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Annual Report of the Board of Regents
of the
SMITHSONIAN
INSTITUTION
PUBLICATION 4314
Showing the Operations, Expenditures, and Condition of the
Institution for the Year Ended June 30
1957
UNITED STATES
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 1958
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
Washington, December 31, 1957.
To the Congress of the United States:
In accordance with section 5593 of the Revised Statutes of the
United States, I have the honor, on behalf of the Board of Regents,
to submit to Congress the annual report of the operations, expendi-
tures, and condition of the Smithsonian Institution for the year ended
June 380, 1957. Ihave the honor to be,
Respectfully,
Leonarp CarMicHarL, Secretary.
II
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office
Washington 25, D. O. - Price $4.50
CONTENTS
Page
LATS (ON RG) 10) ea lS I ee v
ereneral statement=. 2 =% oe eres See ee ee eS ee ee es 1
CUENE) LOGRBS OUTS EUETY CY a eS MN a ee RR OIC EE Ay 4
PH ESB OSTOrO heer CMIUR sae eee ee we ge in ee ete 4
LR GWG Y EES A RSS Se Sa ae cs et ae ny ee SU eR 5
PRIS LOT Pee Se een fe ke ee oe os SI. 24! vireo 6
"Cs CERTEGY SIP Yo RA IES A ee RR OR eT 6
Bio-Sciences Information Exchange.....-.....~~.-~---.------t-8e a4 7
Summary of the year’s activities of the Institution____._________________ a
Reports of branches of the Institution:
United States National Museum__._---_-_~- Reus} Jee fone!) pabip he & 11
Bureau of American. Ethnology......-.-2..-J.eb/ -2h22\ eee 40
Astrophysical Observatory. eo oe ee ee eee a es 68
National Collection of Fine Arts. 2b-}228e + lsjpteete th Sade 82
reer Gallery: of Arts. — seo ae SE ee he ear ED) say ry seyeltenny., 98
Natrongl Air Museum 22220222 2-2 koe 2 Ge Bh een 111
National Zoological Park—- 2 27 SF palet. s(tubelW\ nl cree tyentl 0: 125
Canal Zone Biological Area. 2. 22 Lo ee ea es Pen he Bs inh 155
International Exchange Service_____..._.- 2 seis! -eeton ll see 163
National Gallerysof Artoo.-----so0- eet eee “i Ee 172
Report On whe Worary soso es oe OE eer OE asi) Sienna 185
Report on publicationss 2250222 2 ao2 2 2 Shek MERRIE he ge ie th Ban fhY Sine ts 189
Report of the executive committee of the Board of Regents___.______-_-- 196
GENERAL APPENDIX
Science, technology, and society, by L. R. Hafstad____.._.__...-_-------- 207
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, 1807-1957, by Elliott B.
{RSD 0 (GIS SST um Se la A aL Ag al 1 STEVE a 221
Cosmic rays trom. the sun, by Thomas Gold-.--- 252-225-2265. 22523 233
Mretcors, Dyn ereG bie WiMpples 22 a= soto ee ae eee eee eens 239
The development of the planetarium in the United States, by Joseph Miles
( CLPTEN | OTST FTE 0 epee lin ere eh ey eC a SRE RET ere ROT SCE eS Re 261
The development of radio astronomy, by Gerald 8. Hawkins____-------- 279
EUR GUCCUMEES IOV Lie Dae eee ee ee cee sa ene ees ree eR Ne NM es! 293
Pollen and spores and their use in geology, by Estella B. Leopold and
LR DUET inde age S YOO A cra ae ds ft nl al ee i A tg I Re cn 303
The influence of man on soil fertility, by G. V. Jacks_____..------------ 325
The land and people of the Guajira Peninsula, by Raymond E. Crist__--- 339
The nature of viruses, cancer, genes, and life, by Wendell M. Stanley___._ 357
Mystery of the red tide, by F. G. Walton Smith_____.________---------- 371
The return of the vanishing musk oxen, by Hartley H. T. Jackson___---- 381
IV ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Page
Bamboo in the economy of Oriental peoples, by F. A. McClure______-__-- 391
Mechanizing the cotton harvest, by James H. Street________--_-_-___-- 413
Aniline dyes—their impact on biology and medicine, by Morris C. Leikind-. 429
Causes and consequences of salt consumption, by Hans Kaunitz_________ 445
Roman garland sarcophagi from the quarries of Proconnesus (Marmara), by
5S 5 PO 7h Co il Se) lc 00 es ape oes BP ek Se ee 455
Stone age skull surgery, by ‘T..D-.Stewarte... 242.92 52" ee ee ee 469
LIST OF PLATES
Secretary’s Report:
PUR G68 hy Dice oh a eI Ep ne ad hl 54
Plates.3,. 42. 2. sb A Si SE SEROTEC Heroes 102
Plates.5;..6 5:72 c.cle es oh a RS a ER DANG SUT RLY 150
Plates 8; 92-2522 22 eee = es Ee eee a I) ee eae 20 182
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey (Roberts): Plates 1-5______-_-- 230
@osmic rays. (Gold)s Platesl: 221.4 .2.604 Senes a. peru stp aie 238
Meteors (Whipple): Plates: 1-6... = 255.42. seen er eee) Joss 246
Planetarium (Chamberlain): Plates 1-62. ef. 9922 post ee Jo 278
Radio-astronomy (Hawkins) Plates 1,24. 3.522 5 See in ee ee 286
Jet streams:(ec)sBlatedl 45255525 Se a eee aoe 294
Guajira. Peninsula (Crist) x Plates, 1-10... 5.5... S982 See eles SOUR 342
Red tide. (Smith) :: Plates 1-4... Sees oo ot ie eee: ETON Eres 374
Musk ‘oxen. Gackson): Plates) 1,22. 22502 ==) Se tet Seen Sao Sere 390
ibamboo.(MeClure)s. Plates dl—-10_. a ER a Sed See 406
Cotton harvest..(Street):- Plates, 1, 22.0 4ee ee ele See Sane _ se eee 422
Sarcophagi. (Ward Perkins). Plates 1-6-0222. 5.0.25. Sune sos fe 462
Skull surgery. (Stewart):Plates 1=102_ 862 So eee ec eaeee 22 eL eS 486
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
June 30, 1957
Presiding Officer ex officio—Dwiaut D. EISENHOWER, President of the United
States.
Chancellor.—EARL WARREN, Chief Justice of the United States.
Members of the Institution:
DwicuT D. E1seNHOwER, President of the United States.
RicHarp M. Nrxon, Vice President of the United States.
EArt WArREN, Chief Justice of the United States.
Joun Foster DuLtes, Secretary of State.
GrorcE M. HUMPHREY, Secretary of the Treasury.
CHARLES E. WILSON, Secretary of Defense.
HERBERT BROWNELL, JR., Attorney General.
ARTHUR E. SUMMERFIELD, Postmaster General.
Frep A. Seaton, Secretary of the Interior.
Hzra Tart Benson, Secretary of Agriculture.
SincLarz WEEKS, Secretary of Commerce.
JAMES P. MITCHELL, Secretary of Labor.
Marron B. Fotsom, Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare.
Regents of the Institution:
Hart WARREN, Chief Justice of the United States, Chancellor.
RicHarp M. Nrxon, Vice President of the United States.
CLinton P. ANDERSON, Member of the Senate.
LEVERETT SALTONSTALL, Member of the Senate.
H. ALEXANDER SMITH, Member of the Senate.
OvreRTON Brooks, Member of the House of Representatives.
CLARENCE CANNON, Member of the House of Representatives.
JoHN M. Vorys, Member of the House of Representatives.
Joun NicHOoLAs Brown, citizen of Rhode Island.
ARTHUR H. Compton, citizen of Missouri.
Rosert V. FLEMING, citizen of Washington, D. C.
CRAWFORD H. GREENEWALT, citizen of Delaware.
CaryL P. HASKINS, citizen of Washington, D. C.
JEROME C. HUNSAKER, citizen of Massachusetts.
Ezvecutive Oommittee.—ROBERT V. FLEMING, chairman, CLARENCE CANNON, CARYL
P. HASKINS.
Secretary. LEONARD CARMICHAEL.
Assistant Secretaries.—J. BH. Grar, J. L. Keppy.
Administrative assistant to the Secretary.—Mrs. Lou1sE M. PEARSON.
Treasurer.—T. F. CLARK.
Chief, editorial and publications division.—PavuL H. OEHSER.
Librarian.—Mrs,. LEILA F. CLARK.
Superintendent of buildings and grounds.—L. L. OLIVER.
Chief, personnel division —J. B. NEWMAN.
Chief, supply division —A. W. WILDING.
Chief, photographic leboratory.—¥. B. KESTNER.
VI ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
Director.—A. REMINGTON KELLOGG.
Assistant Director.—F. A. TAYLOR.
Planning Officer.—J. C. EwErs.
Administrative assistant.—W. E. BOYLE.
Chief exhibits specialist —J. E. ANGLIM.
Chief zoological exhibits specialist—W. L. Brown.
Registrar—HELENA M. WEISS.
DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY: F. M. Setzler, head curator.
Division of Archeology: W. R. Wedel, curator; Clifford Evans, Jr., as-
sociate curator.
Division of Ethnology: H. W. Krieger, curator; 8. H. Riesenberg, C. M.
Watkins, associate curators; R. A. Elder, Jr., G. C. Lindsay, Rodris C.
Roth, assistant curators.
Division of Physical Anthropology: T. D. Stewart, curator; M. T. Newman,
associate curator.
DEPARTMENT OF ZooLoey : W. L. Schmitt, head curator.
Division of Mammals: D. H. Johnson, curator ; H. W. Setzer, C. O. Handley,
Jr., associate curators.
Division of Birds: Herbert Friedmann, curator; H. G. Deignan, associate
curator.
Division of Reptiles and Amphibians: Doris M. Cochran, curator.
Division of Fishes: L. P. Schultz, curator; E. A. Lachner, W. R. Taylor,
associate curators.
Division of Insects: J. F. G. Clarke, curator; O. L. Cartwright, R. EH. Cra-
bill, W. D. Field, Grace BE. Glance, associate curators; Sophy Parfin,
junior entomologist.
Division of Marine Invertebrates: F. A. Chace, Jr., curator; F. M. Bayer,
T. E. Bowman, C. E. Cutress, Jr., associate curators.
Division of Mollusks: H. A. Rehder, curator; J. P. E. Morrison, associate
curator.
DEPARTMENT OF Botany (NATIONAL HERBARIUM): J. R. Swallen, head curator.
Division of Phanerogams: L. B. Smith, curator; R. 8. Cowan, E. C. Leonard,
Velva E. Rudd, E. H. Walker, associate curators.
Division of Ferns: C. V. Morton, curator.
Division of Grasses: J. R. Swallen, curator.
Division of Cryptogams: C. V. Morton, acting curator; P. 8. Conger, M. E.
Hale, Jr., associate curators.
DEPARTMENT or GroLocy: G. A. Cooper, head curator; J. H. Benn, museum
geologist.
Division of Mineralogy and Petrology: G. S. Switzer, acting curator; E. P.
Henderson, associate curator.
Division of Invertebrate Paleontology and Paleobotany: G. A. Cooper,
curator; P. M. Kier, David Nicol, associate curators.
Division of Vertebrate Paleontology: C. L. Gazin, curator; D. H. Dunkle,
associate curator.
DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING AND INDUSTRIES: R. P. Multhauf, head curator.
Division of Engineering: R. 8. Woodbury, curator.
Section of Mechanical and Civil Engineering: R. S. Woodbury, in
charge.
Section of Tools: R. 8S. Woodbury, in charge.
Section of Light Machinery: A. E. Battison, associate curator.
SECRETARY'S REPORT VII
DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING AND INDUSTRIES—Continued
Division of Hngineering—Continued
Section of Marine Transportation: K. M. Perry, associate curator.
Section of Electricity: W. J. King, associate curator.
Section of Land Transportation: R. S. Woodbury, in charge.
Section of Physical Sciences and Measurement: R. P. Multhauf, in
charge.
Division of Crafts and Industries: W. N. Watkins, curator.
Section of Textiles: Grace L. Rogers, associate curator.
Section of Wood Technology: W. N. Watkins, in charge.
Section of Agricultural Industries: E. C. Kendall, associate curator.
Division of Industrial Cooperation: P. W. Bishop, curator.
Division of Medicine and Public Health: G. B. Griffenhagen, curator.
Division of Graphic Arts: Jacob Kainen, curator.
Section of Photography: A. J. Wedderburn, Jr., associate curator.
DEPARTMENT OF History: M. L. Peterson, acting head curator.
Division of Military History: BE. M. Howell, acting curator; Craddock R.
Goins, J. R. Sirlouis, assistant curators.
Division of Naval History: M. L. Peterson, curator.
Division of Civil History: Mrs. Margaret W. Brown Klapthor, associate
curator; C. G. Dorman, Mrs. Anne W. Murray, assistant curators.
Division of Numismatics: Viadimir Clain-Stefanelli, curator.
Division of Philately: F. R. Bruns, Jr., curator; F. J. McCall, assistant
curator.
BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY
Director—M. W. STIRLING.
Associate Director.—F. H. H. Rosrrts, Jr.
Anthropologist —H. B. Cotuins, Jr.
Ethnologist—_W. C. STURTEVANT.
River Basin Surveys.—F. H. H. Roserts, Jr., Director.
ASTROPHYSICAL OBSERVATORY
Director.—¥. L. WHIPPLE.
Associate Directors.—J. A. HYNEK, T. BE. STERNE.
Assistant Director.—J. S. RINEHART.
Astrophysicists.—H. L. FIREMAN, L. G. Jaccu1a, C. A. WHITNEY, F. B. Riags, Jr.,
M. Krook. .
Mathematician.—R. BE. Briaes.
Physicist —A. S. MELTZER.
Table Mountain, Calif., field station.—A. G. Fror.anp, Physicist.
DIVISION OF RADIATION AND ORGANISMS:
Chief.—R. B. WITHROW.
Plant physiologists—W. H. Kietn, Mrs. Atice P. WitrHRow, LEONARD PRICE,
V. B. Exstap, C. C. Mon.
Biochemist.—J. B. Wo.¥r.
NATIONAL COLLECTION OF FINE ARTS
Director.—T. M. Brces.
Curator of ceramics.—P. V. GARDNER.
Chief, Smithsonian Traveling Harhibition Service—Mrs. ANNEMARIE H. Pops.
VIII ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
FREER GALLERY OF ART
Director.—A. G. WENLEY.
Assistant Director—J. A. POPE.
Acting assistant to the Director—RAYMOND A. SCHWARTZ.
Associate in Near Eastern art.—RIcHARD ETTINGHAUSEN.
Associate in technical research.—R. J. GETTENS.
Assistant in research.—H. P. STERN.
NATIONAL AIR MUSEUM
Advisory Board:
LEONARD CARMICHAEL, Chairman.
Maj. Gen. REeusen C. Hoop, Jr., U. 8S. Air Force.
Rear Adm. JAMEs S. RussE 1, U. S. Navy.
Lt. Gen. JAMES H. DOOLITTLE.
GROVER LOENING.
Head curator.—P. E. GARBER.
Associate curator.—W. M. MALE.
NATIONAL ZOOLOGICAL PARK
Acting Director.—T. H. REEp.
Assistant Director.—J. L. GRIMMER.
CANAL ZONE BIOLOGICAL AREA
Resident Naturalist.—C. B. Kororp.
INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE SERVICE
Chief—D. G. WILLIAMS.
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART
Trustees:
EARL WARREN, Chief Justice of the United States, Chairman.
JOHN Foster DULLES, Secretary of State.
GrorcE M. HuMPHREY, Secretary of the Treasury.
LEONARD CARMICHAEL, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
EF. LAMMOT BELIN.
DUNCAN PHILLIPS.
CHESTER DALE.
PAUL MELLON.
Rusu H. Kress.
President.—CHESTER DALE.
Vice President.—¥. LAMMoT BELIN.
Secretary-Treasurer.—HUNTINGTON CAIRNS.
Director.—JOHN WALKER.
Administrator.—ERNEST R. FEIDLER.
General Counsel.—HUNTINGTON CAIRNS.
Chief Curator.—Prrry B. Corr.
Assistant Director.—MACcGILL JAMES.
SECRETARY’S REPORT Ix
Honorary Research Associates, Collaborators, and Fellows
Anthropology
Mrs. Arthur M. Greenwood Betty J. Meggers
N. M. Judd W. W. Taylor, Jr.
T. W. McKern W. J. Tobin
Zoology
Paul Bartsch, Mollusks Allen McIntosh, Mollusks
J. Bruce Bredin J. P. Moore, Marine Invertebrates
L. L. Buchanan, Coleoptera C. F. W. Muesebeck, Insects
M. A. Carriker, Insects Benjamin Schwartz, Helminthology
C. J. Drake, Insects Mrs. Harriet Richardson Searle, Marine
D. C. Graham, Biology Invertebrates
Horton H. Hobbs, Jr., Marine Inverte- | C. R. Shoemaker
brates R. E. Snodgrass, Insects
A. B. Howell, Mammals Alexander Wetmore, Birds
W. L. Jellison, Insects Mrs. Mildred SS. Wilson, Copepod
W. M. Mann, Hymenoptera Crustacea
Botany
Mrs. Agnes Chase, Grasses B. A. McClure, Grasses
EK. P. Killip, Phanerogams J. A. Stevenson, Fungi
Geology
R. S. Bassler, Paleontology J. B. Knight, Invertebrate Paleontol-
R. W. Brown, Paleobotany ogy
Preston Cloud, Invertebrate Paleon-} Mrs. Helen N. Loeblich, Invertebrate
tology Paleontology
C. Wythe Cooke, Invertebrate Paleon- | J. B. Reeside, Jr., Invertebrate Paleon-
tology tology
W. T. Schaller, Mineralogy
Engineering and Industries
F. L. Lewton, Crafts and Industries
History
Elmer C. Herber Carroll Quigley
FF. W. MacKay, Numismatics P. A. Straub, Numismatics
National Zoological Park
W. M. Mann E. P. Walker
Bureau of American Ethnology
J. P. Harrington R. J. Squier
R. F. Heizer J. R. Swanton
Sister M. Inez Hilger A. J. Waring, Jr.
R. S. Solecki
x ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Astrophysical Observatory
Cc. G. Abbot
Freer Gallery of Art
Grace Dunham Guest Katherine N. Rhoades
Max Loehr
Canal Zone Biological Area
C. C. Soper | James Zetek
Report of the Secretary of the
Smithsonian Institution
LEONARD CARMICHAEL
For the Year Ended June 30, 1957
To the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution:
GENTLEMEN: I have the honor to submit a report showing the activ-
ities and condition of the Smithsonian Institution and its branches
for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957.
GENERAL STATEMENT
The one-hundred-and-eleventh year of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion has been marked by progress in many areas. James Smithson
in his will that established the Institution provided that it should be
concerned with both the increase and the diffusion of knowledge
among men. During the year covered by this report, as in previous
years, the institution has been active and successful in research, that
is, in the increase of knowledge. It has also continued to carry on
the diffusion of knowledge by publications, lectures, correspondence,
and above all by museum displays.
Details of the research activities, publications, and other work of
the institution are given in later pages. In introducing the report,
it seems particularly fitting this year to make special reference to
the museum functions of the Smithsonian. Public exhibitions are
not part of the assigned functions of all Smithsonian bureaus. The
following units, however, do maintain such exhibits: The United
States National Museum, the National Collection of Fine Arts, the
Freer Gallery of Art, the National Air Museum, the National Zoolog-
ical Park, and the National Gallery of Art. Asa group these Smith-
sonian units care for the great national collections of the United
States. Collectively, in number and quality of objects, these units as
part of the “Smithsonian Museum Complex” constitute one of the
largest and most distinguished groups of cultural and scientific col-
lections in the world. All these parts of the Smithsonian are alike
in that they are concerned with the preservation, maintenance and
restoration, study, and appropriate public display of their collections.
The National Gallery of Art and the Freer Gallery of Art were built
and given to the Nation by Andrew W. Mellon and Charles Lang
1
2 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Freer, respectively. Both of these galleries admirably provide for the
specialized work of preservation, restoration, study, and public display
of their great art treasures.
The United States National Museum, the National Collection of
Fine Arts, the National Air Museum, and the National Zoological
Park all in different ways need added facilities in order to perform
the functions assigned to them in a manner that is fitting for the
collections of the United States of America.
Much progress has been made during the year in the work of the
United States National Museum. Detailed, and in some respects defin-
itive, planning has been carried on for the new and additional build-
ing for this museum for which a Federal appropriation was made
last year. This building, to be known as the Museum of History and
Technology, will be located on the Mall on a plot of Jand bounded
on the north, east, and west, respectively, by Constitution Avenue,
Twelfth Street, and Fourteenth Street. When completed, this new
structure, housing the Nation’s collections in the fields of history and
technology, will be one of the world’s finest museum buildings. It will
do much to regain for the United States its proper place in the museum
world which this country has been gradually losing during the past
half century. The years since the end of the Second World War
have seen a sharp increase in national museum construction and re-
construction throughout the world.
The Natural History Building of the United States National Mu-
seum is also almost desperately overcrowded. A quarter of a cen-
tury ago this condition was recognized by the Congress, and new
wings for this building were authorized. The detailed planning of
these wings and their construction thus constitute one of the great
current needs of the Smithsonian, and funds for such planning are
included in the 1958 Smithsonian appropriation.
Besides planning for new buildings and additions to existing
buildings, the Smithsonian was active during this year in the recon-
ditioning and renovation of its buildings. Some of the old build-
ings of the Institution had fallen into real disrepair. This year
wooden sash of the Smithsonian Building was renewed, external
painting carried on, and much needed repairs to the plumbing, elec-
trical and heating service were made in this and other buildings.
The program of modernizing the public displays of the Institution
explained in previous reports was continued this year. Notable new
halls showing life in early America, power machinery, mammals of
North America, and the history of the telephone were opened. The
interest created by these new and truly educational halls is reflected
in a large increase in attendance.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 3
The staff of the National Collection of Fine Arts improved details
of the exhibits of this important unit in our Nation’s provision for
the preservation, study, and display of works of art. It becomes
more certain each year, however, that the really great collection of
American paintings and the decorative arts which is served by this
bureau can never be adequately dealt with until it has a satisfactory
building of its own. Its present borrowed space in the Natural His-
tory Building is both inadequate and inappropriate. The greatest
paintings of American artists and examples of outstanding Renais-
sance jewelry should not be displayed next door to dinosaur bones and
totem poles.
The National Air Museum has also added many significant items
to its great collections this year. A new building for this world-
famous and peculiarly American collection is now most urgently
needed.
Progress in the collections and in the physical facilities of the
National Zoological Park was also made during the year. It is still
true, however, that this great collection of animals is far from ade-
quately housed. It is certainly important that as soon as possible the
outmoded wooden buildings at the Zoological Park be replaced by
modern and appropriate structures. The National Zoological Park
each year is visited by Americans from every State and by many for-
eign guests. In attendance and scope of its collections it is one of
the foremost zoos of the world, but in spite of some recent improve-
ments in its facilities, it is still far behind many modern zoological
parks in the adequacy of its display techniques.
Dr. Mann Retires
Dr. William M. Mann, who served for 31 years as Director of the
National Zoological Park, retired on October 31, 1956, having reached
the statutory retirement age of 70. Dr. Mann was the fifth director
of the National Zoological Park since it was established by Secretary
Langley in 1889. Under his direction the Washington Zoo became
one of the best and most representative collections of living animals
in the world. The physical equipment of the Zoo also steadily im-
proved, and during Dr. Mann’s administration four modern exhibi-
tion buildings were added. Today the National Zoological Park is
not only a scientific and educational center but aiso one of the
Capital’s prime tourist attractions.
For the Zoo, Dr. Mann made trips to many foreign lands to obtain
live animals for the collection. For example, in 1926 he headed the
Smithsonian-Chrysler Expedition to East Africa, in 1937 a National
Geographic Society Expedition to the East Indies, and in 1940 the
4 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Smithsonian-Firestone Expedition to Liberia. He was particularly
successful in obtaining rare species never before exhibited, and
through his many associations with zoologists, animal collectors, deal-
ers, circuses, and other zoos the world over he maintained the
National Zoological Park at a high level.
Dr. Mann continues his association with the Smithsonian in the
capacity of Honorary Research Associate. Dr. Theodore H. Reed,
of Portland, Oreg., chief veterinarian of the Zoo since July 1955,
was named Acting Director of the National Zoological Park on
November 1, 1956.
THE ESTABLISHMENT
The Smithsonian Institution was created by act of Congress in
1846, in accordance with the terms of the will of James Smithson, of
England, who in 1826 bequeathed his property to the United States
of America “to found at Washington, under the name of the Smith-
sonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of
knowledge among men.” In receiving the property and accepting
the trust, Congress determined that the Federal Government was
without authority to administer the trust directly, and, therefore,
constituted an “establishment,” whose statutory members are “the
President, the Vice President, the Chief Justice, and the heads of the
executive departments.”
THE BOARD OF REGENTS
On December 14, 1956, the Institution suffered a deep loss in the
death of one of its newest Regents, Dr. Everette Lee DeGolyer. This
vacancy in the class of citizen Regents has been filled by the election
of Dr. John Nicholas Brown, of Providence, R. I. The member-
ship of the Board is now up to full complement, that is, 14 members:
6 congressional members, 6 citizen members, the Vice President, and
the Chief Justice of the United States.
The roll of Regents at the close of the fiscal year was as follows:
Chief Justice of the United States Earl Warren, Chancellor; Vice
President Richard M. Nixon; members from the Senate: Clinton P.
Anderson, Leverett Saltonstall, H. Alexander Smith; members from
the House of Representatives: Overton Brooks, Clarence Cannon,
John M. Vorys; citizen members: John Nicholas Brown, Arthur H.
Compton, Robert V. Fleming, Crawford H. Greenewalt, Caryl P.
Haskins, and Jerome C. Hunsaker.
On the evening of January 17, 1957, preceding the annual meeting,
an informal dinner meeting of the Board was held in the main hall
of the Smithsonian Building amid various exhibits showing phases
of the work being carried on at present. Dr. Waldo L. Schmitt,
head curator of zoology of the U. S. National Museum, gave an ac-
SECRETARY’S REPORT 5
count of the Smithsonian-Bredin Belgian Congo Expedition, and
George B. Griffenhagen, curator of the division of medicine and public
health, spoke about the Old World Apothecary Shop. The Secre-
tary gave a brief résumé of his trip to Europe in the fall of 1956 to
visit museums in connection with planning for the new Museum of
History and Technology.
The regular annual meeting of the Board was held on January 18,
1957. The Secretary presented his published annual report on the ac-
tivities of the Institution together with the 1956 Annual Report of
the United States National Museum. Dr. Robert V. Fleming, Chair-
man of the Executive and Permanent Committees of the Board, gave
the financial report for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1956. The usual
resolution was passed authorizing expenditures of the income of the
Institution for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1958.
FINANCES
A statement on finances, dealing particularly with Smithsonian pri-
vate funds, will be found in the report of the executive committee of
the Board of Regents, page 196.
APPROPRIATIONS
Funds appropriated to the Institution for its regular operations
for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957, total $4,425,000 obligated as
follows:
Miata Sein Gri Gs a eee eee ee Se ee ee le ae $81, 010
Wnited: States: National’ Museum 2280s — oO Raae 8 e 1, 782, 690
ures uvOLcAmericane lt nnorog yes =e ae eee kee eee 61, 891
ASirophysicals Observatory=.o-ase- hae ee ee ee 302, 510
National i@ollectionvofs Mine zArts2 2). ee = eos ee ee 48, 185
INAtLON AAU MCUSe Um. == Se Rp Lt se ne ee 120, 156
International Hxchange Service es) 2 = es Sa ee eee 87, 513
Canale Zones 1oOlozieal vA weg a ee Be ee ee 30, 274
Maintenance and operation of buildings____________________________ 1, 442, 364
Otherscenenadlaservices m= 5 mee = eek Li ee ee ee ee 467, 562
inohitented balances Leis Mae iS ee ee ee ee ee 845
In addition to the sum of $2,288,000 appropriated last year for the
preparation of plans and specifications for the new Museum of His-
tory and Technology, the Institution received this year an appropria-
tion of $33,712,000 for the construction of this building.
Besides these direct appropriations, the Institution received funds
by transfer from other Government agencies as follows:
From the District of Columbia for the National Zoological Park_._._._ $720, 000
From the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, for the
RiverPeasing SULVEy Stee 8 series trl pylih Noy eke henen e853 mf 108, 500
6 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
VISITORS
Visitors to the Smithsonian group of buildings during the year
reached an all-time high of 4,841,818, nearly 700,000 more than the
previous year. April 1957 was the month of largest attendance, with
726,290; May 1957 second, with 661,857; August 1956 third, with
660,567. Largest attendance for a single day was 73,141 on May 4,
1957, the largest number ever so recorded. On the same day 33,964
visitors came to the Arts and Industries Building alone. Table 1
gives a summary of the attendance records for the five buildings.
These figures, when added to the 942,196 visitors recorded at the
National Gallery of Art and the 3,998,546 estimated at the National
Zoological Park, make a total number of visitors at the Institution of
9,782,560.
TaBLE 1.—Visitors to certain Smithsonian buildings during the year ended
June 30, 1957
Smithso- Arts and Natural Aircraft Freer
Year and month nian Build-| Industries | History Building | Building Total
ing Building | Building
1956
JU a coe ee sae ee a 114, 497 262, 770 125, 623 84, 245 13, 899 601, 034
Aust sset at. Baek Se see 112, 025 310, 283 129, 086 94, 873 14, 300 660, 567
September. “es eat es 49, 928 129, 610 76, 206 38, 118 8, 045 301, 907
October =~ #F fA ae a 38, 593 108, 986 68, 549 41, 251 7, 769 265, 148
INOvembersee. 2-5-2 eee 34, 687 96, 789 61, 743 29, 697 7, 354 230, 270
December o= 22 bee See 20, 763 56, 647 47, 983 19, 504 4, 754 149, 651
1957
TeGanyee. Oe ean a 21, 964 54, 766 50, 565 19, 744 4, 124 151, 163
Meabruamyee lees Ae eae ae 30, 422 89, 111 69, 457 34, 033 5, 849 228, 872
IVIAT ONS pect (Male cee aces Ae one ye 46, 485 126, 117 91, 452 42, 306 7, 776 314, 136
ADI) Sesete sca ene ee eee 121, 295 345, 873 156, 334 88, 336 14, 452 726, 290
Oi ees eed RE ENS EN oA eee Bs 110, 512 303, 595 156, 318 80, 141 11, 291 661, 857
RUNG = FUR See 90, 492 240, 651 126, 725 80, 225 12, 830 550, 923
Lotalices ssa Lp Cera Se 791, 663 2, 125, 198 1, 160, 041 652, 473 112, 443 | 4, 841, 818
LECTURES
In 1931 the Institution received a bequest from James Arthur, of
New York City, a part of the income from which was to be used for
an annual lecture on some aspect of the study of the sun. The twenty-
fourth Arthur lecture was delivered in the auditorium of the Natural
History Building on the evening of April 10, 1957, by Dr. Thomas
Gold, professor of astronomy at Harvard University. This illus-
trated lecture, on the subject “Cosmic Rays from the Sun,” will be
published in full in the general appendix of the Annual Report of
the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution for 1957.
Prof. George E. Mylonas, chairman of the Department of Art and
Archaeology at Washington University, St. Louis, and professor of
SECRETARY'S REPORT 7
archaeology at the University of Athens, Greece, delivered a lecture
on “The Grave Circles of Mycenae” in the auditorium of the Natural
History Building on the evening of February 6, 1957. This lecture
was sponsored jointly by the Smithsonian Institution and the Archae-
ological Institute of America.
Several lectures were also sponsored by the Freer Gallery of Art
and the National Gallery of Art. These are listed in the reports of
these bureaus.
