REPORT OF THE SECRETARY 



51 



Whenever it has been possible for a representative of the 

 Smithsonian Institution to visit the exchange bureaus of other 

 countries, the information obtained concerning the systems 

 and customs practiced elsewhere and a personal acquaintance 

 with the officers in immediate charge of exchanges has been 

 of great benefit. As the official exchange bureaus of Italy 

 and Switzerland had never been visited by a representative of 

 the Institution, and as the agencies at Vienna and Budapest 

 had not been inspected since the autumn of 1897, Mr. W. Irving 

 Adams, chief clerk of the International Exchange Service, was 

 directed to visit and familiarize himself with all of them dur- 

 ing the last summer. His report, given in the Appendix, 

 conveys the assurance that the cordial relations hitherto exist- 

 ing between these agencies and the Smithsonian Institution 

 will henceforth be more firmly established than ever; and an 

 increase in the contributions from Italy and Switzerland to 

 the United States Government institutions, especially to the 

 Library of Congress, is already apparent. 



NECROLOGY. 



WILLIAM LYNE WILSON. 



At a meeting of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian 

 Institution held January 23, 1901, the Hon. J. B. Henderson, 

 the chairman of the Execntive Committee, made the following 

 remarks in memory of Mr. Wilson: 



It is due to Mr. AVilson that a word of tribute to his mem- 

 ory should come from the Executive Committee of the Board 

 of "Regents. His service as a member of the Committee was of 

 short ^duration, but long enough to endear him to those who 

 survive. 



While Mr. Wilson possessed, in an eminent degree, the 

 power of speech — while indeed he was an orator, gifted with 

 the charm and beauty of genuine eloquence — his chief title to 

 remembrance will rest, not upon his words, but rather upon 

 what he did and what he was. 



Non opus est verbis, eredite rebus. Blessed with a liberal 

 education, he enjoyed it not alone, but became an educator of 

 usefulness and marked distinction. As a lawyer he took high 

 rank, and placed himself among the most distinguished jurists 

 of his State. For twelve years he served an intelligent con- 

 stituency in the Congress" of the United States, where his 

 record is marked by all that characterizes the highest order 

 of statesmanship— honestv, purity, devotion, and intelligence. 



As Postmaster-General in the Cabinet of President Cleve- 

 land, he gave renewed evidence of ability and industry, and 



