REPORT OP THE ACTING SECRETARY. 55 



The office collection of directories of large and important cities, catalogues 

 of universities and colleges, and other address books was always given special 

 attention by the late Secretary Langley, and it has been endeavored during the 

 year to make the sectional librai'y in the International Exchanges as complete in 

 this regard as possible. 



In accordance with your instructions, all copy for printing for the Exchanges 

 has been submitted to the Secretary's office for approval. The printing in con- 

 nection with the Exchanges is confined almost exclusively to letter heads and 

 Buch blank forms as are required in the work of the service, the only publication 

 being the International Exchange List. This list is not issued frequently, 

 the last edition having been published in September, 1903. 



The expenses of the International Exchanges are met in part by direct appro- 

 priation by Congress and in part by appropriations made to Government de- 

 partments and bureaus, either in the contingent funds or in specific terms for 

 payment to the Smithsonian Institution of a portion of the cost of the trans- 

 portation of packages. To each of the departments or bureaus sending or re- 

 ceiving publications through the Smithsonian Institution a charge of 5 cents per 

 pound weight is made under the authority of a resolution of the Board of 

 Regents passed in 1878, this charge being necessary to prevent an undue tax 

 upon the resources of the Institution, as the appropriations made by Congress 

 directly to the Institution for the support of the International Exchanges have 

 never been sufficient to meet the entire cost of the work. For similar reasons 

 it has been found necessary to make a charge of the same amount to State 

 institutions. 



The amount appropriated by Congress for the expenses of the service during 

 the fiscal year 1906 was $28,800, an apparent increase over the preceding year 

 of $1,800. This additional amount, however, was transferred from the appro- 

 priation for the Library of Congress and is to cover the salaries of two persons 

 employed at the Smithsonian Institution in connection with exchange work for 

 that Library. The sum collected on account of repayments during the year 

 was $5,676.85, making the total amount available for carrying on the Exchanges 

 $34,476.85. 



In this connection it should be stated that while $1,000 was added to the 

 Exchange appropriation for 1905 in lieu of the payments which have been made 

 to the Smithsonian Institution for forwarding the publications of the United 

 States Geological Survey, the actual charge for such sendings at 5 cents per 

 pound would have amounted during the past year to $4,535.05. The Smith- 

 sonian Institution therefore received for carrying on the Exchanges $3,535.05 

 less than it would have under the arrangement that existed heretofore. At- 

 tention is called to this matter here as it may be considered advisable to bring 

 the facts before the Appropriations Committee during the coming session of 

 Congress with a view to having an additional amount added to the Exchange 

 appropriation. 



The number of packages handled during the past year was 171,883, an in- 

 ci-ease over the number for the prei^eding year of 6,130. The total weight of 

 these packages was 471,559 pounds, a decrease from 1905 of 3,312 pounds. This 

 decrease is probably due to the reduction of the matter printed by the, Govern- 

 ment Departments, whose publications constitute about 67 per cent of the weight 

 of all exchange transmissions. 



New correspondents in every part of the world are constantly being added to 

 the exchange list, so that they now reach a total of 56,314, an increase of 4,434 

 over those of the preceding year. These correspondents are subdivided a-i 

 follows : Foreign institutions, 14,620 ; foreign individuals, .30,471 ; domestic in- 



