924 OONGEESSIONAL PEOCEEDINGS. 



sleeps and will sleep in the Committee on Printing, and if the informa- 

 tion should be printed, the Smithsonian Institution will have to attempt 

 it within its own proper sphere. That shows, I think, that there was 

 no abuse of the service in that particular matter. 



REPORTS OF SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION AND NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



February 24, 1882 House. 



Mr. HERMAN L. HUMPHREY introduced the following joint resolu- 

 tion (H. 144): 



That the Public Printer be, and he hereby is, instructed to print and stereotype, 

 from time to time, the regular number of 1900 copies of any matter furnished him 

 by the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution relative to the operations, researches, 

 and explorations of the Institution and the National Museum, to be capable of being 

 distributed in parts, and the whole to form annual volumes in quarto or octavo, as 

 may be required, with suitable illustrations, to be made under the direction of the 

 Joint Committee on Printing; the extra edition of said works to consist of 5,000 

 copies, of which 2,500 shall be for the use of the House of Representatives, 1,000 for 

 the use of the Senate, and 1,500 for the use of the Smithsonian Institution,' for dis- 

 tribution to public libraries and for exchange, the returns for which to be placed in 

 the Library of Congress. 



Referred to Committee on Printing. 



June 20, 1882 House. March 1, 1882. 



Hon. R. T. VAN HORN, 



CJiairman of Joint Committee on Printing, 



House of Representatives. 



SIR: I beg to make the following statement in explanation of a res- 

 olution offered in the House a few days since (Feb. 24, 1882) in 

 reference to the printing by Congress of certain volumes for the 

 service of the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum. 



Since the Smithsonian began its labors it has prepared quite a num- 

 ber of important works of great scientific and practical value. These 

 consist of papers and reports on the recent progress and present con- 

 dition of our knowledge upon various scientific subjects, such as 

 chemical technology, meteorology, general natural history, astronomy, 

 geography, American antiquities, etc., etc., and constitute a series 

 eagerly sought after as standard works by libraries throughout the 

 United States. The edition printed is usually 1,500 copies, which are 

 distributed 



(1) To the principal libraries of the United States which rank in 

 proportion to the number of volumes already in their possession and 

 the positions they hold within a certain district; 



(2) To colleges and academies; and 



(3) To scientific, technical, and industrial societies publishing trans- 

 actions and furnishing copies of these in return. 



A few special presentations are also made gratuitously to persons 

 engaged in certain researches, covered by the original investigations 

 relative to the subjects involved. Besides, with few exceptions, all 