BIO-SCIENCES INFORMATION EXCHANGE
The calendar year 1956 marked a high peak in the activities of the
Bio-Sciences Information Exchange. Increased governmental sup-
port of research in the bio-sciences was reflected in the volume of
research registered; the greater use of the services of the Exchange
is indicative of the growing recognition of its value.
This agency, operating within the Smithsonian under funds made
available to the Institution by other governmental agencies, acts as
a clearinghouse for current research in the life sciences. Abstracts
of on-going research are registered by investigators engaged in bio-
logical, medical, and psychological research and in limited aspects of
research in the social sciences. Through an extensive system of sub-
ject indexing, these abstracts are provided upon request and without
charge to researchers in research institutions. Through this simple
mechanism, the Exchange maintains a communication system which
precedes publication and prevents unknowing duplication. For
granting agencies and properly constituted committees it prepares
extensive surveys of research in broad areas.
The Exchange is growing in scope and in content. Its body of
information now consists of 14,000 active research projects and its
use by individual scientists and by committees is increasing in
proportion.
SUMMARY OF THE YEAR’S ACTIVITIES
National Museum.—The year’s accessions to the national collections
aggregated 647,750 specimens, somewhat less than last year, bringing
the total catalog entries in all departments to 44,377,488. Some of
the outstanding items received during the year included: In anthro-
pology, an Egyptian ibis statuette of about 1800 B. C., a fine collec-
tion of English and American furniture and glass, the first cigar-
store wooden Indian the Museum has ever had, and invaluable addi-
tions to the Greenwood collection of Americana; in zoology, several
collections of mammals of medical importance, a fine lot of Belgian
Congo birds, fishes from many parts of the world, including one collec-
tion of nearly 17,000 specimens from the southern United States,
more than 168,000 specimens of ectoparasites and 60,000 beetles in
451800—58——2
8 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
one collection, 27,600 specimens of marine invertebrates from the
Smithsonian-Bredin Caribbean expedition, and 2,900 Australian mol-
lusks; in botany, an important collection of type specimens from
Central America, as well as desirable lots of plants from Iran, the
West Indies, Cuba, Ecuador, Brazil, East Africa, and the Marshall
Islands; in geology, several fine gems and mineral specimens, seven
meteorites new to the collections, several thousand invertebrate fossils,
and about 100 fossil mammalian specimens collected from the Eocene
of Wyoming; in engineering and industries, about 20 original instru-
ments relating to the history of the telephone, a Robertson milling
machine of 1852, a full-sized pirogue, an X-ray tube of Roentgen, a
complete set of hospital-ward fixtures of about 1900, and examples of
the graphic art of Whistler, Gauguin, Bonnard, Rouault, Picasso, and
Matisse; and in history, a Pennsylvania reception room of the period
1785-90, a summer service uniform once worn by President Hisen-
hower, and many desiderata in the fields of philately and
numismatics.
Members of the staff conducted fieldwork in Canada, Ecuador,
Peru, Brazil, Panama, Philippine Islands, Society Islands, Mexico,
Europe, Bermuda, and many parts of the United States.
The exhibits-modernization program was successfully continued,
and three new halls were opened to the public—the Hall of Power
Machinery, the Hall of Everyday Life in Early America, and the Hall
of North American Mammals. <A new telephone exhibit also received
much attention. Seven new exhibit units were installed in the North
American Indian Hall.
Bureau of American Ethnology.—The staff members continued
their research and publication in archeology and ethnology: Dr.
Stirling conducted archeological work in Ecuador, Dr. Roberts con-
tinued as Director of the River Basin Surveys, Dr. Collins studied
anthropological materials in European museums, and Dr. Sturtevant
did fieldwork on the Seneca and the Florida Seminole.
Astrophysical Observatory—The APO continued its researches in
solar astrophysics as well as its meteoritic studies, adding several
members to its staff and notably increasing its publication activities.
Of great current interest is the Observatory’s so-called Moonwatch
program—the optical tracking of the earth satellite to be launched as
a part of the International Geophysical Year. The division of radia-
tion and organisms continued its research on the role of light in regu-
lating growth in plants.
National Collection of Fine Arts—The Smithsonian Art Commis-
sion accepted for the Gallery 62 oil paintings, 2 watercolors, 3 etch-
ings, 1 miniature, and 1 vase, and a collection of 59 French and Eng-
lish fans. The Gallery held 15 special exhibits during the year, while
SECRETARY'S REPORT 9
the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service circulated 86 exhibi-
tions, 81 in the United States and 5 abroad.
Freer Gallery of Art.—Purchases for the collections of the Freer
Gallery included Chinese bronzes, jade, paintings, and pottery; Japa-
nese lacquer work, paintings, and pottery; Persian gold work and
Persian, Armenian, and Iraq manuscripts; and an Indian (Mughal)
painting. The Gallery continued its program of illustrated lectures
in the auditorium by distinguished scholars in Eastern art. Air-
conditioning of the building was completed during the year.
National Air Museum.—During the year 1,050 specimens in 33
separate accessions were added to the aeronautical collections, includ-
ing a Bell VTOL aircraft with 2 jet engines, valuable material per-
taining to planes of the Wright brothers, several fine scale models,
and a large and historically valuable collection of instruments.
National Zoological Park.—The Zoo accessioned 1,851 individual
animals during the year, and 2,965 were removed by death, exchange,
or return to depositors. The net count at the close of the year was
3,157. Noteworthy among the additions were a pair of white
rhinoceroses, an African elephant, a young Asiatic elephant, a pair
of okapis, a pair of snow leopards, a very rare Colombian red-eyed
cowbird, and prized Pacific sea snakes. Visitors totaled almost 4
million.
Canal Zone Biological Area.—The year’s visitors to Barro Colorado
Island totaled about 750, of whom about 60 were scientists using the
station’s facilities for special researches, particularly in wildlife ob-
servation, forest ecology, photography, and certain insect studies.
International EFachange Service—aAs the official United States
agency for the exchange of governmental, scientific, and literary pub-
lications between this country and other nations, the International Ex-
change Service handled during the year 1,205,039 packages of such
publications, weighing 827,897 pounds, an appreciable increase over
last year.
National Gallery of Art.——During the year the Gallery received 650
accessions, by gift, loan, or deposit. Six special exhibits were held,
and 15 traveling exhibitions of prints from the Rosenwald Collection
were circulated to other museums and galleries. Exhibitions from the
“Index of American Design” were given 50 bookings in 18 States, the
District of Columbia, and Germany. Nearly 44,000 persons attended
the various tours conducted by Gallery personnel, and about 11,500
attended the 51 auditorium lectures of Sunday afternoons. The Sun-
day evening concerts in the east garden court were continued.
Library.—In all, 54,316 publications were received by the Smith-
sonian library during the year, and 87 new exchanges were arranged.
Among the gifts were several private collections of valuable material,
10 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
both of books and periodicals, entomology and geology this year being
particularly well represented. At the close of the year the holdings
of the library and all its branches aggregated 966,401 volumes, in-
cluding 586,700 in the Smithsonian Deposit in the Library of Con-
gress but excluding unbound periodicals and reprints and separates
from serial publications.
Publications —Kighty new publications appeared under Smithso-
nian imprint during the year (see Report on Publications, p. 189, for
full list). Outstanding among these were: “Small Arms and Am-
munition in the United States Service, 1776-1865,” by Berkeley R.
Lewis; “Annotated, Subject-heading Bibliography of Termites,” by
Thomas E. Snyder; “Crustacean Metamorphoses,” by R. E. Snod-
grass; “The National Aeronautical Collections,” by Paul E. Garber;
“American Moths of the Subfamily Phycitinae,” by Carl Heinrich;
“The First Quarter-century of Steam Locomotives in North America”
and “Automobiles and Motorcycles in the U. S. National Museum,”
both by Smith Hempstone Oliver; “Seminole Music,” by Frances
Densmore; “Guaymi Grammar,” by Ephraim §S. Alphonse; “New
Horizons in Astronomy,” edited by Fred L. Whipple; “The World of
the Dinosaurs,” by David H. Dunkle; and “Meissen and Other Ger-
man Porcelain in the Alfred Duane Pell Collection,” by Paul V. Gard-
ner. In all, 405,266 copies of printed matter were distributed.
Report on the United States
National Museum
Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report on the condition
and operations of the United States National Museum for the fiscal
year ended June 30, 1957:
COLLECTIONS
During the year 647,750 specimens were added to the national col-
lections and distributed among the six departments as follows:
Anthropology, 14,004; zoology, 480,328; botany, 45,069; geology,
33,322; engineering and industries, 1,706; history, 73,321. Although
fewer specimens were received than during the previous year, the total
represents a normal annual accretion. Most of the specimens were
received as gifts from individuals or as transfers from Government
departments and agencies. The Annual Report of the Museum, pub-
lished as a separate document, contains a detailed list of the year’s
accessions, of which the more important are summarized below. Cata-
log entries in all departments now total 44,377,488.
Anthropology.—An outstanding donation to the anthropological
collections received in the division of archeology is a wood and bronze
statuette of an ibis from the necropolis of Tuna-el-Gebel, Upper
Egypt, dated about 1800 B.C. This was given by General Mohammed
Naguib to President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who in turn presented it
to the Institution. A large miscellaneous collection assembled by the
late Monsignor John M. Cooper was donated by the Catholic Uni-
versity of America. This material consists of North American Indian,
Eskimo, African, Philippine, and Negrito cultural objects; Coptic
textiles; and an embossed gold disk from Ecuador, and other Latin
American artifacts.
Ethnological gifts include two large Fijian kava bowls donated
by the Government of New Zealand. Kava bowls are essential for the
Fijian ceremony of Yanggona, or formalized drinking of kava. An
antique type of Malay kris, or “Keris,” was given by Ibrahim Izzudin
bin Yousoff, Kelantan, Federation of Malaya. The laminated blade of
this heirloom, a traditional Malay weapon, is made from meteoric iron
and copper. The hilt and sheath are decorated with gold overlay in
filigree with stone brilliants inset in bezels.
In anticipation of period-room installations for the new Museum
of History and Technology, the following paneling and finish were
11
12 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
accepted: A late 18th-century drawing room from the Thomas Han-
cock house, Worcester, Mass., a gift of Mrs. Adelaide K. Bullen;
paneled wall and woodwork from the Richard Dole house, Newbury,
Mass. (about 1740), a gift of Mrs. Florence Evans Bushee; carved and
decorated architectural woodwork by Samuel Field McIntire, from
the interior of “Oak Hill,” Peabody, Mass. (1813-14), a gift of the
Jordan Marsh Co.; an original decorative finial, salvaged from the
steeple of the Old North Church, Boston, after the damage by a hurri-
cane in 1954, gift of the Lantern League of the Old North Church.
Miss Elsie Howland Quinby generously converted her loan of 118
specimens of English and American furniture and glass to a gift.
Col. and Mrs. Robert P. Hare gave two 17th-century English back
stools and a set of six American Sheraton “fancy” chairs. Mrs.
George Maurice Morris presented, among several other gifts,
a carved walnut tray and brass candlestick of about 1760. Mr. and Mrs.
George H. Watson donated an early 19th-century Windsor settee, with
original paint and stenciling, and an extraordinary hollow-tree-trunk
grain barrel. Through the Virgil M. Hillyer fund a North Devon-
shire pottery oven from Bideford, England, was purchased.
Mrs. Marjorie Merriweather Post was the donor of the only cigar-
store wooden Indian ever acquired by the Museum. Several important
examples of 18th- and 19th-century American blown glass were pre-
sented by W. Daniel Quattlebaum. These include New York, New
Jersey, and New England types, as well as a rare cut-glass tumbler
with an embedded ceramic cameo bust of Lafayette, made at the Bake-
well works in Pittsburgh on the occasion of Lafayette’s visit to Amer-
ica in 1824, An entire collection of 173 glass paperweights, mostly of
European and American origin, was the gift of Aaron Straus.
In order to augment the exhibits in the hall “Everyday Life in
Early America,” several large collections were accepted as loans. In
addition to her previous gift of more than 1,600 objects, Mrs. Arthur
M. Greenwood lent 326 specimens of Americana, including 22 ex-
amples of primarily American 17th- and 18th-century silver, rare
children’s books and hornbooks, Indian captivity accounts and broad-
sides, numerous dolls, and many articles of domestic use. Two speci-
mens of North Devonshire pottery excavated at Jamestown, Va., were
lent by the National Park Service.
In exchange with the Institute and Museum of Anthropology,
Moscow State University, the division of physical anthropology re-
ceived a cast of a child’s skull and lower jaw from the Mousterian cul-
tural period of the Crimea. The Moscow State University received
a cast of the Tepexpan skull in return. This exchange resulted from
a visit by the Russian delegation following the Fifth International
Congress of Anthropology and Ethnology in Philadelphia.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 13
Zoology.—As reservoir hosts, transmitters, and carriers of disease,
mammals are intensively studied and collected the world over by spe-
cial agencies and commissions whose efforts have resulted in some of
the more important accessions received by the division of mammals in
recent years. This year in cooperation with the Armed Forces Epi-
demiological Board and the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. David H.
Johnson, curator of mammals, collected 656 specimens of bats and
other small mammals in central Luzén, Philippine Islands. ore
than 500 other mammals from Panama and the Canal Zone accrued
to the collection, largely from the field collecting of the personnel of
the 25th and 7451st Preventive Medicine Survey Detachments of the
U. S. Army, and in part by Dr. Karl B. Koford, Dr. Alexander Wet-
more, and by Dr. Robert K. Enders of Swarthmore College. Do-
nated by Dr. Enders also were 376 mammals from Alaska, Colorado,
Massachusetts, Wyoming, and Saudi Arabia. The Pan American
Sanitary Bureau of the World Health Organization contributed 38
rodents from Peru. Type specimens were received from Kenneth
Walker, Tacoma, Wash., from the Office of Naval Research through
the University of Kansas, and from Kenneth S. Norris and William
N. McFarland.
This year’s more important ornithological accessions included 118
Belgian Congo bird skins, representing 59 forms new to the Museum,
received as an exchange from the [Institut Royal de Sciences Natur-
elles, Brussels; 23 birds from the Caroline Islands, a transfer from the
Pacific Science Board, National Research Council; 10 Venezuelan
birds, including the type specimens of 8 new forms, deposited by Dr.
William H. Phelps, Caracas; by deposit from the Smithsonian Insti-
tution 817 skins, 16 skeletons, 3 nests, and 5 sets of eggs of birds, col-
lected in Panama by Dr. A. Wetmore.
Noteworthy collections of New World amphibians and reptiles were
received as gifts from the following donors: Jerry D. Hardy, Catons-
ville, Md., 702 specimens from Cuba; William L. Witt, Arlington,
Va., 208 reptiles and amphibians; the Naturhistoriches Museum,
Vienna, Austria, 98 frogs from Brazil; Dr. John W. Crenshaw, Jr.,
Columbia, Mo., 52 turtles; Dr. W. G. Lynn, Washington, D. C., 23
frogs from Jamaica and Antigua, B. W.I. For type material in this
field the Museum is also indebted to the University of Colorado, to
the Natural History Museum of the University of Illinois, and to Dr.
Gordon Thurow, Braddock Heights, Md.
The largest accession to the fish collection was the gift of Dr. Wil-
liam R. Taylor, associate curator, representing his comprehensive col-
lection of 16,821 specimens gathered from the southern United States
over several years. Other sizable fish collections were received as
follows: 4,329 specimens from Paraguay donated by Dr. C. J. D.
14 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Brown, Montana State College; 1,653 specimens of West Indian
fishes obtained on the Smithsonian-Bredin Caribbean Expedition
and deposited by the Institution; 190 fresh-water fishes from Colom-
bia, the gift of Dr. George Dahl. Included in 8 accessions number-
ing nearly 700 specimens were 6 holotypes and 598 paratypes of fishes
described by one or another of the donors from various parts of the
world: Dr. J. J. Hoedeman, Zodlogisch Museum, Amsterdam; Daniel
M. Cohen, Stanford University; Drs. Reeve M. Bailey, University of
Michigan, and William R. Taylor, U. S. National Museum; Wayne J.
Baldwin, University of California at Los Angeles; Dr. Andreas B.
Rechnitzer, U. 8. Navy Electronics Laboratory, San Diego, Calif.;
Dr. John C. Briggs, University of Florida; William C. Schroeder,
Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University; Dr. Boyd W.
Walker, University of California at Los Angeles; and Victor G.
Springer, University of Texas.
The largest accession accruing this year to the division of insects
consisted of 168,531 specimens of ectoparasites and transferred from
the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Department of the Army.
Ernest Shoemaker of Brooklyn donated his personal collection of
60,338 specimens, chiefly Coleoptera, all exquisitely prepared and in-
cluding 101 Morpho butterflies, many of which are rare. Dr. Colvin
L. Gibson of Memphis presented 4,327 butterflies and moths, and
some representatives of other groups collected in Mexico, the British
Solomon Islands, and the United States. Associate Curator O. L.
Cartwright presented 11,400 specimens of insects which he collected
in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. A gift of 6,546 named lepi-
dopterous larvae, mostly from western United States, which were
associated with reared examples in the economically important fam-
ily of cutworm moths, was received from S. E. Crumb, Puyallup,
Wash. Dr. J. F. Gates Clarke, curator, contributed 4,801 miscel-
laneous insects, mostly from the State of Washington. Other note-
worthy accessions included 5,347 insects from Africa and South, Cen-
tral, and North America, received from N. L. H. Krauss of Hono-
lulu; 3,753 North Dakota spiders, donated by J. M. Davis, Silver
Spring, Md.; and 10,000 miscellaneous insects from Thailand, re-
ceived from the International Cooperation Administration.
Aside from gifts bringing additional type material to the Mu-
seum’s marine invertebrate collections, the following are deemed par-
ticularly worthy of note: 27,600 specimens from the Smithsonian-
Bredin Caribbean Expedition deposited by the Institution; 1,757
crustaceans and other invertebrates from survey vessel collections in
the Gulf of Mexico and off the southeastern United States, trans-
ferred from the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 176 identified speci-
mens of 40 species of pelagic copepods from Sweden and South
SECRETARY’S REPORT 15
Africa donated by Dr. Karl Lang, Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet,
Stockholm, Sweden; 1,828 shrimps, crayfishes, and other inverte-
brates given by Dr. Horton H. Hobbs, Jr., University of Virginia;
160 identified specimens of 138 species of mysidacean crustaceans from
the vicinity of Plymouth, England, presented by Dr. Olive S. Tat-
tersall, through Dr. Isabella Gordon; and 2 specimens of Cephalo-
carida, the recently discovered crustacean subclass, received from
Howard L. Sanders, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
Donors of type material included the late Dr. Raymond C. Osburn,
Ohio State University; Dr. KE. Ruffin Jones, University of Florida;
Maureen Downey, Beaufort, N. C.; Dr. Trevor Kincaid, Seattle,
Wash.; Mrs. Mildred S. Wilson, Anchorage, Alaska; Dr. J. T.
Penney, University of South Carolina; Gordon Clark, University of
Maryland; Dr. Alejandro Villalobos F., Instituto de Biologia,
Mexico; Dr. N. T. Mattox, University of Southern California; and
the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California.
Among the outstanding mollusk accessions for the year may be enu-
merated the following: 2,900 Australian specimens donated by Samuel
W. Rosso, Hattiesburg, Miss.; the deposit of 1,380 mollusks received
from the Smithsonian-Bredin Caribbean Expedition; 673 specimens
of land and fresh-water snails from Libya, collected by Dr. Rolf
Brandt, and purchased through the Frances Lea Chamberlain Fund;
900 specimens of land and fresh-water mollusks from the Solomon
Islands, New Britain, and New Caledonia, from James R. Hood;
and 84 marine mollusks from South Africa, received from the Univer-
sity of Cape Town, through Prof. J. H. Day. Types of helminths
were donated by Dr. Elon E. Byrd, Athens, Ga.; Dr. Thomas C.
Cheng, Charlottesville, Va.; Dr. Paul R. Burton, Coral Gables, Fla.;
and Dr. Leland S. Olsen, Lincoln, Nebr.
Botany.—An important collection of 196 type specimens of Central
American plants was contributed by the Escuela Agricola Panameri-
cana. Other gifts included 210 specimens of plants of Iran collected
and presented by Justice William O. Douglas; and 697 Cuban plants
from Manuel Lopez Figueiras, Santiago de Cuba. Dr. A. C. Smith
obtained 4,047 specimens of West Indian plants on the Smithsonian-
Bredin Caribbean Expedition, and C. V. Morton collected 4,927
specimens of plants in Cuba. E. P. Killip obtained 1,505 specimens
for the Institution on the Isle of Pines, Cuba, and in southern Florida
and Texas.
Among the interesting collections received in exchange were 800
Brazilian plants, mostly from the Amazon region, from the Instituto
Agronémico do Norte, Belém, Para, Brazil; 1,640 plants of Ecuador
obtained by Dr. Eric Asplund; 1,058 specimens collected in His-
paniola by E. L. Ekman from the Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Stock-
16 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
holm, Sweden; 232 specimens obtained in Asia Minor by E. K. Balls
from the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, Scotland; 621 plants
collected in East Africa by H. J. Schlieben from the Missouri Botan-
ical Garden, and 1,353 specimens of plants of Hong Kong, California,
and Mexico from the University of Michigan.
Extensive collections of plants of Santa Catarina, comprising 2,479
specimens, were received from the Herbario “Barbosa Rodrigues,”
Itajaf, Santa Catarina, Brazil, with a request for identifications. The
Los Angeles County Museum sent, for study and report by herbarium
specialists, 239 specimens from the collections made by E. Yale Daw-
son on the Machris Brazilian Expedition.
There were transferred from the U. S. Geological Survey, Depart-
ment of the Interior, 2,142 specimens collected by Dr. F. R. Fosberg
in the Marshall Islands, and from the Agricultural Research Service,
Department of Agriculture, 870 specimens collected by F. J. Hermann
in Canada and northwestern United States.
Geology.—Outstanding among the gifts of minerals is an unusual
scapolite from Itrongahy, Madagascar, from John B. Jago, and an
exceptional barite from Sterling, Colo., given by Arch Oboler. Some
of the newly described minerals presented are: cardosonite, Spain, by
Dr. I. Asensio Amor; kingite, Australia, from the Commonwealth
Scientific and Industrial Research Organization; ferroselite, Mon-
trose County, Colo., from Howard Bowers; heidornite, Germany,
from Prof. Dr. W. V. Engelhardt; hibonite, Madagascar, from John
B. Jago; tertschite, Turkey, from Dr. Heinz Meixner; vayrynenite,
Finland, from Mary Mrose; and béggildite, Greenland, from Hans
Pauly.
Several outstanding additions were made to the gem collection by
exchange, including an exceptionally fine 18.3-carat canary-yellow
diamond from South Africa, a 51.9-carat yellow sapphire from
Burma, and a 68.85-carat brilliant-cut sphalerite from Utah. <A 13.50-
carat andalusite from Brazil and an 11.80-carat star spinel from
Ceylon showing four separate 6-rayed stars were purchased through
the Chamberlain Fund for the Isaac Lea collection.
Of the 131 specimens added to the Roebling collection by purchase,
the outstanding items are: schoepite and soddyite from Shinkolobwe
in the Belgian Congo, and hambergite from San Diego County, Calif.
Newly described species added to the Roebling collection are: coflinite
from Utah; kettnerite from Czechoslovakia; hawleyite from the
Yukon in Canada; and isokite from Northern Rhodesia.
Significant additions to the Canfield collection include two 6-inch
crystals of enargite from Peru; a 6%-ounce gold nugget from the
Yukon, Alaska, mined in 1896; several fine groups of showy wulfenite
crystals from Arizona; and two exceptionally fine crystals of blue
and yellow sapphire from Burma.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 17
Three meteorites new to the collection acquired as gifts were Bonita
Springs, Lee County, Fla., from E. P. Henderson; Kaufman, Kaufman
County, Tex., from Mrs. Carl C. Hinrichs; and Mayday, Riley County,
Kans., from Prof. Walter S. Houston. Four meteorites, also new to
the collection, were received as exchanges: St. Peters, Graham County,
Kans. ; Kunashak, Elenovka, and Sikhote-Alinskii, from the Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics.
Important gifts received in the division of invertebrate paleontology
and paleobotany are: 750 Tertiary mollusks from Virginia, North
Carolina, and Florida given by Shelton P. Applegate; 500 specimens
of Permian brachiopods from Tasmania, from Dr. Kenneth E. Caster ;
93 pleosponges from South Australia, the gift of B. Flounders; 66 type
and figured specimens from the Pennsylvania rocks of western Mary-
land from Joseph Lintz, Jr.; 4,665 specimens of crinoids and other
fossils representing the private collection of the late Dr. Edwin Kirk,
received from Mrs. Kirk; 400 specimens of Cretaceous Foraminifera
from Egypt donated by Rushdi Said; and 311 Miocene mollusks from
Peru, given by the Johns Hopkins University.
An important collection of 500 Tertiary brachiopods from Okinawa
was transferred from the U.S. Geological Survey. Among the acces-
sions obtained by exchange were 2,695 specimens of Foraminifera from
Poland; 158 Tertiary brachiopods from New Zealand; and 894 inverte-
brate fossils, mostly Mesozoic and Tertiary from Japan.
Through the income of the Walcott bequest 5,322 specimens of
Devonian, Mississippian, and Permian fossils were collected by Dr.
G. A. Cooper, A. L. Bowsher, and J. T. Dutro, Jr., in the Glass Moun-
tains of Texas and the San Andreas and Sacramento Mountains of
New Mexico.
The division of vertebrate paleontology received outstanding speci-
mens through purchase, fieldwork, and exchanges. Specimens of
fossil fishes acquired by purchase come from the Devonian Escuminac
formation on Chaleurs Bay, Canada; and a series of late Paleozoic and
early Mesozoic fishes from various European localities.
Important specimens collected by Drs. C. L. Gazin and D. H. Dunkle
include 100 mammalian specimens from the Eocene of Wyoming, and
several good specimens of ancient dogs and horses which were obtained
near Harrison, Nebr. Dr. Dunkle, with Professor Westoll, secured
over 200 fossil fish specimens from Lower and Middle Devonian locali-
ties in Scotland.
Exchanges were effected that produced excellent fossil fishes and
other fossil vertebrates. Several types of Triassic fishes from Green-
land and casts of Devonian amphibians were obtained from the Danish
Mineralogical Museum. A large skeleton of a Cretaceous fish was
obtained from the Bureau of Economic Geology of the University of
18 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Texas, and Dartmouth College exchanged six primitive jawless ostra-
coderms from Oesel Island in the Baltic. An exchange of value, con-
sisting of nine jaws and maxillae of primitive perissodactyls and artio-
dactyls, was obtained from the Muséum de Sciences Naturelles, Lyon,
France.
Engineering and Industries—In connection with the development
of the new exhibit of telephony, about 20 original instruments showing
the evolution of the telephone from 1880 to the present day were added
to the collections of the division of engineering. These specimens
were donated by Bell Telephone Laboratories, Stromberg-Carlson Co.,
the Bell Telephone Co. of Canada, North Electric Co., Western Elec-
tric Co., and the Ohio Bell Telephone Co.
All sections in the division received important new accessions in
preparation for exhibition in the Museum of History and Technology.
A specimen of particular historical interest added as a loan to the
collection of machine tools is a Robertson milling machine of 1852,
from Yale University. The section of light machinery acquired a
fine French astronomical clock, of about 1800, featuring a planetarium
enclosed in a glass sphere etched with the constellations, thus exhibit-
ing particularly well the astronomical associations of timekeeping.
A full-sized pirogue, made in the manner of the Acadians, was pre-
sented to the transportation section by Esso Standard Oil Co., together
with a film recording the process of its fabrication. An elegant
Queensbody basket phaeton was given by Mrs. William A. Frailey.
The collection relating to instructional mathematics was augmented
considerably with the receipt, from Prof. Frances E. Baker, of a set of
131 mathematical models.
The division of medicine and public health added to its collection
the third X-ray tube of the discoverer of X-rays, Wilhelm Konrad
Roentgen, a gift of the General Electric Co. For the hospital exhibit
in the Museum of History and Technology, a complete set of hospital
ward fixtures of about 1900 was received from the Massachusetts Gen-
eral Hospital. The materia medica collection obtained a number of
additional examples of patent medicines, such as Bateman’s Pectoral
Drops, presented by Ronald R. McCandless, Owen H. Waller, and
A. P. Whealton; Godfrey’s Cordial, presented by Robert Russell and
A. P. Whealton; and Porter’s Curative Sugar Pills, from Samuel
A. Aker, David E. Kass, and George C. Kass.
Among the more important specimens acquired by the division of
crafts and industries is an 18th-century Don Quixote tapestry pre-
sented by Mrs. Kermit Roosevelt, a rustic copperplate printed fabric
dated 1761, from Mrs. Betty H. Harriman; and a copperplate print
stitched into a quilt top, from Mrs. Nicholas Satterlee. In the section
of agriculture, a model of the Hussey reaper of 1833 was constructed by
SECRETARY’S REPORT 19
Donald Holst of the office of exhibits; a Pennsylvania bar share plow
was donated by Daniel G. H. Lesher; and an early threshing machine
by James W. Brown.
Preparation of exhibits for the new museum made it possible for
the division of graphic arts to acquire a number of important prints.
Among these are “St. Catherine with the Wheel,” a hand-colored
anonymous woodcut dated 1465-70, and examples of the graphic work
of J. M. Whistler, Paul Gauguin, Pierre Bonnard, Muirhead Bone,
Georges Rouault, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and others. An out-
standing collection of materials representing the history of motion-
picture photography, comprising 864 items, was received as a bequest
from Gatewood W. Dunston.
History—tThe division of civil history acquired a notable reception
room that was originally installed in a house near Kutztown, Berks
County, Pa., during the period 1785-90. This room corresponds in
size, plan, locale, period, and original usage to the second-floor front
drawing room of the Philadelphia Presidential Mansion as it appeared
during Washington’s second administration.
The Ladies’ Hermitage Association, Nashville, Tenn., presented a
buff-and-gold china bow] from one of the dinner services used at the
White House during the administration of President Andrew Jackson.
A plate and a cup and saucer representative of the State services made
by Wedgwood for the White House for use during the Theodore
Roosevelt administration were presented by Josiah Wedgwood & Sons,
Ine.
A most interesting addition to the costumes collection is a gold
brocade shoe for a woman of the early 18th century with a matching
gold brocade clog, a gift of Mrs. Brookings T. Andrews.
The military history collections were enhanced by the gift from
President Dwight D. Eisenhower of a summer service uniform of a
General of the Army worn by him during his term as Commanding
General, Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe. ‘Twelve
military paintings by the celebrated military artist Charles Hoffbauer
were presented by Mrs. John Nicholas Brown.
Outstanding among the specimens received in the division of naval
history was a series of six oil paintings of naval actions in the Pacific
Ocean during World War II which came as a gift of the artist
Clarence J. Tibado.
An important accession received in the division of numismatics is
an original pantograph invented and built by Christian Gobrecht, a
foremost United States Mint engraver, together with various engrav-
ings and plate proofs of State bank notes made by him, the gift of
Mrs. ©. F. Wolters. Outstanding among the specimens presented by
Paul A. Straub are a broad gold 8-ducat piece struck in 1617 in Qued-
20 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
linburg by Dorothea, Duchess of Saxony, and a ducat, dated 1688,
struck by August Friedrich of Holstein-Gottorp.
A newcomer to the list of donors of philatelic material is Harry
L. Lindquist, publisher of Stamps magazine, who presented his col-
lections of Danish and Swedish booklet panes, including many of
great rarity. Former Postmaster General James A. Farley converted
one section of his valuable philatelic holdings from loan to gift dur-
ing the year.
Philip H. Ward, Jr., of Philadelphia, donated a considerable num-
ber of United States and foreign stamps—to continue his ranking
as the “oldest” continuing donor, having first evidenced his support
of the national postage stamp collection as long ago as 1915. B. H.
Homan, Jr., of New York donated 18 original drawings for Ecua-
dorean stamps, and 114 French pre-stamp covers.
