REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 35 



those governments in exchange for those sent from the United States. 

 Such arrangements as will secure to this country the full benefits which 

 might be secured through the adherence of England, German}^, and 

 France to the Brussels treaty may doubtless be obtained in this 

 manner, which would be found, perhaps, less objectionable to them 

 than a formal adherence to the convention, against which, for some 

 reason, they seem to entertain a prejudice. 



I have the honor to be, sir, your obedient servant, 



John Hay. 



Hon. S. P. Langley, 



Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution^ 



Washhir/ton., D. C. 



The results of the Secretary's labors are suunuarized under the head 

 of each country separately, as follows: 



ENGLAND. 



On July IS the Secretary presented to the embassy a written state- 

 ment concerning the condition of exchange matters between the 

 United States and Great Britain, a copy of which follows: 



London, England, July JS\ 1900. 



Sir: The Smithsonian Institution, consisting of an establishment 

 composed of the President of the United States, the Vice-President, 

 the Chief Justice, and the heads of the Departments, was founded by 

 an act of Congress in the year 1846, with functions rather general 

 than local in their character, it being described in the words of the act 

 as ''for the increase and dili'usion of knowledge among men." 



It has, as a part of these functions, at all times promoted the inter- 

 communication of literary and scientitic matter between the United 

 States and Great Britain, as well as with other nations, and this sys- 

 tem of literary and scientific exchange, while officially promoted bv 

 the Government of the United States since the first -half of the j^res- 

 ent century, has more recently been extended by the legislation of 

 which I now speak. 



With the approval of the Secretary of State, I have then the honor 

 to address jou the following memoranda concerning the exchange of 

 official and other publications between the United States and Great 

 Britain, and to respectfully ask your interest in concluding a long- 

 needed arrangement which shall provide on the part of the British 

 Government for action reciprocal to that of the United States, regard- 

 ing, first, exchanges of official publications of the Government, and, 

 second, for scientific and literary exchanges. 



MEMORANDA CONCERNING EXCHANGES BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND GREAT BRITAIN. 



1. Government exchanges. 



On March 2, 1867, the following joint resolution of Congress was 

 approved by the President: 



'"''Resolved hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 

 States of America in, Gnujrcss assenil'led, That fifty copies of all docu- 

 ments hereafter printed by order of either House of Congress, and 

 fifty copies additional of all documents printed in excess of the usual 



