﻿18 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  192 
  9 
  

  

  The 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  sets 
  of 
  United 
  States 
  governmental 
  documents 
  

   forwarded 
  to 
  foreign 
  depositories 
  remains 
  at 
  105, 
  but 
  those 
  sent 
  to 
  

   Latvia 
  and 
  Rumania 
  have 
  been 
  increased 
  from 
  partial 
  to 
  full 
  sets, 
  

   and 
  in 
  several 
  countries 
  the 
  location 
  of 
  the 
  depository 
  has 
  been 
  

   changed. 
  The 
  daily 
  issue 
  of 
  the 
  Congressional 
  Record 
  is 
  now 
  ex- 
  

   changed 
  with 
  101 
  foreign 
  establishments. 
  

  

  NATIONAL 
  ZOOLOGICAL 
  PARK 
  

  

  The 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  animals 
  added 
  to 
  the 
  collections 
  during 
  the 
  

   year 
  was 
  479, 
  including 
  an 
  unusual 
  number 
  of 
  gifts 
  of 
  valuable 
  

   specimens, 
  while 
  541 
  were 
  lost 
  through 
  death, 
  return 
  of 
  animals, 
  

   and 
  exchange, 
  leaving 
  the 
  number 
  on 
  hand 
  at 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  

   at 
  2,211. 
  These 
  represent 
  579 
  species 
  of 
  mammals, 
  birds, 
  reptiles, 
  

   and 
  batrachians. 
  Because 
  of 
  the 
  restrictions 
  of 
  exhibition 
  space, 
  no 
  

   attempt 
  has 
  been 
  made 
  to 
  enlarge 
  the 
  collection 
  for 
  the 
  present, 
  

   effort 
  being 
  concentrated 
  on 
  selecting 
  through 
  exchange 
  and 
  pur- 
  

   chase 
  only 
  choice 
  and 
  especially 
  desirable 
  species. 
  As 
  a 
  result, 
  the 
  

   collection 
  is 
  now 
  unusually 
  rich 
  in 
  rare 
  and 
  interesting 
  forms. 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  spectacular 
  addition 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  and 
  in 
  fact 
  of 
  many 
  

   years, 
  was 
  N'Gi, 
  the 
  gorilla 
  purchased 
  with 
  money 
  remaining 
  from 
  

   the 
  Smithsonian-Chrysler 
  expedition 
  funds. 
  On 
  the 
  first 
  Sunday 
  

   that 
  he 
  was 
  shown 
  at 
  the 
  park, 
  despite 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  a 
  cold 
  

   day, 
  over 
  40,000 
  people 
  came 
  to 
  see 
  him. 
  For 
  the 
  year 
  the 
  attend- 
  

   ance 
  reached 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  2,528,710, 
  a 
  considerable 
  increase 
  over 
  the 
  

   preceding 
  year. 
  This 
  total 
  included 
  497 
  classes 
  of 
  students, 
  aggre- 
  

   gating 
  30,886 
  individuals. 
  

  

  Work 
  on 
  the 
  exterior 
  of 
  the 
  new 
  bird 
  house, 
  built 
  last 
  year, 
  was 
  

   completed, 
  including 
  the 
  construction 
  of 
  outdoor 
  cages 
  and 
  the 
  lay- 
  

   ing 
  out 
  of 
  an 
  attractive 
  approach 
  to 
  the 
  building. 
  The 
  roofs 
  of 
  sev- 
  

   eral 
  of 
  the 
  older 
  buildings 
  were 
  repaired, 
  and 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  bridle 
  

   paths 
  in 
  the 
  park 
  were 
  altered 
  after 
  consultation 
  with 
  those 
  inter- 
  

   ested 
  in 
  riding. 
  

  

  Congress 
  has 
  appropriated 
  $220,000 
  for 
  the 
  construction 
  of 
  a 
  

   reptile 
  house, 
  which 
  for 
  years 
  has 
  been 
  badly 
  needed. 
  In 
  order 
  to 
  

   insure 
  the 
  best 
  and 
  most 
  modern 
  building 
  for 
  the 
  exhibition 
  of 
  rep- 
  

   tiles 
  and 
  batrachians, 
  the 
  Smithsonian 
  Institution 
  from 
  its 
  private 
  

   funds 
  sent 
  the 
  director 
  of 
  the 
  park 
  and 
  Mr. 
  A. 
  L. 
  Harris, 
  municipal 
  

   architect, 
  to 
  Europe 
  to 
  study 
  the 
  zoological 
  parks 
  of 
  foreign 
  cities. 
  

   Twenty 
  zoos 
  were 
  visited, 
  and 
  through 
  the 
  courtesy 
  of 
  those 
  in 
  

   charge 
  many 
  valuable 
  ideas 
  were 
  obtained 
  which 
  will 
  be 
  used 
  in 
  the 
  

   preliminary 
  plans 
  for 
  the 
  new 
  reptile 
  house. 
  

  

  Of 
  the 
  several 
  additional 
  buildings 
  needed 
  for 
  the 
  proper 
  develop- 
  

   ment 
  of 
  the 
  National 
  Zoo 
  the 
  most 
  urgent 
  is 
  an 
  exhibition 
  building 
  

   for 
  apes, 
  lemurs, 
  and 
  small 
  mammals. 
  For 
  the 
  small 
  mammals, 
  

   which 
  include 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  interesting 
  of 
  all 
  animals, 
  there 
  are 
  

  

  