EXPLORATION, FIELDWORK, AND RELATED TRAVEL
Near the close of the past fiscal year Dr. T. Dale Stewart, curator
of physical anthropology, investigated the burial site of an adult
male Indian on the bank of York River opposite West Point, Va.
Portions of the skeleton were unearthed. Trephined skulls from
Bolivia in the American Museum of Natural History, New York City,
and from the central highlands of Peru in the Peabody Museum,
Cambridge, were examined by Dr. Stewart April 2-7, 1957, to ad-
vance completion of a research project.
Frank M. Setzler, head curator of anthropology, and Dr. Clifford
Evans, associate curator of archeology, attended during September
1956 the Fifth International Congress of Ethnological and Anthro-
pological Sciences at Philadelphia. During April 1957 Mr. Setzler
visited New Martinsville, W. Va., to survey and discuss a cooperative
arrangement for the excavation of a prehistoric Indian mound on
the property of the Columbia-Southern Chemical Corp. Plans are
now being formulated to proceed with this project during the next
fiscal year.
Dr. Clifford Evans, associate curator of archeology, and Dr. Betty
J. Meggers, research associate, with support from a grant from the
American Philosophical Society, excavated 12 archeological sites
on the Rio Napo and its tributaries on the eastern slope of the
Ecuadorian Andes from October through December 1956. The
results of this work indicate that the Rio Napo culture is ancestral
to the Marajoara culture at the mouth of the Amazon, although the
ultimate origin of the Napo culture is still unknown. During Janu-
ary and February 1957, under a cooperative arrangement with
Sr. Emilio Estrada, Director of the Museo Arqueolégico “Victor
Emilio Estrada” of Guayaquil, they continued research begun in
SECRETARY'S REPORT 21
1954 on the coast of Ecuador. Additional sites were investigated
in the Guayas Province to expand knowledge of the Formative
Period cultures and establish links with cultures of this period in
Middle America and Peru. En route to Venezuela, 2 weeks were
spent in Colombia examining collections in Bogota, Barranquilla,
and Cartagena and consulting with Colombian anthropologists.
On arrival at Caracas, Venezuela, these two investigators were in-
vited by Dr. José M. Cruxent, Director, Museo de Ciencias Naturales,
to accompany an expedition sponsored by that museum and the Uni-
versidad Central de Venezuela to the Rio Ventuari, a headwaters
tributary of the Rio Orinoco. Some five weeks were devoted to stra-
tigraphic excavations of 30 or 40 former sites of human occupation
in this region. The materials obtained will permit a more adequate
interpretation of the cultural level relationships of the former in-
habitants of Brazil, the Guianas, Colombia, and Ecuador. Drs. Evans
and Meggers returned to Washington on April 5, 1957.
Dr. Waldo R. Wedel, curator of archeology, participated, May 2-4,
1957, in a symposium held at the University of Wisconsin, Madison,
which dealt with the identity and historical implications of an arche-
ological cultural horizon known as Oneota, ancestral to certain Siouan
groups of Indians.
Dr. Marshall 'T. Newman, associate curator of physical anthro-
pology, under a research project financed by a grant from the Na-
tional Science Foundation, conducted studies in physical anthro-
pology, nutrition, dietary habits, blood analyses, bone density and
maturation, and cultural anthropology on the Quechua-speaking
Indian community of some 1,750 individuals at Hacienda Vicos in
the Callejon de Huaylas, North Central Sierra, Peru. Blood samples
obtained during this investigation have since been studied by the
Blood Grouping Laboratory, Boston, and the U. S. Public Health
Service Laboratory at Framingham, Mass. Bone-density analyses
and skeletal-maturation studies are being made at Pennsylvania State
University from X-ray photographs of the hands of Indian school
boys. Dr. Newman returned to Washington on July 27,1957. Dur-
ing April 1957 Dr. Newman consulted with specialists of the Fels
Research Institute staff at Yellow Springs, Ohio, relative to age
assessments from carpal X-rays, tooth eruption data, and metric
growth data obtained at Hacienda Vicos.
C. Malcolm Watkins, associate curator of ethnology, in the interval
between October 1 and 8, 1956, arranged for the shipping of cultural-
history materials from Mrs. Arthur M. Greenwood’s home in Marl-
boro, Mass., sorted the woodwork from the Thomas Hancock
house in Worcester, and packed and shipped tiles given by E. Stanley
Wires of Wellesley Hills.
22 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Conrad V. Morton, curator of cryptogams, during August 1956,
participated in a field trip organized by the American Fern Society
on the Gaspé Peninsula, Canada. On the return trip Mr. Morton at-
tended the meetings of the American Institute of Biological Sciences
at Storrs, Conn.
From October 1956 to April 1957, Dr. Lyman B. Smith, curator of
phanerogams, conducted field studies of the flora of southern Brazil
under a grant from the National Science Foundation and in col-
laboration with the Herbario “Barbosa Rodrigues.” Over 5,000
plants were collected on the planalto of Santa Catarina and adjacent
regions for phytogeographical research on the origin of the flora of
southern Brazil.
During February 1957, Dr. Herbert Friedmann, curator of birds,
was selected to inaugurate the recently endowed “Lida Scott Brown
Lectureship” at the University of California at Los Angeles. Pre-
viously, in August, he studied the African parasitic weaverbirds in
the Chicago Museum of Natural History in furtherance of a mono-
graph now in course of preparation.
On April 30, 1957, Dr. Charles O. Handley, Jr., associate curator
of mammals, was detailed to conduct prelimimary mammal surveys
in eastern Panama in cooperation with the yellow-fever project of
the Gorgas Memorial Laboratory. Fieldwork continued through the
month of June and Dr. Handley returned to the Museum on June 28,
1957.
At the invitation of Dr. William McD. Hammon, chief of the de-
partment of epidemiology and microbiology, Graduate School of
Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Dr. David H. Johnson,
curator of mammals, joined a virus-research group from July 24 to
October 2, 1956, in the vicinity of Manila and Clark Airbase, Luzén,
Philippine Islands. This survey of the mosquito-borne virus diseases
affecting wild animals and man was supported by the Armed Forces
Epidemiological Board, U. S. Department of Defense.
On July 27, 1956, Dr. Ernest A. Lachner, associate curator of fishes,
returned to Washington following completion of his studies under a
fellowship awarded by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foun-
dation. Dr. Lachner is preparing monographic studies of the cir-
cumtropical marine fish families Apogonidae (cardinalfishes) and
Mullidae (goatfishes) and found it necessary to examine the collec-
lections preserved in the British Museum (Natural History), Lon-
don; the Zoological Museum, Amsterdam; the Rijksmuseum van
Natuurlijke Historie, Leiden; Naturhistorische Museum, Vienna;
Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft, Frankfurt; Zoo-
logisches Museum, Hamburg; Zoological Museum, Copenhagen; the
Museum of Belgian Congo, Tervuren; and the Muséum National
SECRETARY’S REPORT 2a
d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris. Dr. Lachner studied the sharksuckers
(Echeneidae) in the collections of Tulane University, New Orleans,
April 15-22, 1957, and added important data to his review of host
specificity. Some 500 specimens of fresh-water barbeled minnows
(Hybopsis) were examined for inclusion in a partially completed
manuscript. X-rays were taken of 19 types and specimens of small,
somewhat transparent fishes (Henicichthyidae) to determine details
of the osteology for incorporation in a revisional study.
In continuation of his research on sea anemones, Dr. Charles E. Cut-
ress, associate curator of marine invertebrates, searched the inverte-
brate collections of the Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale
University, the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard Uni-
versity, and the American Museum of Natural History, New York,
October 22-November 6, 1956, for type specimens and material from
the central and South Pacific Ocean. Dr. Cutress was detailed during
February 1957 to proceed to the Museum of Wesleyan University at
Middletown, Conn., for the purpose of packing and shipping zoologi-
cal materials which were transferred to the national collections.
In furtherance of his taxonomic studies on scarab beetles, O. L. Cart-
wright, associate curator of insects, examined types of Onthophagus,
Ataenius, and Ligyrus, as well as other genera, in the collections of the
Museum of Comparative Zoology at Cambridge and the Academy of
Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, February 24-28, 1957. Later, April
21-24, 1957, he critically studied the types of Scarabaeidae in the Cin-
cinnati Museum of Natural History and Purdue University, Lafayette,
Ind.
Dr. Waldo L. Schmitt, head curator of zoology, and leader of the
Smithsonian-Bredin Society Islands Expedition, left Washington on
June 14, 1957, en route to Papeete, Tahiti. The generosity of Mr. and
Mrs. Bruce Bredin, of Greenville, Del., enabled the Smithsonian Insti-
tution to charter the vessel Mareva for this marine biological survey of
the Society Islands. The party included also Dr. Harald A. Rehder,
curator of mollusks, and T. E. Bowman and Charles E. Cutress, Jr.,
associate curators of marine invertebrates. In the course of this cruise
collections were obtained at or in the vicinity of Makatea, Tickahau,
Bora-Bora, Raiatea, Tahaa, Huaheine, and Moorea.
Early in January Dr. Alexander Wetmore, research associate and
former Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, returned to Panama
in continuation of his field researches on the distribution and variation
of the birdlife of the Isthmus. Through the friendly interest of Dr.
Pedro Galindo of the staff of the Gorgas Memorial Laboratory for
Tropical Medicine, and Diputado in the legislative body of the Re-
public, permission was given for work in the restricted area of the
Comarca de San Blas, territory of the coastal group of the Cuna In-
451800-—58——3
24 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
dians. The field party obtained transport from Paitilla Airport,
Panama City, via Cessna—180 four-passenger plane to Mandinga in the
San Blas where camp was established midway between the foothills of
the Cerro Azul and the sea. While much of the land had been cleared
for farming, original forest remained in the swampy woodlands near
the coast and over the inland hills. During a period of four weeks
observations were made on approximately 200 species of birds with
series of specimens prepared of those desired for special study.
Friendly Indian neighbors were almost daily visitors, the colorful
dress of the women being especially attractive. As this is the first col-
lection of any extent to be made on the Caribbean coast between the
Canal Zone and Puerto Obaldia on the Colombian frontier, the work
has afforded especially valuable information.
Following return to the Canal Zone Dr. Wetmore spent from Febru-
ary 25 to 28 in the launch Sea Raider, Richard E. Parker of Coldn,
skipper, in work along the western side of the Gulf of Panama. Col-
lections were made especially at Ensenada Venado, west of Punta
Mala, and on Isla Iguana, to the north of that point, localities acces-
sible only by boat. ‘This year sea birds had not yet arrived to nest on
the rocky islets of Los Frailes off Punta Mala, though they had been
abundant there on February 6, 1956. On the return trip he examined
the rocky islets of Isla Villa and Farallén de Chirt.
After a day on Cerro Azul and another near the base of Cerro Bruja,
the party left by jeep for the lower end of the Azuero Peninsula.
Here, from quarters obtained in the friendly village of Pedasi, studies
were made in the valleys of the Rio Caldera and the Rio Oria, the latter
accessible over a rough track practicable only in the dry season and by
means of the 4-wheel drive of the jeep. Following two weeks here Dr.
Wetmore crossed on March 22 by Cessna—180 plane from Las Tablas to
the isolated village of Tonosi for examination of the valley of the Rio
Tonosi. Here he and Mrs. Wetmore were the guests of Mr. and Mrs.
Harry L. Peck, long resident in the valley, who afforded all needed
facilities for the work. This concluded the work for this season, ex-
cept for a two-day visit to the Barro Colorado Island field station on
April 2 and 3. The collections made have added definitely to our
knowledge as the work centered on areas that previously had not been
investigated.
During July 1956 Dr. C. L. Gazin, curator of vertebrate paleon-
tology, accompanied by preparators Franklin L. Pearce and Theodore
B. Ruhoff, proceeded to Shoshoni, Wyo., to prospect for fossil remains
in several upper Eocene localities on the north side of the Wind River
Basin. This fieldwork was financed by the income from the Walcott
bequest. The exposures on Badwater Creek yielded additional
artiodactyl remains. Subsequently a search was made for skeletal
material of the Oligocene horse Mesohippus, in the Chadron beds
SECRETARY’S REPORT v2 25
north of Harrison, Nebr. An incomplete skull of this horse and two
excellent skulls of the Oligocene dog Daphoenus were collected. Op-
erations were then transferred to Bitter Creek, Wyo., where portions
of two skeletons of Coryphodon as well as small mammals were secured
from quarries on exposures south of the town. After August 1 field-
work was commenced on the fossiliferous exposures of Knight Eocene
and presumably Evanston Paleocene in Fossil Basin near Kemmerer,
Wyo., where additional materials were obtained. Several excellent
specimens including a partially articulated skeleton of Menisco-
thertwm were found in the New Fork tongue of the Knight formation
as exposed along Alkali Creek east of Big Piney. The museum carry-
all was returned to Washington on August 17, 1956.
During the last two weeks of December 1956 Dr. Gazin studied
specimens of the earliest known North American primates in the col-
lections of Princeton University, the American Museum of Natural
History, and Yale University. On January 15, 1957, in accordance
with a previous agreement relative to the final distribution of Pleisto-
cene sloths and other mammals excavated near Octi in the Republic
of Panama he proceeded to Panama to unpack and assemble the fossil
skeletal material returned to Dr. Alejandro Mendes, director, Museo
Nacional of Panama. This assignment was completed on February
3, 1957. He examined various Eocene adapid and tarsiid primates
at Princeton University and reviewed the lower Eocene anaptomor-
phids and other Tertiary mammals in the collections of the American
Museum of Natural History, June 2-9, 1957.
During the first week of November 1956 Theodore B. Ruhoff and
Shelton P. Applegate investigated a fossil whale occurrence in the
vicinity of Smithfield, Va.
To obtain required specimens of fossil fishes and other early verte-
brates for the exhibition series, Dr. David H. Dunkle, associate curator
of vertebrate paleontology departed from Washington on August 17,
1956, for Europe. A field excursion in northern Scotland under the
guidance of Prof. T. Stanley Westoll of the University of Durham
resulted in the collection of Devonian fishes in such historic localities
as Holburn Head Quarry, Murkle Bay, the Thurso Foreshore and
Achanarras Quarry in Caithness; Edderton, Cromarty, and Ethie
Burn in Rosshire; Turin Hill in Forfarshire; and the vicinity of
Lesmahagow in Lanarkshire. At Copenhagen he arranged an ex-
change for Triassic fishes of Greenland and Madagascar with the
Danish Mineralogisak Museum. Extensive collections of fossil fishes
were examined at the National Museum of Sweden and the Swedish
Geological Survey Museum in Stockholm. Casts of primitive tetra-
pods from the Devonian of Greenland were received. At Bonn, Ger-
many, late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic fossils, including such rare
forms as a lower Devonian ostracoderm and a placoderm, were selected
26 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
for the display series. Arrangements were made with Dr. B. Hauff
of Holzmaden for a series of lower Jurassic fishes. At the Muséum
National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, desirable exchanges were dis-
cussed with the staff. Dr. Dunkle returned to Washington on Novem-
ber 9, 1956.
Dr. Dunkle accompanied Dr. G. E. Lewis, U. S. Geological Survey,
May 6-20, 1957, on a reconnaissance of the occurrence of fossil
mammal-like reptiles (ictidosaurs) in the Kayenta formation on the
western Navaho Indian Reservation, Ariz., with the objective of
locating skeletons for exhibition.
Following approval of an exchange arrangement, Franklin L.
Pearce and John E. Ott were sent on November 23, 1956, to the Museum
of the University of Texas at Austin to assemble and pack for shipment
a Triassic phytosaur skull and the field blocks enclosing the giant
Cretaceous fish Xtphactinus. When preparation is completed these
specimens will be incorporated in the display series.
Dr. G. A. Cooper, curator of invertebrate paleontology, was invited
by the organizers of the Twenty-second International Geological
Congress, Mexico City, to lead a field excursion late in August 1956
to Sonora, where the party studied the Cambrian sequence near
Caborca and the Permian, Mississippian, and Devonian near Antimo-
nio. The Walcott bequest financed the fieldwork by Dr. Cooper in the
Glass Mountains of Texas and in south-central New Mexico. On
August 13, 1956, while accompanied by Dr. C. O. Dunbar of Yale
University, L. G. Henbest of the U. S. Geological Survey, and Dr.
John Skinner of the Humble Oil Co., Dr. Cooper reviewed the Per-
mian stratigraphy in the vicinity of Marathon, Tex., and subsequently
collected additional blocks of invertebrate materials. The field truck
was driven to Nogales, N. Mex., prior to the Mexican excursion.
When the Geological Congress terminated, Dr. Cooper returned to
Nogales where A. L. Bowsher and J. T. Dutro of the U. S. Geological
Survey joined the party for the Devonian stratigraphic fieldwork in
the vicinity of Silver City and Hillsboro, N. Mex. At Hillsboro,
Mississippian fossils also were collected. During the last week of
September and the first half of October, Alamogordo served as head-
quarters for the fieldwork in the San Andreas Mountains located in
the White Sands Proving Ground area. Field studies in New Mexico
were concluded at several localities in the Sacramento Mountains east
of Alamogordo.
The income from the Walcott bequest and assistance from the Na-
tional Science Foundation enabled Dr. David Nicol, associate curator
of invertebrate paleontology, to conduct marine fieldwork at the
Bermuda Biological Station during July 1956. He collected recent
and fossil mollusks, gorgonians, Foraminifera, and fishes. Dr. Nicol
SECRETARY’S REPORT OG
studied the Paleozoic pelecypods at the Museum of Paleontology,
University of Michigan, June 9-14, 1957.
The Walcott bequest also provided funds for Dr. A. R. Loeblich, Jr.,
associate curator of invertebrate paleontology, and Dr. Hans Bolli
of Pointe-a-Pierre, Trinidad, W. I., to study the Cretaceous-Tertiary
boundary in Alabama and Texas and to collect foraminiferal samples
during July 1956. The Planktonic Foraminiferal Project Fund fi-
nanced Dr. Loeblich’s trip to Houston, Tex., during November 1956
to obtain well cores from the subsurface Miocene of Texas and south-
ern Louisiana from the Humble Oil Co., and to New Orleans for con-
sultations regarding similar materials with geologists of other oil
companies. In furtherance of the same project Dr. Loeblich partici-
pated in a symposium on biostratigraphy at St. Louis, Mo., during
April 1957.
The exhibition and development programs for the Museum of His-
tory and Technology and the Museum of Natural History necessi-
tated conferences with historians, scientists, and educators relative to
the planning and designing of interiors and contents of exhibition
halls. Travel to determine the worth of materials offered to the mu-
seum, to examine methods of exhibition and to consult with experts on
preservation provided the opportunity for new staff members to
become familiar with the practices and procedures employed in other
museums.
Dr. Robert P. Multhauf, acting head curator of engineering and
industries, conferred on October 2 and 3, 1956, with officials of the
Bell Telephone Laboratories at Murray Hill, N. J., and New York
City on the design of the exhibit of the telephone in preparation for
installation in the museum. Late in December 1956, he examined
exhibition practices in the Museum of the New York Historical
Society, the Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum, Museum of
Contemporary Crafts, and the commercial exhibits at Rockefeller
Center, all in New York City. At the request of the chairman of the
Crystals Section of the Committee for the Brussels Worlds Fair of
1958 and the Department of State, he participated in the conference
held at Chicago on January 14, 1957. On the two following days he
visited the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry to study the
commercial displays and the Chicago Museum of Natural History to
examine exhibit practices employed in the current renovation
program.
During the period from March 26 to April 2, 1957, Dr. Derek J.
Price, consultant to the department of engineering, in his search for
suitable nineteenth-century chemical and physical laboratory ap-
paratus to illustrate the history and principles of these sciences in the
displays now being planned for new exhibit halls, conferred with the
28 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
staffs of the respective departments of the universities of Mississippi,
South Carolina, and North Carolina. On April 15-17, 1957, he ex-
amined the collection of astrolabes, sundials, and other antique instru-
ments now owned by Eugene Hoffman and Miss Margaret Hoffman,
New York City, and studied the Samuel V. Hoffman collection of in-
struments at the Museum of the New York Historical Society.
On May 24, 1957, Dr. Price examined physical apparatus, including
some 20 pieces said to have been made or used by Secretary Joseph
Henry, housed in the Palmer Physical Laboratory of Princeton Uni-
versity. Through the kindness of L. C. Eichner, he was enabled to
see the workshop machinery used by Henry Fitz, one of the earliest
and most important astronomical telescope makers in this country,
and now in the possession of his granddaughter, Mrs. Willard H.
Howell of Southold, L. I. Sufficient material has been preserved to
permit a restoration of the original shop in the proposed Hall of
Physics.
Enquiries relative to the existence of early scientific instruments
were made April 30-—May 12, 1957, by Dr. Price at the University of
Chicago, Museum of Science and Industry, Argonne Atomic Labora-
tories, and the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, and the University of
Wisconsin, Madison, Wis. Among the items of especial interest ex-
amined were Italian and Danish facsimiles of important historic
instruments made for the Century of Progress Exposition (1933-
34) which are now mostly in storage. A continuous search is being
made for historic instruments illustrating the important develop-
ments in experimental physics and in astronomy.
The recent renovation of the exhibition halls of the Wistar Institute
Museum, Philadelphia, was examined by Frank A. Taylor, Assistant
Director, on May 29, 1957. He paid particular attention to the
techniques utilized for improvement of the exhibits.
To locate significant early types of tools as well as information re-
garding their inventors and their manufacturers, Robert S. Wood-
bury, curator of engineering, visited manufacturing firms, institutes,
and museums in Providence, Worcester, Sturbridge, Cambridge, and
New Haven, July 27 to August 1, 1956. A number of individuals in-
terested in the history of tools were consulted, most of whom indi-
cated a desire to assist in the program. Machine tools and machine
shops in the Greenfield Village and the Ford Museum at Dearborn,
Mich., were studied by Curator Woodbury during August 1956.
Inspection of the 1874 machine shop exhibited by the Cincinnati
Milling Machine Co., the machine-tool exhibits of the Chicago
Museum of Science and Industry, and the automated foundry of the
Ford engine plant at Cleveland was undertaken from February 11 to
14, 1957. Plans for the hall of tools in the Museum of History and
SECRETARY’S REPORT 39
Technology were discussed March 25-28 by Mr. Woodbury with
Joseph W. Roe at Southport, Conn., and individuals acquainted with
the Towne Foundation which sponsored the Museum of Peaceful
Arts in New York City. Tentative negotiations were made by Cura-
tor Woodbury April 22-27, 1957, to obtain documentary data and ex-
amples of early grinding and milling machines from the Abrasive
Machine Tool Co., Providence; the Norton Co., Worcester ; the Fellows
Gear Shaper, Springfield; Lamson and Goodnow, Shelburne Falls;
the Hartford Machine Screw Co.; and the Cryder Plumbing Co.,
Newark.
Edwin A. Battison, associate curator of light machinery, was en-
gaged from November 11 to 21, 1956, in the examination and study
of historical horological and business-machine collections in West
Chester, Pa., Clifton, N. J.. New York City, South Kent, Waterbury,
East Hartford, and New London, Conn., and Monson, Crafton,
Milton, Waltham, Auburndale, and Boston, Mass. The period from
February 19 to 22, 1957, was utilized by Mr. Battison to examine and
study the clock, watch, lock, and calculating-machine exhibits and
collections located in the offices of manufacturing firms, individuals,
and institutions in New London and New Haven, Conn. Mr. Bat-
tison visited a number of dealers in New York City in search of old
and unusual clocks and watches for the exhibit series on May 2, 1957,
and examined many early European watches belonging to the Metro-
politan Museum of Art.
Potential donations from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
and Harvard University of electrical equipment were discussed with
responsible officials, November 7-10, 1956, by W. James King, asso-
ciate curator of electricity. He visited the Franklin Institute, Phila-
delphia, December 11-12, 1956, to examine the technique employed in
the display of electrical equipment and studied display techniques
utilized for communication apparatus in the Museum of the Signal
Corps, U. S. Army, at Fort Monmouth, N. J. He also inspected the
technical relics of Edison exhibited in the Edison Laboratory National
Monument, West Orange, N. J., as well as displays in the museums of
New York City, December 26-31, 1956. He held discussions with in-
dividuals familiar with the early history of radio and other electrical
devices, February 10-15, 1957, at Norwalk and Stamford, Conn., and at
Troy and Schenectady, N. Y. At the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute,
Troy, he reviewed several pieces of laboratory equipment for possible
presentation. Consideration was given by the General Electric Re-
search Laboratory, Schenectady, to the transfer of certain outmoded
pieces of equipment for the display series. Further consultations
with the staffs of the departments of mechanical and electrical en-
gineering of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on April 17-18,
30 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
1957, did not reveal the existence of immediately available electrical
power machinery.
At Schenectady, May 14-17, 1957, Mr. King was shown historically
interesting vacuum tubes and also received three magnetrons from the
General Electric Research Laboratory. Dr. Irving Langmuir and
Dr. W. D. Coolidge gave particularly helpful advice. Consultations
were held with officials of the physics and electrical engineering de-
partments of Union College regarding possible donations of apparatus.
From E. F. Hennelly, he obtained Dr. Albert W. Hull’s kenopliotron,
the first radio receiver using 60-cycle power only.
Kenneth M. Perry, associate curator of marine transportation,
visited, August 20-29, 1956, the Marine Museum of Seaman’s Church
Institute, New York City; the Marine Historical Society’s “Mystic
Seaport,” Mystic, Conn.; the Russell Hart Nautical Museum, Cam-
bridge; the Penobscot Marine Museum, Searsport, Maine; the Old
Dartmouth Historical Society and Jonathan Bourne Whaling Mu-
seum, New Bedford; the Whaling Museum of the Nantucket Historical
Society; and the hall of marine transportation in the Franklin In-
stitute, Philadelphia. During the period December 17-19 he inspected
the watercraft collection of the Mariner’s Museum at Newport News,
Va.
Leslie J. Newville, engineering division, examined extensive docu-
mentary material relating to the development of phonographs in the
possession of the Radio Corporation of America at the Camden and
Cherry Hill plants, as well as at the Edison Laboratory National
Monument, West Orange, N. J., from October 17 to 19, 1956.
Philip W. Bishop, curator of industrial cooperation, studied the
principal exhibits in the Franklin Institute relating to the practical
applications of science, November 238-24, 1956. Atthe invitation of the
Bethlehem Steel Co., Messrs. Bishop, Woodbury, Battison, and Perry
visited, on April 16, 1957, the Sparrows Point Plant in Maryland for
a guided tour of the operations of the blast furnace, open hearth shops,
Bessemer converters, slab mill, hot and cold continuous strip mills, and
the galvanizing and tinning plants. Curator Bishop on April 29, 1957,
consulted material in the libraries of the Engineers Societies of New
York and the American Society of Civil Engineers to obtain docu-
mentary data required for the cataloging of the engineering drawings
of Alexander Lyman Holley.
Data and ideas useful in the planning for the graphic arts displays
in the projected exhibit halls of the Museum of History and Tech-
nology were obtained by Jacob Kainen, curator of graphic arts, on a
European trip extending from September 7 to 30, 1956. The museums
he visited featured either science and technology or graphic arts, or
fine and decorative arts. The exhibits were chiefly technological in
Teyler’s Museum, Haarlem; Museum for the History of Physical
SECRETARY'S REPORT 3l
Sciences, Leiden; Deutsches Museum, Munich; Museo Nazionale della
Scienze e della Tecnica, Milan; and Museo di Storia della Scienze,
Florence. He studied exhibit techniques for the display of graphic
arts in the print rooms of the Rijksmuseum and the Gemeente Mu-
seum, Amsterdam; the Print Cabinet of Boymans Museum, Rotter-
dam; the Plantin-Moretus Museum and Prenten Cabinet, Antwerp;
the Cabinet des Estampes, Bibliothéque Royale, Brussels; the Graph-
ische Sammlung, Munich; the Gabinetto dei Desegni e Stampi, Uffizi
Gallery, Florence; and the Gabinetto Nazionale della Stampi, Rome.
Most of these institutions serve as research centers for scholars. In the
museums featuring decorative arts, such as Die Neue Sammlung,
Munich, and the Bavarian National Museum, Munich, contemporary
display techniques were employed.
Edward C. Kendall, associate curator of manufactures and agri-
cultural industries, on March 9-10, 1957, examined the Laucks col-
lection of farm equipment belonging to the York County Historical
Society at Lancaster, Pa., and the Pennsylvania Farm Museum of
Landis Valley with a view of locating duplicate equipment suitable
for display purposes. An old Pennsylvania plow dating from at least
1807 was presented by Daniel G. H. Lesher of Waynesboro, Pa. Ten-
tative arrangements for obtaining duplicate examples of farm equip-
ment in the possession of the New York State Historical Association
at the Farmer’s Museum, Cooperstown, were made by Mr. Kendall,
March 31-April 8, 1957.
Miss Grace L. Rogers, assistant curator of textiles, studied exhibit
techniques and methods of portraying the crafts of primitive man, es-
pecially those of spinning and weaving, at the American Museum of
Natural History and the exhibit on printing fabrics in the Cooper
Union Museum. Effective exhibit techniques were observed in the
display of summer and other fabrics at the Salamandré Museum of
Textiles and at the Museum of Modern Art, New York City. Meth-
ods of cataloging and storage of textiles utilized in the Textile Study
Room of the Metropolitan Museum of Art were particularly instruc-
tive. This visit extended from August 27 to 31, 1956.
At the County Court House, Savannah, Ga., Miss Rogers searched
the circuit court records from 1796 to 1812 for information on the
trials pertaining to Eli Whitney and the cotton gin. Valuable as-
sistance was given by Mrs. Hawes of the Georgia Historical Society.
Miss Rogers also examined the textile collections of the Telfair Acad-
emy of Arts and Science and the Charleston Museum and the facili-
ties for storage of textiles at Colonial Williamsburg, March 11 and
16, 1957, and consulted with Arthur E. Wullschleger, New York City,
on April 11-12, 1957, regarding the assembly of an old Jacquard loom
that he had purchased in France as a gift to the museum.
oo ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
George Griffenhagen, curator of medicine and public health, Sep-
tember 8-15, 1956, discussed dental history exhibits, apothecary shop
restorations, and pharmaceutical antiques with officials of the Charles
H. Land Museum and the Columbia University College of Pharmacy
in New York City, the owners of collections in Bridgeport and
Newton, Conn., the Beverly Historical Society and the Essex Institute,
Salem, Mass., the Albany, N. Y., College of Pharmacy, the Coopers-
town F'armer’s Museum, the Rochester Museum of Arts and Sciences,
and the Buffalo Historical Society. At Jamestown and Colonial
Williamsburg on October 30, 1956, he examined early English delft
and glass drug containers and devoted December 10-12 to a review of
the Ephraim McDowell Medical Museum in Danville, Ky., and to
conferences relative to the apothecary shop restoration planned for
this museum. He held conferences relating to the Hall of Health
with medical historians in New York City, December 26-28, 1956.
As executive Secretary of the Fourth Pan American Congress of
Pharmacy and Biochemistry, Mr. Griffenhagen undertook a 3-week
trip through Latin America, which required stops in Venezuela, Bra-
zil, Peru, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, and Cuba, which afforded
an opportunity to examine collections of pharmaceutical antiques in
Rio de Janeiro and Lima. He studied ceramic drug jars at the School
of Pharmacy Museum, Minneapolis, and the pediatric and medical
antiques at the Canadian Academy of the History of Pharmacy, To-
ronto, April 1-6, 1957.
Mr. Griffenhagen displayed panels to be shown in the new Hall of
Health at the meeting of the American Association of Anat-
omists, Baltimore, April 16-19, 1957. He held consultations relative
to the donation of ceramic apothecary jars by the Bristol-Myers Co.,
the possible participation by Schenley Laboratories in the restora-
tion of “Americana Pharmacy,” and the content of the Hall of Dental
History with representatives of the American Academy of History
of Dentistry, April 30-May 2, 1957, at New York City.
Mendel L. Peterson, acting head curator of history, studied the
military collections at the Chapel Museum, Fort Jay, and Castle
William on Governors Island, as well as the Cooper Union Museum
and the Marine collections of the Seaman’s Bank of Savings, New
York City. At Boston he visited the Old State House, the Frigate
Constitution, the Bunker Hill site, Old North Church, and Old South
Church. This travel extended from April 15 to 17, 1957.
