for all commodities, making it possible to compare trade fluctuations in volume as well as in value, which could not be done previously except for bulky staple goods. Instead of the former alphabetical listing, the articles in the new schedule are classified in 10 great groups, according to origin or use, bringing related items together for each industry and line of trade. Each group is divided into subgroups, according to kind of material or product, and these are further subdivided into headings of distinctive lines of industry, with the individual commodities shown under each heading. The detailed classes are numbered on the decimal plan, making the schedule flexible and permitting future expansion or contraction according to the development of each line of trade, without changing established class numbers. The special monthly statistical statements, showing complete details of imports or exports of leading commodities by countries, not printed in the Monthly Summary, were increased from 92 tables with 440 columns in 1921 to 162 tables of more than 1,000 columns in the first half year of 1922. These statements are mailed each month to more than 12,000 addresses. A compilation showing the tonnage of principal articles imported and exported at each customs district of the United States in the trade with each country during the calendar year 1920 was prepared for the transportation division of the bureau. The division of statistics compiles and prepares for publication tables of imports, exports, vessels entered and cleared, and other statistics of United States trade with foreign countries and noncontiguous territories. The new export classification has increased the work of compiling the statistical reports to such an extent that the Monthly Summary has been issued about 10 days later since January, 1922, than in the previous year. A revision of the import classification is under way, to conform to the new tariff bill now before Congress, to be effective with its passage. This is likely to result in further delay. No great improvement in timeliness of publication may be expected until the statistical work in the New York customhouse, now under the Treasury Department, is transferred to the Department of Commerce and the consolidated statistical service is furnished with additional personnel and equipment commensurate with the increased work. Efforts to have the transfer made by various procedures have thus far been unsuccessful on account of legal complications. With the foreign-trade statistical service divided between two departments, it is impossible to keep the work up to date at all times and to make improvements demanded by American producers and traders. The tables of "Tonnage of vessels entered and cleared," in the Monthly Summary, show tonnage entered and cleared "with cargo" separately from the total, beginning with January, 1922, in order to give a better view of the actual trade with each country as shown by the vessel movement. A new statement giving the tonnage of "tankers" entered and cleared by countries has been added for the purpose of distinguishing oil shipments from other cargo. The import and export tables by articles and countries for Commerce and Navigation in 1921 were prepared to show figures for five years, the fiscal year 1913 and the calendar years 1918 to 1921, for the purpose of comparing prewar with postwar trade. There is an increasing demand for inclusion of parcel-post shipments in the statistics of exports. This trade has been growing in recent years, but as it does not pass through the customhouses no statistical returns of it have been made. It is probable that the Post Office Department could require, by regulations, declarations for mail shipments of a commercial character. With some addition to the equipment of the Bureau of Customs Statistics, of the Treasury Department, the mail declarations could be handled with the declarations for freight shipments and included in the statistical reports by articles and countries. There is a strong demand from the great producing centers of the Middle West for statistics of exports by points of origin. There is also an increasing demand from railways and other commercial and transportation interests for statistics showing the tonnage of commodities passing in and out of the different ports. The foreign-trade statistics are compiled by customs districts, conforming approximately to State lines. Many of the districts include several ports. The trade statistics could be compiled for each port, but that, like other projects mentioned above, would require additional mechanical equipment and would increase the size of the statistical publications. The statistics of imports compiled by customs districts do not include all goods landed at the ports in the district, but represent entries handled and passed upon at the customhouses. Imported goods landed at New York or other seaports and transported under bond without appraisement to other ports (mostly interior) are credited in the statistical reports to the port or district where the goods are entered for warehouse or consumption and released to the importer. A supplementary report showing such goods by "ports from which and to which shipped" could be compiled (if increased equipment is provided) and would enable interested persons to ascertain the business of each port. All the foregoing projects deserve serious consideration and would supply information of value. They can scarcely be undertaken while the compilation of trade figures is carried on as at present, but if the planned consolidation is accomplished and increased appropriations are provided by Congress there is no reason why the demands should not be supplied. COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE DIVISION. Shortly after the beginning of the fiscal year 1922, the commercialintelligence work was raised to the rank of a division, H. W. Gruber remaining in charge. Its activities, which up to that time had been confined largely to the Latin American field, were extended to cover the world. More comprehensive means were provided for collecting data on the continent of Europe, the Far East, and several of the large trading centers in Central and South America. Trade letters, directories, etc., were transferred from the various divisions and centralized under one direction. Through the cooperation of the Consular Service and this department's own foreign