52 REPORT ON EXCHANGES. 



The second point, the inability to secure the entire fruits of the pro- 

 visions of Congress, in the way of adequate returns, was fully discussed 

 by Professor Baird on page 20 of the Annual Report of the Smithson- 

 ian Institution for 1885, by Mr. Spofford, the Librarian of Congress, on 

 pages 25 and 26 of the Smithsonian Report for the fiscal year 1885-'86, 

 and by myself, in the appendix to each of these reports. 



The remedy suggested in the case was based on the experience of my 

 mission to Europe, and the predictions ventured that, without the es- 

 tablishment of a permanent agency on the ground to attend personally 

 to the whole business, only temporary results would be obtained, are 

 fully borne out by the experience of the past year. 



While the returns secured by my personal efforts comprise 44 cases 

 and 160 packages of books, numbering about 7,000 volumes, collected 

 from fourteen European Governments, the returns of the present year 

 received from European Governments through the medium of the ex- 

 change service represent only 3 boxes and about 250 volumes of books. 