Franklin R. Bruns, Jr., curator of philately and postal history,
consulted donors and potential donors to the national stamp collec-
tions at New York City, October 8-9, 1956, at Princeton, N. J., April
19, Detroit, May 1, and Chicago, May 2, 1957.
To observe European museum practices, exhibition techniques, and
the content of military collections for the advancement of planning
SECRETARY'S REPORT 33
the displays in the Museum of History and Technology, Edgar M.
Howell, acting curator of military history, departed from Wash-
ington on May 3, 1957. In the course of this travel he took extensive
notes and photographs of military collections at Madrid, Spain; Paris,
France; Vienna, Austria; Brussels, Belgium; Amsterdam, The
Netherlands; Oslo, Norway; Stockholm, Sweden; Copenhagen, Den-
mark; London, England; and Edinburgh, Scotland. This detail was
completed June 6, 1957.
Dr. V. Clain-Stefanelli, curator of numismatics, November 22-25,
1957, discussed types of display cases, cabinets for study collections
of coins, medals, and paper currency, and display methods for numis-
matics in New York City with officials of the American Numismatic
Society, the Money Museum of Chase National Bank, and the Metro-
politan Museum of Art. On April 12, 1957, he conferred with Julius
Lauth of the Medallic Art Co. relative to a medal exhibit illustrating
the manufacturing processes, artists’ drawings and models, and en-
gravers’ tools, and with Ernest Moore of the Gorham Co. regarding
production of coins and medals. Potential donations and transfers
were discussed with several numismatists. At Clinton, Conn.,
William Hasse, Comptroller of the New Haven Bank, presented a
number of early New Haven checks and promised help in obtaining
notes, plate proofs, and copper currency plates for the national col-
lections. Sources of information regarding Confederate note issues
were suggested by Philip Chase of Wynnewood, Pa., May 11, 1957.
Mr. Chase decided to present a set of Confederate chemiograph plates.
William L. Brown, chief zoological exhibits specialist, and Norman
H. Deaton examined the skeletons of elephants in the collections of
the American Museum of Natural History, and living animals at the
New York Zoological Park to obtain required measurements and data
for the preparation of an unusually large specimen from Angola for
exhibition.
EXHIBITIONS
A congressional allotment of $601,000 permitted continuation in
1957 of the program for modernization of selected exhibition halls.
Construction work was completed during August 1956 on the Power
Hall, during January 1957 on the American Indian Hall, and during
June 1957 on the Health Hall. Construction bids were received for
the Gems and Minerals Hall in January 1957, the World of Mammals
in May 1957, and the Textile Hall in June 1957. Actual construction
was commenced in these halls approximately one month after the bids
were approved by the Public Buildings Service.
More than 800 guests were present on the night of January 26, 1957,
when Dr. Leonard Carmichael, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion, and Mrs. Arthur M. Greenwood opened the Hall of Everyday
34 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Life in Early America. Home furnishings, tools, crafts, and arts of
early settlers are displayed to illustrate the many elements in the do-
mestic and community life of the period.
Secretary Carmichael and Dr. Melville Bell Grosvenor, President
of the National Geographic Society and grandson of Alexander
Graham Bell, during the morning of March 11, 1957, invited the
visiting public to view the recently completed exhibit produced and
presented by the Bell System and the independent telephone industry
to illustrate the invention and development of the equipment required
for the operation of a modern telephone system.
On March 27, 1957, Dr. Carmichael and Dr. Robert P. Multhauf
formally opened the Hall of Power Machinery. In this hall, moving
engines and models, murals, diagrams, and schematic mechanisms are
displayed to show technological development from primitive wind- and
water-powered machines to the steam and gas turbines.
The recently completed Hall of North American Mammals was
viewed by a number of guests on April 30, 1957, following a brief cere-
mony at which the contributions to mammalogical research by the staff
of the Institution during the preceding 100 years were reviewed by
Dr. Carmichael and Dr. Kellogg. In this hall 12 habitat groups with
scenic mural backgrounds present the larger native mammals of major
importance to the American pioneer.
During the year seven new exhibit units were completed for installa-
tion in the recently constructed North American Indian Hall, in which
life-size ethnic groups will depict the everyday activities and the cul-
tures of the Indians of eastern, central, and northern United States,
Canada, and Alaska, and of the Eskimo tribes of the Arctic regions.
Two Egyptian bull mummies installed in the Hall of Old World
Archeology seem to be especially interesting to school children. Tem-
porary revisions have been made in the North American Archeology
halls.
Detailed plans for the two halls of the World of Mammals were
carried forward by Dr. Henry W. Setzer, associate curator of mam-
mals. Progress was made in the planning for the marine exhibits that
will occupy the large central hall of the west wing of the Natural
History Building.
A series of dioramas of fossil marine life will be shown in the Hall
of Invertebrate Paleontology. Two of the completed dioramas recon-
struct the life present on sea bottoms during the Middle Cambrian
and Permian time. Construction work on the Gem and Mineral Hall
required removal of the materials heretofore exhibited there. A part
of the popular gem collection was placed temporarily on exhibition on
the first floor near the rotunda. Plans for the Hall of Lower Verte-
brates were revised to provide display space for newly acquired mate-
SECRETARY'S REPORT 35
rials. Restoration of a number of fossil fishes and tetrapods has been
completed for the exhibit series.
Work began on the renovation of the graphic-arts exhibits illustrat-
ing the history and methods of fine printmaking. Arrangements were
made with prominent artists for exhibits illustrating the history and
methods of printmaking. A number of important prints by some of
the earlier artists were acquired for the exhibit series. Exhibits on
camera lenses, instantaneous photography, and camera shutters were
installed in the refurbished photography gallery. This gallery is also
utilized as a photographic-print salon for special exhibitions of the
work of present-day photographers.
The new Hall of Health is nearing completion. Plans for the
modernized textile hall have been completed. Improvements have
been made in the automobile hall. A rearrangement of reconditioned
time-keeping instruments has greatly improved the attractiveness of
this exhibit.
Work on an exhibit illustrating the history of the United States
Army was advanced by the installation of weapons, models, and dio-
ramas. Progress was made on the renovation of the exhibit comprised
chiefly of the New England Copp family collections of household
furnishings and personal effects. More than 100 exhibition frames of
stamps were renovated. Special exhibits comprising old campaign
buttons, torchlights, parade costumes, election souvenirs, banners, in-
augural medals and inaugural programs were arranged for display at
the time of the national elections and the presidential inauguration.
Hight exhibition halls had been completed for viewing by the visit-
ing public at the close of the fourth year of the continuing program for
the modernization of the Smithsonian exhibits. Following prepara-
tion of the original narrative scripts and selection of objects by the
curators, the museum’s exhibits designers and preparators, in consulta-
tion with the curators involved, design the hall layouts and construct
the individual exhibits. As many as 50 topics have been presented in
one exhibition hall. That the modernization program has proceeded
smoothly and effectively is shown by the encouraging public response
to these new exhibits.
_ The educational program of volunteer docent guide service con-
ducted with the cooperative assistance of the Junior League of Wash-
ington for the benefit of the schoolchildren of Greater Washington,
was continued with success. The work remains under the immediate
supervision of Frank M. Setzler, head curator of the department of
anthropology, together with Mrs. Robert Nelson and Mrs. Alexander
Chilton, of the Junior League, who helped to organize the program
and made the arrangements with the teachers for the docent service.
36 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
During the past school term 116 tours were conducted, the docents
escorting in all 3,056 children through the exhibit halls of the Amer-
ican Indians and the First Ladies of the White House. Counting
those from last year, a grand total of 7,556 children have thus far
been escorted. The tours were conducted Monday through Saturday
by Mrs. G. E. Brown, Mrs. Alexander Chilton, Mrs. Walter Graves,
Mrs. Edward Lamont, Mrs. William McClure, Mrs. Robert McCor-
mick, Mrs. Peter Macdonald, Mrs. John Manfuso, Mrs. Robert Nelson,
Mrs. Bolling Powell, Mrs. Jay B. L. Reeves, Mrs. John Schoenfeld,
Mrs. E. T. Stirling, Mrs. Richard Wallis, and Mrs. George Wyeth.
The number of schoolchildren thus far accommodated is gratifying,
yet it is only a small percentage of the number who come to the
Museum from all States of the Union to visit the Museum. The
numerous requests for this type of service only accentuate the acute
need for an expanded program. The Junior League of Washington
is enthusiastic about continuing this volunteer service and intends to
expand it next year to include two more exhibition halls that have
recently been opened, Everyday Life in Early America and the
Power Hall.
VISITORS
During the fiscal year 1957 there were 4,076,908 visitors to the
Museum buildings, an increase of 556,802 over the attendance for 1956.
The average daily number of visitors was 11,614. On one day, May
4, 1957, 73,141 visitors were recorded. Attendance records for the
three buildings show the following numbers of visitors: Smithsonian
Building, 791,663; Arts and Industries Building, 2,125,198; and Nat-
ural History Building, 1,160,044. March 1957 was the month of the
largest attendance with 623,502 visitors; April 1957 was the next
largest with 570,425; and August 1956 was third with 551,394. In-
cluded in this total are 370,034 schoolchildren, who arrived in 9,193
separate groups.
BUILDINGS AND EQUIPMENT
The architects of the new building for the Museum of History and
Technology completed their studies for the exterior design of the
building and submitted diagrammatic plans in accordance with the
estimated schedule for their work. The design they favored was
voted the preference of the Joint Congressional Committee on Con-
struction of a Building for a Museum of History and Technology for
the Smithsonian Institution. The Committee so advised the Regents
of the Smithsonian Institution, and the Regents voted unanimously
to adopt the preferred design. Upon the completion of the diagram-
matic plans, the architects and the Public Buildings Service made
SECRETARY’S REPORT 37
detailed estimates of the cost to construct the building. These esti-
mates disclosed that the building, if built within the appropriation,
would be much smaller than the size of the building that had been
determined to be required for the needs of the Smithsonian and upon
which the original estimates for the appropriation were made. This
development was brought to the attention of the Joint Committee and
the Board of Regents. The objective was to determine the size of
the largest operable building that could be built with the appropriated
funds. At the end of the year, the question of determining the basis
on which it would be necessary to proceed was under discussion. Plan-
ning of the interior of the building by the Smithsonian staff continued
during the year. This is described in part under the section on
exhibits.
Planning for the additions to the Natural History Building con-
tinued throughout the year. A committee of Smithsonian staff mem-
bers appointed by the Director reviewed the previous planning, as-
sembled the latest data on the requirements of the scientific and service
divisions, and studied all the proposals for facilities and equipment in
the additions. A thoroughly prepared program of the requirements
will be available for the guidance of the architects. Dr. T. Dale
Stewart is chairman of the committee. Funds for planning the addi-
tions, including the preparation of working drawings and specifica-
tions, were appropriated by the Congress at the turn of the fiscal year.
CHANGES IN ORGANIZATION AND STAFF
After nearly 50 years of government service, of which 42 years and
6 months were with the Smithsonian Institution, Dr. Waldo L.
Schmitt, head curator of zoology, having reached the mandatory re-
tirement age, was placed on the retired roll on June 30, 1957.
Smith H. Oliver, associate curator of land transportation and horol-
ogy, resigned July 13, 1956. On July 21, 1956, Dr. Ernest R. Sohns,
associate curator of grasses since 1951, transferred to the Department
of Defense. Dr. A. C. Smith, curator of phanerogams since 1948,
resigned on August 19, 1956, to accept a position with the National
Science Foundation. Dr. A. R. Loeblich, Jr., associate curator of in-
vertebrate paleontology, resigned June 28, 1957, to join the research
staff of the California Research Corporation.
In the department of zoology, Dr. Ralph E. Crabill, Jr., accepted an
appointment as associate curator of insects on September 18, 1956,
and William R. Taylor as associate curator of fishes on December 3,
1956.
Dr. Saul H. Riesenberg on August 7, 1956, was appointed to the
associate curator vacancy in ethnology.
38 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
The vacancy resulting from the death of Dr. William F. Foshag was
filled July 16, 1956, by the promotion of Dr. G. Arthur Cooper to head
curator of the department of geology.
In the department of botany, Dr. Lyman B. Smith was promoted to
curator of phanerogams effective August 20, 1956, Dr. Richard S.
Cowan was appointed associate curator of phanerogams on May 1,
1957, and Dr. Mason FE. Hale, Jr., as associate curator of cryptogams
on June 17, 1957.
Vacancies in the department of engineering and industries were
filled by the appointment of Dr. Robert S. Woodbury as curator of
mechanical and civil engineering July 9, 1956, of Edwin A. Battison
as associate curator of light machinery July 19, 1956, of Dr. Philip
W. Bishop as curator of industrial cooperation October 1, 1956, and
of Dr. Derek J. Price as consultant on the history of science, particu-
larly scientific instruments January 7, 1957.
Dr. Philip W. Bishop on May 15, 1957, was designated acting head
curator of the department of arts and manufactures as a result of
the reorganization of the former department of engineering and in-
dustries. Dr. Robert P. Multhauf will serve as head curator of the
department of science and technology.
Vacancies in the department of history were filled by the appoint-
ment of Edgar M. Howell on September 10, 1956, as acting curator
of military history and of Dr. Vladimir Clain-Stefanelli on October 1,
1956, as curator of numismatics. Mrs. Anne W. Murray was reas-
signed to serve as assistant curator of civil history July 17, 1956.
Mendel L. Peterson, acting head curator of the former department
of history, became, effective November 13, 1956, head curator of the
department of armed forces history. Dr. Brooke Hindle agreed to
serve as consultant on the planning for the historical exhibits on March
13, 1957.
Robert Sterling Clark, 79, art leader and sportsman, died December
99, 1956, at Williamstown, Mass. He founded the Sterling and Fran-
cine Clark Art Institute, which opened in May 1954 at Williamstown.
Clark, a collaborator in zoology since 1922, engaged Arthur de Carle
Sowerby in 1909 for a 3-year period to accompany him as naturalist
of a scientific and geological expedition into northwestern China, and
subsequently financed the latter’s collecting expeditions for the next
20 years. The zoological specimens were sent to the National Museum.
Stuart Hoffman Perry, 82, associate in mineralogy since April 1,
1940, died at Tucson, Ariz., February 15,1957. Mr. Perry, a generous
donor of meteorites and fossils to the national collections, received the
G. Lawrence Smith medal from the National Academy of Sciences in
1946. He was the author of United States National Museum Bulletin
184, “The Metallography of Meteoric Iron.”
SECRETARY’S REPORT 39
Dr. Adam G. Boving, 87, associate in zoology since 1939, died at his
home in Washington, D. C., on March 16, 1957. Dr. Boving was one
of the pioneers and world authorities on beetle larvae. Until his
retirement in 1945 he had been employed since 1913 as an entomologist
by the U. S. Department of Agriculture.
Robert A. Cushman, 77, assistant custodian of Hymenoptera since
1927, died at Altadena, Calif., on March 27, 1957. Cushman was ap-
pointed entomologist in 1906 in the U. 8. Department of Agriculture
and remained in that organization until he retired for health reasons
in 1944. He published many significant articles dealing with the
classification of parasitic Hymenoptera.
Respectfully submitted.
Remineton Kerxoee, Director.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
451800—58——4
Report on the Bureau of American
Ethnology
Str: I have the honor to submit the following report on the field
researches, office work, and other operations of the Bureau of Ameri-
can Ethnology during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957, conducted
in accordance with the act of Congress of April 10, 1928, as amended
August 22, 1949, which directs the Bureau “to continue independently
or in cooperation anthropological researches among the American
Indians and the natives of lands under the jurisdiction or protection
of the United States and the excavation and preservation of archeo-
logic remains.”
SYSTEMATIC RESEARCHES
Dr. M. W. Stirling, Director of the Bureau, spent the period Febru-
ary 4 to May 10 conducting an archeological reconnaissance in Ecuador
under the joint auspices of the National Geographic Society and the
Smithsonian Institution. Assisting in the work were Mrs. Stirling
and Woodbridge Williams, National Geographic Society photog-
rapher. During the course of the expedition the party saw all the
major archeological collections in the country. They made test exca-
vations at various places on the coast of Esmeraldas and Manabi and
during April 3 to April 17 conducted a stratigraphic excavation at
Tarqui, near Manta. The cultural deposits reached a depth of 15
feet. Although detailed study of the abundant material recovered
remains to be done, the site evidently belongs to the late Formative
Period. Other places of interest visited during the reconnaissance
were the Island of Santa Clara, the Inca ruin of Ingapirca, and the
famous archeological site of La Tolita on the northern coast. On
the east side of the Andes several mound groups were discovered on
the Pastaza River in the vicinity of Puyo and Shell Mera. The work
was accomplished with the permission and cordial cooperation of the
Ecuadorean Casa de la Cultura. The expedition is particularly in-
debted to Carlos Zevallos Menéndez, head of the Casa de la Cultura in
Guayaquil, and to Emilio Estrada of Guayaquil for their whole-
hearted assistance.
Dr. Frank H. H. Roberts, Jr., Associate Director of the Bureau,
devoted most of his time to duties pertaining to the management of
the River Basin Surveys, of which he is Director (see his report,
p. 44). Early in July he made an inspection trip to a field party
40
SECRETARY’S REPORT 41
working in the Lovewell Reservoir area on White Rock Creek in
Kansas, and to parties working in the vicinity of Pierre, S. Dak. He
attended and participated in the sessions of the Fifth International
Congress for Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences held at
Philadelphia, Pa.,in September. During the fall and winter months
he reviewed and revised a number of manuscript reports on the results
of investigations in several areas. In November he visited the field
office and laboratory of the River Basin Surveys at Lincoln, Nebr.,
and presided over one of the sessions of the 14th Conference for
Plains Archeology. At the end of April Dr. Roberts went to Lincoln
to assist in preparing plans for the coming field season and to take part
in a meeting of the Missouri Basin Inter-Agency Committee, which
convened there on May 1. From Lincoln he went to Madison, Wis., to
attend the annual meeting of the Society of American Archeology and
to discuss problems concerning the Inter-Agency Salvage Program
with archeologists present there. He returned to Lincoln later in
May to confer with members of the field staff on the program for sum-
mer fieldwork and attended sessions of the annual meeting of the
American Association of Museums being held there. Early in June
he visited a field party that was excavating sites in the Toronto
Reservoir area on the Verdigris River in southeastern Kansas. At
the close of the fiscal year Dr. Roberts was in the office in Washington.
At the beginning of the fiscal year Dr. Henry B. Collins, anthro-
pologist, was in Europe studying museum collections of Mesolithic
materials for their possible bearing on the Eskimo problem. The
study was supported by a grant from the American Philosophical
Society. The need for such a study arose from the fact that recent
excavations at early Eskimo and pre-Eskimo sites in Alaska, Canada,
and Greenland have revealed a number of implement types similar to
those of the Mesolithic and early Neolithic cultures of Eurasia, lending
weight to previous indications that Eskimo culture was basically of
Mesolithic origin. Prominent among the Arctic sites exhibiting Meso-
lithic affinities is the early Dorset culture site T 1, on Southampton
Island, Hudson Bay, where Dr. Collins excavated in 1954 and 1955.
In London Dr. Collins examined the extensive collection of Meso-
lithic implements from Europe, Africa, India, and Ceylon in storage
at the British Museum (Great Russell Street) as well as the African
materials in the British Museum (Natural History), South Kensing-
ton. At Cambridge he discussed Mesolithic problems with Dr. J. G. D.
Clark and examined the collections, mainly from the early Mesolithic
site of Star Carr, in the University Museum. The Tardenoisian and
Azilian collections in the Musée de Homme, Paris, were made avail-
able through the courtesy of the Director, Dr. Henri V. Vallois. At
the Bernisches Historisches Museum, Bern, Dr. Hans-Georg Bandi
42 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
showed Dr. Collins the materials from a stratified cave near Basel,
where Tardenoisian was found overlying the older Sauveterrien, and
Dr. R. Wyss showed him materials, now in process of publication, from
early Mesolithic sites in the vicinity of Schétz, Canton Luzern. Drs.
E. Vogt and Joseph Speck made available the extensive Mesolithic and
Neolithic study materials in the Schweizer Landesmuseum, Ziirich,
and Museum fiir Urgeschichte, Zug. Other Swiss museums in which
similar collections were studied were the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire,
Fribourg; Museum Schwab in Biel; Heimatmuseum, Rorschach;
Musée d’Art et d’Histoire de Genéve; Historisches Museum, St.
Gallen; Historisches Museum, Baden; Gletschergarten Museum,
Luzern; Musée Archéologique et Historique, Lausanne; and Heimat-
museum, Schétz. The extensive Mesolithic collections from Scandi-
navia in the National Museum, Copenhagen, were examined during
the time Dr. Collins was there as a delegate to the 32d Session of the
International Congress of Americanists. At the Museum of Far East
Antiquities in Stockholm, through the kindness of Drs. Karlgren and
Sommerstrom, he was able to study the rich collection of artifacts
from Mesolithic and Neolithic sites in Inner Mongolia obtained by
the late Dr. Folke Bergman, archeologist of the Sven Hedin Expedi-
tion. The firsthand knowledge of the Mesolithic materials from
Eurasia gained from the museum survey will make possible a more
precise evaluation of the relationship between the Old World Meso-
lithic and the early Eskimo and pre-Eskimo cultures of the American
Arctic. The results will be incorporated in reports describing and
interpreting the Arctic materials, including those excavated on South-
ampton Island in 1954 and 1955.
Preliminary reports on the early Dorset materials from Southamp-
ton Island have been published in the Annual Report of the National
Museum of Canada and in Anthropological Papers of the University
of Alaska. A popular article on the work was published in the Na-
tional Geographic Magazine for November 1956, and a general article
on the same subject appeared in the Smithsonian Annual Report for
1956. An article on Eskimo archeology was prepared for the next
edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Dr. Collins continued to
serve as chairman of the directing committee of Arctic Bibliography,
an annotated and indexed bibliography of Arctic publications in all
fields of science, which is being prepared for the Department of De-
fense by the Arctic Institute of North America. Volume 7 of the
Bibliography was issued by the Government Printing Office in June
1956, and the material for volume 8 will be turned over to the printer
in July.
Dr. William C. Sturtevant, ethnologist, divided his time principally
between continuing his studies of the Florida Seminole (begun before
joining the Bureau) and initiating new studies among the Seneca.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 43
During the year he continued analysis and organization of his Sem-
inole field notes and conducted research on printed, manuscript, and
photographic materials relating to the Seminole in library and
archival repositories in Washington and in the library of the Ameri-
can Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. He continued the work
of revising for publication a manuscript on Seminole medicine and
magic, and prepared for fieldwork in Florida during the next fiscal
year. He nearly completed during the year a long paper on the sup-
posed ethnological resemblances between the southeastern United
States and the West Indies. His short Seminole autobiography, col-
lected in 1950 and 1952, appeared in the journal 7'equesta, this being the
first such document published for any tribe of the southeastern United
States. At the end of January and the beginning of February,
Dr. Sturtevant spent a week in south Florida, where he delivered
a public lecture on “The Indians of South Florida” before the His-
torical Association of South Florida and read a paper on “Accom-
plishments and Opportunities in Florida Indian Ethnology” at the
annual meetings of the Florida Anthropological Society. This trip
enabled Dr. Sturtevant to revisit several Seminole settlements, secur-
ing some new ethnological data.
Another project involved library research on the history and use
of some root foods of the southeastern United States and the West
Indies—chiefly the cycad Zama and manioc. A monograph on the
subject is in preparation, and future fieldwork concentrating on the
same topic is planned for Cuba and perhaps elsewhere. New evidence
has been discovered here relating to supposed prehistoric contacts
between the two regions and to continuity in each area between
aboriginal and European practices with regard to root foods, and on
changes and borrowings during the historic period.
Dr. Sturtevant’s Seneca work concentrated on the use and manu-
facture of wooden masks, and especially on the esthetic attitudes of
the modern Seneca toward these masks. Trips were made to examine
museum collections and consult specialists in Philadelphia, New York,
New Haven, Albany, and Rochester. Dr. Sturtevant spent May and
June doing fieldwork on the Cattaraugus Seneca reservation in west-
ern New York State, with briefer trips to the nearby Allegany Seneca
reservation. No intensive ethnological work has been done on the
Cattaraugus reservation for some 40 years, in marked contrast to
the situation with other Seneca communities. The fieldwork enabled
the documentation of differences between the Cattaraugus Seneca
and other Seneca already described in the literature, especially in the
ceremonial cycle of the non-Christian groups. Considerable informa-
tion was collected on present-day usages and beliefs connected with
the masks. Texts of myths, religious speeches, prayers, and songs
44 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
related to them were recorded in Seneca and transcribed and trans-
lated. Case histories of individuals cured by use of the masks were
also gathered and analyzed. The esthetic attitudes of the Seneca
toward the masks are difficult to distinguish from their feelings about
their religious associations and ceremonial and curative powers, but
through the use of photographs of museum specimens and the exam-
ination with informants of specimens in use in the community and a
collection in the Buffalo Museum of Science, some data on this topic
were obtained. Another subject on which investigations were begun
at both Cattaraugus and Allegany is an interesting pattern of ritual
friendship, by which two or more individuals go through a ceremony
for curative or other reasons, which puts them in a siblinglike rela-
tionship and results in the extension of the appropriate kinship terms
and some aspects of kinship behavior to other members of their fami-
les. This is a form of fictional kinship which has interesting paral-
lels in many other societies; godparenthood and blood-brotherhood
are related phenomena, for example.
Dr. Sturtevant also attended the Fifth International Congress of
Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, in Philadelphia, Septem-
ber 1-9, and the Tenth Conference on Iroquois Research, Red House,
N. Y., October 26-28.
On May 8, 1957, Carl Miller was temporarily transferred from the
River Basin Surveys to the rolls of the Bureau of American Ethnology
for the period ending September 1, in order that he might continue
the excavations begun last year at Russell Cave, Alabama, where very
early Indian remains were found in stratigraphic sequence. He spent
May and June at Russell Cave opening a new trench and making
preparations for converting the excavation into a permanent exhibit.
RIVER BASIN SURVEYS
(Prepared by Franx H. H. Roserts, Jr., Director, from data submitted by staff members)
The River Basin Surveys, a unit of the Bureau of American Eth-
nology, continued its program for salvage archeology throughout the
fiscal year. The investigations were carried on in cooperation with the
National Park Service and the Bureau of Reclamation of the Depart-
ment of the Interior, the Corps of Engineers of the Department of the
Army, and several State and local institutions. Because of an increase
in funds more activities were possible than in the preceding year. Dur-
ing fiscal 1956-57 the work of the River Basin Surveys was supported
by a transfer of $108,500 from the National Park Service to the Smith-
sonian Institution. Of that sum $90,000 was for use in the Missouri
Basin and $18,500 for work in other drainage areas. This was the first
time in several years that Federal money was available for studies by
the River Basin Surveys at projects outside the Missouri Basin. A
SECRETARY’S REPORT 45
grant of $12,000 from the Idaho Power Co., made late in the spring of
1956 for archeological investigations along the Snake River in Idaho-
Oregon in the districts to be flooded by the Brownlee, Oxbow, and
Hells Canyon dams, was available for the field season beginning July 1,
and that, with the new Federal money, gave a total of $30,500 for
several reservoir basins in scattered portions of the country. The
Missouri Basin Project had a carryover of $24,954 on July 1 and that,
with the new appropriation, provided a total of $114,954 for work in
that area. The grand total of funds available for the River Basin
Surveys for 1956-57 was $145,454.
Field investigations during the year consisted of both surveys and
excavations, although the major efforts were directed to the excavation
of sites. On July 1, 1956, six parties were in the field—five engaged
in digging, the sixth doing preliminary survey and testing. Three
of the excavating parties were working in the Oahe Reservoir area in
South Dakota, one was in the Lovewell Reservoir area in Kansas, and
one was opening sites along the Snake River near Robinette, Oreg.
The survey-testing party was devoting its entire attention to the Big
Bend Reservoir area in South Dakota. Shortly after the first of July
another party proceeded to a large site in the Oahe Reservoir area, also
in South Dakota, and began a program of mapping and testing at the
remains of the largest known earth-lodge village on the upper Missouri
River. All these parties remained in the field until September. Late
in August a party proceeded to the Coralville Reservoir on the Iowa
River in Iowa and carried on a series of excavations in five sites, work-
ing until mid-October. A survey-testing party worked in the Toronto
Reservoir area in Kansas from September 22 to October 28. Late in
October excavations were started at a large mound in the Hartwell
Reservoir area on the Savannah River in Georgia. They were con-
tinued until March, when the study of the mound was completed.
During March and April a preliminary survey was made of the
Dardanelle Reservoir area on the Arkansas River in Arkansas. Dur-
ing April another party made a preliminary survey of the Warrior
Lock and Dam on the Black Warrior River in Alabama. On May
15 an excavating party proceeded to the Toronto Reservoir on the
Verdigris River in Kansas, and on June 29 it completed the investiga-
tions in that area. Early in June four excavating parties started
digging at sites in the Oahe Reservoir area in South Dakota and were
continuing their investigations at the end of the fiscal year. At the
same time an additional four field parties moved into the Big Bend
Reservoir basin in South Dakota and began excavating sites in that
area. ‘They were continuing their operations at the end of the year.
Late in June a survey-testing party moved to the Big Bend area and
was Just beginning its work on June 29. During the fiscal year nine
46 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
parties from cooperating institutions also conducted excavations in
the Missouri Basin. Six of them worked in the Oahe Reservoir area,
one in the Glendo Reservoir area in Wyoming, one at the Tuttle
Creek Reservoir in Kansas, and one at the Pomme de Terre Reservoir
in Missouri. Three of the parties completed their projects during the
field season of 1956 and the remaining six were continuing their 1957
programs at the end of the fiscal year.
By June 80, 1956, reservoir areas where archeological surveys had
been made or excavations carried on since the start of actual fieldwork
by the River Basin Surveys in the summer of 1946 totaled 247 in 28
States. In addition, two lock projects and four canal areas had also
been examined. Asa result of the surveys 4,622 sites had been located
and recorded, and of that number 935 have been recommended for
examination or limited testing. In using the term “excavation,” the
complete uncovering of a site is not indicated. Rather it implies
digging only about 10 percent of the site. Though many of the
locations are of sufficient significance to warrant complete excavation,
the needs of the Salvage Program are such that it is not possible to
make so extensive an investigation at any one location. Preliminary
appraisal reports have been completed for all the reservoir areas sur-
veyed with the exception of one that was done late in the year, and
that report is well under way. During the course of the year two
such reports were completed and at the end of the year were being
mimeographed for distribution to the agencies cooperating in the
Inter-Agency Archeological Salvage Program. Since the start of
the program 183 such reports have been distributed. In several cases
information obtained from a number of reservoir projects falling
within a single basin or subbasin have been combined in a single report,
and for that reason there is a considerable difference between the num-
ber of reservoirs surveyed and that of the reports issued.
At the end of the fiscal year 350 sites in 47 reservoir basins located
in 18 different States had been either partially or extensively dug.
In some of the reservoir areas only a single site was excavated, while
in others a whole series was studied. At least one example of each
type of site recorded by the preliminary surveys had been investi-
gated. In the case of some of the larger and more complex types
of village remains, it has been necessary to dig a number of some-
what similar sites in order to obtain full information concerning
that phase of aboriginal culture. Reports on the results obtained in
certain of the excavations have appeared in the Smithsonian Mis-
cellaneous Collections, in Bulletins of the Bureau of American
Ethnology, and in various scientific journals. During the year River
Basin Surveys Papers 9-14, which are to be Bulletin 169 of the Bu-
reau of American Ethnology, were sent to the printer. The six
papers consist of three pertaining to investigations in the Missouri
SECRETARY’S REPORT 47
Basin, one to a site in the Allatoona Reservoir area in Georgia, and
two to the Jim Woodruff Reservoir area, Georgia-Florida. Three
detailed technical reports on the results of earlier work were com-
pleted during the year and are ready to submit to the editors for
publication.
