THIRTY-FIRST ANNUAL REPORT. 



To the Trustees and Members of the American Museum of Natural 

 History: 



I take pleasure in presenting the following report of the opera- 

 tions of the Museum for the year closing December 31, 1899 : 



Finances. — Your attention is invited to the Treasurer's report 

 on pages 34, 35, 36 and 37. In response to a statement presented 

 by me, showing the balances due on the purchase of collections, 

 and the estimated deficit for maintaining the Museum during the 

 year, the Trustees very generously subscribed the sum of $68,500, 

 as shown in detail in the Treasurer's report. I am gratified 

 to record that the floating indebtedness of the Institution has 

 been removed ; the liberality of the Trustees has thus made it 

 possible to extend its interests in the support of field work and 

 the purchase of desirable material. The income of the Endow- 

 ment fund has been depleted each year to make good the deficit 

 in the cost of maintenance. From the time of opening the 

 Museum to the close of this year $241,283 have been diverted 

 from this fund to make good the expense of maintaining the 

 Museum in excess of the appropriations made by the city. 



The Board of Trustees. — At the annual meeting of the 

 Board, held February 13th, Dr. Frederick E. Hyde was elected 

 a Trustee, and subsequently made a member of the Executive 

 Committee to serve for the term of five years. 



On the closing page of this report will be found a resolution 

 adopted by the Trustees in relation to the decease of our late 

 associate, Cornelius Vanderbilt. 



Mr. Vanderbilt was elected a Trustee in 1878, and actively 

 served for eight years as a member of the Executive and Auditing 



