middle of a park. I 

 think it well to state that while I should have made many more changes 

 in the interest of the comfort and health of the clerical occupants of the 

 building if I had had the means to do so, I have never felt at liberty 

 to alter the external appearance of the building when alteration 

 could possibly be avoided, and I have therefore never authorized the 

 enlargement of any of the apertures in the stone work, or made any 

 changes of this kind which could be understood as modifying the 

 structural features (except in improving tlie sanitary conditions of the 

 basement), and when any change is mentioned here it will always be 

 understood that it is essentially the work of the carpenter iu providing 

 for larger inside frames and larger lights in the sashes, and in like 

 alterations. 



Thus in the east wing of the building, iu the fourth story, a room 

 for containing the archives of the Institution has been provided, which 

 is well lighted by one of the few large windows the building possesses, 

 and which has been fitted for more convenient reference to the records 

 of the Institution. The second floor has been made brighter by 

 repainting and by some additional floor lights in the third floor, and 

 the windows in the room especially set apart for the safe-keeping of 

 the engravings and books of art belonging to the Institution have been 

 thus enlarged, while some of the rooms on the second floor have been 

 imjiroved by slight alterations in the Avindow frames. On the first 

 floor additional quarters were iirovided for the library in the rooms 

 which were vacated by the transfer of the exchange department to the 

 lower fio(n-. 



I have been enabled to make the above small changes at the expense 

 of the Smithsonian fund, but a restrictiAe clause contained in the 

 appropriation act of August 30, 1890, for repairs to the Smithsonian 

 Institution, having been removed by a clause in the sundry civil act 

 for the year ending June 30, 1894, I have, with a portion of the unex- 

 pended amount of this appropriation, been also able to transform a suite 

 of dark ami damp rooms in the basement on the south side into well- 

 lighted and comfortable, though too limited offices, in which every 

 attention has been ])aid to sanitation. The exchange bureau continues 

 to occuj^y these, but they were barely sufficient at first, and, through 

 the constant increase of the demand of the Government service, addi- 



