276 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



ZOOLOGICAL 

 SOCIETY BULLETIN 



EDITED BY THE DIRECTOR 



Elwin R. Sanborn, Asst. Editor. 



Published at the Office 0/ the Society, rr Wall St., New York City. 



Copyright, iqo6, by the New York Zoological Society. 



No. 21. APRIL, 1906. 



Subscription price, 50 cents for four numbers. 



Single numbers, I 5 cents. 



MAILED FREE TO MEMBERS. 



©ffitrrs of tbc ^ottrtp. 

 ptcsiacnt : 



HON. LI£VI P. MOKTON. 



4E):ccutitje Committte: 



RLES T. BaKNE 



John S. Barnes, 

 Philip Schuyler, 

 Samuel Thorne, 



Madison Grant, 



Wii LiAM White Niles, 



Henkv Fairfield Osborn, 



P. Morton, 



iJBcnerai ©ffitrrjj: 



Secretary, Madison Grant, 11 Wall Street. 



Treasurer, Percy R. Pvne, 62 Wall Street. 



Director, William T. Hornadav, Zoological Park. 



Director 0/ t/te Aquarium, Charles H. Townsend, Battery Par 



■JBoatb of jnaanaoet?: 



E.y OFFICIO. 

 T/ie Mnvorofthe City of New York. Hon. George B. McCi.ella 

 The Frcsident 0/ tlie Deft o/}\trks. Hon. Moses Herrman. 



FINAL STAGES IN THE REMODELLING 

 OF THE AQUARIUM, 



The long-continued task of remodelling the New 

 York Aquarium is drawing to an end. With the 

 introduction of new boilers and a mechanical 

 ventilating system, just completed, the more ex- 

 pensive changes, outlined three years ago, may be 

 considered accomplished facts. The various im- 

 provements made have materially changed the 

 methods of the institution, and after the work of 

 the present contractor is completed, they will permit 

 of many important additions to the collections and 

 greater eSectiveness in their display and preserva- 

 tion. 



The following list of improvements to date, 

 made from the Aquarium Improvement Fund — 

 so willingly supplied by the city authorities — will 



be of interest to tho.se members of the Zoological 

 Society who have not observed their progress, step 

 by step: 



The construction of an underground reservoir 



for sea-water. 

 The construction of filters for sea-water. 

 The construction of pipe-galleries under the 



building. 

 The enlargement of forty-three skylights. 

 The erection of larger boilers. 

 The introduction of a ventilating system. 

 Alterations to correct unsightly features of the 



building. 

 The artificial aeration of the tanks. 

 The painting of the interior. 



The work has been done without interfering 

 with the constant use of the building by the public 

 and without the removal of any of the exhibits. 



The replacing of rusted-out piping by lead-lined 

 pipe will continue for some time longer. This 

 troublesome task, which will involve the actual 

 emptying of all salt-water exhibition and reserve 

 tanks, will be accomplished by cutting ofi but two 

 or three tanks at a time. Visitors will probably 

 not be aware that it is going on, as the work will 

 be done behind the "scenes," and without materially 

 reducing the exhibits at any one time. 



It is to be regretted that most of the work done 

 is of such a character that the public cannot be 

 expected to appreciate it, since it is connected with 

 the mechanical workings of the establishment. 

 But it means greater efficiency and reduced cost of 

 operation, this to be followed by increased exhibits 

 in a more attractive setting. 



It is due to the management to explain that the 

 modernization of the Aquarium has been slow and 

 difficult because of its location within the eight-foot- 

 thick walls of an ancient fortress, where nearly all 

 work connected with its improvement had to be 

 crowded into the limited space behind the hundred 

 exhibition tanks. 



It is now hoped that the reduced cost of operation 

 will later on permit of the .\quarium being opened 

 to the public at night, without increasing its pres- 

 ent maintenance fund. 



During the past three years the attendance has 

 increased at the rate of 75,000 to 100,000 visitors a 

 year. The attendance for 1905 was over 1,700,000 

 persons. 