The distribution of the reservoir projects that have been surveyed
for archeological remains was as follows on June 30, 1957: Alabama,
2; Arkansas, 1; California, 20; Colorado, 24; Georgia, 5; Idaho, 11;
Illinois, 2; Kansas, 10; Kentucky, 2; Louisiana, 2; Minnesota, 1;
Mississippi, 1; Montana, 15; Nebraska, 28; New Mexico, 1; North
Dakota, 13; Ohio, 2; Oklahoma, 7; Oregon, 27; Pennsylvania, 2;
South Dakota, 10; Tennessee, 4; Texas, 19; Virginia, 2; Washington,
11; West Virginia, 2; and Wyoming, 22.
Excavations have been made or were under way in reservoir basins
in California, 5; Colorado, 1; Georgia, 5; Kansas, 5; Montana, 1;
Nebraska, 1; New Mexico, 1; North Dakota, 4; Oklahoma, 2; Oregon,
4; South Carolina, 1; South Dakota, 4; Texas, 7; Virginia, 1; Wash-
ington, 4; West Virginia, 1; and Wyoming, 2. Only the work of
the River Basin Surveys or that which was in direct cooperation
between the Surveys and local institutions is included in the preced-
ing figures. Investigations carried on under agreements between the
National Park Service and State and local institutions have not been
included because complete information about them is not available.
As in previous years, helpful cooperation in carrying on the River
Basin Surveys program was received from the National Park Service,
the Bureau of Reclamation, the Corps of Engineers, and various
State and local institutions. The Corps of Engineers provided
transportation and guides for the work in two reservoir areas.
Temporary headquarters and living accommodations were made
available at several projects. The construction agency in several in-
stances made mechanical equipment available to assist in heavy ex-
cavations. The University of Washington at Seattle provided a base
of operations and laboratory space for the Snake River party, while
the University of Georgia furnished similar accommodations for the
party working at the Hartwell Reservoir in Georgia. The field
personnel of all the agencies was particularly helpful to the party
leaders from the River Basin Surveys and expedited their activities
in numerous ways. The National Park Service continued to serve
as the liaison between the various agencies both in Washington and
in the field. It also prepared the estimates and justifications needed
to procure funds to support the Salvage Program. Throughout all
the Park Service regions the regional directors and members of their
staffs cooperated whole-heartedly in the program.
The main office in Washington continued general supervision of
the program, while the field headquarters and laboratory at Lincoln,
48 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Nebr., were responsible for the activities in the Missouri Basin and in
addition provided the base of operations for several of the parties
working in adjacent areas. The materials collected by excavating
parties in the Missouri Basin as well as those from the Snake River
and reservoir areas in southeastern Kansas and in Arkansas were
processed at the Lincoln laboratory.
Washington office.—The main headquarters of the River Basin Sur-
veys continued throughout the year under the direction of Dr. Frank
H. H. Roberts, Jr. Carl F. Miller, archeologist, was based at that
office and from time to time assisted the Director in some of the gen-
eral administrative problems. In October Joseph R. Caldwell was
appointed as temporary archeologist to carry on the project at the
Hartwell Reservoir in Georgia, with field headquarters at the Uni-
versity of Georgia in Athens. His work was completed and his ap-
pointment terminated on April 6, 1957. Dr. Robert E. Greengo
joined the staff as an archeologist on a temporary appointment March
6 for the purpose of making the preliminary survey at the Dardanelle
Reservoir project in Arkansas. Dr. Greengo proceeded from Wash-
ington to Lincoln, Nebr., where he obtained the necessary equipment
for his fieldwork and went from there to Arkansas. The general ad-
ministration of his field investigation was from the Lincoln office.
Upon the completion of the survey, Dr. Greengo returned to Lincoln
where he prepared his report. He subsequently returned to Wash-
ington, and his employment was terminated on May 4. From the be-
ginning of the fiscal year until the latter part of August William M.
Bass served as a temporary physical anthropologist studying the
skeletal material collected by various parties in the Missouri Basin.
He returned to duty on June 3 and resumed his work on the bones.
He was occupied with that task at the end of the fiscal year. Al-
though technically a member of the staff of the Washington office, Dr.
James H. Howard, archeologist, reported to the Lincoln office on
May 13 and worked under its supervision in the Toronto Reservoir
area in Kansas. His work there was completed by the end of the
year, and it was contemplated that he would be shifted to the Missouri
Basin Project. Dr. Warren W. Caldwell, who was in charge of the
Snake River field party at the beginning of the fiscal year, was shifted
by the Washington office to the Missouri Basin Project in August.
His place for the remainder of the field season was taken by George L.
Coale, who served as a temporary archeologist until December 15.
After being appointed a member of the regular Missouri Basin staff,
Dr. Caldwell was detailed to the Coralville project in Iowa for the
period from August 28 to October 18. He subsequently returned to
the Lincoln headquarters, and all his later activities were in connec-
tion with the Missouri Basin Project,
SECRETARY’S REPORT 49
At the beginning of the fiscal year Mr. Miller was in charge of an
excavating party in the Oahe Reservoir area, and his activities there
are described in the section of this report pertaining to the Missouri
Basin. After he returned to Washington in September, he prepared
a brief report on the results of the work in South Dakota and then
resumed writing on his unfinished report concerning investigations
previously made at the John H. Kerr (Buggs Island) Reservoir, Va.
In January he selected material from the collections made at the Clark
Hill Reservoir in Georgia and prepared an exhibit to be sent, to the
office of the Corps of Engineers at the Clark Hill Dam in Georgia.
During the fall and winter months Mr. Miller gave talks before a
number of societies and school groups in the Washington area about
the work that he had done at Russell Cave in Alabama while on detail
to the regular Bureau of American Ethnology staff in the closing
months of the previous fiscal year. Early in April he left for the
Warrior Lock and Dam Project area on the Black Warrior River in
Alabama and proceeded to carry on a preliminary survey to determine
if archeological materials would be involved in the construction at
that locality. He completed the survey on April 26, reporting that
no significant materials would be lost as a result of that project. On
April 27 Mr. Miller proceeded to Little Rock, Ark., for the purpose of
making a preliminary survey of the Greers Ferry Reservoir area, but
because of heavy rains and exceptionally high water in the area it was
necessary to postpone that investigation indefinitely. From Little
Rock he went to South Pittsburg, Tenn., to resume work at Russell
Cave. On May 6 he was again transferred from the River Basin
Surveys staff to the Bureau of American Ethnology for the period of
the Russell Cave investigation and at the end of the fiscal year was
still in that status. During the month of May Mr. Miller gave talks
on his work at Oak Ridge, Tenn., and at Birmingham, Ala. In June
he participated in a special televised educational program and spoke
before several societies in Tennessee and Alabama.
Alabama.—A survey of the Warrior Lock and Dam Project was
made during April. No sites of importance were found in the area
to be flooded. However, a number of significant sites which merit
study under other than salvage auspices were discovered adjacent to
the pool area.
Arkansas —From March 14 to April 20 a preliminary survey was
made of the Dardanelle Reservoir area on the Arkansas River. Fifty-
two sites were located and recorded and limited testing was recom-
mended for 23 of them. A preliminary appraisal report was com-
pleted in May. A proposed survey of the Greers Ferry Reservoir
area had to be postponed because of high waters.
Georgia.—During the period October 25, 1956, to March 23, 1957,
in the Hartwell Reservoir area on the Savannah River, a large mound
50 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
was excavated at the site of the lower Cherokee town of Tugalo near
Toccoa. There are several historical references to the location dating
back to about 1715. The village area at the site had previously been
explored, but the mound had not been touched. The mound excava-
tions uncovered four superimposed pottery dumps representing a
clear continuity from historic Cherokee well back into prehistoric
Cherokee. This represents the first known sequence within prehis-
toric Cherokee materials. Below the Cherokee deposits with a break
in continuity was a burned mound and a sequence extending back-
ward through four stages to the beginning of the mound construc-
tion. The remains of earth-lodge temples were found on three of
the levels and the traces of another type structure were uncovered on
the fourth or lowest level. The latter rested on deposits indicating
another break in continuity beneath which there was evidence of
occupation by a group that has been called Late Middle Creek cul-
ture which is believed to date about A. D. 500. The ceramic material
obtained from the excavations provides one of the longest pottery se-
quences ever found in the Georgia area. The work at the Tugalo
Mound was a cooperative project in that labor for the digging was
provided by the Georgia Historical Commission and a vehicle for
transportation and equipment needed in the investigations was sup-
plied by the Department of Anthropology of the University of
Georgia.
Zowa.—During the period August 28 to October 18 an excavating
party from the River Basin Surveys working in the Coralville Reser-
voir area completely excavated one rock shelter and tested two others.
Three open occupation sites were dug and three others tested. Two
mounds were also excavated. The materials obtained demonstrate
that the peoples living there had a basic Woodland Culture with some
later Mississippi traits. The relationship was predominently toward
the East, but some influences from the Plains were in evidence.
Kansas.—During September and October a survey-testing party
operated in the Toronto Reservoir area on the Verdigris River in
southeastern Kansas. As a result of its investigations, seven sites
were recommended for partial excavation or testing. On May 15 an
excavating party proceeded to the area and by the end of the fiscal
year had dug in eight sites, one of which was found by the excavating
party and had not previously been reported. Six of the sites studied
were occupation areas in the open and the other two were rock shel-
ters. The materials obtained there indicate several cultural relation-
ships. There is evidence for Upper Republican, Keith-Focus Wood-
land, Archaic, and Kansas City Hopewell. The full significance of
the information and specimens obtained will not be apparent until
detailed studies have been made in the laboratory. No additional
work will be required at the Toronto Reservoir.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 51
Missouri Basin—The Missouri Basin Project continued to operate
throughout the year from the field headquarters and laboratory at
1517 O Street, Lincoln, Nebr. Dr. Robert L. Stephenson served as
chief of the project throughout the year. Activities included work
on all four phases of the Salvage Program: (1) Survey, (2) excava-
tion, (3) analysis, and (4) reporting. The first two phases were
emphasized through the summer months and the second two during
fall and winter.
At the beginning of the fiscal year the staff, in addition to the chief,
consisted of two permanent archeologists, two archeologists detailed
to the project from the Washington office, three temporary field as-
sistants, one field and laboratory assistant, one administrative assist-
ant, one museum aide, one photographer, one clerk-stenographer, and
one half-time records clerk. There were 28 temporary laborers in the
employ of the field parties. At the end of the 1956 field season all
temporary employees, with the exception of one field assistant and a
survey party chief, were terminated. The men detailed to the project
for the season returned to their regular duties in Washington in Sep-
tember, and the temporary field assistant and survey party chief were
terminated in January. During the year two permanent archeolo-
gists were added to the staff and four temporary archeologists were
employed for the 1957 field season. In June one archeologist and one
field assistant were again detailed from Washington for work in the
field. At the Lincoln office one clerk-typist, one part-time draftsman,
one laboratory assistant, and one part-time laboratory assistant were
appointed. At the end of the year there were 76 temporary laborers
employed by the field parties.
During the year 16 River Basin Surveys field parties were active
within the Missouri Basin, while 4 others working in reservoirs out-
side the Basin also operated from the Project office in Lincoln. Of
the 16 Missouri Basin parties, 1 was at work in July, August, and
September in the Big Bend Reservoir area, South Dakota, and 5
parties were at work there in June. One party was at work in the
Fort Randall Reservoir for a brief time in September. Four parties
worked in the Oahe Reservoir in July and August and four other
parties were there in June; one field party conducted excavations in
the Lovewell Reservoir in Kansas in July and August. The four
parties operating outside the Missouri Basin were concerned with the
Coralville Reservoir in Iowa, the Toronto Reservoir in Kansas, and
the Dardanelle Reservoir in Arkansas.
Other fieldwork in the Missouri Basin during the year included
nine field parties from State institutions working under agreements
with the National Park Service and in cooperation with the Smith-
sonian Institution. Parties from the Universities of South Dakota
and Wisconsin and from the North Dakota State Historical Society
52 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
were in the field in the July—October period. Parties from the Uni-
versities of South Dakota, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, Wyoming, and
the State Historical Society of North Dakota were in the field in the
May-June period.
A River Basin Surveys party, directed by Robert W. Neuman, was
in the field at the beginning of the fiscal year and completed 10 weeks
of excavation in four sites along White Rock Creek in the Lovewell
Reservoir area in Jewell County, Kans. Three of the sites were
fairly extensive but did not yield much material. The artifacts
found suggest that they may belong to the White Rock Aspect. The
latter is so poorly known that the evidence recovered from them
should, even though scanty, clarify the picture greatly. The fourth
site was a moderate-sized burial mound of the “Middle Woodland”
period. Unfortunately it had been partially destroyed in earlier
years by pot-hunting activity. The profile and structure of the
mound were, however, readily discernible, and enough material was
recovered to identify readily its cultural relationship. Fragments
of human and other bones were recovered along with cord-marked
potsherds and other artifacts, including two small shell gorgets. No
further work is anticipated for the area to be flooded by the waters
of the Lovewell Reservoir.
On September 21 and 22 further investigations were made im-
mediately adjacent to the Oldham Site in the Fort Randall Reservoir
in South Dakota in an area in which burials and artifacts had been
exposed by wave action and lowering of the reservoir. This site had
been partially excavated in previous years, and it was hoped that the
recent return there would produce additional important evidence.
Furthermore there was an opportunity to determine whether a site
once flooded could yield worthwhile archeological information if the
water receded and left it exposed. Unfortunately, this work produced
no new evidence concerning the occupations of the site, even though
some artifacts were collected. The ground, though 10 feet above the
water level, was too saturated and disturbed to provide any useful
information about relationships to the house features, village, or other
previously collected material. The work demonstrated conclusively
that sites must be dug before they are flooded.
A survey-testing party, directed by Harold A. Huscher, at the
beginning of the fiscal year was conducting an intensive survey of the
Big Bend Reservoir area, which is situated between the upper reaches
of the Fort Randall Reservoir and the Oahe Dam, on the Missouri
River, in central South Dakota. The party of three was in the field
for 15 weeks and located, visited, and recorded 129 new archeological
sites and revisited 26 previously known. Detailed field maps were
made of approximately one-quarter of these sites and about one-third
of them were tested. Many of them are large and productive and
SECRETARY’S REPORT 53
material from them should fill in some of the gaps in present knowledge
of the prehistory of the area, particularly for the period from about
A. D. 1000 to 1700.
Several military and trading posts pertaining to the early 19th
century were also located in the area. Of particular interest is a site
that may belong to the period of the Spanish-Colonial post of Regis
Loisel (ca. 1802-03). Several interesting prehistoric sites appear to
have had rectangular earth lodges arranged in rows, much the same
as at the Huff site in North Dakota. Among other significant mani-
festations are a boulder efligy site, “Middle Woodland” sites, and sites
that appear to be nonceramic.
At the beginning of the 1957 field season in mid-June, there were
five field parties in the Big Bend Reservoir area. G. Hubert Smith
and a party of nine were at work at the end of the fiscal year excavating
the 19th-century historic trading post of white origin known as Fort
Defiance (or alternatively Fort Bouis). This same party anticipates
investigations at two other 19th-century historic sites in the area when
it has completed the season’s work at Fort Defiance-Bouis. Dr.
Warren W. Caldwell and a party of nine at the end of the fiscal year
were excavating the remains of an earth-lodge village which appears
to have had three occupations, including a Middle Woodland compo-
nent. Robert W. Neuman and a party of 10 were excavating a series
of three linked earth-lodge village sites on the left bank of the Missouri
River in the vicinity of Old Fort Thompson. William N. Irving and
a party of nine were also working on the left bank of the Missouri
River in the vicinity of Old Fort Thompson. They were starting test
excavations in a series of 14 sites and will make a map of each village
pattern. Harold A. Huscher and a party of two were preparing to
start reconnaissance and mapping of sites and scouting for new sites
in the entire area of the Big Bend Reservoir at the end of the fiscal
year. None of the five parties had been in the field long enough
by the end of the fiscal year to provide specific reports of results.
A River Basin Surveys party, directed by G. Hubert Smith, was in
the field in the Oahe Reservoir area at the beginning of the fiscal year
and completed nine weeks of excavation at a late historic trading-post
site near the Oahe Dam on July 31. This party excavated the stockade
outline and the remnants of several interior structures, and recovered
a considerable amount of object material representing the period about
1860. The site is believed to be that of Fort Pierre II, which was oc-
cupied after the abandonment of Fort Pierre I in 1858. Structural
remains were found but a few inches below the plow zone, and in some
instances much had been destroyed by plowing over the years. A
road patrol was used for clearing away the overburden and very
satisfactorily exposed the stockade and other structural features. The
stockade proved to be approximately 220 feet square. Other struc-
54. ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
tural features included a warehouse, a cellar, and a dwelling. Among
the objects recovered were two coins dated 1857, glass beads, a religious
medallion, several small catlinite balls, and a great mass of hand-
wrought iron. No further work is contemplated at that site.
A second River Basin Surveys party in the Oahe Reservoir area,
directed by Dr. Waldo R. Wedel, was in the field at the beginning of
the fiscal year and completed 12 weeks of digging on August 25. This
party was continuing excavations begun in previous years at the
Cheyenne River site at the mouth of the Cheyenne River. Three
definite occupations of the site were identified. The earliest was a
rectangular-house component. The middle one was a circular-house
component, and the final occupation was protohistoric Arikara, with
circular houses. An encircling stockade and defensive ditch were dis-
covered and excavated, but the specific occupation to which it belonged
was not definitely determined. It presumably belonged to one of the
two early occupations. <A large burial area was excavated and the
remains of over 50 individuals were recovered. The burials, in small
pits placed close together, were flexed and in most cases had been
covered with poles or wooden slabs. The burials almost certainly were
from the Arikara occupation. Some artifacts, including pottery and
a fine catlinite pipe, were recovered from the graves. The 1956
season’s excavations at the Cheyenne River site completed the investi-
gations planned for that location.
A third River Basin Surveys party in the Oahe Reservoir area,
directed by Carl F. Miller, was in the field at the beginning of the fiscal
year and completed 9 weeks of digging on August 24. This party of
nine began, and brought to satisfactory completion, the excavation of
the Hosterman site on the Missouri River near Whitlocks Crossing,
S. Dak. At that site evidence was found of a stockade consisting of a
double row of posts. Several refuse pits, cache pits, and other similar
features were excavated, including pits containing large sections of
articulated bison bones. The latter appear to have been slaughtering
areas. House structures presented a difficult problem as post holes
were dim and difficult to identify. One structure was fairly clear in its
outline, but the entrance was not located. Artifacts were moderately
abundant and suggest that a single occupation, perhaps of short dura-
tion, will be established for the site when analysis of the material has
been completed. No further work is contemplated at that location.
The fourth River Basin Surveys party in the Oahe Reservoir area,
directed by Dr. Robert L. Stephenson, began work on July 2 and com-
pleted 6 weeks in the field on August 10. This party of 10 conducted
a testing operation at the Sully site some 20 miles above Pierre on the
left bank of the Missouri River. The site is that of the largest known
Secretary’s Report, 1957 PLATE 1
ia) ac
&
50
“¢ ,
A %
1. Excavating in rock shelter in the Coralville Reservoir area.
2. Tracing the locations of buildings and the stockade at the site of Fort Pierre II.
{ Secretary's Report, 1957
SCM
1. Two sides of catlinite plaque with engraved decorations. The plaque was found in the
bottom of a cache pit at the Sully site, in the Oahe Reservoir area, near Pierre, S. Dak.
we
sare
2. Portion of burial area at the Cheyenne village site.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 55
earth-lodge village on the river, and two objectives were accomplished
during the season. First, a detailed map was made of the area and
the site itself was staked off in 100-foot blocks. Second, a 5-foot-
square test was excavated at each 100-foot stake along the north, south,
east, and west base lines. In addition, two test trenches were dug and
a house quadrant was excavated. The testing procedure was to obtain
both horizontal and vertical distribution patterns of specimens and
features over the entire site. From the analysis of such distributions,
it was possible to plan for the recovery of a maximum amount of in-
formation about the site as a whole from a minimum amount of excava-
tion in the 1957 season. The site is nearly 4,000 feet long and 1,500
feet wide and may contain the remains of as many as 400 house
structures. More than half that number are identifiable on the surface
as unquestionable structures, and an almost equal number appear as
possible house structures. They range from 25 feet to over 60 feet in
diameter. What were probably four ceremonial lodges are each almost
90 feet in diameter. There is clear stratigraphy in the site, with struc-
tures underlying a sterile zone, which in turn underlies a refuse heap.
Cache pits are abundant and range from small pocket caches to large
bell-shaped pits 7 feet deep and of equal diameter. Artifact material
is abundant, and pottery sherds found there suggest at least three, and
probably four, occupations. An outstanding specimen, a catlinite
plaque with animal designs engraved on both sides, was found in one
cache pit. Two certain burial areas, possibly several others, were
located but not tested. No fortification ditch or stockade was observed.
Cooperating institutions in the Oahe Reservoir area at the beginning
of the fiscal year included a party from the University of South
Dakota directed by Roscoe Wilmeth, a party from the University of
Wisconsin directed by Dr. David A. Baerreis, and a party from the
State Historical Society of North Dakota directed by Alan R.
Woolworth.
At the start of the 1957 field season in mid-June, there were four
River Basin Surveys parties in the Oahe Reservoir area. Dr. Waldo
R. Wedel, again detailed to the project by the United States National
Museum, and a party of 10 were excavating the Black Widow site and
testing six others nearby in the Fort Bennett area on the right bank
of the Missouri River. The Black Widow site was sampled in 1952
by a River Basin Surveys party. Since the material from it suggested
affiliations with the site completed by Dr. Wedel in 1956, an extensive
excavation was deemed advisable. The adjacent sites to be tested dur-
ing the 1957 season seem to be a part of the same complex. . Donald
D. Hartle and a party of eight were making test excavations in a series
of 30 sites on the right bank of the Missouri River in the Fort Bennett
451800—58——_5
56 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
area at the end of the fiscal year. A house or two and several cache
pits will be dug in each, and a map made of each village plan and site
location. Dr. Robert L. Stephenson and a party of 25 were at work
at the end of the fiscal year at the Sully site where preliminary studies
were made the previous season. The major effort will be the excava-
tion of that site, but seven other small nearby sites that may be related
to it will be tested. Charles H. McNutt and a party of eight were
making test excavations at 14 sites on the left bank of the Missouri
River in the general vicinity of Old Fort Sully. They were excavat-
ing a house or two and several cache pits in each and making a map
of the village plan and site location. None of these parties had been
in the field long enough, at the end of the fiscal year, to report any
specific results.
In May and June Dr. Theodore E. White, National Park Service
geologist at Dinosaur National Monument, was detailed to the Mis-
souri Basin Project for a period of 6 weeks. During that time Dr.
White made an osteological analysis, in the Missouri Basin Project
laboratory, of all of the unworked animal bones from the sites exca-
vated over the past four field seasons by the Smithsonian Institution’s
River Basin Surveys field parties. Work was also done on bones col-
lected by field parties of several of the cooperating institutions. ‘This
included. over 800,000 individual bones from 63 archeological sites in
eight reservoir areas. Dr. White selected numerous specimens for the
Missouri Basin Project’s comparative collection and set aside others
that will be sent to the United States National Museum for further
study or for exhibit purposes. The bulk of the identified bone mate-
rials remaining was transferred to the Nebraska State Museum. Dr.
White amassed voluminous notes on this bone material for use in
continuing his series of reports on “Butchering Techniques of Aborigi-
nal Peoples.” Material was gathered for at least eight additional
papers in this series. Seven have already been published. One of the
particularly interesting results of this osteological analysis was the
identification of the remains of a number of unusually large dogs in
the canid material.
During the time the archeologists were not in the field, they were
engaged in analyses of their materials and in laboratory and library
research. They also prepared manuscripts of technical scientific re-
ports and wrote articles and papers of a more popular nature. The
laboratory and office staff devoted its time to processing specimen ma-
terials for study, photographing specimens, preparing specimen rec-
ords, and typing and filing records and manuscript materials. The
accomplishments of the laboratory and office staff are listed in the
following tables.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 57
Tasie 1.—Specimens processed July 1, 1956, through June 30, 1957
Number Catalog | Number of
Reservoir of numbers | specimens
sites assigned | processed
“i Lon 610 Se TRS Eee ae ee i ee Se Ee ee be 114 3, 336 24, 602
oe En ee ae ey eee ee or 9 878 3, 088
lWtncamenlcs se = ccc t enema 51 1,191 1, 384
1 SIE RES SaY0 (lt ea ae gS 0 oe ae a 5 157 2, 004
OSS ee rT 3 10 11
RRR EIC Me ate ne ee a ee 8 2,198 5, 689
Seeaiteriae) te Sey eI ete) Oe see Ee 20 9, 303 140, 630
SIGNONUOM = <2 ie es ae ee en eo cial 2s 35 536 862
Sires MOU di TeSCLVOWsess = = a= 5 81 679
250 17, 690 178, 949
4 23 57
Ea Ae ata aN ea alls) 179, 006
As of June 30, 1957, the Missouri Basin Project had cataloged
749,244 specimens from 1,725 numbered sites and 50 collections not
assigned site numbers.
Additional specimen transfers were made, all to the United States
National Museum, as follows: Human skeletal remains from 3 sites
in the Oahe Reservoir area; bird bone from 23 sites in 5 reservoirs;
fish bone from 9 sites in 3 reservoirs; and unworked shell from 2 sites
in 2 reservoirs.
TABLE 2.—Kecord materials processed
RENEXECOPICSHOLANCCOTOS!* S225 oe es et 11, 879
Ehotooraphics NefaAtives simade@s os. ne 1, 984
PAOtOeTADNICHOLINGS NAG Gee ste ese ow hee ee 7, 945
Photogcraphie prints mounted and filed®— 22-22" = 2 ew eee ee 3, 990
Platedayoutsi made forimanuscriptss2e = 2 sea ae eee ee 10
Transparenciessmounted sin: glasses shes. =— es ee eee eae 959
Cartorcraphichtracings and revisions: = 222 2 ee ee ee eee 70
During October 25-27 the annual meetings of the Mountain-Plain
Historical Association were held in Lincoln and the Missouri Basin
Project staff served as one of the local host organizations. As a pro-
gramed part of the meetings the group was invited to tour the facili-
ties at the Project laboratory. During the Thanksgiving weekend
members of the staff participated in the 14th Plains Conference for
Archeology, held in Lincoln. On April 27 members of the staff par-
ticipated in the annual meeting of the Nebraska Academy of Sci-
ences. May 2, as a programed part of the meetings of the Missouri
Basin Inter-Agency Committee being held in Lincoln, the group was
given a conducted tour of the Missouri Basin Project facilities.
58 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
There were over 30 members who visited the laboratory. During the
annual meeting of the American Association of Museums held in
Lincoln, May 21-25, the Missouri Basin Project served as one of the
local host organizations. Staff members participated throughout
the meetings.
Dr. Robert L. Stephenson, chief, when not in charge of field parties,
devoted most of his time to managing the office and laboratory in
Lincoln and preparing plans for the 1957 summer field season. He
spent some time working on a summary report of the Missouri Basin
Salvage Program for the calendar years 1952-55 and wrote several
short papers for presentation before scientific groups. In January
he attended and participated in the annual meeting of the Committee
for the Recovery of Archeological Remains held in Washington, D. C.
On April 9 he spoke before the Kansas City Archeological Society
on the “Progress of Salvage Archeology in the Missouri Basin.” On
April 12 he went to Mitchell, S. Dak., where he was moderator for
the afternoon session of the annual meeting of the South Dakota So-
cial Sciences Association. The main topic under consideration was
“South Dakota Prehistory” and at the end of the session Dr. Stephen-
son summarized the discussions and emphasized the needs of salvage
archeology in the area. He served as chairman of the Anthropologi-
cal Section of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences at its annual meeting
held in Lincoln on April 27. At that time he also presented a paper
on “Emerging Problems in Missouri Basin Archeology.” On May 1,
by special invitation, he presented a paper, “How Has Archeology
Contributed to Our Historical Knowledge?” before one of the ses-
sions of the Missouri Basin Inter-Agency Committee which was
meeting in Lincoln. When the annual meeting of the American Asso-
ciation of Museums was held in Lincoln May 21-25, Dr. Stephenson
served as a co-host and also was chairman for a program of Indian
dances presented at an evening gathering. At one of the regular
sessions, he spoke on the subject “Archeological Salvage Field Trips.”
Dr. Warren W. Caldwell, archeologist, joined the staff of the
Missouri Basin Project on August 22 and, as previously mentioned,
was detailed for work at the Coralville Reservoir in Iowa. During
the fall and winter months after his return from the field, he prepared
a report on the work he had done along the Snake River just prior to
joining the Missouri Basin Project, and completed a report on the
results of his investigations in Iowa. He participated in several
scientific meetings, presenting papers before sessions of the 14th
Plains Conference for Archeology and the Nebraska Academy of
Sciences. During the year two papers, of which he was a coauthor,
were published: “A Burial Cache from the Spokane Region,” Ameri-
can Antiquity, vol. 22, No. 1, and “The Problem of Northwest Coastal
Interior Relationships as Seen from Seattle,” American Antiquity,
SECRETARY’S REPORT 59
vol. 22, No. 2. On June 1 Dr. Caldwell made a brief reconnaissance
with G. Hubert Smith in the Big Bend Reservoir area for the purpose
of determining where a camp should be established for the coming
season’s fieldwork and also for inspecting the sites where he expected
to work. On June 11 he and his party moved into the field and were
engaged in excavations at the end of the year.
Donald D. Hartle, temporary archeologist, joined the Missouri
Basin Project staff on June 6 and on June 12 left the field headquarters
with a party to begin excavations at several sites in the Oahe Reservoir
area. Mr. Hartle was formerly a full-time member of the staff at
Lincoln and is still working on reports of work which he did at that
time. He was in the field at the end of the fiscal year.
Harold A. Huscher, field assistant and temporary archeologist, was
working in the Big Bend area at the beginning of the fiscal year, and
his activities there have been discussed in a preceding paragraph.
After his return to the Lincoln headquarters in the fall, he devoted
several months to the preparation of a preliminary appraisal report
on his summer’s work. In his report he made specific recommenda-
tions for an excavation program in the area during the 1957 field
season. He left the project in January to complete work he was doing
for the Department of Justice but returned in the capacity of a
temporary archeologist late in June and proceeded to the Big Bend
area where he was just beginning a survey program at the end of the
fiscal year.
William N. Irving, temporary archeologist, joined the Project staff
June 10 and on June 12 left Lincoln in charge of a party to begin
the excavation of a series of sites in the Big Bend Reservoir. His
activities there to the end of the fiscal year have previously been
described.
Alfred E. Johnson, field archeologist and subsequently survey party
chief, was in the field at the beginning of the fiscal year as a member
of the Big Bend survey party under the direction of Mr. Huscher.
In October he took over the task of making a survey and tests in the
Toronto Reservoir area. He was in the field until mid-November
when he resumed his academic work at the University of Kansas. He
remained a part-time member of the staff, however, until early in
January and during that period completed a report, “An Appraisal
of the Archeological Resources of the Toronto Reservoir.” Mr.
Johnson did not rejoin the Project staff when fieldwork was resumed
in the spring but went as an assistant with the party from the Uni-
versity of Kansas which was working in the Tuttle Creek Reservoir
area at the end of the year. His Toronto report was in the process of
being mimeographed on June 30.
Charles H. McNutt, archeologist, was appointed a member of the
permanent staff of the Project on June 10. He devoted the following
60 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
week to learning the routine of the laboratory and Project office and
on June 19 left Lincoln in charge of a party to start a series of test
excavations in sites in the Oahe Reservoir area. His activities in that
connection have already been discussed.
Robert W. Neuman, field assistant and archeologist, was in charge
of an excavating party at the Lovewell Reservoir in Kansas at the
beginning of the fiscal year and worked there until August. After
returning to the Lincoln headquarters, he resigned from the Project
in order to resume his academic work at the University of Nebraska.
