BKITISH MUSEUM (NATURAL HISTORYJ. 101 



X. — British Museum (Natural History). 



STATEMENT of Progress made in the Arrangement and 

 Description of the Collections, and Account of Objects 

 added to them, in the Year 1909. 



General Progress. 



Visitors. 

 The number of visits made by the public to the Natural 

 History Museum during 1909 was 535,116, as compared 

 ^vith 517,043 in 1908 — a further increase of 18,073 in the total 

 for the year. 



The attendance on Sunday afternoons, however, again 

 showed a falling off, the figures being 61,465, as against 65,986 

 in the previous year. 



The average daily attendance for all open days was 1,474 ; 

 for week days only, 1,523 ; and for Sunday afternoons, 1,182. 



Siuiney Lectures. 



Dr. T. J. Jehu delivered his first course of twelve lectures 

 on Geology on the Swiney Foundation during the month of 

 November, the subject being "The History of North-West 

 Europe during Tertiary Times." The lectures were given in 

 the lecture theatre of the Victoria and Albert Museum (by 

 permission of the Board of Education), and the total attendance 

 for the course was 2,796 persons, or an average of 233 persons 

 per lecture (as compared with 99 for the course of lectures 

 given in 1908). 



Heating and Ventilation. 

 The new heating apparatus has been installed in the east 

 side of the building. The erection of the fan house and fan 

 for the ventilation of this side of the Museum is in progress. 



New Buildings, d&c. 

 The building of the new botanical room on the second fioor 

 over the east corridor, to which reference was made in the last 

 Return,* and of the new ofiices on the same floor on the west 

 side, was commenced in the autumn. Good progress has been 

 made with the work, and it is hoped that both the new 

 buildings v/ill be ready for occupation in the spring of 1910. 



* Page 96. 



