HISTORY OF THE SMITHSONIAN EXCHANGES. 717 



pal bodies rcsj^ondiiij]^ to its invitfition ■were the American Academy 

 of Arts aud Sciences, Boston ; the Boston Natnral History Society, 

 the PhiUidelphia Academy of Natural Sciences, the United States Coast 

 Survey, the Naval Observatory at Washington, and a few others. The 

 Hon. Luke Lea, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, at the instance of the 

 Institution (seconded by the authors), embraced the opportunity of 

 presenting to about one hundred and fifty establishments in Europe 

 (selected from the Smithsonian list) copies of Schoolcraft's History of 

 the Indian tribes. In this case the Institution requested the recipients 

 to return a special acknowledgment to the Commissioner of the In- 

 dian Bureau. Numerous documents of scientific interest published by 

 Congress were, through the personal liberality of members in distrib- 

 uting their copies, received from the Senate document room for trans- 

 mission abroad. The Senate also assigned to the Institution three 

 hundred copies of Foster and Whitney's report on the copper lands of 

 Lake Superior ; one hundred copies of Owen's report on the geology of 

 Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota ; and one hundred copies of Stans- 

 bury's report on the exploration of Utah, for foreign distribution. 



In the Smithsonian report for 1854, the secretary states : "During 

 the past .vear the number of societies availing themselves of the facili- 

 ties thus offered has largely increased, including among others nearly 

 all the State agricultural societies of America publishing transactions. 

 This result has been produced by a circular which was issued by the 

 Institution early in the spring of last year, to make known more gen- 

 erally the system of exchange. Copious returns are being constantly 

 received for the societies, and an intercourse is thus established which 

 cannot fail to produce important results, both in an intellectual and 

 moral i)oint of view." 



As an indication of some of the incidental benefits conferred by this 

 extensive system of exchange, a few special transmissions may be 

 cited. 



In 18G7, at the suggestion of Hon. John Bigelow, late American 

 minister to France, a request was made by the Institution that some of 

 the principal publishers of school-books in this country would furnish 

 copies of their elementary text-books, in order that these might be pre- 

 sented to Professor E. Laboulaye, of the College of France, for exam- 

 ination, with a view to the application of some of their peculiar feat- 

 ures to the purposes of instruction in his own country. The character 

 of this distinguished professor, aud his known admiration of American 

 institutions, secured for this request the prompt and liberal response 

 of several publishers, a list of whom, with the number of works con- 

 tributed, is as follows : 



Volumes. 



Harper & Brothers, New York 62 



A. S. Barnes & Co., New York 26 



Oiikley & M;ison, New York 10 



C. Scribner, New York 3 



