10 a EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



Mailing Lists. 

 The fullest economy in the matter of the circulation of station 

 publications is possible only when the mailing lists are kept 

 fully alive. Very frequent revisions are necessary. It is true 

 that the United States postal regulations state that postmasters 

 must return all station publications not delivered, but in a very 

 large proportion of cases this regulation is not complied with. 

 It has been our practice, therefore, not only to make corrections 

 whenever reported, and to drop names when publications are 

 returned, but to fully revise all Massachusetts lists once in two 

 years. Under these conditions the number of addresses which 

 we find should be dropped because of death, removal or other 

 causes is surprising. It must average about 20 to 25 per cent, 

 of the total. There is also an astonishing number of changes 

 shown to be necessary in every revision. These are due in many 

 cases to removal, but in not a few instances to changes in post 

 offices. It is estimated that in the last revision about one-half 

 of the addresses remaining required change. There is much 

 difference in the number for different post offices, a difference 

 no doubt traceable to difference in the faithfulness with which 

 the postal regulation above referred to is complied with. The 

 table shows the nature of the lists which we at present maintain 

 and the numbers in the several classes. 



Residents of Massachusetts (general), 13,325 



Residents of other States (general), 557 



Residents of other States (general and technical), . . . 765 



Residents of foreign countries, . . . ... . . 154 



Newspapers, 513 



Libraries, 343 



Exchanges, 189 



Cranberry growers, ......... 1,710 



Beekeepers, 3,719 



Feed and fertilizer dealers, 310 



Greenhouse growers, ......... 1.848 



Meteorological, 386 



United States Department of Agriculture Official List,' . . 2,794 



Total, 26,613 



' Publications are not as a rule sent to all on this list but only to presidents, directors, 

 libraries and specialists likdly to be interested. 