During the fall and winter months, however, he continued work on
his report of the results of the excavations in the Lovewell area and
returned to the Project as a part-time employee in May. On June 10
he was appointed temporary archeologist and left Lincoln with a
field party on June 12 to begin excavations in a series of sites in the
Big Bend area where he was occupied at the end of the fiscal year.
Mr. Neuman participated in the annual meeting of the Nebraska
Academy of Sciences on April 27, presenting a paper summarizing the
results of his studies at the Lovewell Reservoir.
G. Hubert Smith, archeologist, during the periods he was at the
field headquarters in Lincoln, devoted his time to analyzing the ma-
terials obtained from his field investigations and preparing reports
on the results of his work. A 75-page manuscript on the findings
made at the site of Fort Pierre II during the 1956 field season was
completed. Mr. Smith also prepared an illustrated article on “Arche-
ological Salvage at Historic Sites in the Missouri Basin,” which was
published in the Missouri Basin Field Committee Progress Report for
March. During a 6-week period in February and March, Mr. Smith
was detailed to the National Capital Parks, National Park Service,
Washington, D. C., in order to make archeological investigations at
the oldest known surviving building in the District of Columbia. The
structure was built in 1766 and is known as the Old Stone House. Inas-
much as it was being restored, it was deemed advisable to make an
archeological study of it before too much work was done on it. Mr.
Smith found a number of interesting facts about the physical history of
the structure and prepared a report on them for the National Capital
Parks. At the request of the Minnesota Historical Society, Mr. Smith
spent a week in Saint Paul where he assisted in planning future in-
vestigations of historic sites in that State and in checking over results
of previous undertakings of that nature. Mr. Smith participated in
the various scientific meetings held at Lincoln during the year, pre-
senting papers pertaining to his work at Fort Pierre II and discussing
“The Present Status of Research on Early Historic Sites of the Mis-
souri Basin.” In April he gave an illustrated tall on “Dakotans before
the White Man” at the 18th annual meeting of the South Dakota
Social Sciences Association. During May he took part in a meeting of
SECRETARY’S REPORT 61
the Committee on Historic Sites of the Mississippi Valley Historical
Association held at Lincoln. On June 10 Mr. Smith left with a field
party for the Big Bend Reservoir area and at the end of the fiscal year
was engaged in excavations previously described.
Richard P. Wheeler, archeologist, was at the Lincoln headquarters
during the entire year. Most of his time was spent completing a
lengthy detailed manuscript pertaining to archeological remains in
the Angostura Reservoir area, South Dakota, and the Keyhole and
Boysen Reservoir areas in northeastern and west-central Wyoming.
The manuscript is based on data gathered by reconnaissance parties
of the Missouri Basin Project during the period 1946-51 and informa-
tion obtained by excavating parties in 1950-52. Mr. Wheeler served
as general chairman of the 14th Conference for Plains Archeology
in November and presented a paper, “Archeological Field Data and
Their Interpretation,” at the annual meeting of the Nebraska Academy
of Sciences in April. In May he gave an illustrated talk before the
Interprofessional Club of Lincoln on the subject “Some Recent
Archeological Discoveries in the Missouri Basin.” Mr. Wheeler was
in the Lincoln office at the end of the fiscal year.
The activities of Dr. Robert EK. Greengo and Dr. James H. Howard,
archeologists, who were temporarily based at the headquarters of the
Missouri Basin Project, have been discussed elsewhere and need no
further comment.
Snake River Basin —At the beginning of the fiscal year a field party
was excavating in sites along the Snake River in the area where the
Idaho Power Co. is building its Brownlee and Oxbow dams. Test
digging was done in a number of sites, and extensive excavations were
carried on in four habitational areas. Two of the latter were on the
Oregon side of the Snake River at Robinette and two on the Idaho
side at Big Bar. Most of the material found there indicates that the
sites date from the late prehistoric period to the early period of Euro-
pean contact but at two of the locations there were items representing
much earlier horizons. The general picture obtained by the investi-
gations is that of an early expansion of Great Basin cultural features
into the Northwest and their replacement by a more dynamic cultural
pattern working upstream from mid-Columbia centers. The artifacts
collected show that the people had a basically hunting-gathering type
of economy. Implements associated with fishing were for the most
part lacking but an abundance of fresh-water mussel shells in the
middens indicates that aquatic food was actually consumed. Such evi-
dence as was found pertaining to habitations suggests that rather
flimsy brush superstructures were erected over saucer-shaped floor
areas. At the time of the arrival of the first Europeans, that area was
inhabited by a band of the Shoshoni known as the “Mountain Sheep
Eaters.” ‘They were a seasonal nomadic group subsisting mainly by
62 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
hunting and gathering activities. They have not been known to visit
the region regularly since the 1880’s and their survivors are now mainly
on reservations in Idaho and Oregon.
Cooperating institutions.—Several State and local institutions con-
tinued to cooperate in the Inter-Agency Salvage Program throughout
the year. In addition to those previously mentioned for the Upper
Missouri Basin area, the University of Missouri began a survey of
the Pomme de Terre Reservoir on the river of the same name in Mis-
souri and continued its investigations in the Table Rock Reservoir area
on the White River. The University of Kansas started a series of
investigations in the Tuttle Creek Reservoir basin in Kansas, and the
University of Wyoming excavated in the Glendo Reservoir area in
Wyoming. In New Mexico the School of American Research began
a survey of the Navajo Project, and in Arizona the Museum of North-
ern Arizona started a salvage program in the Glen Canyon Reservoir
basin. The University of Utah also participated in the Glen Canyon
investigations. The University of Texas had an excavation program
in the Ferrells Bridge area. The University of Oklahoma worked in
the Keystone and Oolagah Reservoirs in that State. In California in-
vestigations were made in the Monticello Reservoir area by Sacramento
State College and at the Trinity River Project by the University of
California at Berkeley. At the Dalles Reservoir on the Columbia
River, the University of Oregon excavated on the Oregon side of the
river and the University of Washington on the north side. Washing-
ton State College started an excavation project in the Ice Harbor
Reservoir basin.
ARCHIVES
The manuscript collections of the Bureau continued to be utilized
by anthropologists and other students. About 222 manuscripts were
consulted by searchers, either in person or through the purchase of
reproductions. In addition, 95 mail inquiries concerning manuscripts
were received and numerous manuscripts were consulted by the archi-
vist in preparing replies. As in previous years, as individual manu-
script files were called into use, their contents were reviewed and more
fully recorded in the catalog; numerous annotations were made and
about 55 new entries drafted. A number of new descriptive lists of
manuscripts having to do with specific tribes or subjects were also pre-
pared for distribution.
Utilization of the Bureau’s photographic collections by scholars,
publishers, and the general public as a source of documentary informa-
tion and illustrative material continued to increase. There were 444
inquiries and purchase orders for photographs (as against 294 in
1956) ; and 1,019 prints were distributed (978 in 1956). The archivist
continued to prepare lists describing photographs available for specific
subjects or tribes; 65 such lists are now available.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 63
A number of photographic collections relating to specific areas were
studied by specialists, who not only derived useful historical informa-
tion from them for their own studies, but in turn were able to supply
for the Bureau records numerous additional details concerning the
identification of subject, locality, etc., thus increasing the value of the
collections to future users.
Over 400 photographic views of Mesa Verde, Colo., and vicinity,
made and collected by J. W. Fewkes in the period 1908-22, were
studied by members of the National Park Service staff at Mesa Verde
National Park; fuller identifications and descriptions were provided
for many of these by the Park staff. About 40 of the pictures were
considered of especial historical interest and were copied by them for
the Mesa Verde files.
A series of 124 photographs of ruins in Chaco Canyon, N. Mex.,
made by Victor Mindeleff in 1887 was studied by National Park Serv-
ice archeologists at Chaco Canyon National Monument, N. Mex.,
and Southwestern National Monuments, Globe, Ariz. They identified
a number of previously unidentified views and provided details of
locality and additional notes on others.
These series are of considerable historical interest in that they show
ruins in states of preservation and repair differing from their present
state; a few show ruins that are no longer standing.
Additional caption information was provided by Dr. Harold C.
Conklin of Columbia University for a group of 121 photographs of
native peoples of the Philippine Islands made and collected by Col.
Dache M. Reeves prior to 1938.
Several members of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes, who were in
Washington on business, visited the Archives and provided additional
identifications and other information about photographs of Cheyennes
and Arapahoes taken in the early 1900’s.
During the year a number of new photographs were added to the
collections through gift or loan for copying.
Twenty-two photographs of Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi
Indians living in the State of Michigan during the period 1853-ca. 1920
were lent for copying by the Michigan Historical Commission, through
Dr. Philip P. Mason, archivist.
Dr. Paul H. Ezell, of the Department of Anthropology, University
of San Diego, San Diego, Calif., lent for copying 11 photographs relat-
ing to the Pima Indians; they range in date from 1896 to 1954.
Twenty-five original photographic prints relating to a number of
Plains and Southwestern tribes were received as a gift from the Penn-
sylvania State Museum, Harrisburg, Pa., through John Witthoft,
director. Most of the photographs were made in the early 1880’s by the
photographic firm of Baker and Johnston.
64 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
D]
A gift of 26 glass negatives of outdoor and studio portraits of
Indians of the Southwest, principally Apaches, was made by Dr. E. M.
Wurster of Williamsport, Pa., through John Witthoft, of the Penn-
sylvania State Museum. The photographs are believed to have been
taken by a photographer named Eames.
Two groups of photographic prints were obtained for reference pur-
poses from other institutions (which retain the negatives and the right
to grant publication permission). Both groups are photographs of
drawings made by Robert Ormsby Sweeny in Minnesota in 1852, the
year in which he first settled in St. Paul. One set of prints was re-
ceived from the British Museum and was made from that institution’s
collection of 20 original drawings by Sweeny. Another set of 20
photographs represents a selection from a group of more than 60
Sweeny drawings pertaining to Indian subjects in the collections of the
Minnesota Historical Society.
ILLUSTRATIONS
The illustrator on the staff of the Bureau devoted his time to the
preparation of a variety of maps, graphs, and diagrams, the designing
of charts, the restoration and retouching of photographs, and the
preparation of various other illustrative work. An appreciable
amount of time was allocated to making drawings for other depart-
ments of the Institution.
EDITORIAL WORK AND PUBLICATIONS
There were issued one Annual Report, two Bulletins, and one
miscellaneous publication, as follows:
Seventy-third Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1955-1956.
i1i+23 pp., 2pls. 1957.
Bulletin 161. Seminole music, by Frances Densmore. xxviii+223 pp., 18 pls.,
1fig. 1956.
Bulletin 162. Guaymi grammar, by Ephraim §. Alphonse. ix+128 pp. 1956.
Miscellaneous publication. List of publications cf the Bureau of American
Ethnology, with index to authors and titles. Revised to June 30, 1956. 112 pp.
1956.
The following publications were in press at the close of the fiscal
year:
Bulletin 164. Anthropological Papers Nos. 49-56:
No. 49. The Ormond Beach Mound, east central Florida, by Jesse D.
Jennings, Gordon R. Willey, and Marshall T. Newman.
No. 50. Hair pipes in Plains Indian adornment, a study in Indian and White
ingenuity, by John C. Ewers.
No. 51. Observations on some nineteenth-century pottery vessels from the
Upper Missouri, by Waldo R. Wedel.
No. 52. Revaluation of the Eastern Siouan problem, with particular em-
phasis on the Virginia branches—the Occaneechi, the Saponi, and the
Tutelo, by Carl F. Miller.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 65
Bulletin 164. Anthropological Papers Nos. 49-56—Continued
No. 58. An archeological reconnaissance in southeastern Mexico, by
Matthew W. Stirling.
No. 54. Valladolid Maya enumeration, by John P. Harrington.
No. 55. Letters to Jack Wilson, the Paiute Prophet, written between 1908
and 1911, edited by Grace M. Dangberg.
No. 56. Factionalism at Taos Pueblo, New Mexico, by William N. Fenton.
Bulletin 165. Music of Acoma, Isleta, Cochiti, and Zuni Pueblos, by Frances
Densmore.
Bulletin 166. River Basin Surveys Papers, No. 8. Excavations in the McNary
Reservoir Basin near Umatilla, Oregon, by Douglas Osborne. With ap-
pendixes by Marshall T. Newman, Arthur Woodward, W. J. Kroll, and B. H.
McCleod.
Bulletin 167. Archeological investigations at the mouth of the Amazon, by
Betty J. Meggers and Clifford Evans.
Bulletin 168. The Native Brotherhoods: Modern intertribal organizations on
the northwest coast, by Philip Drucker.
Bulletin 169. River Basin Surveys Papers, Nos. 9-14:
No. 9. Archeological investigations in the Heart Butte Reservoir area,
North Dakota, by Paul L. Cooper.
No. 10. Archeological investigations at the Tuttle Creek Dam, Kansas,
by Robert B. Cumming, Jr.
No. 11. The Spain site (891.M301), a winter village in Fort Randall Reser-
voir, South Dakota, by Carlyle S. Smith and Roger T. Grange, Jr.
No. 12. The Wilbanks site (9CK-5), Georgia, by William H. Sears.
No. 18. Historic sites in and around the Jim Woodruff Reservoir area,
Florida-Georgia, by Mark F’. Boyd.
No. 14. Six sites near the Chattahoochee River in the Jim Woodruff Reser-
voir area, Florida, by Ripley P. Bullen.
Bulletin 170. Excavations at La Venta, Tabasco, 1955, by Philip Drucker,
Robert F. Heizer, and Robert J. Squier. With appendixes by Jonas E. Gull-
berg, Garniss H. Curtis, and A. Starker Leopold.
Publications distributed totaled 28,558 as compared with 17,018 for
the fiscal year 1956.
COLLECTIONS
Ace. No.
214119. 3 cedar-bark mats from Nootka Indians, British Columbia, Canada.
214961. 27 miscellaneous archeological specimens from Tennessee and Illinois
collected by J. W. Emmert and G. Fowke before 1894.
205014. 15 land snails from Ecuador and 33 ethnological specimens from Ecua-
dor and Florida (through Dr. M. W. Stirling).
205360. John W. Powell catalog of Indian collections deposited in the Smith-
sonian Institution, and supplement to catalog.
207445. 13 specimens associated with Zufi Indian religious cult practices.
FROM RIVER BASIN SURVEYS
212741. 2 fresh-water mussels from Iowa (through Robert L. Stephenson).
211157. Archeological material from 4 Nebraska counties, 1955.
211158. Archeological material from 2 sites in Oahe Reservoir, Stanley County,
S. Dak., and human skeletal material, 1955.
213526. Archeological material from Rock Village, Mercer County, N. Dak.,
1950-52.
66 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Acc. No.
213765. 9 specimens of archeological material from Pembina River Reservoir,
N. Dak., 1948.
214031. 1,332 specimens of archeological material from Fort Randall area,
Gregory and Lyman Counties, S. Dak., 1950-52.
214234. Archeological material from Garrison Reservoir, McLean County,
N. Dak., 1952.
214612. Archeological material from Fort Randall Reservoir, Lyman County,
S. Dak., 1950.
MISCELLANEOUS
Dr. John R. Swanton, Dr. John P. Harrington, Dr. A. J. Waring,
Jr., and Ralph S. Solecki continued as research associates of the
Bureau of American Ethnology.
Dr. Frances Densmore, who had been a collaborator of the Bureau
for a period of 50 years, died June 5, 1957, at her home in Red Wing,
Minn., at the age of 90. Shortly before her death she corrected the
proof of her last bulletin for the Bureau entitled “Music of Acoma,
Isleta, Cochiti, and Zufii Pueblos,” which will be distributed in Au-
gust 1957. Thirteen of her papers on Indian music were published
by the Bureau as complete bulletins, five as anthropological papers,
and one was published in the Annual Report series.
Information was furnished during the past year by staff members
in reply to numerous inquiries concerning the American Indians, past
and present, of both continents. Twelve bibliographies or informa-
tion leaflets were prepared and duplicated for distribution to the
public, as follows:
SIL-16, rev. Indian Crafts and Indian Lore. Bibliography.
SIL-50. Selected List of Portraits of Prominent Indians.
SIL-65, rev. Bibliography on the American Indians.
SIL-76. Statement regarding the Book of Mormon.
SIL-79. Indian Songs and Dances. Bibliography.
SIL-81. Selected Bibliography on Stone-chipping Methods.
SIL-89. Selected References on the Plains Indians.
SIL-92. Origin of the American Indian.
SIL-93. Trails and Trade Routes.
SIL-96. Photographic Collections pertaining to the American Indians.
SIL-98. Selected References on the Seminole Indians.
SIL-99. American Indian Medicine. Bibliography.
Many new descriptive lists and information leaflets were prepared
in answer to requests for information on the Bureau’s photographic
and manuscript collections. There continued to be a popular de-
mand for information, published material, and photographs from
teachers—particularly of primary and secondary grades—from Scout
and other civic organizations, and from the general public. Infor-
mation and reference material for term papers were constantly re-
quested by hundreds of high school and college students. Staff mem-
SECRETARY’S REPORT 67
bers and the archivist were frequently consulted by publishers re-
garding the progress made in the various fields of anthropology and
on specific projects for background material to be used in scientific
and popular magazines and books, appropriate pictures and illus-
trations. Many specimens were identified for owners and data sup-
plied to them.
Respectfully submitted.
M. W. StIruine,
Director, Bureau of American Ethnology.
Dr. Lronarp CaRMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the Astrophysical Observatory
Str: I have the honor to submit the following report on the oper-
ations of the Astrophysical Observatory for the fiscal year ended June
30, 1957:
The Astrophysical Observatory includes two research divisions: the
Division of Astrophysical Research, for the study of solar and other
sources of energy impinging on the earth, and the Division of Radia-
tion and Organisms, for investigations dealing with radiation as it
bears directly or indirectly upon biological problems. Three shops—
for metalwork, woodwork, and optical electronic work—are main-
tained in Washington to prepare special equipment for both divisions,
and a field station for solar observation is located at Table Mountain,
Calif.
DIVISION OF ASTROPHYSICAL RESEARCH
The transfer of the office of the Director of the Observatory and the
Division of Astrophysical Research from Washington to Cambridge,
Mass., has made possible a close liaison with the Harvard College Ob-
servatory—a working association that proved highly effective during
the year. There is every indication that this relationship between two
of the great astrophysical centers in the United States will continue
over the years to stimulate the efforts and increase the effectiveness of
both institutions.
Important progress was made in the past year in the reorientation
of the Astrophysical Observatory’s research program toward broader
scientific investigation of various solar-system phenomena—a pro-
gram that should bear heavily upon the scientific progress of our
nation during the coming decades. Concentration, as in the past,
concerns the impact of radiations, atoms, and meteoritic particles on
the earth, both in its atmosphere and upon its surface. All these
phenomena represent energy sources that affect our atmosphere and,
to varying degrees, the conditions in which we live, particularly the
technological instrumentation which has become such a vital part of
our great modern civilization. Vigorous and effective research pro-
grams in the special fields of activity of the Observatory are now
firmly established, and a considerable portion of the work is closely
integrated with the massive effort of the International Geophysical
Year. This is particularly true of the satellite program, studies of
the upper atmosphere, and various aspects of the meteoritical research
programs.
68
SECRETARY’S REPORT 69
One of the long-term goals of the Astrophysical Observatory is to
conduct astronomical observations and experiments above the atmos-
phere and to develop relevant techniques of value to the research pro-
gram. When this goal has been attained, we shall not only improve
vastly the precision and significance of our observations by eliminat-
ing the deleterious effects of a hazy, cloudy, turbulent, and mostly
opaque atmosphere but also greatly increase our understanding of the
interactions, because the external energy sources affect. profoundly
this ocean of atmosphere in which we live.
Solar astrophysics—Early in the fiscal year, Dr. Theodore E.
Sterne joined the Astrophysical Observatory as Associate Director,
with the principal duty of supervising solar astrophysical research.
The following are among the studies that have been pursued in this
field :
The Table Mountain station continued to operate despite atmos-
pheric disadvantages outlined in the 1956 report. Of the observing
staff, F. A. Greeley retired during the year, and Stanley Aldrich went
on leave of absence at the end of the year.
Careful statistical studies of the variation of solar radiation inten-
sity were made by Dr. Sterne and by Mrs. Nannielou Dieter, who
joined the Observatory for the summer of 1956. By comparing simul-
taneous Montezuma and Table Mountain values between 1926 and 1955,
they found that the root-mean-square value of real changes in the
solar constant during this interval was no greater than 0.0032 calorie
per square centimeter per minute, or about 0.17 percent of the solar
constant itself. This result demonstrates the high precision of the
fundamental observations made over the years. They also calculated
correlations from the observations at each station separately and found
no periodicities that were common to the two stations.
A thorough study is being made for the improvement of the radia-
tion-measuring program by changes in the site, the observing equip-
ment, and the frequency of observations.
Dr. Max Krook has been investigating the theory of nonsteady phe-
nomena in the solar atmosphere and corona. His studies include the
effects of convective instabilities and magnetic fields on the state of
motion of the solar atmosphere, and have shed light on the preduction
of such events as sunspots, flares, prominences, and the production of
cosmic rays.
Theoretical studies of the propagation of nonadiabatic acoustic
waves in the solar atmosphere have been made by Dr. Charles Whitney,
who joined the staff in July 1956. He has succeeded in constructing
a theoretical model for solar granulation (small-scale brightness fluc-
tuations observed on the solar disc) which is in accord with observa-
tions. Although such studies have been made with particular empha-
sis on solar activity, they will have a much wider application.
70 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Dr. John H. Waddell has been investigating, theoretically and ob-
servationally, the velocity fluctuations in the solar photosphere and
their effect on the line spectrum of the solar disc.
Dr. Alan S. Meltzer, who joined the staff in October 1956, has been
conducting two studies of solar line profiles: I, variation of Doppler
half-width with atomic weight; II, parity effect. During the months
of March and April 1957, he made observations relevant to these two
studies at the Sacramento Peak Observatory, Sunspot, N. Mex.
Dr. William M. Sinton, who joined the staff in July 1956, left in
May 1957 for the Lowell Observatory at Flagstaff, Ariz. While with
the Smithsonian he used photoconductive equipment and the Wyeth
61-inch reflecting telescope of the Harvard College Observatory to
observe the intensity of radiation from the planet Mars in the vicinity
of 3.46 microns, during the planet’s 1956 opposition. The reflection
spectra of most planets show absorption in this spectral region arising
from the carbon-hydrogen bond. The absorption bands are so dis-
tinctive that if present in Mars light they would be evidence for or-
ganic molecules and, therefore, of life on Mars. The electrical meas-
urements with the 61-inch telescope indicated the probable presence of
the distinctive bands and thus of life, probably vegetable, on Mars.
The effect of solar radiation on Mars is obviously important in under-
standing its effects on the earth.
Meteoritical studies—Meteoritical studies have been a part of the
Smithsonian Institution’s scientific research program for over 80
years, during which time its meteorite collection has been developed
into one of the most outstanding in the world. The only tangible
extraterrestrial material, meteorites are of great astrophysical interest.
Under Dr. John S. Rinehart’s direction, the Astrophysical Observatory
undertook, during 1956, a freshly oriented program of meteoritical
research, with the principal objective of resolving astrophysical prob-
lems. This program is now well under way with the pursuit of the fol-
lowing specific activities: A study of the processes that cause the abla-
tion of meteorites during their flight through the atmosphere; the
design and construction of an electron fluorescent X-ray micronana-
lyzer to be used especially for studying the distribution of nickel,
iron, and cobalt within meteorites; the collection and identification of
airborne extraterrestrial material; the sending of an expedition to the
Arizona Meteorite Crater for determining the distribution of meteor-
itic debris about the crater; and the determination of the ages of
meteorites by radiochemical techniques. All these efforts have been
directed toward solving the riddles of the ages—the origins and
natures of extraterrestrial material.
The study of ablation of meteorites has been concerned with the
distinct shapes and surface features of a large number of meteorites,
SECRETARY’S REPORT 71
and the examination of the internal structure of meteorites from a
metallurgical point of view. The plan is to prepare detailed descrip-
tions of the topology and morphology of individual meteorites, especial
interest being paid to those that show ablation. While very little
can yet be said about the total amount of meteoritic material lost,
meteorite size and material are both very critical factors. It has been
found that small (up to 3 inches in diameter) meteorites are smoothly
sculptured ; large stones exhibit shallow elongated pits or depressions
(2 cm. by 1 cm. by 5 mm. deep); and large irons, very deep pits
(5 cm. in diameter and 3 cm. deep). The number, distribution, and
size of the depressions depend upon the relation of a particular surface
or portion of surface to the direction of flight. Pronounced irregu-
larities of shape increase ablation. Finally, heat from the surface
seems to penetrate into the meteorite at most only a few millimeters
beyond where ablation leaves off. Dr. E. P. Henderson, of the United
States National Museum, is actively engaged in this project, which is
being supported by the United States Air Force Office of Scientific
Research. One of the most difficult and challenging problems facing
the present-day aerodynamical engineer is the rational design of pre-
flight devices that will withstand the rigors of the passage through
the atmosphere. The investigations of the Astrophysical Observatory
will yield basic data which may aid in a solution of these problems.
Dr. F. Behn Riggs, Jr., and Prof. Andrew Lang have nearly com-
pleted the design and construction of an electron fluorescent micro-
analyzer. The fundamental principle of the instrument is the direct
excitation of X-radiation characteristic of the elements of the sample
by a fine beam (approximately 5 microns in diameter) of electrons
focused on the selected site. The method will be applied first to the
determination of nickel-iron-cobalt percentages in meteorites that have
Widmanstaetten figures. The method is applicable to microscopic
areas or particles.
An expedition consisting of Dr. John S. Rinehart, Nicholas Matalas,
R. O’Neil, and R. Olsen was in residence at the Barringer Meteorite
Crater in Arizona during the summer of 1956, to determine the dis-
tribution of minuscule bits and pieces of meteoritic material in the soil
around the crater. The expedition collected and processed some 700
soil samples from over an 80-square-mile area. Especially designed
magnetic separators were used to recover the meteoritic material. The
results have indicated that the debris lies in a definite pattern; it is
symmetrically distributed about a line that runs roughly about 15°
north of east; while symmetrical, the distribution is not smooth but
contains several local areas in which the abundance of meteoritic ma-
terial is high; the crater does not lie at the center of the pattern; and
there is a concentration of material to the east of the crater. These
451800—58——6
72 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
findings strongly suggest that the meteorite approached the crater
from a direction slightly to the south of west rather than a north-
northwesterly direction, as has been previously assumed. The total
amount of finely divided meteoritic material was found to be about
12,000 ordinary tons, which fixes a lower limit to the mass of the
meteorite that formed the crater. The expedition was supported in
part by the Geophysics Research Directorate of the Air Force Cam-
bridge Research Center.
A concentrated effort is now being made to estimate the rate of
accretion of meteoric material by the earth and to establish the physi-
cal nature of this material. Most of the mass is probably accreted in
the form of dust and small particles. From a practical point of view,
astronautical ventures and possibly rainfall could be influenced by
such material. Thus far a few collections of dust (presumably
meteoric) have been made on the ground. A method will be devised
and a device constructed for collecting micrometeorites from aircraft
and balloons at and above stratospheric altitudes. The designs of
collectors are well underway, and an Air Force-furnished aircraft is
in sight for use in making collections. Paul Hodge is working ac-
tively on this project.
Dr. E. L. Fireman is continuing his ground-breaking studies of the
stable and radioactive isotopes produced by cosmic rays in meteorites
and by high-energy particles in targets. Previously he conducted this
research at the Brookhaven National Laboratory. Part of the equip-
ment used for these studies has beeen transferred from Brookhaven
under a research contract with the Atomic Energy Commission and
put into operation at the Astrophysical Observatory, where 4
radiochemistry laboratory has been set up. Dr. Fireman also col-
laborated with Dr. J. Ziihringer to measure the depth variation of
tritium and argon-37 produced by high-energy protons in iron.
Dr. Luigi G. Jacchia has supervised the reduction by accurate tech-
niques of meteors photographed with the Super-Schmidt cameras un-
der the Harvard Meteor Program and has conducted research on the
physical nature of meteors through a study of their deceleration and
fragmentation inside the earth’s atmosphere. Among the significant
results of this research in the course of the elapsed year can be listed
the finding that there is no clear-cut evidence for the presence of hard-
bodied meteors of asteroidal origin among 361 Super-Schmidt meteors
which were analyzed, and the result of the comparison of visual and
photographic magnitudes of meteors, which showed that the “color
index” of meteors is rather independent of velocity, but shows a strong
dependence on meteor brightness.
Upper atmosphere and satellite-tracking programs.—The respon-
sibility for the optical tracking of the IGY earth satellites was as-
SECRETARY'S REPORT 73
signed to the Smithsonian Institution by the National Academy of
Sciences and the National Science Foundation at the recommendation
of the United States National Committee of the International Geo-
physical Year. Dr. J. Allen Hynek, who became an Associate Direc-
tor of the Observatory on July 1, 1956, has been in charge of the
Optical Tracking Program. Major extension of staff in the tracking
project began in September 1956, and has grown steadily during the
course of the year as various specialists were invited to join the staff
under contract through funds furnished by the National Science
Foundation. As of June 30, 1957, the satellite-tracking staff con-
sisted of 32 persons
The optical tracking program for the satellite has three main divi-
sions: The photographic tracking program under the supervision
of Dr. Karl G. Henize; the computational, analysis, and communica-
tions division under the supervision of Dr. Don Lautman; and the
visual search program, popularly termed Moonwatch, under the
direction of Leon Campbell, Jr.
The precision photographic program will employ 12 Baker-Nunn
Schmidt cameras at strategic locations in a worldwide belt. The
sites will be located in Florida, New Mexico, Hawaii, Japan, Aus-
tralia, India, Iran, Spain, South Africa, Argentina, Peru, and the
Netherlands Antilles.
The designs of the mechanical and optical parts of the telescopes
have been completed, and the instruments are under active construc-
tion. The mechanical portions of the telescope-cameras are being
constructed by the Boller and Chivens Co. in South Pasadena, using
the designs of Joseph Nunn, while the optical components are being
constructed at the shops of the Perkin-Elmer Corp., according to
designs made by Dr. James G. Baker. Glass for the 30-inch mirrors
is being furnished by the Corning Glass Co.
It is expected that the tracking stations will be in operation during
the latter part of 1958. Each station is to be equipped with precision
timing devices and all auxiliary apparatus necessary to the mainte-
nance of an essentially complete observatory. The stations are being
operated, wherever possible, as joint cooperative ventures with the
country concerned, and it is a pleasure to report that the highest
degree of cooperation has been found in all cases. This network of
observing stations, it might be pointed out, continues the long-
established Smithsonian tradition of operating various strategically
located observatories around the world.
The telescopic cameras designed for satellite tracking have been
made as versatile as possible to allow for a wide variety of sizes and
shapes of satellites expected to be launched by this and other coun-
tries during the course of the IGY. Indeed, it should even be possible
74 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
for these instruments to photograph a highly reflecting sphere the
size of a tennis ball at a distance of more than 200 miles.
The popular interest and cooperation generated by the Moon-
watch program have far exceeded the expectations of the Astro-
physical Observatory. In the United States alone there are 90 reg-
istered Moonwatch teams comprising more than 1,500 voluntary
observers, many of whom are amateur astronomers of considerable
experience in the observation of the sky. A regular series of Moon-
watch bulletins has been initiated by the Smithsonian Astrophysi-
cal Observatory, published in Sky and Telescope, with reprints fur-
nished to all registered observers. The bulletins are regularly
translated into Spanish for distribution in South America and Spain,
while the English edition is mailed to many parts of the world.
Moonwatch stations have been established also in Japan, Iran, Korea,
Argentina, Peru, Chile, Australia, Union of South Africa, Pakistan,
and India. One aspect of the Moonwatch program which should not
be underestimated is its contribution to the creation of interest among
the public in scientific matters. Moonwatch teams provide oppor-
tunity for serious people without specific scientific training to partici-
pate in the IGY program and to render a definite scientific service.
