AN ACCOUNT OF THE U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM. 323 



derived from animals; a, collection of fibers and textiles; and a series 

 of objects illustrating the chemical composition of tlie liuman body. 



I have already alluded to the work done by the Museum in the direc- 

 tion of supplying' from its surjdus the needs of other scientific and edu- 

 cational establishments. 



This undertaking was inaugurated at an early date, as I have stated 

 on a preceding page (j). 297), and already in 1806, at the end of the 

 second decade of the Institution, 110,000 specimens from the collections 

 had been distributed. At the close of the fifth decade, in 1890, the 

 number had risen to 521,000 specimens. These included animals of 

 every class and many geological and mineralogical specimens and 

 plants. 



P^very State and Territory in the Union has received a share of these 

 collections, and numerous institutions outside the United States have 

 also been beneficiaries in the distribution. 



The majority of these specdmens were distributed without demand 

 for or expectation of a return ; but the National Museum has received 

 from other institutions in exchange for the collections sent out a body 

 of specimens amounting in all to perhaps one-third the number dis- 

 tributed. Important additions have been made to the Museum in this 

 way, and, indeed, its surplus collections, owing to the comparatively 

 small amounts available for purchases, have constituted its chief capi- 

 tal. The system of exchanges, however, has its limitations, which are 

 soon felt. Few institutions carry large quantities of surplus mate- 

 rial, and none, of course, dispose of their most precious posses- 

 sions. Exchange, therefore, takes the place of purchase only to a 

 limited extent. 



The Smithsonian Institution has carried on the distribution of sur- 

 plus specimens from its own collections as apart of its regular activities 

 having for their object the diffusion of knowledge. The Government 

 has shown its acquiescence in this policy, so far as the national collec- 

 tions are concerned, by several enactments making appropriations for 

 the work and in other ways. 



In 1878 the Museum began the publication of a scientific journal, 

 which has become well known to the world of science under the name 

 of "Proceedings of the United States National Museum." The object 

 of this journal, as indicated in the "advertisement" inserted in the vol- 

 umes, is "the prompt publication of freshly acquired facts relating to 

 biology, anthropology, and geology; descriptions of restricted groups of 

 animals and plants; the settlement of particular questions relative to the 

 synonymy of species, and the diaries of minor expeditions.'' Eighteen 

 volumes had been published to the closeof 189."), containing in all no fewer 

 than 1,100 papers, comprising 12,056 printed pages. All the papers 

 relate directly or indirectly to the collections of the Museum and serve 

 to make them known to specialists. The volumes include' a large 



' With the "Bulletins" to be mentioned presently. 



