ZOOLOGICAL SOCIP^TY BULLETIN' 



395 



Sinking Fund voting in favor of this contract 

 were Mayor William L. Strong, Comptroller 

 Ashbel P. Fitch, City Chamberlain Anson G. 

 ilcCook, and Recorder John ^^^ Got¥. 



The chief feature of this contract of March 

 24th, 1897, was an agreement, on behalf of the 

 City, to provide an adequate maintenance fund 

 in return for free admission to the Zoological 

 Park during at least five days of the week. 

 This maintenance fund began with a grant of 

 $40,000, and was soon raised to $65,000. It was 

 not until 1903 that the amoimt of $100,000 

 was reached. The amount for the year 19 10 

 is $167,632. The Society pays all maintenance 

 bills and is reimbursed, from time to time, by 

 the City, up to the amount allowed for that 

 vear. For several years the annual mainte- 

 nance fund was inadequate, and there was an 

 annual deficit, which had to be met by the 

 Society. Later on, however, the sums allowed 

 were increased until they proved sufficient, 

 with the aid of extreme economy, to maintain 

 the Park without encroachment on the funds 

 of the Society. It is, however, to be regretted 

 that the staff of officers at the Park are not 

 better recompensed for their exceptionally 

 valuable services. It seems to be one of the 

 inequalities of our present civilization that our 

 scientific men, whose brains are of the great- 



est value to the community, should receive 

 mere pittances, in comparison to what crude 

 labor receives, and quite absurd when com- 

 pared with the enormous salaries paid to suc- 

 cessful singers and actors. 



The year 1897 was spent in developing the 

 preliminary plans for the Zoological Park. All 

 available expert opinion was obtained, and the 

 plans were subjected to the closest scrutiny by 

 the Committee. The final plan was adopted 

 bv the Executive Committee on November 

 15th, 1897. and immediately afterwards ap- 

 proved by the Park Board and Mayor Strong. 



The Society then entered on its first serious 

 effort to raise money, and for the next two 

 years the energies of the Committee were 

 largely directed towards the accumulation of 

 a fund of $250,000, upon the raising of which 

 the whole scheme and the contract with the 

 Citv was conditioned. 



The City at that time provided its first ap- 

 propriation for the improvement of Bronx 

 Park, by a bond issue of $125,000, which be- 

 came law on May 8th, 1897. This was the 

 first of a series of issues of bonds and corpo- 

 rate stock, the total amount of which, to the 

 first of January, 1910, is $1,900,000. 



In 180') the Zoological Society inaugurated 

 imprcvemcnt work by expending nearly $250,- 



SITE OF THE GR.XND CONCOURSE BEFORE IMPROVEMENT. 

 Photographed from the same point of view as the picture on the preceding page. 