The computation and analysis division of the program is now pre-
pared, through the use of electronic calculators, to handle orbital com-
putations from the raw data furnished by the precision stations
as well as the Moonwatch stations. International Business Ma-
chines Corp. has made possible the use of their 704-computer instal-
lation at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The Observatory
will receive up to 1 hour a day of machine time until June 30, 1959,
for satellite computations. IBM will also supply one or two program-
ers for technical assistance.
Such computations will furnish the immediate ephemerides for
satellite positions, so that the precision tracking stations can be
properly alerted, and the Moonwatch teams and public in general
informed of the satellite’s immediate whereabouts. The long-range
purposes of the computation and analysis division, however—and its
most important aspect—are the detailed analyses of the changes in the
various elements of the satellite orbit. These orbital calculations are
essential to the proper use of the satellite as a scientific vehicle for
geodetic and geophysical purposes.
In support of upper-atmospheric studies by satellite methods Dr.
Sterne has completed a theoretical research on the gravitational motion
of a particle of small mass near a planet flattened by rotation. He dis-
covered a novel Hamiltonian function that led to an exact analytical
solution for the motion of a particle in very nearly the correct field of
force. Dr. Sterne also developed special mathematical procedures for
SECRETARY’S REPORT 75
inferring the density of the earth’s atmosphere from a satellite at such
low altitude. In the course of this work he extended a U. S. Air
Force atmospheric model to much greater heights than the 540 kilo-
meters at which the Air Force abandoned it.
PUBLICATIONS
Volume 1 and numbers 1-4 of volume 2 of the Smithsonian Contri-
butions to Astrophysics were published. Volume 1, issued under the
partial support of the National Science Foundation, included New
Horizons in Astronomy, a series of 39 papers by eminent American
astronomers outlining future research of importance in astronomy.
Research contributions on meteors and solar work comprised the
remainder of the publications.
During the current year the following publications by staff mem-
bers of the Astrophysical Observatory appeared in various scientific
journals:
FireMan, BE. L., and Schwarzer, D. Measurement of Li®, He® and H® in meteor-
ites and its relation to cosmic radiation. Geochim. and Cosmochim. Acta,
vol. 11, No. 4, April 1957.
Henize, Kart G. The Baker-Nunn satellite-tracking camera. Sky and Tele-
scope, vol. 16, pp. 108-111, January 1957.
Jaccuia, L. G. A preliminary analysis of atmospheric densities from meteor
decelerations for solar, lunar and yearly oscillations. Journ. Meteorol.,
vol. 14, pp. 34-87, 1957.
Kroox, Max. Electrodynamics of fluids and plasmas. Smithsonian Contr.
Astrophys., vol. 1, pp. 53-58, 1956.
Mettzer, ALAN S. Spectroscopic investigation of Algol. Astrophys. Journ.,
vol. 125, p. 359, 1957.
MELTzER, ALAN S., SCHARZSCHILD, M. and B., and Searxe, L. A spectroscopic
comparison between high- and low-velocity K giants. Astrophys. Journ.,
vol. 125, p. 123, 1957.
Rinewart, Joun S. Applications of high speed photographic techniques to
hypervelocity free-flight investigations. Proc. 3d Int. Symp. High Speed
Photogr. Butterworth Scientific Publications, 1956.
Meteorites. Smithsonian Contr. Astrophys., vol. 1, p. 81, 1956.
Ablation of meteorites [abstract]. Bull. Amer. Phys. Soc., vol. 2, p. 45,
1957.
A soil survey around the Barringer Crater. Sky and Telescope, vol. 16,
No. 8, June 1957.
Arizona’s meteorite crater, by H. H. Nininger [review]. Science,
vol. 125, p. 829, 1957.
Wurtz, Frep L. Meteors. Smithsonian Contr. Astrophys., vol. 1, pp. 83-86,
1956.
. The scientific value of artificial satellites. Journ. Franklin Inst.,
vol, 262, pp. 95-109, 1956.
Moontracking. Saturday Rev., vol. 39, No. 35, pp. 87-39, Sept. 1, 1956.
Wanted: Spotters for the satellites. Science Digest, December 1956,
pp. 33-37.
Moon. World Book Encyclopaedia, pp. 5227-5231, 1957.
The sunward tail of comet Arend-Roland [letter]. Nature, vol. 179,
p. 1240, 1957.
76 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Wurtz, Frep L., Davis, R. J., and Zirxer, J. B. The orbit of a small earth
satellite. Jn “Scientific Uses of Earth Satellites,’ pp. 1-22. University of
Michigan Press, 1956.
Time available for the optical observation of an earth satellite,
Ibid., pp. 23-28.
WHIPPLE, FreD L., and Jaconuta, L. G. The Harvard photographic meteor pro-
gramme. Jn ‘Vistas in Astronomy,” vol. 2. Pergamon Press, 1956.
The orbits of 308 meteors photographed with Super-Schmidt
cameras [abstract]. Astron. Journ., vol. 62, pp. 37-38, 1957.
Reduction methods for photographie meteor trails. Smithsonian
Contr. Astrophys., vol. 1, pp. 188-206, 1957.
WHrPe LE, Frep L., and Wricut, F. W. Methods for the study of shower radiants
from photographic meteor trails. Smithsonian Contr. Astrophys., vol. 1,
pp. 239-2438, 1957.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
A conference on Constants for Orbital Calculations was held at
the Astrophysical Observatory on January 25, 1957. On February
15, 1957, a conference on Solar Measurements was held at the Smith-
sonian Institution, Washington, D. C. The Smithsonian Astrophysi-
cal Observatory and the Harvard College Observatory acted as co-
hosts at the meetings of the American Astronomical Society, May 8-11,
1957. The Astrophysical Observatory was host to the international
Third Cosmical Gas Dynamics Symposium, June 24-29, 1957.
Various staff members attended meetings of the American Astro-
nomical Society, the American Physical Society, and the Third Cos-
mical Gas Dynamics Symposium.
Dr. E, L. Fireman attended the National Academy of Sciences con-
ference on Nuclear Geology and the Gordon Conference on Nuclear
Chemistry.
Dr. John S. Rinehart participated in the Third International
Symposium on High Speed Photography in London, September 1956;
the Institution of Mechanical Engineers Conference on the Properties
of Materials at High Rates of Strain in London, May 1957; the Air
Force Office of Scientific Research and Naval Research Laboratory
Symposium on Hyper-velocity and Impact Effects, May 1957; and
the National Academy of Sciences Symposium on Tektites, Wash-
ington, June 1957.
In the interest of obtaining optical tracking sites for the Satellite
Tracking Program, Dr. J. Allen Hynek traveled to South America,
visiting Montevideo, Uruguay; Santiago, Chile; Lima, Peru;
Antofagasta, Peru; Arequipa, Peru; and Curacao, N. W. L., during
January 1957. He also traveled to Teheran, Iran; Delhi, India;
Tokyo, Japan; and Hawaii during the latter part of May and early
June of 1957 to inspect optical tracking sites. Dr. Karl G. Henize
traveled to Spain and South Africa between March 20 and April 7,
1957, to inspect optical tracking sites.
SECRETARY’S REPORT rar
The Director attended and contributed to the International Geo-
physical Year conference at Barcelona, Spain, September 1956, and the
International Federation of Astronautics Congress at Rome in Sep-
tember 1956. He was panel leader of and contributor to an Astronau-
tics Symposium, San Diego, January 1957, sponsored by U. S. Air
Force, Office of Scientific Research, and by the Convair Corp.
In national science and defense, the Director contributed by serving
in the following capacities: Chairman of Technical Panel on Rocketry
of the International Geophysical Year; member Technical Panel on
the Earth Satellite Program of the International Geophysical Year;
member of the working group on Tracking Earth Satellites on above
panel; member Panel of the Atmosphere of the Scientific Advisory
Board to the Air Force; member Committee on Cosmic and Terrestrial]
Relationships of the American Geophysical Union; Editor, Harvard
Announcement Cards; and general editor, Smithsonian Contributions
to Astrophysics.
DIVISION OF RADIATION AND ORGANISMS
(Prepared by R. B. WitHrow, Chief of the Division)
The major activities of this division have been concerned with fun-
damental physiological and biochemical research on the role of light
in regulating growth in higher plants. Seed germination, seedling
growth, flowering, and the development of what is commonly referred
to as a “normal plant” are controlled by light. Pigments within the
organism absorb the light and convert it into chemical bond energy
and thus initiate a chain of events that produces the observed growth
effects. In most instances, relatively little hght 1s necessary. This
is in contrast to the photosynthesis of sugars where very high inten-
sities are required for optimal results. There is a similar group of
light-controlled reactions in animals which regulate many phases of
reproductive behavior. Plans are now being implemented to inves-
tigate this phase of animal physiology.
The two general groups of photochemical reactions that regulate
plant growth are (1) those controlling photomorphogenesis, which
are activated chiefly by red and far-red light, and (2) those con-
cerned with phototropism, controlled principally by blue light. The
respective pigment systems channel the energy into different biochem-
ical pathways and therefore induce entirely different physiological
responses.
Photomorphogenesis.—Seed germination, seedling development,
flowering, bud development of woody plants, and changes in stem
length are examples of formative processes controlled by light from
the red end of the spectrum. Collectively, these may be grouped un-
der the term “photomorphogenesis.”
78 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Reports from other laboratories have indicated that chemicals such
as gibberellin and kinetin will, to some extent, replace red irradiation
in promoting some photomorphogenetic processes such as seed germi-
nation and flowering. These materials have been tested on seedling
growth during the past year by Dr. W. H. Klein and Victor Elstad.
It was found that gibberellin and kinetin could not substitute for red
irradiation in this case. Both inhibited the growth induced by a red
exposure and produced results similar to those of the growth-regu-
lating hormone, indoleacetic acid. Guibberellin and red radiant
energy initiate separate and distinct growth responses and, when
added together, produce a resultant of the two reactions.
The induction of growth by red radiant energy (660 mp) can be
blocked by far-red energy (710-730 mp). Dr. Klein, Dr. R. B.
Withrow, and Victor Elstad have found that the efficiency of the far-
red is markedly increased by interposing a dark period of 60 to 90
minutes between the red and far-red treatments. This suggests that
a thermochemical step intervenes between the absorption of red radi-
ant energy and maximum capacity for inactivation by far-red. Re-
ducing the temperature from 25° C. to 2° C. during the light treat-
ments has no measurable effect on the induction process, but the
lowered temperature reduces the maximum photoinactivation by 50
percent when compared to photoinactivation at 25° C. This sub-
stantiates the thesis of an intervening thermal step.
Phototropism.—There is a wide range of growth reactions acti-
vated by blue radiant energy, including cytoplasmic streaming,
changes in cell-membrane permeabilities, the regulation of respira-
tory enzymes, changes in bioelectric potentials and phototropism or
bending of plants toward a light source. The late Dr. E. S. John-
ston of this laboratory became interested in phototropism in 1934 and
made the first precise quantitative measurements of the spectral char-
acteristics of the phototropic response in oats. From these data it
was postulated that the pigment system activating the response ab-
sorbed chiefly in the blue and was likely to be a carotenoid or a flavin.
At the present time Walter Shropshire is conducting experiments
to resolve the question of the identity of the photoreceptor by deter-
mining if the response occurs in the near-ultraviolet where the ab-
sorption of flavin is markedly greater than that of carotenoids. The
results of Avena-tip-curvature experiments indicate that both pig-
ment systems may be involved. The action spectrum in the visible
has the peaks characteristic of carotenoid absorption, while in the
near-ultraviolet the response is characteristic of a flavin system.
Experiments are in progress to ascertain the function of each of
these pigment systems, using straight growth measurements of intact
Avena seedlings and the curvature of carotenoid-deficient Phyco-
myces. An attempt is being made to correlate all the blue photoreg-
SECRETARYL’S REPORT 79
ulatory reactions to see if they are mediated by the same basic mech-
anisms.
A National Science Foundation grant for 3 years is supporting the
major portion of the work at present.
Chloroplast development.—It has been found by Dr. J. B. Wolff
and L. Price that radiant energy is necessary for the maturation of
the chloroplast, the photosynthetic organ of the leaf of higher plants.
The progress of this photomorphogenetic development has been fol-
lowed by measuring the gradually increasing rate at which the leaf
is able to synthesize chlorophyll when placed in high red or blue
irradiances. In the leaf of a dark-grown seedling the rate of chloro-
phyll formation is at first very slow, but after two or three hours of
high-intensity irradiation, the rate begins to increase. Therefore,
the time lag before the leaf begins to form chlorophyll rapidly is
taken as the time required for certain developmental changes in the
proplastid as it is transformed into a functioning chloroplast.
Trradiation of dark-grown bean or corn leaves with a small amount
of red energy (prior to incubation in the dark) has been found to be
more effective than blue energy for stimulation of the ability to form
protochlorophyll. Oxygen is required for the developmental proc-
esses, since it was noted that little or no chlorophyll is formed in an
atmosphere of nitrogen. When the temperature at which the leaves
are kept was lowered from 25° C. to 15° C., the metabolic processes
necessary for synthesis of the chloroplast components are almost com-
pletely stopped; too high a temperature has a similar effect. These
metabolic processes are being studied in greater detail.
Photoperiodice chlorosis—Chlorophyll content of a number of
plants is markedly influenced by the relative lengths of the light and
dark periods. The leaves of young plants often show a marked
chlorosis, with a definite pattern of interveinal yellowing when given
long light periods in a 24-hour cycle. Often associated with the
mottling are nastic responses, very similar to those occurring with
certain types of virus infection. ‘Temperature is closely correlated
with light in influencing this process. At some temperatures, the
plants are yellow and at others green, regardless of the photoperiod.
Particularly does a cyclic alternation in temperature promote or in-
hibit the chlorosis under light conditions where the converse is true
at constant temperatures. This type of chlorophyll deficiency has
not been observed in plants growing under outdoor or greenhouse
conditions with daylight, but seems to be a response unique to irradi-
ation with artificial sources, particularly the incandescent lamp. Dr.
Alice Withrow and Walter Shropshire this year have found that the
far-red is the region of the spectrum which most effectively promotes
the chlorosis. Far-red also promotes a very marked lengthening of
the stem.
80 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Modification of X-ray damage by visible radiant energy.—The
damaging effects of X-rays and other forms of ionizing radiation to
living cells are due chiefly to the breaking of the chromosomes and
interference with normal cell division. Young, rapidly dividing cells
are most susceptible to X-ray damage and evidence three types of
aberrations—chromatid break, isochromatid break, and chromatid
exchange.
It has previously been reported that far-red radiant energy, when
used as a treatment supplementary to X-rays, increases the frequency
of chromatid aberrations. This year, Dr. C. C. Moh and Dr. R. B.
Withrow have extended the study on the interaction between red and
far-red radiant energy at the level of the cell nucleus.
Root tips of broad bean (Vicia faba) were pretreated with a 3-hour
exposure of red (620-680 mp) and/or far-red and near infrared (710-
960 mp) radiant energy, and then irradiated with 120 roentgens of
X-rays. As compared with the control (X-rays only), root tips
receiving far-red treatment yielded 30 to 40 percent more chromatid
breaks and chromatid exchanges. Those receiving far-red followed
by red energy showed no appreciable increase in aberrations. These
results indicate that red radiant energy inactivates the action of the
far-red exposure. In a second series of experiments, root tips were
irradiated with red energy for 3 hours, followed by a 3-hour exposure
to far-red energy. As compared to the control, the red plus far-red
treatment resulted in an increase of chromatid breaks and chromatid
exchanges amounting to about 20 percent. It would appear that
application of far-red energy after the red treatment could not com-
pletely overcome the inactivating effect of the red. In a third series,
root tips were exposed for 3 hours to red and far-red energy simul-
taneously by using a broad waveband from 620 to 960 mp. No
increase in any type of chromatid aberration was found.
PUBLICATIONS
KLEIN, W. H., WirHrow, R. B., and Exstap, V. The response of the hypocotyl
hook of bean seedlings to radiant energy and other factors. Plant Physiol.,
vol. 31, pp. 289-294, 1956.
Kern, W. H., WitHrow, R. B., Hustrap, V., and Price, L. Photocentrol of growth
and pigment synthesis in the bean seedling as related to irradiance and
wavelength. Amer. Journ. Bot., vol. 44, pp. 15-19, 1957.
Kein, W. H., WirHrow, R. B., WitHRow, ALICE P., and Eistap, V. Time course
of far-red inactivation of photomorphogenesis. Science, vol. 125, pp. 1146-
1147, 1957.
Wirnrow, ALice P., and Wotrr, J. B. Succinate oxidation by mitochondrial
preparations from bean seedlings. Physiologia Plantarum, vol. 9, pp. 339-343,
1956.
WitHrow,R.B. An interference-filter monochromator system for the irradiation
of biological material. Plant Physiol., vol. 32, pp. 355-860, 1957.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 81
WirTHrow, R. B., and Mou, C. C. Nonionizing radiant energy as an agent in
altering the incidence of X-ray-induced chromatid aberrations. I, Effects
of far-red and infrared radiant energy on T'radescantia and Vicia. Radiation
Res., vol. 6, pp. 491-500, 1957.
WirnHrow, R. B., and Price, L. A darkroom safelight for research in plant
physiology. Plant Physiol., vol. 32, pp. 244-248, 1957.
WituHrow, R. B., and WiTHROw, ALICE P. Generation, control and measurement
of visible and near-visible radiant energy. Jn “Radiation Biology,” vol. 3,
pp. 125-259. McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1956.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
Papers on the research in progress were presented during the past
year at several international and national science meetings. At the
unnual meeting of the American Society of Plant Physiologists at
Storrs, Conn., the following papers were given:
Elimination of the lag phase of chlorophyll synthesis in dark-grown bean leaves
by a pretreatment with low irradiances of monochromatic energy, by R. B.
Withrow, J. B. Wolff, and L. Price.
The action spectrum and kinetics of far-red blocking of the red-induced opening
of the hypocotyl hook of bean, by W. H. Klein, R. B. Withrow, and V. Elstad.
The role of chlorophyllase in the synthesis of chlorophyll a in higher plants, by
J.B. Wolff and L. Price.
At a meeting of the Southern Section of the American Society of
Plant Physiologists at Birmingham, Ala., R. B. Withrow gave a paper
entitled “Action Spectrum and Photomorphogenesis in Higher
Plants,” and at the Midwest Section at Ann Arbor, Mich., W. H. Klein
participated in a round-table discussion on “KHifects of Light Quality
on Plant Development.” At the International Photobiology Con-
ference at Turin, Italy, and the International Photoperiodism Con-
gress at Parma, Italy, R. B. Withrow discussed the current research
of the laboratory. R. B. Withrow and Walter Shropshire attended
the national organizational meeting of the Biophysical Society held
at Columbus, Ohio.
During the year, R. B. Withrow served as consultant to the Office
of the Commanding General, U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and also as
consultant to the Argonne National Laboratory. He was appointed
chairman of the International Symposium on Photoperiodism in
Plants and Animals, sponsored by the National Research Council,
which is to be held at Gatlinburg, Tenn., in the fall of 1957.
Respectfully submitted.
F. L. Wutprtez, Director.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the National Collection of
Fine Arts
Srr: I have the honor to submit the following report on the activities
of the National Collection of Fine Arts for the fiscal year ended June
30, 1957:
SMITHSONIAN ART COMMISSION
The 34th annual meeting of the Smithsonian Art Commission was
held in the Regents Room of the Smithsonian Building on Tuesday,
December 4, 1956. Members present were: Paul Manship, chairman;
Robert Woods Bliss, vice chairman; Leonard Carmichael, secretary ;
John Nicholas Brown, Gilmore D. Clarke, David E. Finley, Lloyd
Goodrich, Bartlett H. Hayes, Stow Wengenroth, Archibald G. Wen-
ley, Andrew Wyeth, and Mahonri Young. Thomas M. Beggs, Direc-
tor, and Paul Vickers Gardner, curator of ceramics, National Collec-
tion of Fine Arts, were also present.
Mr. Bliss, Mr. Goodrich, and Mr. Hayes commented favorably upon
the progress of the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service and
its satisfactory relationship to other organizations in respect to the
circulation of exhibitions. Mr. Beggs stated that when funds are
available it will be desirable for the National Collection of Fine Arts
to organize for circulation exhibitions combining artistic and scientific
material from Smithsonian collections. It was reported that, although
Department of State contracts had been vital to the Service initially,
these have diminished in size and the Service is now self-supporting.
A resolution on the death of Lawrence Grant White, a member of
the Commission from 1950 to the time of his resignation March 2, 1956,
was read and unanimously adopted.
The chairman stated that the field of architecture was unrepresented
on the Commission for a term expiring in 1959, owing to the resigna-
tion of Mr. White. The Commission then recommended to the Board
of Regents the name of Douglas Orr to fill the vacancy.
The Commission also recommended the reappointment of David E.
Finley, Paul Manship, Charles H. Sawyer, and Archibald Wenley, for
the usual 4-year period.
The following officers were elected for the ensuing year: Paul Man-
ship, chairman; Robert Woods Bliss, vice chairman; and Leonard
Carmichael, secretary.
Dr. Finley, chairman of the executive committee, reported that
this committee had not met during the year.
82
SECRETARY’S REPORT 83
The following were reelected members of the executive committee
for the ensuing year: David E. Finley, chairman; Robert Woods
Bliss, Gilmore D. Clarke, and George Hewitt Myers. Paul Manship,
as chairman of the Commission, and Leonard Carmichael, as secretary,
are ex officio members.
The Commission recommended acceptance of the following objects:
Oil, The Dog Trader, by Richard N. Brooke (1847-1920). Gift of Col. Thomas
G. Young, Jr.
Two watercolors, Emergence and Tulips, by Andrey Avinoff (1884-1949), were
accepted on condition that they be held until eligible for consideration of the
accessions committee of the National Gallery of Art. Gift of Mrs. Elizabeth
Shoumatoff.
Oil, Furbelows, by Albert Sterner, N. A. (1863-1946). Henry Ward Ranger
Bequest.
Oil, Days of Sunshine, by William Wendt, A. N. A. (1865-1946). Henry Ward
Ranger Bequest.
Three etchings, by Carl Oscar Borg (1879-1947) : On the Rim, Grand Canyon,
Arizona; The Chief’s House, Moenkopi, Arizona; and Under Western Skies.
Anonymous gift.
Miniature, Young Gentleman, by John Alexander MacDougall (1810-1894).
Gift of Henry L. Milmore.
A collection of 59 fans, 18th and 19th centuries, mostly French and English.
Gift of Henry L. Milmore.
A 19th-century copy of the Portland Vase, by Wedgwood, England. Gift of
Paul A. Straub.
The following 59 paintings, as bequeathed by Mabel Johnson Langhorne (oils
on canvas unless otherwise indicated) :
Madonna, by Biagio di Bindo Albertinelli (1474-1515). (Tempera on
wood.)
Large Landscape, by Thomas Barker (1769-1847).
Small Landscape, by Thomas Barker (1769-1847). (Oil on wood.)
Duke of Sussex, by Sir William Beechey (1753-1839).
Dutch Gentleman, by Ferdinand Bol (1616-1680).
Christ Addressing the People, by Bonifazio Veronese (1490/1-1540).
Small Landscape, by Richard Parkes Bonington (1801-1828).
Landscape, by John Constable (1776-1837).
Small Landscape, by John Constable (1776-1837).
Windmill, by John Constable (1776-1837).
Small Landscape, by John Crome (Old Crome) (1768-1821).
Edmund Waller (1606-1687), by William Dobson (1610-1646).
Young Girl, by Willem Drost (16??-16??).
Landscape, by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788).
Small Landscape, by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788).
Head of Christ, by follower of Giorgione (1477/8-1510/1). (Tempera on
wood.)
Scene in Venice, by Francesco de Guardi (1712-1793).
Venetian Scene, by Francesco de Guardi (1712-1793).
Small Landscape, by Francesco de Guardi (1712-1793). (Oil on wood.)
Irish Gentleman, by John Hoppner (1758-1810).
Gentleman, by John Jackson (1778-1831).
Prince Henry of Wales, by Cornelius Janssens van Ceulen (1593/4-1662/4).
Portrait of Rubens’ Wife, by Jakob (Jacques) Jordaens (1593-1678).
84 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Gentleman, by Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646-1723).
Barnyard Scene, by Robert Ladbrooke (1768/70-1842).
Self-portrait, by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830).
Viscountess Hatton, by Sir Peter Lely (1618-1680).
Festive Scene, by Jan Miense Molenaer (1605/10-1668). (Oil on wood.)
Ralph Cross Johnson (1843-1923), by Ernest Moore.
Fishing Boats Beating up to Windward, by Edward Moran (1829-1901).
Judith van Volbergen, by Paulus Moreelse (1571-1638).
Small Landscape, by John Francis Murphy (1853-1921).
Landscape, by John Francis Murphy (1853-1921).
Portrait of a Boy, by Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823).
Portrait of a Gentleman, by Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823).
Lady in White, by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792).
Lord Lifford, by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792).
Lord Roth, by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792).
Richard Brinsley Cheridan, by Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792).
Old Man, by Jusepe (Giuseppe) Ribera (1588/90-1652/6).
Interior of New College, Oxford, by David Roberts (1796-1864).
Rouen Cathedral, by David Roberts (1796-1864). (Oil on wood.)
The Doctor’s Visit, by Jan Havicksz Steen (16267-1679).
Landscape with Figures, by Jacobus van Strij (1756-1815).
Mrs. Price, by Sir James Thornhill (1675-1734).
Baptism of Christ, School of Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1693/6-1770).
(Oil on wood.)
Woman Taken in Adultery, School of Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (16938/6-
1770).
Head of an Old Man, attributed to Benvenuto di Piero Tisi (called Garofalo)
(1481-1559), formerly attributed to Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519).
(Tempera on wood.)
Sir William Boothby, by undetermined artist (formerly attributed to Sir
Joshua Reynolds).
Mrs. Lloyd, by undetermined artist, after Reynolds.
Marine, by undetermined artist.
Virgin and Child with Apple, by undetermined artist. (Tempera on wood.)
Adoration of the Kings, by Bernard Van Orley (1485/93-1542). (Tempera
on wood.)
Landscape by John Varley, Sr. (1778-1842). (Watercolor on paper.)
Small Landscape, by John Varley, Sr. (1778-1842). (Watercolor on
paper.)
Entombment, by Rogier van der Weyden (1399/1400-1464). (Tempera on
wood.)
Italian Landscape, by Richard Wilson (1714-1782).
Italian Landscape, by Richard Wilson (1714-1782).
Landscape, by Richard Wilson (1714-1782).
A bronze bust of Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock, by James Wilson
Alexander MacDonald (1824-1908), declined for the National Collec-
tion of Fine Arts, was recommended for acceptance by the United
States National Museum, to be assigned to the Division of Military
History for possible use in the new Museum of History and Tech-
nology. Offered by Mrs. Griffin de Mauduit through Mrs. James L.
Collins, Jr.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 85
THE CATHERINE WALDEN MYER FUND
Six miniatures, watercolor on ivory, were acquired from the fund
established through the bequest of the late Catherine Walden Myer
as follows:
106. David McClellan (1773-1820), attributed to Benjamin Trott (ca.1770-
ea.1841).
107. Christopher Burdick (1789-1833), by undetermined artist.
108. Mrs. Christopher Burdick, née Lydia Haston (1796-1881), by undeter-
mined artist.
Nos. 106 through 108 were acquired from Mrs. Janet W. Yates, Washington,
D.C.
109. Unknown Gentleman, by George W. Newcombe (1799-1845).
110. TS in Blue Coat, by undetermined artist.
Nos. 109 and 110 were acquired from Mr. A. C. Mayer, Washington, D. C.
111. Col. Josiah Parker (1751-1810), by Charles Willson Peale (1741-1799) ;
from Mrs. Sue C. Bunch, Washington, D.C.
WITHDRAWAL BY OWNERS
Oil, Maid of the Mist, by Thomas Cole, lent October 6, 1942, by Mrs.
L. T. Gager, Washington, D. C., was withdrawn by the owner.
Oil, George Washington, by Charles Willson Peale, returned as a
loan December 4, 1956, by the estate of Mrs. John S. Beck, was with-
drawn by order of Oscar J. See, the executor, on March 28, 1957.
ART WORKS LENT
The following art works, oil paintings on canvas unless otherwise
noted, were lent for varying periods:
To the Bureau of the Budget, Washington, D. C.:
Auguste (4 19562 Huichol Indian, by Anton Sario.
In the Studio, by Arnoldo Tamburini.
September 21, 1956_____ The Wanderluster’s Rest, by William H. Holmes.
The South Strand, by Emil Carlsen.
January 23. 10a oe The Wain Team, by George Elmer Browne.
President John Tyler, by G. P. A. Healy.
Fisher Girl of Picardy, by Elizabeth Nourse.
Linlithgan Bridge, by Richard M. Stevenson.
March 1Q 1952-2 = George Catlin, by William Fisk.
Daniel Chester French, by Evelyn Beatrice Long-
man. (Bronze bas relief.)
To the U.S. Court of Military Appeals, Washington, D. C.:
August) 10; 1956222222 =: Summer, by Charles Harold Davis.
Abraham Lincoln, by Henry Kirke Bush-Brown.
(Bronzed plaster bust and pedestal.)
February 6, 1957_______. Evening Tide, California, by William Ritschel.
Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock, by James W. A. Mac-
Donald. (Bronze bust and pedestal.)
Aprils 1.95 tems se | ae The First Gun at Fort Sumter, by Alban Jasper
Conant.
86
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
To The White House, Washington, D. C.:
ANSUstilo, 19562222. ——— Roseate Spoonbills, by Abbott H. Thayer.
Male Wood Duck, by Richard 8. Meryman.
January 14, 1957_____--. Early Summer, by Charlotte B.Coman. (Returned
January 30, 1957.)
Evening Tide, California, by William Ritschel.
(Returned January 30, 1957.)
To the Department of State, Washington, D. C.:
ATISUStELD 1 OnGs— eae Tomb of “Mahomet the Gentleman” at Broussa, by
Osman Edhem Hamdy Bey.
November 19, 1956_____- View of Constantinople from Pera, by an unde-
termined artist.
January 22, 1957______.. Spring, Navesink Highlands, by Childe Hassam.
End of Winter, by John Henry Twachtman.
March, 14, 1957---...-=- The Torrent, by John Henry Twachtman.
Niagara, by George Inness.
Autumn at Arkville, by Alexander H. Wyant.
Marnchy2t Obata eae The Blockmaker, by Edgar Melville Ward.
To the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, Dallas, Tex., for an “Hxhibition of
Presidents” :
September 5, 1956__--~-- U. S. Grant, by Thomas LeClear.
William Howard Taft, by Alyn Williams. (Minia-
ture, watercolor on ivory.)
John Tyler, by George P. A. Healy.
George Washington, by Henry Bounetheau, after
Stuart. (Miniature, watercolor on ivory.)
George Washington, by Henry Bounetheau, after
Trumbull. (Miniature, watercolor on ivory.)
Woodrow Wilson, by Edmund Tarbell.
(All were returned December 138, 1956.)
To the National Air Museum, Washington, D. C., portraits (sanguine chalk
on paper unless otherwise noted) of members of the Lafayette Escadrille, by
John Elliott (1858-1925) :
October 16, 1956_______ Victor Emmanuel Chapman.
Richard Stevens Conover, 2d.
Hamilton Coolidge.
Elliott Christopher Cowden.
Edmond Charles Clinton Genet.
Bert Hall.
Gervais Raoul Lufbery.
James R. McConnell.
Richard Norton.
Paul Pavelka.
Norman, Prince.
Philip Rhinelander.
Quentin Roosevelt.
Alan Seeger.
William Thaw.
Georges Thenault.
Raynal Cawthorne Bolling.*
William Halsall Cheney.*
Richard McCall Elliott, Jr.*
Kiffin Yates Rockwell.*
*Sepia prints.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 87
To the Department of Justice, Washington, D. C.:
October 18, 1956_-----_- William C. Preston, by George P. A. Healy.
New Year’s Shooter, by George Luks.
Henry Ward Ranger, by Albert Neuhuys.
