The Society's set of the Scientific American, oldest of scientific periodicals in this country, is now complete, the first three volumes, 1845-46-47, all rare, having by the generosity of Mr. Joseph P. Day, a founder member, been acquired within this last month.

The Associated Industries of Massachusetts has recently given the Business Historical Society its endorsement, and in its weekly periodical — “Industry” — there has already appeared a two-page article descriptive of the purposes and functions of this Society.

There has recently come to the Library a small collection of official “Appraisements of Estates,” all from Jefferson County, Georgia, and in date running from 1800 to 1820. These appraisements give an excellent idea of the nature of the small slave-holding estate of that period, the commodities, tools and implements upon it, the stock of household goods and the price of slaves.

The above title is used to designate temporarily the numerous runs of chemical engineering journals for the period 1890-1920 which have just come in by purchase from the library of H. J. Williams. Mr. Williams was for many years the chemical expert in the fuel division of the Boston Elevated Railway Company.

To write the history of an industry in the days before income-tax returns and statistical departments is a baffling task. In the absence of complete records of any sort, — for the industry, for a locality, or even for a single company, — every scrap of evidence becomes a pearl of great price. Every production sheet or worker's contract, every order for machinery or letter about the business, must be used to fill in the blank spaces of the picture.

Through the kindness and generosity of a number of friends of the Business Historical Society in the field of accountancy, a most valuable treasure has recently come into our hands.

In Our last issue, we printed a summary of the recent steps taken in regard to affiliated membership in the Society. The account there given of our aims and methods is amplified and illustrated by the following typical extract from a letter sent out by the Chairman of the committee this last summer.

“Our plumber, being employed in the tower of the church about the repairs of the roof, and not extinguishing his fire in the evening, but fatally and most foolishly covering it with ashes, that he might the more readily set to work in the morning, went down to supper; and when, after supper, all our servants had gone to bed, a strong wind rising from the north speedily brought on our great calamity.

The generosity of Mr. Joseph P. Day has recently enabled the Business Historical Society to buy an interesting little collection of pamphlets on transportation.

The Library has just added to its material relating to the early history of California the second volume of “The State Register and Year Book of Facts” (1859).