i l o The Scottish Naturalist. 



The first mentioned in the prospectus is, "-To facilitate the 

 purchase of Works on Natural History." Now, many authors 

 who write for journals or for scientific societies, and who retain 

 the copyright, have no easily attainable means of distributing 

 copies of their papers; and on the other. hand, there are many 

 who have no easily attainable means of procuring them. The 

 latter class of people must either obtain copies from the authors, 

 or perhaps purchase a whole volume or whole part of the pro- 

 ceedings, neither of which means are always easily attainable. 

 In America, copies are thrown off of all valuable papers, and 

 the Agency dispose of them for the authors, or procure them 

 for the public. 



-Another object of the Agency is the republication of valuable 

 pamphlets or standard works, and reprinting and refiageing sepa- 

 rate papers or other portions of the proceedings of societies. 

 In order to accomplish this the Agency has secured the support 

 and encouragement of the various learned societies throughout 

 North America. Moreover, the American Agency often re- 

 print valuable pamphlets which were originally published in 

 other countries (especially in Great Britain), but which are now 

 out of print in these countries. No more striking instance of 

 this can be cited than the following : — The British Association 

 for the Advancement of Science some years ago published a 

 Code of Rules, for the guidance "of authors and naturalists, on 

 Scientific Nomenclature. In this country it was soon bought 

 up, and became out of print, but in America it is still in circu- 

 lation, and doubtless hundreds of copies lie ready for the hun- 

 dreds of young naturalists who in time must learn and keep 

 these rules. In this country I am sure there must be" a great 

 many young naturalists who are utterly ignorant of such a pam- 

 phlet, and that not through any fault of their own, but simply 

 because it has been allowed to go out of print. Surely an asso- 

 ciation which professes to advance science should see that such 

 a valuable " grammar of nomenclature" should be within the 

 reach of every young student, and should never allow it to go 

 out of print. I think, further, that effectual means should be^ 

 taken to prevent in future all valuable pamphlets, books, pap 

 in societies' proceedings, journals, or even in newspapers, from 

 going out of print ; and I think that an Agency ably conducted 

 could effect this, for, does not the prospectus of the American 



