488 



CATALOGUE OF PUBLICATIONS. 



The number of copies of tbese reports for general distribution ordered 

 l)y Congress Las been verj- variable, the largest being 7,500 in 1874 and 

 1875, and the smallest 150 in 1817. The number of copies granted the 

 Institution each year is shown in the following table: 



Number of extra copies furnished the Instiluiion hy Congress for distrihuiion. 



The total numl)er of pages in the 41 volumes of annual reports is 

 21,292, average, 50 pages ; total number of wood-cuts, 2,340, and 148 

 plates. 



4. Bulletins of the U. JS. National Museum. 



In the year 1875 a fourth series of publications (octavo) was com- 

 menced, entitled " Bulletins of the National Museum," intended to il- 

 lustrate tlie collections of natural history and ethnology belonging to 

 the United States, constituting the National Museum, of which the 

 Smithsonian Institution is the custodian. 



Thirty-one of these bulletins have been published, with an aggregate 

 of 7,475 pages, 023 wood-cuts, 80 idates, and 7 uiaps. 



5. Proceedings of the U. S. National Museum. 



In imitation of the practice of those learned societies which publish 

 periodically descriptions of new species, etc., in the form of proceedings 

 of weekly or monthly meetings, and thus present to the world the dis- 

 coveries connected with the establishment at the earliest practicable 

 moment, it appeared to be very desirable that the National IMuseum 

 should have some medium of i)rompt publication for announcing de- 

 scriptions of specimens received (manj^ of which are new Kpecies), as 

 w^ell as other interesting facts relative to natural history furnished by 

 correspoudence of the Institution. To meet this want a fiftk series of 

 publications (octavo), entitled "Proceedings of the National Museum," 

 was commenced in 1880, They are printed in su(;cessive signature's as 

 fast as material sufficient for sixteen pages is prepiued, and distributed 



