272 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The greater part of the laboratory's time was used in preparing 

 duplicate sets of existing films to be used by the department's repre- 

 sentatives in connection with field and demonstration meetings. 



DISTRIBUTION OF DOCUMENTS. 



On July 1, 1915, there were in the possession of the department 

 7,154,950 copies of its publications. During the year just ended 

 39,270,865 publications were received, making 46,425,815 copies 

 available for distribution. Of this number, 38,841,657 were distrib- 

 uted, leaving on hand at the close of the fiscal year a balance of 

 7,584,158 documents. 



Under the general classification maintained in this office, the 

 publications of the department are divided between miscellaneous 

 documents and Farmers' Bulletins. Of the 28,642,270 miscellaneous 

 publications available for distribution, 26,442,715 were distributed, 

 leaving on hand on June 30, 1916, a stock aggregating 2,199,555. 

 According to these figures, 8,769,435 more miscellaneous publications 

 were distributed this year than last, but this increase is largely 

 accounted for by the fact that the lists of Farmers' Bulletins dis- 

 tributed mostly through Congressmen and amounting to 7,500,000, 

 were included, whereas in previous years they had been reported 

 under a separate head. 



Of the Farmers' Bulletins, the department had in its possession 

 on July 1, 1915, 4,884,845, which, together with the 12,795,000 

 printed during the year made 17,679,845 available for distribution 

 through Congressmen and to miscellaneous applicants. The total 

 number of copies of this class distributed during the fiscal year was 

 12,309,742, of which 6,479,178 were distributed upon requests of 

 Senators, Representatives, and Delegates in Congress, and 5,830,564 

 were sent out upon requests from miscellaneous applicants. In- 

 cluded in the latter were 2,222,989 ordered out by the bureaus and 

 divisions in the department, and 568,808 sent in response to requests 

 from schools. As compared with the figures of the previous years, 

 this is a falling off in the distribution of Farmers' Bulletins, but when 

 it is considered that last year 3,000,000 copies of the Agricultural 

 Outlook, a serial publication issued in the Farmers' Bulletin series, 

 which has been discontinued, were distributed, it will be seen that the 

 number of bulletins on farm topics distributed this year is actually 

 greater than that for the preceding year. 



Thus it appears that the demand for Farmers' Bulletins continues 

 unabated, and in fact is on the increase. The number used by the 

 bureaus, offices, and divisions is rapidly increasing, caused un- 

 doubtedly in a large measure by the extension work of the Depart- 

 ment. The large number of Farmers' Bulletins sent to schools and 

 other educational institutions for distribution to their pupils repre- 

 sent really about one-tenth of the demand from that class of appli- 

 cants, as it has been necessary in complying with these requests to 

 forward only about one-tenth of the number requested and to inform 

 the applicant that he may secure the additional copies needed from the 

 Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Wash- 

 ington, D. C, or possibly through the Congressman representing his 

 district or a Senator from his State. 



The distribution work on such an enormous scale involves a great 

 amount of clerical as well as manual labor. An important feature 



