PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. 177 



in time and labor. Much attention is given to collecting the scat- 

 tered signatures of the first volume, and thus the stock in hand of 

 the complete volume is being slowly replenished. 



Volumes I, II, and III of the Bulletin have been stereotyped and 

 printed (with some corrections) at the expense of the Smithsonian 

 Institution as Volume XX of the Miscellaneous Collections. It is 

 certainly a matter of congratulation that the Society has thus as- 

 sured to it the economical, permanent, and most extensive publica- 

 tion of its proceedings ; and the general effect of this arrangement 

 is to offer stronger inducements to our members to publish through 

 this medium. 



The expense to the Society of the publication of the first three 

 volumes of the Bulletin was easily borne by reason of the slow accu- 

 mulation of the funds in the treasury ; but the cost of publication 

 of Volume IV has been entirely defrayed out of the income of the 

 past year, and has required very nearly the whole of our receipts, 

 so that the balance in the treasury is now only $320.16, as com- 

 pared with two hundred and fourteen dollars and eighty-two cents, 

 ($214.82) at the beginning of 1881. The Treasurer has therefore 

 felt himself under the necessity of distributing this volume only 

 to members who are not in arrears. 



The actual expense of the editions of 500 copies each of the 

 respective volumes has been very nearly as follows : 



Vol. No. of Cost per - Cost per 



signatures. edition. copy. 



No. I IO $386 #077 



II 18 686 137 



III 12 333 67 



IV 12 391 78 



It is therefore probable that the steady increase in the member- 

 ship and work of the Society is likely soon to so increase the ex- 

 tent and cost of our Bulletin as to absorb our whole income. 



In view of the fact that the free use of our present admirable 

 quarters is a privilege granted by the Surgeon-General, liable at any 

 time to be revoked, I think it important that there should always be 

 a very considerable annual surplus to be added to the permanently- 

 invested fund, the income of which will at some future day enable 

 the Society to lease appropriate quarters in some central locality. 



I have the honor to remain, very respectfully, 



CLEVELAND ABBE, Treasurer. 

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