REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 39 



a museum of engineering. Accordingly, the collections in care of 

 the division were first rearranged in the halls, the basis of rear- 

 rangement being the kind of object rather than the source; thus, 

 one hall noAv includes all objects relating to land and aerial trans- 

 portation ; another hall, marine transportation ; and another hall, 

 metrology and mechanical transmission of intelligence. 



NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART. 



The National Gallery of Art — the department of fine arts of the 

 Museum-^continued in charge of Dr. W. H. Holmes, as curator, the 

 collections occupying mainly the central skylighted hall on the first 

 floor of the north wing of the Natural History Building. The addi- 

 tions while not numerous comprised works and objects of very con- 

 siderable museum value, not, however, comparable in importance with 

 the accessions of the year before. Of the works of painting and 

 sculpture added, the most noteworthy, perhaps, was a statue in white 

 marble of the Earl of Chatham (AVilliam Pitt), by Francis Derwent 

 Wood, R. A., the gift of the Duchess of Marlborough and other 

 American women in Great Britain. 



During the year four paintings were purchased from the Henry W. 

 Eanger fund, two of which, Grey Day, by W. Granville-Smith, N, A., 

 and Evening T;de, California, by William Ritschel, N. A., are now 

 on view in the gallery ; tlie others are The Rapids, by W. E. Schofield, 

 N. A., deposited in the Brooklyn Museum, and the Orange Bowl, 

 by Anna Fisher, the assignment of which has not yet been announced. 

 It is gratifying to know that by this bequest the gallery is assured 

 of a number of worthy additions each year. 



During the year the Rev. Alfred Duane Pell continued to add to 

 his collection of art objects presented and lent to the Museum and 

 installed in the long room at the north end of the gallery. The in- 

 stallation was not complete at the close of the year. 



The preparation of a catalogue of the gallery bringing the record 

 up to date was carried to practical completion. The last issue of the 

 catalogue, prepared by Assistant Secretary Rathbun, is dated 1916, 

 and it is regarded as important that a new edition be printed as soon 

 as practicable. 



It is a matter of particular felicitation that in June Congress 

 granted a fund sufficient to permit the organization of the Gallery as 

 a separate unit of the Smithsonian foundation and to provide a mod- 

 est curatorial staff, thus relieving the Museum of a rapidly growing 

 burden and at the same time affording the long-delayed opportunity 

 of laying the foundation requisite to a reasonable and S3^mmetric 

 development of the Nation's Gallery of Art. 



