KEPOBT OF THE SECRETARY 6 



ratlier of the nature of the agreeable spending of a few hours. It 

 would be interesting to determine the geographical dispersion of the 

 benefits from these exhibition features of the Smithsonian. Almost 

 certainly, however, it would be found that chiefly the District of 

 Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia, after them the Eastern States, 

 and then, with rapidly growing sparseness of distribution, the mere 

 distant States and foreign countries partake of these benefits. 



Contrast with this comparatively local influence the wider reach 

 of the International Exchange Service, as associated with the publi- 

 cations of the Institution. Its first Secretary, Joseph Henry, per- 

 ceiving the isolation of science in the America of 1850, created, as 

 one of the first Smithsonian activities, a system of exchange of its 

 publications, receiving in return those of the learned institutions of 

 the Old World. Having established at strategic points in other coun- 

 tries many agencies for such exchange, he offered the use of the sys- 

 tem freely to the learned institutions of the United States. Along 

 with this new departure he also inaugurated that of the free distri- 

 bution of numerous copies of Smithsonian publications to selected 

 libraries all over this country and the world. From such exchanges 

 came to the Institution that still-continuing steady stream of foreign 

 and domestic scientific literature which largely makes up the Smith- 

 sonian deposit of some half million volumes in the Library of Con- 

 gress, and the eight extensive libraries retained in the Institution 

 itself. This Government, and foreign governments as well, have 

 appreciated the merit of this world-wide interchange of ideas which 

 Secretary Henry inaugurated, and by treaty have built on the Smith- 

 sonian's foundation the present International Exchange System.^ 



Here, then, is a permanent and world-wide activity, originally 

 Smithsonian, promoting international good will at the same time that 

 it gives a powerful stimulus to the promotion of science and to the 

 initiation of good intellectual activities, wherever instituted. As 

 evidences of its effectiveness for good will, let me only say that owing 

 to it one finds the golden torch .symbolic of the Smithsonian Institu- 

 tion shown with pride on the shelves of libraries all over the world ; 

 that it was through the exchanges that Belgian libraries recovered 

 many sets of American and other publications after the Great War; 

 and that Japanese libraries were rehabilitated after the disastrous 

 earthquake. 



In the west hall of the Smithsonian Building the visitor sees a 

 column of books four square, 23 feet high, with this legend : 



Smithsonian Institution publications only. No duplicates. One thousand 

 five hundred copies of eaoli distributed work' -wide free. 



In the last 50 years scarcely one scientific textbook has appeared which does 

 not owe something to these publications. 



^ See reuort on p. 85. 



