20 A.NNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1921. 



This model was constructed and experimented with in 1898, and is 

 particularly interesting in that means for lateral control and wing 

 warping were incorporated, but in practice were unsuccessful. 



The Herbert Ward collection of African ethnologica was shipped 

 from Paris on June 25, 1921, but was not received at the Museum 

 until after the close of the fiscal year. This rare and valuable ma- 

 terial includes 19 pieces of sculpture by Mr. Ward and about 2.(300 

 specimens of the arms and implements of the Africans of the Congo. 



The usual large number of meetings and congresses were held in 

 the auditorium of the Museum. Visitors to the Natural History 

 Building during the year totaled 364,281 for week days and 103,018 

 for Sundays, and to the Arts and Industries Building 286,397. The 

 publications issued during the year comprised the annual report, 8 

 bulletins, and 60 separate papers including 1 parts of bulletins, 5 

 parts of the Contributions from the National Herbarium, and 51 

 proceedings papers. 



NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART. 



An event of great importance in the development of Washington 

 as an art center was the organization, at the beginning of the year, of 

 the National Gallery of Art, previously a dependency of the United 

 States National Museum, as a separate administrative unit under 

 the Smithsonian Institution. This step, which was made possible 

 through an appropriation contained in the sundry civil bill for the 

 year 1921, will enable the institution to carry out the provisions of 

 the act of establishment in which art was placed on an equal footing 

 with science in the proposed development of the institution. The art 

 feature has heretofore been held in abeyance through lack of funds 

 and of proper means for administering the National Gallery. All 

 that is now necessary for the full development of the Nation's art 

 collections is a suitable building to house the treasures at present on 

 hand and contributions that may confidently be expected in the 

 future. 



The first real impetus to the growth of the gallery was the bequest 

 of a valuable collection of art works by Harriet Lane Johnston in 

 1906. Since that time the national collections have increased rap- 

 idly, chiefly through gifts and bequests of art works by patriotic 

 citizens, until now the value of the material already assembled is 

 estimated at several million dollars. The gallery has never had any 

 funds for the purchase of pictures until recently, when a liberal 

 private fund has become available. The will of the late Henry 

 Ward Ranger provides that the interest of the sum of $200,000 shall 

 be used for the purchase of works of art which may ultimately come 

 to the National Gallery. A number of valuable paintings have 

 already been purchased from this fund. 



