82 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1917. 



Excepting 1916, this was the largest attendance in the history of 

 the park. The number of visitors was only 50,310 less than in 1916, 

 and doubtless would have exceeded that record year but for the 

 unseasonable weather on Easter Monday. 



One hundred and fifty-three schools and classes visited the park, 

 with a total of 8,492 individuals. In addition to the local schools 

 and those from near-by States, these included schools from Alabama, 

 Arkansas, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, 

 Pennsylvania, and Vermont. A number of officials from other zoo- 

 logical gardens visited the park. 



The exceptionally favorable weather made the skating pond an 

 attractive feature during the past winter and for a much longer 

 period than usual. The ice was kept clean of snow throughout the 

 season and the appreciation of the public would seem to warrant 

 the construction of additional lakes to be used for exhibits of water- 

 fowl during the summer and skating in winter. 



IMPROVEMENTS. 



The hospital and laboratory, which has been mentioned in the 

 reports for the last two years, is still unfinished, but a considerable 

 amount of work was done on the interior cages so that the building 

 now lacks only the necessary outside yards and the laboratory equip- 

 ment. The hospital cages are designed for the care and special 

 comfort of indisposed or quarantined animals, and accommoda- 

 tions are provided for two mammals of lion size, three of leopard 

 size, three large ruminants, and a number of smaller animals. In 

 addition, there is a large, well lighted, central room for laboratory 

 use. The completion of this building will greatly facilitate the 

 work of the pathologists from the Department of Agriculture wdio 

 visit the park. 



The largest waterfowl lake, in the southeastern part of the park, 

 was enlarged and reconstructed to provide safe and retired breeding 

 and resting places for the birds. It had formerly been inclosed by 

 a fence of ordinary poultry wire without special protection from pre- 

 dacious animals, and there had been frequent loss from the depreda- 

 tions of rats and the smaller native carnivores. In order to increase 

 sufficiently the land area it was necessary to construct a stone wall 

 along Rock Creek at the rear of the inclosure. By lowering the 

 grade of the hill bordering the lake, sufficient earth was produced to 

 fill up to the level of the wall on the inner side. A rat-proof fence 

 was woven in the machine shop and further provided with guards 

 against cats and raccoons. The level of the water was raised about 

 12 inches, greatly increasing the size of the lake, and the new fence 

 was constructed on a concrete coping considerably outside the former 



