10 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1907. 



museum and the library was long ago assumed by Congress, the 

 Institution taking upon itself only so much of the necessary respon- 

 sibility for the administration of these and subsequent additions to 

 its activities as would weld them into a compact whole, which to- 

 gether form a unique and notable agency for the increase and diffu- 

 sion of knowledge, for the direction of research, for cooperation with 

 Departments of the Government and with universities and scientific 

 societies in America, and likewise afford a definite correspondent to 

 all scientific institutions and men abroad who seek interchange of 

 views or knowledge with men of science in the United States. 



Since that early day no material change lias been suggested in the 

 general scope of the Government museum; it has only remained to 

 elaborate the details, and the opportunity is now close at hand to 

 realize all that the first Board had in view, since ample space will be 

 available within another two years. 



The development of the museum has naturally been greatest in 

 those subjects which the conditions of the past sixty years have made 

 most fruitful — the natural history, geology, ethnology, and arche- 

 ology of the United States, supplemented by many collections from 

 other countries. The opportunities in these directions have been 

 mainly brought about through the activities of the scientific and 

 economic surveys of the Government, many of which are the direct 

 outgrowths of earlier explorations, stimulated or directed by the 

 Institution. The Centennial Exhibition of 1870 a Horded the first 

 opportunity for establishing a department of the industrial arts on 

 a creditable basis, and of this the fullest advantage was taken, though 

 only a part of the collections then obtained could be accommodated 

 in the space available. 



The department or gallery of the fine arts had made little progress, 

 though not from lack of desire or appreciation, until within the past 

 eighteen months, during which its interests have been markedly 

 advanced, as elsewhere explained. 



Another subject to which much attention has been paid with grati- 

 fying results is American history, illustrated by objects representing 

 distinguished personages and important events as well as the domestic- 

 life of the country from the colonial period to the present day. 



It has been deemed appropriate to present the foregoing brief 

 review of the scope of the national collections, in this connection, 

 since the time is near when they may be given an orderly arrange- 

 ment and when the subjects least developed from lack of space may 

 have the opportunity for growth. By transferring to the new 7 build- 

 ing, as proposed to Congress, the subjects which are best represented, 

 which have been as a whole most completely classified and can, there- 

 fore, be most advantageously exhibited for the benefit of the public, 

 namely, ethnology, archeology, natural history, and geology, the pres- 



