42 Report of the President 



or permanent gain in attendance, while the time and money 

 involved cause direct loss to the arrangement and care of the 

 collections. Figures show that after each large special exhi- 

 bition there is a drop in the number of museum visitors, and 

 it is very evident that the interests of a museum are best served 

 by attention to the display and labeling of its own material. 



Museum Attendance 



1910 1911 1912 1913 



Net attendance, including 



Flower Show 528,997- 626,146 715,852 728,288 



Under the supervision of Mr. Foulke, Superintendent of 



Building, the housekeeping of the Museum has been most ad- 



* r -r-. -, ,- mirably cared for. How much work this 



Care of Building „ / , , 



- calls for may be appreciated to some ex- 

 tent by saying that the exhibition halls alone cover eight 

 acres, and that a single case often contains more glass than all 

 the windows in the front of an ordinary four-story house. As a 

 member of the Publicity Committee, Mr. Foulke has also taken 

 an active part in placing the posters and folders calling atten- 

 tion to the Museum. 



The work of sandblasting the windows has been interrupted 

 by the retirement of a number of the construction force, made 

 necessary by the lapse of the building fund; nevertheless, 

 some progress has been made in this important work. In 

 other ways various improvements have been made and the 

 condition of the exhibition halls is better than ever. 



The Director once more calls attention to the need of a 

 special appropriation for extensive repairs to the heating ap- 

 paratus in the North Wing, and also the need for replacing 

 the old electric lights and fixtures by modern appliances. It 

 is again noted that with the present system it is impossible to 

 light the entire building at one time, and while many improve- 

 ments have been effected, yet with the present force and funds, 

 comparatively little can be done. 



EXCHANGES 



During the year exchanges have been made with the fol- 

 lowing institutions : 



Bonn University, Bonn, Germany 



British Museum of Natural History, London, England 



