1S6 EIGHTH ANNUAL REPORT OF 



The preparation of the report on the Forest Trees of North America, 

 though delayed in consequence of the absence of the author, Dr. Gray, 

 of Harvard University, on a visit to Europe, is still in progress. The 

 illustrations are in the hands of the artists, and the first part will prob- 

 ably be published during the present year. The cost of this report, on 

 account of the elaborate illustrations, will be greater than was at first 

 anticipated ; consequently, the publication of the entire work must ne- 

 cessarily be spread over a number of years. It is believed, however, 

 that a considerable part of the expense will be repaid to the Institution 

 by the sale of copies at a small advance on the original cost. 



The other reports on the Progress of Knowledge mentioned in my 

 last communication to the Regents are ready for the press, and will be 

 published, in whole or in part, during the present year. 



The report on the statistics of Libraries of the United States, pre- 

 pared by Professor Jewett, has been ordered to be printed by Con- 

 gress, as an appendix to the Regents' Report. A sufficient number of 

 extra copies will be presented to the Institution, for distribution to all 

 the libraries from which statistical information was received. It forms 

 a volume of about two hundred and twenty-five pages, and will, I am 

 sure, be considered an important contribution to bibliographical sta- 

 tistics. 



Distribution of Publications. 



We have found considerable difficulty in deciding upon the rules to 

 be observed in the distribution of the Smithsonian publications. It 

 is evident that, from the small portion of the income which can be de- 

 voted to this object, the distribution must be circumscribed. Fifteen 

 hundred copies of each memoir have been printed; but this number, 

 though all that the income could furnish, has not been found sufficient 

 to meet a tenth part of the demand. It should be recollected that, 

 though these memoirs consist of the results of new investigations of the 

 highest importance to the well-being of man in extending the bounds 

 of his knowledge of the universe of mind and matter, yet they are not 

 generally of such a character as to be immediately appreciated by the 

 popular mind, and, indeed, they are better adapted to instruct the 

 teacher than to interest the general reader. They should, therefore, 

 be distributed in such a way as most readily to meet the eye of those 

 who will make the best use of them in diffusing a knowledge of their 

 contents. 



The following rules have been adopted for the distribution of the 

 quarto volumes of collections of memoirs: 



1. They are to be presented to all Learned Societies which publish 

 transactions, and give copies of these in exchange to the Institution. 



2. To all Foreign Libraries of the first class, provided they give in 

 exchange their catalogues, or other publications, or an equivalent from 

 their duplicate volumes. 



3. To all Colleges in actual operation in this country, provided they 

 furnish in return meteorological observations, catalogues of their libra- 

 ries and of their students, and all other publications issued by them 

 relative to their organization and history. 



