REPORT OP THE SECRETARY. 57 



EXPENSES. 



From specific Congressional appropriations: 



Salaries and compensation $13, 594. 84 



Freight 1,849.91 



Packing boxes 791. 28 



Printing 31.60 



Postage 260. 00 



Stationery and supplies 470. 36 



Total disbursements 16, 997. 99 



Balance to meet outstanding liabilities June 30, 1895 2. 01 



From other sources 4, 092. 62 



Balance 1, 568. 26 



Total 22,660.88 



The foregoing table shows that the entire amount received from Government 

 Bureaus and other sources was $5,660.88, which added to the appropriation of $17,000 

 makes the sum practically available for the specific purpose of exchanges $22,660.88, 

 while the expenses amounted to $21,090.61, the balance being held for repayment to 

 the Smithsonian Institution of the sum $944.36, which was advanced in the year 

 1893-94 to enable the Bureau to carry on its operations, and for other outstanding 

 liabilities. 



CORRESPONDENTS. 



As mentioned in previous reports, it became necessary in the latter part of 1891 to 

 provide for an addition to the series of "ledger" cards upon which were entered all 

 packages sent or received from a given society or individual. A plan was approved 

 by which the cards were much reduced in size, the bulk of the older cards having 

 already become a matter of serious consideration. 



The new and smaller ledger cards were begun on January 1, 1892, and since that 

 date all the transactions have been entered upon them. The abbreviation of the rec- 

 ords and their greater convenience in handling proved to be of the utmost service 

 when it became necessary to reduce the clerical force in the office, and it is only by 

 such abbreviation of the records and by the introduction of several minor labor-sav- 

 ing devices that it has been at all possible to prevent the work from falling seriously 

 behind. 



The number of ledger cards on June 30, 1894, was 20,223, and on June 30, 1895, 

 23,408. The difference of 3,185 represents the increase in the number of new societies 

 or individuals upon the exchange lists during the year making use of the service, 

 while the entire number of cards (23,408) is the number of societies and individuals, 

 both domestic and foreign, with which the exchange office has had relations since 

 January 1, 1892. 



Attention has been directed for some time past to the fact that the list of corre- 

 spondents in the exchange office requires revision and recopyiug upon cards, the 

 original office list prepared and printed in 1886 having become so worn and so over- 

 crowded by frequent interlineations as to be almost illegible. This revision was 

 authorized by the Secretary in March, 1895, and the work was completed by Mr. 

 Boehmer before the expiration of the fiscal year. 



The statistical statement of this work shows the existence of 23,408 names, of 

 which 10,765 are establishments and 12,643 individuals. They are located in 3,771 

 places, embracing all parts of the world from Disco, Greenland, in north latitude 

 70°, to Port Stanley, Falkland Islands, in latitude 50° south, and extending east and 

 west to 178° and 170°, respectively. A recapitulation of the work is given in the 

 following table: 