representatives, sales-information reports are now on file covering all the leading business houses, manufacturers, and traders throughout the world. The World Trade Directory (the name applied to the card file containing the reports) was increased at the rate of approximately 500 new reports a week, or 25,000 during the year, and now totals more than 70,000 reports. In addition, much of the material on hand was verified and brought up to date. As this vast amount of new information became available, trade lists were revised, amplified, and corrected to keep pace with constantly changing conditions, and new "starred" lists were compiled covering all the important commodities of world trade. The improvement in the lists has been marked. Requests for trade lists have increased 50 per cent over the preceding year. Detailed reports are furnished in response to specific requests. About 20,000 requests for such special reports have been received. In the division several desks are set aside at which representatives of business firms may copy additional desirable information regarding prospective clients which it is not possible to include in the bureau's mimeographed lists. ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS. EDITORIAL DIVISION. Beginning September 1, Commerce Reports was changed from a daily to a weekly publication, and this innovation was accompanied by radical departures in the presentation of the material. All articles relating to a given commodity or class of commodities are now grouped together, under an appropriate heading. There are also special sections for each of the regional divisions. All the reports are subjected, before publication, to the scrutiny of experts. Cable reviews of foreign conditions form a regular feature. The pages are now of quarto size, instead of octavo, as in the old daily. The magazine has an attractive cover. The number of paid subscribers to Commerce Reports has increased 75 per cent during the year. The number of reports received from the Consular Service increased from 19,825 in the fiscal year 1921 to 29,535 in 1922. As regards reports from the commercial attaché and trade commissioner services, the increase was from 4,962 to 5,512. The number of "Foreign trade opportunities" published in Commerce Reports increased from 1,926 to 2,960. The editorial division resumed, during the year, the practice of publishing the annual reports of consular officers as supplements to Commerce Reports. These are being issued in the former octavo size. Supplements of another class, which the bureau began issuing in February, are called Trade Information Bulletins. By the end of the fiscal year 46 of these had been published. They are decidedly shorter than the monographs and are issued more expeditiously. The subjects of the bulletins embrace all the manifold aspects of foreign trade. Six monographs were edited in the Special Agents Series and 10 in the Miscellaneous Series. Among the more important of these have been the handbooks of Venezuela and Australia and the new edition of the Commercial Travelers' Guide to Latin America. In July, 1921, the department began the publication of a monthly supplement to Commerce Reports, entitled "Survey of Current Business," compiled by the Bureau of the Census, the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, and the Bureau of Standards, most of the work being done by the first-named bureau. This has contained a wealth of statistical data. Through the institution of a press-release arrangement, all Foreign Trade Opportunities are now made available at the same time throughout the United States, and, consequently, business men in the vicinity of Washington have no advantage in this respect over those in Los Angeles or New Orleans. About 5,000,000 readers are now reached each week by press items based on the work of the representatives of the Departments of State and Commerce. Many newspapers throughout the country are giving space every week-ranging from a column to more than a page-to the informational service of this department. Griffith Evans has continued as editor of Commerce Reports and chief of the editorial division. FOREIGN SERVICE DIVISION. This division has charge of the administration of the foreign field service of the bureau. During the past fiscal year the bureau established new foreign offices in Athens, Bucharest, Habana, and Vladivostok, making the total number of such offices 27. The personnel of the foreign service increased 26 per cent. On January 20, 1922, five of the commercial attachés located in Europe met in Paris for a discussion of problems. This conference proved very beneficial. The foreign service division inaugurated a monthly informational cable service to the foreign representatives. This service was supplemented by a monthly letter concerning economic developments in the United States. Twelve foreign representatives returned to the United States during the year to inform American business men regarding conditions abroad. Harold Dotterer has continued as chief of the foreign service division. DISTRICT OFFICE SERVICE. During the fiscal year 1922 the bureau established one new district office at Manila and six new cooperative offices at Omaha, Milwaukee, Fort Worth, Pensacola, Rochester, and Atlanta-making a total of 33 field offices now in operation. The work performed by the bureau's field offices in the United States has increased greatly during the past year. There were 51,497 callers desiring information, as compared with 39,541 during the preceding year. The number of letters handled was 227,972, against 162,858. There has been increased cooperation with other branches of the Federal Government, as well as with State governments. The divisions of the bureau at Washington have furnished to the field offices, for distribution, a greatly increased volume of timely material that, in nearly every instance, has been placed in the hands of the American concerns best able to use it, well within 24 hours after its receipt by the district manager. The title of the men in charge of the district offices has been changed from "district-office manager" to "district manager," and the names of the offices themselves have been changed so as to designate the region served; for example, the Boston office has been. made the "New England district office." There has been a substantially greater demand than in previous years for "exhibits" (charts, specifications, plans, etc.) offered by |