78 REPORT ON THE OPERATIONS OF EXCHANGES. 



and Ireland and with Germany and Austria-Hungary, and is found to 

 work so well that its adoption for all other countries is deemed advis- 

 able. Such a course, however, will require the detail of two assistants 

 exclusively for this purpose; but, considering that the receipts during 

 the past year averaged 90 parcels per working day — exclusive of 31,568 

 parcels for the Government — the work required will be such as to keep 

 them both well employed. 



The duty of the assistant in charge of the card-catalogues does not 

 cease here, but includes the entry to the credit of the respective socie- 

 ties, of any acknowledgments of the receipt of parcels sent them through 

 this office, while the duties of the receiving clerk include the verifying 

 and distributing of all incoming exchanges. 



Another feature introduced during the year is a form of duplicate in- 

 voice which is to be mailed to every recipient within the United States 

 and British America, of exchange parcels from abroad, to be returned 

 to the Institution and transmitted as occasion offers to the sender of 

 the respective parcels. 



During the past year over eight thousand parcels were sent out un- 

 der the system of domestic exchanges, requiring this number of entries 

 in the book of transmission. Each parcel had to be addressed and prop- 

 erly wrapped. This domestic branch of the service required the writ- 

 ing of nearly 13,000 letters of advice and invoices, and the directing of 

 the parcels and envelopes. All this work has been performed by the 

 entire force at intervals between foreign transmissions. Great i)unctu- 

 ality, of course, cannot possibly, be expected in each case, and it is 

 respectfully recommended that one assistant be appointed exclusively 

 for these duties. 



The arranging and sending off of the foreign exchange, and the duties 

 pertaining to the transmission of Government document exchange should 

 be intrusted to one assistant, to the exclusion of any other duty. 



One of the most important works begun during the past year is that 

 of completing the sets of Smithsonian publications furnished to foreign 

 societies. Several attempts have been made at different times to supi^ly 

 such deficiencies, and circulars have been sent out on different occasions 

 requesting the foreign establishments to report the number of Smith- 

 sonian volumes in their respective libraries. 



In connection with this work, a thorough examination of the number 

 of publications in the Smithsonian library, of the societies applying for 

 completion of our sets of publications, is required, for an equitable aj)- 

 portionment. The preliminary steps to this have been taken, but the 

 magnitude and importance of the work, and the pressure of other busi- 

 ness, have made it impossible to complete the undertaking. 



It has been the aim of the assistants of this Department not to allow 

 any accumulation whatever in the current work, and although with the 

 limited force it required great exertion, still the close of the year finds 

 the service unincumbered by any work of the previous year. 



