14 EEPOKT OF THE SECRETAEY. 



Congress (approved March 2, 1867), it was orderea that " fifty copies 

 of all documents hereafter priuted by order of either house of Congress, 

 and fifty copies additional of all documents priuted in excess of the 

 usual number, together with fifty copies of each publication issued by 

 any Department or Bureau of the Government, be placed at the disposal 

 of the Joint Committee on the Library, who shall exchange the same, 

 through the agency of the Smithsonian lustitutiou, for such works 

 published in foreign countries, and especially by foreign Governments, 

 as may be deemed by j^aid committee an equivalent; said works to be 

 deposited in the Library of Congress." And by supplemental joint 

 resolution to carry the same into better effect (approved July 25, 1868), 

 the Congressional Printer, whenever he shall be so directed by the 

 Joint Committee on the Library, is required to print fifty copies in ad- 

 dition to the regular number of all documents hereafter printed by order 

 of either house of Congress, or Dy order of any Department or Bureau 

 of the Government, and whenever lie shall be so directed by the Joint 

 Committee on the Library, one hundred copies additional of all docu- 

 ments ordered to be printed in excess of the usual number; said fifty 

 or one hundred copies to be delivered to the Librarian of Congress, to 

 be exchanged under the direction of the Joint Committee on the Library, 

 as provided by joint resolution approved March 2, 1867. 



Since the international iLovement, commencing with the Paris con- 

 vention of 1875, for promoting the free reciprocal exchange of public 

 documents, there has been a growing interest in the subject manifested 

 abroad. International conferences, for agreeing upon details, were held 

 at Brussels, Belgium, in 1880, in 1883, and finally in 1886— March 15. 

 There are now thirty-nine Governments in exchange with the United 

 States, or, counting the duplicate sets sent to the Dominion of Canada 

 (deposited at Ottawa and Toronto), there may be said to be forty foreign 

 recipients. These are: The Argentine Confederation, Austria, Bavaria, 

 Belgium, Brazil, Buenos Ayres, Canada, two sets (one for the parlia- 

 mentary library at Ottawa, the other for the legislative library at To- 

 ronto), Chili, Colombia (United States of), Denmark, France, Germany, 

 Great Britain, Greece, Hayti, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, 

 Netherlands, jS"ew South Wales, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Portugal, 

 Prussia, Queensland, Russia, Saxony, South Australia, Spain, Sweden, 

 Switzerland, Tasmania, Turkey, Venezuela, Victoria, and Wiirtemberg. 



Assistance by tlie Government. — In view of the great public and national 

 services rendered by the exchange system, in the distribution of Gov- 

 ernment publications, and in the large accessions of valuable works 

 annually made through its instrumentality to the Congressional Library, 

 an appropriation has for some years past been granted by Congress in 

 aid of this enterprise. And without this support the operations of tlie 

 exchange service would be very seriously restricted. The usual appro- 

 priation of $10,000 was granted to the Institution by the last Congress. 



