REPORT ON EXCHANGES. 53 



Incloanre from legation of Uruguay, Ncic Yorlc, Beccmher 14. 1884, to 

 the Secretary of State, Washington. 



Sir : I bave tlio honor to addi-e.sts .your excellency for the purpose of 

 bringing to your notice, by means of the copy herewith inclosed, the 

 invitation which the Government of the Republic that I rex)resent has 

 the high honor to address to you, for the ])ur]!Oses stated in the note. It 

 extends this invitation feeling every contidence in the lofty American 

 spirit and the good will of the United States Government. 



I transcribe to your excellency, in full, the note whereby I am in- 

 structed to bring to the notice of your Government this invitation ; it 

 reads as follows : 



" Montevideo, October 29. 1884. 

 " Mr. Charge d'affaires : 



"I send you a printed copy of the law recently passed by the honor- 

 able general assembly of the Rei)ublic providing for the establishment, 

 in the national library, of a bureau which is to be called 'The Central 

 Bureau of International Exchanges of Publications.' 



" In pursuance of the ])rovi8ions of article 8 of the reglemeutary de- 

 cree of that law, you will be pleased to invite the Govern;nent to which 

 you are accredited, in the name of the Republic, to conclude a conven- 

 tion for the exchange of publications on various subjects. Two objects 

 are had in view by the Government in pursuing this course, viz, to 

 draw^ still closer the cordial relations which exist between this Republic 

 and that of the United States of America, and to encourage, by iacilitat- 

 ing them as far as possible, the knowledge and study of literary, scien- 

 tific, and other questions among the nations of America, whose advances 

 in progress and civilization must speedily j)lact' them on a footing witli 

 the most progressive nations of Europe. Your superior enlightenment 

 renders it unnecessary for me to advance any arguments in order toshow 

 theimportance of the i)roposed convention, or the advantages which must 

 accrue from it to the nations adopting it. If, as is to be hoped, the 

 United States Government agrees to conclude the arrangement in ques- 

 tion, it may be done on the basis of that which already exists between 

 tliis Republic and Chili, or of that concluded by Belgium with vaiious 

 other nations, which you will find in the inclosed printed documents, if 

 the United States Government does not consider that certain modifica- 

 tions are necessary, which the Government of this Republic is i)repared 

 to consider. You will be pleased to request that Government to send 

 you a reply in regard to this matter. 



" Manuel Herrera y Ober." 



In bringing the foregoing note to your knowledge, and inclosing the 

 printed coi)y of the conventions to which it refers, jierinit me to liope 

 tliat the cabinet of which your excellency is so distinguished a mem- 

 ber will not consider the plan which 1 hereby have the honor to submit 



