Album of Agricultural Graphics. Values per Acre of Crops of the United Copics. 20,000 15,000 Crop Synopsis No. 81. Pp. 4. February, 1891. 78,000 Crop Synopsis No. 82. Pp. 4. March, 1891. 78,000 Crop Synopsis No. 83. Pp. 4. April, Crop Synopsis No. 84. Pp. 4. May, 1891. 78,000 Crop Synopsis No. 85. Pp. 4. June, Crop Synopsis No. 86. Pp. 4. July, Crop Synopsis No. 87. Pp. 4. August, Crop Synopsis No. 88. Pp. 4. September, 1891. 122,000 Crop Synopsis No. 89. Pp. 4. October, 1891. 122,000 Crop Synopsis No. 90. Pp. 4. November, 1891. 122,000 Crop Synopsis No. 91. Report of the Statistician Pp. 4. December, 1891. 122, 000 for 1890. Agriculture for 1890). Pp. 287-360; (From the Report of the Secretary of 500 DIVISION OF VEGETABLE PATHOLOGY. Bulletin No. 1 of Division of Vegetable Pathology. Additional Evidence Vol. 6, No. 3. Pp. 89-136. January, 1891 Vol. 6, No. 4. Pp. 137-207, with index of volume. May, 1891 Farmers' Bulletin No. 4. Fungous Diseases of the Grape and their Treatment. Pp. 12. March, 1891 1891 Circular No. 11 of the Division of Vegetable Pathology. (Letter of inquiry Report of the Chief of the Division of Vegetable Pathology for 1890. (From WEATHER BUREAU. (July 1 to December 31, 1891.) 5,000 2,500 2,500 2,500 15,000 5,000 1,000 ⚫ 4,000 500 Vol. XIX, No. 5, May, 1891.. Special Report of the Chief of the Weather Bureau. (Summary of the opera- 25,000 Vol. XIX, No. 6, June, 1891 3,000 Vol. XIX, No. 7, July, 1891 3,000 Vol. XIX, No. 8, August, 1891. 3,000 Vol. XIX, No. 9, September, 1891 Vol. XIX, No. 10, October, 1891. 3,000 3,000 3,000 Weather Map. (Issued twice daily, showing weather conditions throughout Copies 590 1,257 REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF THE DOCUMENT AND FOLDING ROOM. SIR: I have the honor to submit herewith my report on the work of the Document and Folding Room during the year 1891. Very respectfully, A. T. LONGLEY, Hon. J. M. RUSK, Secretary. The character of the work of this division does not materially change from year to year, except in so far as it is modified as the result of our efforts to meet the growing demands occasioned by the great increase in the number of publications for distribution. During the present administration this increase has been very marked, and the result has been that the efforts of myself and assistants have been taxed to the utmost in the handling of the enormous quantity of documents received, the keeping of a record of the same and of their distribution, and the folding and distribution of them in a prompt and business-like manner. What are known as the permanent lists, embracing those parties to whom all the publications of the Department are sent, have been frequently revised with a view to keeping them within reasonable limits. These permanent lists consist chiefly of Senators and Representatives, officers of National and State agricultural associations, libraries, and educational institutions especially devoted to agricultural instruction, agricultural newspapers and other journals publishing agricultural editions, and sundry persons devoting considerable time to agricultural subjects, such as leading stock-growers, horticulturists, etc. In former years the tendency of these lists was to grow very rapidly, but, thanks to the revision which I have spoken of and the care exercised before placing the name of any person or institution on these lists, they have been considerably reduced of late years, but still absorb in the neighborhood of 2,300 copies of every bulletin issued by the Department. Another subject to which our attention and efforts have been particularly directed is the prevention of duplication. While considerable has been accomplished in this direction, I am free to say that, without some modification of the present system, this object can not be invariably attained. A system of duplicate lists, one of which should be kept in each division of the Department and the other in the Folding Room, as is done in the case of newspapers, and an increase in the force at my disposal in the Folding Room sufficient to enable me to have all franks written under my own supervision, would, I believe, result in insuring absolutely the object sought. An extension of one or the other of the mailing systems in use among newspapers to cover all per manent lists, by which the franks could be printed and a mailingmachine used, would effect, I am satisfied, a great saving in the time occupied and cost in the mailing of our documents. Apart from the great number of franks written in several of the divisions, the number of franks written in the Folding Room for the past year aggregated the enormous number of 642,500, in addition to which there were also addressed and mailed to correspondents supplies aggregating 168,000 letter-sheets and circulars and 336,000 envelopes. Of advance notices prepared for the press in the Division of Records and Editing there were folded and directed in the Folding Room 156,000, while the number of letters and postals written in this division under my direction aggregated nearly 10,000. The importance of concentrating the work of this character in this division is shown by the necessity of avoiding any possible duplication in the distribution of documents, of which, however large the edition published, we rarely have enough to supply the demand, and the necessity for the prompt and business-like performance of these apparently simple and mechanical duties lies in the fact that any mistakes or delays involve additional and useless correspondence, and that our work, dealing almost entirely with persons outside the Department, is naturally regarded by such persons as a criterion of the business-like methods pursued in Department work. It is obvious, indeed, that this division, being the channel for the distribution of publications and documents, representing the vast amount and high quality of the work done in the several branches of the Department, any delay or carelessness in the performance of our work seriously mars the value of the Department work in general. I emphasize these details here as a justification for the frequent appeals for additional help in the performance of my work, adding merely that, by comparison with the work devolving upon this division but a few years ago, the amount of work accomplished now is at least 50 per cent greater per capita of the force employed than it was then, and I believe that with some of the additional improvements in our methods of keeping lists and in our system of distribution, such as I have suggested, this increase could be carried still further and even greater efficiency attained. I will add that the tendency, already alluded to, of multiplying the number of publications and documents issued by the Department is still on the increase, and that it must be borne in mind not only that every separate publication, however brief it may be, involves almost as much work in its distribution as the more ponderous bulletins, but that, furthermore, many of these brief publications, such as farmers' bulletins, are issued to meet special emergencies, necessitating their distribution with the utmost dispatch. I have to note with great gratification the fact that better facilities have been provided during the past year for the accommodation of this division and for the proper storing and handling of the large number of publications received. At the same time, I regret to have to call attention to the fact that these accommodations are still inadequate, not only more room being required, so as to store all the publications in our possession in the one building and under the immediate supervision of the chief of the Folding Room, but that the buildings in which, for want of other room, all publications of the Department, aggregating in value a very large sum, are stored, and many of which it would doubtless be impossible to replace in case of loss, are insecure, and in case of fire would afford no protection whatever. In concluding this report I desire to emphasize once more the utter inadequacy of the number of copies of the Annual Report now furnished to this Department for its use. The number of division correspondents to whom the Department is under obligations to send the Annual Report, as compensation in a certain sense for services rendered, is so large that we are practically deprived of any copies for miscellaneous and general distribution. We are already practically out of copies of the Annual Report for 1890, and we are already compelled to reply to applicants asking for the forthcoming Report for 1891 that we will be unable to comply with their requests, our quota being practically exhausted as soon as received. In view of the immense number of persons who apply directly to this Department for a copy of the Annual Report, a large amount of work is thrown upon us in writing letters or sending circulars, explaining our inability to comply with these requests, which might be avoided if the number of copies placed at the disposal of the Department was increased in proportion to the increase in the number of divisions which the Department includes; instead of which our quota is now and has been for the past two or three years five thousand less in number than it was several years ago, when the demand upon us was not so great. |