236 DEPAETMENTAL EEPOETS. 



The accessions to the Library of serials relating to agricnltiire and 

 the kindred sciences continue to be the most numerous, and, from the 

 nature of the work of the Department, the most valuable. 



MAILING LISTS AND FOREIGN EXCHANGES. 



For several years the foreign mailing lists of the Department publi- 

 cations have been in charge of the Librar3^ These lists include all 

 the foreign addresses to which the publications of twenty Bureaus 

 and Divisions of the Department are regularly sent. During the past 

 year these lists have been carefully revised and cut down, as far as 

 possible, to addresses of such institutions as are working along similar 

 lines as the Department, and as are sending their publications in 

 exchange. The great number of publications issued by the Depart- 

 ment and the increasing demand for them from foreign countries 

 makes this an important branch of the Library work. The foreign 

 publications received in exchange for the Department j)ublications 

 are chiefly scientific serials, and form a very large percentage of this 

 class of accessions to the Librar3^ The Library is thus enabled to 

 complete imperfect series of periodicals, as well as to acquire a large 

 number of new ones. 



CATALOGUE. 



The regular cataloguing of current accessions has been kept up to 

 date during the year, adding many thousand cards to the catalogue. 

 There have been added also to the catalogue printed cards purchased 

 of the Library of Congress and printed cards for current botanical 

 literature. A second contribution to the printed subject-catalogue 

 of the Library has been completed, entitled "Catalogue of publica- 

 tions relating to botany in the Librarj^ of the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture." The collection of botanical works represented 

 in this catalogue is one of the largest in the country and includes 

 many rare and valuable publications. The increase of the number of 

 cataloguers for the coming year will further the work of the printed 

 subject-catalogues, and will thus facilitate the reference use of special 

 collections. 



PUBLICATIONS. 



The Library bulletins and " Card index to the Department publica- 

 tions " have continued to be issued as heretofore. The bulletins have 

 included the quarterly accessions to the Library, and two publica- 

 tions entitled, respectively, "Catalogue of publications relating to 

 botany in the Library of the United States Department of Agricul- 

 ture," and "List of references to publications relating to irrigation 

 and land drainage." The former of these two special bulletins com- 

 prises 2,574 entries, representing nearly <3,000 books and pamphlets 

 on the subject of botany. The latter bulletin includes 1.778 refer- 

 ences to books and periodicals relating to irrigation and land drainage. 

 The six bulletins published during the year comprise 573 printed pages. 



The demand for the "Card index of the Department publications" 

 continues. The early issues of the index on large cards are alreadj' 

 exhausted, and it will be desirable to reprint these issues at an early 

 date. 



The "Card index of the Department publications " now numbers 

 1,600 cards, furnishing an author and a subject index to the Year- 

 books for 1894 to 1900; the Farmers' Bulletins, 1 to 141; Special 

 reports of the Division of Accounts, 1894 to 1898; Bulletins 1 to 6 



