n6 Report of the President 



GENERAL SUMMARY. 



In closing the Fifty-second Annual Report and summing 

 up the work of the year 1920, it seems that in many ways this 

 has been the greatest year in the entire history of the Museum. 

 The recognition by the city, of the Museum as an essential 

 part of its great public educational system, by granting a 

 maintenance fund one hundred fifty-three thousand dollars 

 greater than it granted two years ago, is equivalent to adding 

 three million dollars to our Endowment Fund, because there 

 is no probability that the Museum will receive a lesser amount 

 in future years. This action of the present city administra- 

 tion came after the most thorough examination both of the 

 work which the Museum is actually doing and of its methods 

 of business administration. We have invited the closest 

 scrutiny of not only our minutes and letter files but of all 

 our records and accounts. At a critical moment we decided 

 to introduce the city schedule for our entire list of officers and 

 employees. This means that every name is subject to the 

 scrutiny of the duly authorized officers of the Board of Esti- 

 mate and the Finance Department. Our summaries of divi- 

 sions of expenditures, of costs, of increasing scale in wages 

 and salaries can therefore be compared with every other depart- 

 ment in the city. 



On the other hand, during the past year the Board of Esti- 

 mate and Apportionment, the Board of Aldermen, the Finance 

 Department of the city, as well as the Department of Parks, 

 have shown the utmost promptitude in meeting our payrolls 

 and in paying our bills. There has been no disposition on the 

 part of any city officials to take advantage of the open method 

 of administration ; there have been, on the contrary, the utmost 

 courtesy and good will. 



On behalf of the Trustees of this institution the President 

 desires to extend the sincere acknowledgments of the Board 

 of all these courtesies and of this prompt cooperation for the 

 welfare of the Museum. This welfare means increased civility 

 and hospitality to the rapidly increasing number of visitors 

 from all parts of the United States, as well as to the increasing 

 numbers of school teachers and children who are coming to 



