EEPORT OP THE SECRETARY. 19 



The Institution proper distributed during the year a total ot 

 ()0,003 volunjes or parts of volumes of the series of Smithsonian 

 Contributions, Miscellaneous Collections, Eeports, and publications 

 not included in the regular series." making an increase of 13.455 

 over the number sent out during the previous year. 



THE LIBRARY. 



The library of the Smithsonian Institution is, first of all, a library 

 of science, and, secondly, a collection of catalogues and bibliographical 

 apparatus. The general aim, as stated in the original plan, has been 

 '' to procure a complete collection of the memoirs and transactions: 

 of learned societies throughout the world, and an entire set of the 

 most important scientific and literary periodicals." In 1866 the main 

 portion of the Smithsonian library was for administrative purposes 

 transferred to the custody of the Library of Congress, and became one 

 of the important elements of that great National Library. This 

 collection continues as the Smithsonian Deposit. It has annually 

 increased in size and importance, and at j^resent aggregates nearly 

 half a million entries. 



There is retained at the Institution such books as are of immediate 

 importance to investigators carrying on their researches in the 

 Smithsonian building* This reference collection, together with the 

 special libraries of the National Museum, the Astrophysical Observa- 

 tory, the National Zoological Park, and the Bureau of American 

 Ethnolog}^, numbers about 55,000 volumes. 



Besides the accessions of books from customary sources, during 

 the past year there has been received a valuable library relating to 

 civil engineering bequeathed to the Institution by the late Dr. J. 

 Elfreth Watkins; also a collection of about 1.600 books on tlie flora 

 of tropical America, presented by Capt. John Donnell Smith, and a 

 large number of additions to the Watts de Peyster Collection Najjo- 

 leon Bounaparte. 



The International Catalogue of Scientific Literature established 

 three years ago, with administrative headquarters in London, now 

 contains over half a million reference cards, 50,000 of which are 

 references made for the United States by the Smithsonian Institu- 

 tion. The entire work of preparing cards for this country is done 

 in connection with the library of the Institution, the cost of the 

 Avork thus far having been borne out of an allotment made by the 

 Institution. 



o Contributions to Knowledge, 4,540; Miscellaneous Collections, 27,558; Re- 

 ports, 25,425; publications not in regular series, 1,905; publications not Smith- 

 sonian yet distributed bj' the Institution, 635. 



