ys) 
Endowment Increment Plan.—As noted in previous reports, the 
Governing Committee, on January 11, 1921, approved a recom- 
mendation of the director that only four-fifths of the income of 
certain permanent funds be expended, the remaining one-fifth to 
be invested and the interest income added to the principal 
annually, to build up an ‘“Endowment Increment Fund.” The 
principal, at the beginning of 1937, amounted to $134,671.65. 
Since January 1, 1936, no additions to the principal from the 
“contributing funds”’ have been possible. During 1936 a portion 
of the interest income had to be used, and during 1937 all of the 
interest income has been required. If it had not been for the 
income from this fund the budget difference at the beginning of 
1937 would have been greater. It is hoped that the Garden's 
finances may so improve in the near future that the Endowment 
Increment plan may be resumed and continued until the principal 
amounts to a more substantial addition to the endowment. As 
the life of institutions is measured, it would not take many years 
for the principal to amount to one million dollars, and that should 
be the first goal for the fund. 
The General Situation.—A report to the Financial Advisory 
Service of the American Council of Education, concerning endow- 
ment income and investments of educational institutions for the 
period 1926-1935, states that levels of endowment income for the 
last three years of the period were 50 to 75 per cent. below those 
for the previous seven years, and ‘‘can be expected to continue so 
at least for the near future in the light of the present conditions of 
the security market.” 
While the endowment principal of forty-five institutions, over 
the same ten-year period, increased by 52 per cent., the dollar 
income from interest on the invested funds increased only 30.5 
per cent. 
For the Botanic Garden, during the ten-year period, 1928-1937, 
endowment principal increased by approximately 52 per cent. 
(from $892,880.89 to $1,354,020.96), while dollar income from 
interest has increased by only about 16 per cent. As the above 
cited report states, for recovery of income educational institutions 
must, for some time to come, look to new gifts and bequests rather 
than to a restoration of interest rate. 
