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SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 1281 It will be recalled that the Board authorized the placement of employees paid from Smithsonian private funds under the Federal Retirement System, with the purchase of federal retirement rights due them from monies in the former Smithsonian retirement fund, these monies being derived from employee contributions and from Institutional contributions. This involved a payment to the Federal Retirement system of $61,557.24 from the Smithsonian employees retirement fund, carried under that title in our endowment, reducing that fund to $34,382.42. In addition, an adjustment was made through sales of real estate holdings that had been set up under the Mary Vaux Walcott fund a number of years ago at what were considered proper values at the time. When these properties, which were not producing income, were sold the monies received were considerably less than the original estimate due to decrease in values in the intervening period. This decrease amounted to $49,852.54 which had not been deducted at the time of the sales from the total of the endowment. A similar reduction for the same reason in the W. L. Abbott Fund amounted to $4,409.04. These amounts have now adjusted in the book value of these funds, and thus are reflected in the totals in the endowment. For some time, the cash account of the Institution has carried a balance through accumulations on the income of various funds that has been averaging from $700,000 to $800,000. This money was held mainly in the United States Treasury, and was idle in the sense that it was not earning income. This matter has been discussed from time to time with the result that this past year $500,000 was invested in the U.S. Treasury Certificates of Indebtedness Series "C" at 1-1/8% due March 1, 1949. The yield at the rate of $5,625.00 per annum while not large, is an appreciable addition to the current income for general use. The notes are readily negotiable A.W.
