XXXII -REPORT OF THE DIVISION OF DISTRIBUTION OF THE 

 UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION FOR THE YEAR 1883. 



By Marshaxl McDonald. 



I. — OFFICE SERVICE. 



All applications made to the United States Fish Commission for fish 

 or eggs go to the division of distribution. Here they are filed, indexed, 

 and all particulars embodied in the applications entered into the serial 

 register, which constitutes a part of the permanent records of the ofl&ce. 

 The action taken upon each is also entered in the register, so that this 

 furnishes a complete history of every application reaching the office of 

 the United States Fish Commission. All applications are acknowledged 

 by a postal card informing the applicant when to expect his fish. 



In the register the applications are entered seriatim in the order in 

 which they are received. For convenience of reference and to facilitate 

 the distribution, the applications are classified by States and counties ; 

 all the counties in the same Congressional district are grouped together 

 to form what are known as Congressional lists. These are always ready 

 for inspection or reference, and a Congressional Eepresentative can learn 

 at a glance the number and names of all applicants for carp in his dis- 

 trict and the status of their applications. 



When the date of distribution to a particular section of the country 

 is determined upon, information is mailed to each applicant who is to 

 receive fish, of the time at which to expect them and the destination to 

 which they will be sent. 



For the guidance of the messengers engaged in making the distribu- 

 tion, transcripts of the Congressional lists are made, and specific in- 

 structions are prepared prescribing the route to be traversed, the points 

 from which distribution by express is to be made, and regulating all the 

 details of the work. 



For each State a central point for distribution is selected, to which 

 the fish are sent in charge of messengers. Preliminary to the distribu- 

 tion the messenger in charge sends to each applicant a postal notice, 

 informing him at what date the fish will be forwarded from the depot 

 or center of distribution, and to what express office they will be con- 

 signed. The shipping tag attached to each pail is doubled, and in the 

 fold is placed a blank postal receipt, to be signed and mailed to the 

 office of the Commission. Usually this is promptly done, and by the 



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