serials.

first critical disciple of Sir Isaac Newton in the American Colonies. These letters, written to President Thomas Clap, Rev. Ezra Stiles, of Yale, Benjamin Franklin, and the Royal Society of London, are of inestimable value to the early history of astronomy and physics in America. Expanding the collections of nearly 200 prints and portraits of scientific men deposited during 1925–26 in the division of prints, 115 have been added this year. As this special collection becomes better known greater demand will be made upon it by authors.

Union list of The Smithsonian division has acted for the past two years as host to the branch headquarters staff of compilers of the Union List of Serials and has endeavored to cooperate in the effort to make the final draft of this list as complete as possible. In particular, Mr. J. V. Butt, of this division, has rendered efficient service in checking and verifying entries.

Urgent requests to have this division kept open during the same hours as the main reading room are constantly being received from various important sources, notably from the investigators of various governmental scientific bureaus. Many investigators also come from out of town to study in the Library of Congress with only a very limited time at their disposal. But no scientific library in the District of Columbia is open after 4.30 p. m. nor on Sundays and holidays. The calls for Smithsonian division material presented by readers in the main reading room on evenings, Sundays, and holidays are increasing, as shown by statistics. The opening of the Smithsonian division to full schedule time, with the aid of an additional assistant, would be a great advance in making our rich collections more fully available to scholars.

Reference should again be made to the still continuing lack of international cooperation in the bibliography of current scientific publications. For the biological sciences there are the author cards of the Concilium Bibliographicum, the Zoological Record subject classification, and the Biological Abstract. The Physical Abstract gives some aid in the physical sciences. Beyond this the

wide field of science is almost wholly uncovered. The continued suspension of the International Catalogue for Scientific Literature, discontinued since 1914, is a deplorable handicap. The apparent lack of effective effort to revive this indispensable organ is a matter for surprise and regret.

The Library of Congress was represented at the bicentenary of the founding of the American Philosophical Society at Philadelphia, April 27-30, 1927, by the assistant in charge of the Smithsonian division. The occasion was a notable one, especially in the representation of societies by foreign scholars, and the great number of most excellent addresses. This society, founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1727, is the oldest scientific society in the United States.

THE READING ROOMS

(From the report of the superintendent, Mr. MARTIN A. ROBERTS)

The reading room service was maintained without interruption throughout the year, except on July 4 and December 25, 1926, when the building was closed all day. On November 24, 1926 (Thanksgiving Eve), the building closed at 1.30 p. m., December 24 (Christmas Eve) at 1 p. m., December 31 (New Year's Eve) at 4.30 p. m. and on June 11, in honor of the return of Col. Charles Lindbergh, at 12 noon. From July 3 to September 18, 1926, and from June 4, 1927, to June 25, 1927, service on Saturdays was suspended at 1 p. m. in accordance with Executive orders. On all other week days the service to the public was continued from 9 a. m. to 10 p. m.; on all Sundays and five holidays from 2 to 10 p. m. The total number of open hours during the year was 4,275.

A slight improvement in the stability of the personnel is noted. Exclusive of temporary employees (10), the loss in personnel has amounted to 17 persons, including 10 resignations, 2 retirements (total disability), 1 death, 4 transfers to other divisions of the Library. Of the 10 resignations, 2 were due to ill health, 5 to more attractive offers elsewhere, and 3 to changes in personal plans.

Two assistants were retired during the year on account of total disability, after a service of almost equal length—

68025-27-12

Service.

Reading-room retirements.

nearly 24 years in the case of each: Mrs. Marie Ursula (Dwyer) Nordstrom, who had rendered exceptionally efficient and uniformly faithful service as an attendant in the bookstacks from September 11, 1903, to April 14, 1927; and Miss Margaret Hope Brown, whose acceptable and loyal service at the telephone and (later) at the return desk extended from August 8, 1904, to February 28, 1927. Death claimed one other assistant, William Henry Hull, who had served faithfully as a messenger from December 6, 1918, until his death on April 9, 1927.

During the past year, books issued in the main reading room showed increases in the following classes: Polygraphy, philosophy and religion, auxiliary sciences and American genealogy, history and topography (except American), American history (general), American history (local), political science, education, fine arts, science, technology, military and naval sciences. There were increases noted in the following classes of books issued for outside use: Philosophy and religion, auxiliary sciences, history and topography (except American), geography and anthropology, social and economic sciences, political science, education, science, agriculture, bibliography.

As an example of intensive use of our facilities, the following may prove of interest:

Dr. A. F. Kuhlman, of the department of sociology of the University of Missouri, as director of the committee on survey of research in crime and criminal justice, appointed by the Social Science Research Council, was at work in the Library with eight assistants from February 14-March 7, 1927, compiling an annotated Bibliography on Crime. This group was, of course, provided with special facilities, reserved desk space, a collection of reference books, stack access, and several thousand volumes from the Library's collection of criminology. Dr. Kuhlman has thus recorded his appreciation:

Before leaving Washington on the afternoon of the 7th, I called at your office. . . to express my appreciation to you for the generous assistance you gave us in our work on the Bibliography on Crime . . . You were most generous in assigning to us such a large and well-equipped space in which to do our work. This made for great economy and increased efficiency in our efforts

It is refreshing to find such a well-managed institution. I