Thomas McKean, by Charles Willson Peale.
La Vachére, by Theodore Robinson.
The Inn, Germany, by Walter Shirlaw.
Infant Christ with Cross and Torch, by undeter-
mined artist.
February 14, 1957______ Early Summer, by Charlotte Buell Coman.
Un Brave—French Soldier, by Lucie Louise Fery.
The Watering Place, by Louis Paul Dessar.
Rey. George Heaton, M. A., by Edward Heaton.
Self Portrait, by Will H. Low.
Musa Regina, by Henry Oliver Walker.
Manifest Destiny—Buffalo, by Edward Kemeys.
(Bronzed plaster.)
Grizzly Bear, Seated, by Edward Kemeys.
(Bronzed plaster.)
Mays Oo ts eee Se Life Saving Patrol, by Edward Moran.
To the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C., for photographing:
October 29, 1956_.__-__-_ Thomas Hopkinson, by Robert Feke. (Returned
October 31, 1956.)
To the Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, D. C.:
November 6, 1956_------ Early Spring, by Alexander T. Van Laer.
Idle Hours, by Harry 8S. Mowbray.
Study Head, Madam Capri, by Walter Shirlaw.
Among the Old Poets, by Walter Shirlaw.
Walter Shirlaw, by Frank Duveneck.
DANUVALYA lOO kee November, by Jervis McEntee.
Adieu, by Salvatti Aly.
To the Department of the Interior, Washington, D. C.:
November 7, 1956_----_- A Pool in the Forest, by Benjamin Rutherford
Fitz. (Returned June 13, 1957.)
Housatonic Valley, by Alexander Wyant. (Re-
turned June 18, 1957.)
To the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C., for the 25th Biennial Exhibi-
tion of Contemporary American Oil Paintings, January 138 through March
10, 1957:
January 3, 1957_-_-__ — Caresse Enfantine, by Mary Cassatt. (Returned
May 23, 1957.)
The Island, by Edward W. Redfield. (Included
with exhibition shown at the Toledo Museum of
Art, April 1-30, 1957, and to be circulated by the
American Federation of Arts through September
30, 1958.)
To the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. ©., for an exhibition of Presi-
dential Portraits, March 19 to September 1, 1957:
Marchyl 31 95isese ta Self Portrait, by George P. A. Healy.
To the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Va., for an exhibition, “The
Tastemakers,” January 18 through February 24, 1957:
January 4, 1957_______. Fired On, by Frederic Remington. (Returned
March 5, 1957.)
451800—58——_7
88 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
To the Pan American Union, Washington, D. C.:
January op, 19a Tease African Elephant Scenting Danger, by Eli Harvey.
(Bronze.) (Returned January 23, 1957.)
To the Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D. C.:
April) 26,190 (22-22 see" " Beach of Bass Rocks, Gloucester, Massachusetts,
by Frank K. M. Rehn.
The White Parasol, by Robert Reid.
Furbelows, by Albert Sterner.
To the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Washington,
Der:
May) 195 fens = see Henry B. Fuller, by George Fuller.
The Villa Malta, by Sanford R. Gifford.
The Gathering Storm, by Louis Gabriel Eugéne
Isabey.
Captain John Hricsson, by Arvid Nyholm.
May SielOoie 2282) ae. Gathering Mists, by Charles Warren Eaton.
An Abbess, by Govaert Camphuysen.
Hucalyptus Tree, by A. Ames.
Pepper Tree, by A. Ames.
A Bodhisattva, Cave 4, Bagh, by Sarkis Katcha-
dourian. (Watercolor.)
Bear Standing on a High Rock, by Edward Kemeys.
(Bronzed plaster.)
To Conrad V. Morton, Department of Botany, U. S. National Museum, for display
at the Arts Club:
JUNE 195 oka Unknown Man, by Henry Dexter. (Plaster.)
(Returned June 26, 1957.)
To the Civil Service Commission, Washington, D. C.:
June 21) 195 7e-=— S A Pool in the Forest, by Benjamin Rutherford Fitz.
Housatonic Valley, by Alexander H. Wyant.
LOANS RETURNED
Table, French, 18th century (P. 220), lent August 21, 1953, to the
American Institute of Architects, was returned December 6, 1956.
Oil, Capt. John Ericsson, by Arvid Nyholm, lent March 3, 1950, to
the House Judiciary Committee, was returned December 28, 1956.
Two oils, Cliffs of the Upper Colorado River, Wyoming Territory,
by Thomas Moran, and Mary Abigail Willing Coale, by Thomas
Sully, lent December 6, 1955, to the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibi-
tion Service to be included in an exhibition “Pennsylvania Painters,”
were returned January 30, 1957.
Oil, The Continentals, by Frank B. Mayer, lent October 28, 1953,
to the Department of State, was returned May 8, 1957.
SMITHSONIAN LENDING COLLECTION
Six oils, Building the United Nations, by Harold Weston (1894—_ ),
gift of the Committee of the Weston United Nations Paintings, Mrs.
William S. Ladd, Chairman, were accepted December 6, 1955, with a
fund of $2,500. The paintings were lent to the Corcoran Gallery of
Art on April 9, 1956, and were returned October 8, 1956.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 89
Oil, Episode of the Siege of Lille, 1792, by Gaston Melingue (1840-
1914), gift of Thomas G. Young, Jr., was added December 4, 1956.
Oil, Shapes of Fear, by Maynard Dixon (1875-1946), No. 98 in the
Henry Ward Ranger Bequest, was added December 4, 1956, with the
consent of the National Academy of Design.
Miniature, watercolor on ivory, copy of the Head of the Virgin
from Raphael’s “The Virgin with the Goldfinch,” gift of Henry L.
Milmore, was added December 4, 1956.
Tapestry, 17th century, Flemish verdure, gift of John B. Turner,
was added December 4, 1956.
Two paintings, by Edwin Scott, Porte St. Martin et Enterrement,
and Ship at Anchor, Cherbourg, No. 2, lent February 18, 1953, to the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia, were
returned May 31, 1957.
The following paintings, oil on canvas unless otherwise noted, were
lent for varying periods:
To The White House, Washington, D. C.:
Aji bye Sar als is} ee Grand Canyon, by Carl Oscar Borg. (Returned
August 15, 1956.)
Guard, by J. Echenal. (Watercolor.)
Moonlight on the Sea, by Frank W. Stokes.
Lady of Light, by undetermined artist.
To the Bureau of the Budget, Washington, D. C.:
August 7, 1956_.-.______- Street in the Pueblo of Zufii, New Mexico, by
De Lancey Gill. (Watercolor. )
October 24, 1956_.______ Grand Canyon, by Carl Oscar Borg.
To the Department of Justice, Washington, D. C.:
February 14, 1957______ Musketeer, by G. Camfri. (Watercolor.)
To the Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D. C.:
April 26, 19571 ee Pueblo Bonita Ruin, by De Lancey Gill. (Water-
color.)
Italian Woman at the Foot of the Stairs, by Ed-
win Scott.
Smoke from the City, by Robert Burns Wilson.
(Watercolor. )
To the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, Washington,
D.C.:
May Gs 1Op (ee Tiger Lily, by Florence Koehler. (Gouache.)
May sles LO eee ee, Piazza San Marco, by Henry Bacon. (Watercolor.)
George Bernard Shaw, by Alice Pike Barney.
(Pastel. )
Alice (Alice Pike Barney), by L. A. Malempre.
(Marble bust. )
ALICE PIKE BARNEY MEMORIAL FUND
Additions to the principal during the year amounting to $662.30
have increased the total invested sums in this fund to $37,090.52.
A gift of $1,500 was received from Mrs. Laura Dreyfus-Barney in
partial defrayment of the cost of printing a booklet, “Alice Pike
90 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Barney: Paintings in Oil and Pastel,” consisting of reproductions
from the Lending Collection, given in memory of Alice Pike Barney.
THE HENRY WARD RANGER FUND
No. 36, Midsummer, by William S. Robinson, N. A. (1861-1945),
purchased by the Council of the National Academy of Design April 7,
1924, was reassigned by the Academy to George Washington Univer-
sity, Washington, D. C., on March 1, 1956.
According to a provision in the Ranger bequest that paintings pur-
chased by the Council of the National Academy of Design from the
fund provided by the Henry Ward Ranger Bequest, and assigned to
American art institutions, may be claimed during the 5-year period
beginning 10 years after the death of the artist represented, the follow-
ing four paintings were recalled for action of the Smithsonian Art
Commission at its meeting December 4, 1956:
No. 59, Days of Sunshine, by William Wendt, A. N. A. (1865-1946), assigned
to the Malden Public Library, Malden, Mass., in 1926, was accepted to become a
permanent accession.
No. 72, The Golden Hour, by George Elmer Browne, N. A. (1871-1946), was
returned to the Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science,
East Lansing, Mich., where it was originally assigned in 1929.
No. 98, Shapes of Fear, by Maynard Dixon (1875-1946), assigned to the
Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, The Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, N. Y.,
in 19382, was reassigned, with permission of the National Academy of Design, to
the Smithsonian Lending Collection.
No. 119, Furbelows, by Albert Sterner, N. A. (1863-1946), assigned to St.
Gregory College, Shawnee, Okla., in 1942, was accepted to become a permanent
accession.
The following paintings, purchased by the Council of the National
Academy of Design since the last report, have been assigned as follows:
Title and Artist Assignment
180. Mansion in Dutchess County, Museum of Cranbrook Academy of Art,
by Hobson Pittman, N. A. Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
(1900— ).
181. Attic Windows, by Charles Taylor Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, N. J.
(1911- ).
182. Demolition, by Harry Leith Ross, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts,
N. A. (1886—__). Philadelphia, Pa.
183. Picnic Along the Brook, by John B. Agnes Scott College, Decatur, Ga.
Costigan, N. A. (1888-_ ).
184. Ruined Cathedral (watercolor), by The Andrew Dickson White Museum of
Ralph Hulett (1915-_ ). Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y.
185. At Home (watercolor), by Walter Oklahoma Art Center, Oklahoma City,
Biggs, N. A. (1886—__). Okla.
186. Quince Street (watercolor), by (Not yet assigned.)
W. Emerton Heitland, N. A.
(1893-_ ).
187. Toward Evening, by Junius Allen, Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia,
N. A. (1898- ). S.C.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 91
SMITHSONIAN TRAVELING EXHIBITION SERVICE
Eighty-six exhibitions were circulated and shown in 198 museums
and galleries during the past season, 81 in the United States and 5
abroad, as follows:
UNITED STATES
Paintings and Drawings
Title
American Indian Painting_________
A Century and a Half of Painting
in Argentina.
Argentine Children as Illustrators__
AS le Seely selfs 3l22 7 Sie ee
PAT Geil Opera ee Vek Sa ih asa)
Californiaveaintingeo 2 ee
Canadian Abstract Paintings_______
Children’s Paintings from Forty-
five Countries IV.
Children’s Paintings from Forty-
five Countries V.
Children’s Paintings from Forty-
five Countries VI.
Children’s Paintings from Japan___
Dutch Art 1945-55 (and sculpture) _
HEhiopiany eaintings22 22.
A Frenchman in America, Charles
Alexandre Lesueur.
Six Japanese Painters____________-
Kokoschka’s Magie Flute_____-__-~-
Rennsylvania Painters22----- == 2
Blan Poriraitges) 2s ea ee es
Work by Rudy Pozzatti (and
prints).
Sargent Watercolors______---_----
Sealelsland sites oe eee ee
Watercolor hoday=-2--2s-=-——=--——
Contemporary Swedish Paintings_-_-.
Source
Philbrook Art Center, Tulsa, Okla.
Government of Argentina; Argentine
Embassy; private collectors.
Editorial Guillermo Kraft Ltd., Buenos
Aires; Argentine Embassy.
Arts & Activities Magazine; Galerie St.
Etienne.
Metropolitan Opera Guild.
Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach,
Calif.
National Gallery of Canada, Hmbassy of
Canada.
Embassy of Denmark; Friendship Among
Children and Youth Organization.
United Nations Hducational, Scientific,
and Cultural Organization.
Dr. W. Sandberg, Stedelijk Museum;
Mr. E. L. de Wilde, Van Abbe Museum ;
Mr. A. M. Hammacher, Krdoller-Miiller
State Museum; Embassy of the Neth-
erlands.
George Washington University; Mr.
Bruce Howe; Embassy of Ethiopia.
Museum of Le Havre; American Hm-
bassy in Paris.
National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo;
artists.
Minneapolis Institute of Arts; artist;
Embassy of Austria.
Pennsylvania State University, State
College; museums; private collectors.
University of Colorado Museum, Boulder.
Print Club of Cleveland; Cleveland Mu-
seum of Art; dealers; private col-
lectors.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
Toledo Museum of Art; dealers; artists.
National Museum, Stockholm; Swedish
Hmbassy.
92 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Paintings and Drawings—Continued
Title Source
Swedish Children’s Paintings______-_ National Museum, Stockholm; Swedish
Embassy.
Painting siby, Lessalassseae = eee Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai; National
Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo; Ki-
yoshi Kojin Temple in Takarazuka;
Rev. Bishop Kojo Sakamoto.
Graphic Arts
American Printmakers_______------ University of Illinois, Urbana; artists.
George Bellows Prints and Drawings. National Gallery of Art; Boston Pub-
lic Library ; Library of Congress; Fogg
Art Museum of Harvard University.
Recent British Lithographs____-~-~-- British Arts Council; British Embassy.
Contemporary German Prints____-_-. National Gallery of Art.
Japanese Bish) Prints222o222sse2= Dr. Yoshio Hiyama; Kokusai Bunka
Shinkokai; Japanese Embassy ; Ameri-
can Museum of Natural History.
United Nations Educational, Scientific,
and Cultural Organization; Japanese
National Commission.
Japanese Woodcuts I___-----------.
Japanese Woodcuts II____-_----_---
Architecture
A Half-Century of Architectural Hd- School of Architecture, Georgia Institute
ucation. of Technology.
American Institute of Architects; Archi-
tectural Photographers Association;
George Eastman House.
Contemporary Danish Architecture... Prof. Kay Fisker, Royal Academy of Co-
penhagen; Embassy of Denmark.
Contemporary Finnish Architecture__. Finnish American Society; Association
of Finnish Architects; Embassy of
Architectural Photography I____-~_-_.
Architectural Photography II______.
Finland.
German Architecture Today_____--~_ Bund Deutscher Architekten; German
Hmbassy.
Landscape Architecture Today_____- California Redwood Association.
IN ile eS Le eS American Institute of Architects.
San Francisco Bay Region Archi- California Redwood Association ; North-
tecture. ern California Chapter, American In-
stitute of Architects.
iVenetianoVillas P22 5 ea eee { Soprintendenza ai Monumenti Medievali
Venetianimvallas mile = 22s es 2 eee | e Moderni, Venice; Embassy of Italy.
Design
American Craftsmen, 1957_________ Mr. Robert von Neumann; University of
Illinois, Urbana; artists.
American Craftsmen II_________-_ University of Dilinois, Urbana; artists.
Contemporary American Glass__-_- Corning Museum of Glass.
American Jewelry and Related Ob- Huntington Galleries, Huntington, W.
jects I. Va.; artists; Hickok Co.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 93
Design—Continued
Title Source
American Jewelry and Related Ob- Rochester Memorial Art Gallery, Roch-
jects IT. ester, N. Y.; artists; Hickok Co.
Recent Work by Harry Bertoia_____ Knoll Associates; artist.
Contemporary European Tapestry_._ Contemporary Arts Association, Hous-
ton, Tex.; artists; private collectors;
museums.
DutcheArts-and Crafts= 2-2 eee Ministry of Education, Arts and Sciences
in The Hague; Netherlands Embassy.
Buropean Glass Design___-______-__ Georg Jensen, Inc.; designers.
Fifty Years of Danish Silver_______ Georg Jensen, Inc.; Danish Embassy.
Minnishi@ratts= 25 s5 eed ase eS Waertsila-Arabia and other WFinnish
Manufacturers; Finnish-American So-
ciety, Helsinki; Finnish Hmbassy;
artists, Tapio Wirkkala and Rut Bryk.
italian Arts, and (Orafts==2-=222222 Compagnia Nazionale Artigiana, Rome;
Italian Embassy.
Midwest Designer-Craftsmen_______ Art Institute of Chicago; artists.
New England Crafts___.____.____-_ Worcester Art Museum; Junior League
of Worcester, Inc.; The Craft Center,
Worcester, Mass.
Good Design in Switzerland_______-_ Schweizer Werkbund; Embassy of
Switzerland.
Books
GermanvArt Books 2.024 -2-- 22 2-— Association of German Booksellers; Ger-
man Hmbassy.
International Children’s Books_____ Washington Post Times-Herald Book
Fair; embassies.
Sixty/ swedish Booksi=22-222s02222 Dr. Uno Willers, Royal Library of Stock-
holm; Embassy of Sweden.
A World of Children’s Books_-__--~ Washington Post Times-Herald Book
Fair; embassies.
Oriental Art
Chinese Ivories from the Collection Sir Victor Sassoon, London.
of Sir Victor Sassoon.
Folk Art
PAINICEI Gane Se ee Ea ee Index of American Design, National Gal-
lery of Art.
Harly American Woodcarving___--_~_-_. Index of American Design, National Gal-
lery of Art.
TOR a beat \a i 20 OO NOE le a Oe Eskimo Art, Inc.; Canadian Handicrafts
Guild.
Popular Art in the United States_____ Index of American Design, National
Gallery of Art. :
Pounchyan gyi yas ee Index of American Design, National
Gallery of Art.
Scrimshaw HExhibition___-_.________- Colonel Leslie Buswell.
94 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Folk Art—Continued
Title Source
SwisssPeasant Art. 222225 se = aes R. Hanhart, Director, Museum, St. Gall;
Pro Helvetia Foundation; Embassy of
Switzerland.
Ansel Adams Photographs 1933- Artist; George Hastman House, Roches-
1953. ter.
Birds in Color, by Eliot Porter_______ Artist; American Museum of Natural
History.
Japan I, by Werner Bischof_________- Magnum Photos, Ine.
Japan II, by Werner Bischof______~_-_. Magnum Photos, Ine.
Perceptions eee ile es le i ee Mrs. Dody Warren Weston and Donald
Ross; San Francisco Museum of Art;
photographers.
This is the American Harth__________ Ansel Adams; Nancy Newhall; National
Park Service; California Academy of
Sciences; Sierra Club.
The World of Edward Weston___-~_--. Beaumont and Nancy Newhall; artist;
George Eastman House.
Young Germans Behind the Camera_. Dr. L. Fritz Gruber, Photokina, Cologne;
German Embassy.
Anthropology
Carl Bodmer Paints the Indian Karl Viktor, Prinz zu Wied; German
Frontier. Hmbassy.
A. J. Miller Watercolors____----_-_-_ Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore, Md.
Swedish Rock Carvings______-----_- Dr. Per Nystrém, Governor of the
Province of Géteborg and Bohus, Em-
bassy of Sweden.
EXHIBITIONS CIRCULATED ABROAD
Jyohn Marin.
This is the American Earth (4 copies).
INFORMATION SERVICE AND STAFF ACTIVITIES
In addition to the many requests for information received by mail
and telephone, inquiries made in person at the office numbered 2,293.
Examination was made of 836 works of art submitted for identifi-
cation.
An illustrated and descriptive catalog, by Paul Vickers Gardner,
entitled “Meissen and Other German Porcelain in the Alfred Duane
Pell Collection,” was published in July 1956.
An illustrated booklet, “Alice Pike Barney: Paintings in Oil and
Pastel,” with foreword by Thomas M. Beggs, was published in May
193%.
Special catalogs were published for the following 11 exhibitions: A
Half-Century of Architectural Education; Contemporary Danish
Architecture; Dutch Art 1945-1955; George Bellows Prints and
Drawings; German Architecture Today; Sixty Swedish Books;
SECRETARY’S REPORT 95
Swedish Rock Carvings; Canadian Abstract Paintings; German Art
Books; Good Design in Switzerland, and Paintings by Tessai. The
last four contained acknowledgments written by Mrs. Annemarie H.
Pope, chief, Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service. Special
acknowledgment for the Bellows catalog was written by Miss Jo Ann
Sukel, research assistant.
Mr. Beggs gave a talk on 18th-Century Paintings before the Alexan-
dria Woman’s Club, and served on the juries of three local shows and
one in Virginia. He was elected to the Board of Trustees of the
Barney Neighborhood House.
Mr. Gardner gave illustrated lectures and conducted discussion
groups on 18th-Century European and China-Trade Porcelains;
European Porcelain for Colonial Tables; and Porcelain, Mirror of
Fashion, at the Sulgrave and Senior Congressional Clubs in Washing-
ton, D. C., and at the Richmond Antiquarian Society and the Alexan-
dria Association in Virginia. His review of “Ceramics for the Arche-
ologist,” by Anna O. Shephard, appeared in the May 1957 issue of
the Scientific Monthly.
Between August 17, 1956, and March 29, 1957, Mrs. Pope repre-
sented the Traveling Exhibition Service on a visit to museums and
galleries in Seattle, Wash.; Honolulu, T. H.; Tokyo, Kyoto, Nara,
Japan; Taipei, Taichung, Taiwan; Hong Kong; Saigon, Viet-Nam;
Phnom Penh, Siem-Réap (Angkor), Cambodia; Singapore; Djakarta,
Djokjakarta, Surabaya, Indonesia; Bangkok, Chiengmai, Thailand;
Rangoon, Burma; Calcutta, India; Frankfurt, Germany ; Amsterdam,
Holland; and London, England.
Mr. Lyon represented the National Collection of Fine Arts at a
seminar on “Resinous Surface Coatings,” held at Oberlin College,
Oberlin, Ohio, under the auspices of the Intermuseum Conservation
Association. He discussed the organization of art clubs, the planning
of stimulating art meetings, and group art trips, for the Petworth
Women’s Club and the Port Tobacco Art Guild of Southern Mary-
land. He also judged two local exhibitions and one held at the Fairfax
County Court House. On June 28, he left on a 2-month trip through
western Europe, expecting to visit British, French, Italian, and Span-
ish Museums.
Fifty-five paintings in oil on canvas from the permanent collection
were cleaned and revarnished, and 66 picture frames were repaired and
refinished. Three plaster casts, one sculpture in wood, and one
Italian chair were repaired.
The canvases of 9 paintings from the Smithsonian Lending Collec-
tion were cleaned, restored, and revarnished, and 12 frames were
repaired and refinished.
96 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Six paintings by George Catlin were cleaned, repaired, and revar-
nished, and two picture frames were refinished for the United States
National Museum.
Under special contract, Glenn J. Martin began the cleaning and
restoring of 12 paintings in the permanent collection.
SPECIAL EXHIBITIONS
Fifteen special exhibitions were held during the year:
August 23 through September 21, 1956—The Second Biennial Exhibition of
Creative Crafts, sponsored by the Ceramic Guild of Bethesda; Clay Pigeons of
Kensington; Cherry Tree Designers; Designer-Weavers, and The Kiln Club of
Washington, consisting of 113 pieces. Craft demonstrations were given twice
daily. A catalog was privately printed.
October 7? through 28, 1956.—The Sixty-fourth Annual Exhibition of The Society
of Washington Artists, consisting of 32 paintings and 18 pieces of sculpture. A
catalog was privately printed.
November 8 through 25, 1956.—The Nineteenth Metropolitan State Art Contest,
held under the auspices of the D. C. Chapter, American Artists Professional
League, assisted by the Entre Nous Club, consisting of 203 paintings, sculpture,
prints, ceramics, and metalerafts. A catalog was privately printed.
December 2 through 24, 1956.—Paintings of Life in Greece, Spain, and the
United States, by Demetrios J. Kokotsis, sponsored by His Excellency, The Am-
bassador of Greece, George V. Melas, consisting of 71 oil paintings and 65 sketches.
A catalog was mimeographed.
December 9 through 24, 1956.—Contemporary Persian Miniature Paintings of
Selected Quatrains of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, by Hossein Behzad, spon-
sored by His Excellency, the Ambassador of Iran and Madame Amini, consisting
of 50 paintings.
January 6 through 27, 1957 —Twenty-first Exhibition of the Society of Wash-
ington Printmakers, consisting of 208 works in the graphic media. A catalog
was privately printed.
February 5 through 28, 1957.—In cooperation with the Department of History,
an exhibition, “Portraits in Plaster,” consisting of 38 life and death masks and 9
busts of famous Huropean and American statesmen, artists, musicians, and poets,
mostly of the 18th and 19th centuries, from a collection assembled in 1929 by
Henry C. McComas and presented to the United States National Museum. A
mimeographed list was supplied.
March 10 through 29, 1957.—The Thirteenth Annual Exhibition of the Artists
Guild of Washington, consisting of 50 paintings and 3 pieces of sculpture. A
catalog was privately printed.
March 10 through 29, 1957.—The Tenth Annual Hxhibition of the Washington
Sculptors Group, consisting of 58 pieces of sculpture. A catalog was privately
printed.
April 7 through 28, 1957.—Exhibition of Contemporary Paintings of Life in
Pakistan, by Zainul Abedin under the sponsorship of His Exceliency, the Ambas-
sador of Pakistan and Begum Ali, consisting of 52 paintings. A catalog was pri-
vately printed.
April 14 through 28, 1957.—Exhibition of 115 color renderings, “500 Years of
Turkish Tiles,” by Captain Izzet Cetin; 14 photographs showing interiors and
exteriors of buildings in Turkey which contained the tile of which the renderings
SECRETARY’S REPORT Q7
were made; three books of descriptive materials on Persian and Turkish tiles, and
15 tiles and 1 plate by a modern ceramist, Fureya, was held under the sponsor-
shipship of the Turkish Embassy. A leaflet was privately published.
May 5 through June 2, 1957.—The Sixtieth Annual Hxhibition of the Wash-
ington Water Color Club, consisting of 157 watercolors, pastels, prints, and draw-
ings. A catalog was privately printed.
May 5 through June 2, 1957.—The Twenty-fourth Annual Exhibition of the
Miniature Painters, Sculptors, and Gravers Society of Washington, D. C., con-
sisting of 188 examples. A catalog was privately printed.
June & through July 7, 1957.—Exhibition of 69 photographs of the Appalachian
Trail and its activities, by members of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club.
June 80 through July 7, 1957.—¥Exhibition of 33 Contemporary Paintings of
Indonesia, by Derachman, sponsored by His Excellency, Moekarto Notowidigdo,
Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia. A catalog was privately printed.
Respectfully submitted.
Tuomas M. Bzcoes, Director.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the Freer Gallery of Art
Sm: I have the honor to submit the thirty-seventh annual report
on the Freer Gallery of Art, for the year ended June 30, 1957.
THE COLLECTIONS
Thirty-nine objects were added to the collections by purchase as
follows:
BRONZE
56.15. Chinese, Han dynasty (207 B. C—A. D. 220). Square ceremonial vessel
of the type hw; decorated with human figures in hunting and legend-
ary scenes cast in relief. 0.369 x 0.225.
56.19. Chinese, Shang dynasty (ca. 12th century B. C.). Ceremonial tripod of
the type chiieh decorated with casting in relief; inscription of one
character. 0.197 x 0.167.
56.26. Chinese, Shang dynasty. Ceremonial vessel of the type p‘an decorated
with casting in relief; inscription of one character. 0.121 x 0.325.
(Illustrated. )
56.29. Chinese (Ordos), Han dynasty. Openwork plaque showing two fighting
animals cast in relief and with incised decoration. 0.115 x 0.069.
56.31. Chinese, Shang dynasty. Battleax with decorations cast in low relief.
0.182 x 0.060.
57.12. Chinese, Sung dynasty (A. D. 960-1279). Eight-lobed mirror with silvery
surface; decorated with phoenixes and cosmic symbols cast in relief;
inscription of 40 characters. Diameter: 0.224.
GOLD
57.3. Persian, 11th-12th century. Ring decorated with turquoises, pearls, and
designs in niello. 0.037 x 0.020.
JADE
56.16. Chinese, Early Chou dynasty (ca. 11th century B. C.). Large cere-
monial perforated disk of the type pi; mottled green and brown neph-
rite. Diameter: 0.458.
LACQUER
57.8. Japanese, Kamakura period (A. D. 1192-1333). Seated image of Dai
Nichi Niorai carved in wood and covered with gold lacquer, with
gilt bronze crown, crystal eyes and urna, lotus throne. Overall: 0.735
x 0.505.
MANUSCRIPT
56.11. Armenian, 18th century. Gospel of 294 parchment leaves by the priest,
Thoros, Monastery of Grner, Cilicia, A. D. 1263; black and gold text
and 18 full-page pantings; modern binding. Average page: 0.204 x
0.150.
98
SECRETARY’S REPORT 99
57.13. Iraq (Baghdad ?), second half 14th century. Leaf of a copy of Qazwini’s
‘Aja’ib al Makhliqat (‘““Wonders of Creation”); miniature showing
wild cattle. 0.327 x 0.230.
56.14. Persian, 16th century. Hatifi’s Haft Manzar written by Mir ‘Ali on
104 paper leaves of various colors; red leather binding with gold deco-
ration. Overall: 0.262 x 0.168.
PAINTING
56.22. Chinese, Yiian dynasty (1260-1368). Bamboo in the snow, in ink on
paper; by T‘an Chih-jui; one inscription and one seal on painting.
0.314 x 0.206.
56.27. Chinese, Ch‘ing dynasty (1644-1912). Landscape in ink and full color
on paper; by Wang Chien; dated in correspondence with A. D. 1688;
1 inscription and 15 seals on painting. 1.355 x 0.625.
56.28. Chinese, Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Landscape in ink and color on paper;
by Shen Chou; dated in correspondence with A. D. 1491; one inscription
and five seals on painting. 1.125 x 0.598.
57.4. Chinese, Ch‘ing dynasty (1644-1912). Landscape, “Peach-blossom Spring,”
after a story by T‘ao Ch‘ien; in ink and colors on paper; by Tao-chi;
poem by the artist and one inscription on painting. 0.250 x 1.578.
57.14. Chinese, Yiian dynasty (1260-1368). Scroll in ink and colors on paper
showing Yang Kuei-fei mounting a horse; by Ch‘ien-hstian (13th cen-
tury) ; inscription and 14 seals on painting. 0.295 x 1.170.
56.12. Indian, Mughal, first half of the 17th century. Leaf from the “Jahangir
Album”; recto: landscape with elephant, mahout, and servant; verso:
a quatrain in nasta‘liq on illuminated ground. Overall: 0.425 x 0.265.
(Illustrated.)
56.8— Japanese, Ashikaga period (1333-1568). Set of three landscapes in ink
56.10. on paper; each bears a seal purporting to be that of Kano Motonobu
(1476-1559). Hach 0.992 x 0.494.
56.17— Japanese, Momoyama period (1568-1615). Pair of six-fold screens painted
56.18. in ink and color on paper; landscape with birds and flowers; attributed
to Kano Sanraku. 1.645 x 3.7383.
56.20—- Japanese, Edo period (1615-1868). Pair of six-fold screens painted in
56.21 color on paper with gold ground; two groups of walking cranes; by
Korin (1658-1716). 1.660 x 3.710.
57.2. Japanese, Edo period, Ukiyoe school. Woman and child walking in the
rain; ink and color on silk; by Kubo Shunman (1757-1820) ; signature,
poem, and seal on painting. 0.842 x 0.280.
57.5. Japanese, Edo period, Ukiyoe school. Two courtesans under a tree; ink
and color on silk; by Hishi (1756-1829) ; signature and oneseal. 0.983 x
0.375.
57.6. Japanese, Edo period, Ukiyoe school. Two courtesans and a willow tree;
in full color on silk; by Hishi (1756-1829); signature and one seal.
0.984 x 0.378.
57.7. Japanese, Edo period, Ukiyoe school. Three courtesans under a cherry
tree ; ink and color on silk; by Eishi (1756-1829) ; signature and one seal.
0.983 x 0.377.
57.9. Japanese, Fujiwara period (897-1185). Image of Fudé-son in ink and
slight color on silk; attributed to Ichigyo. 1.675 x 1.175.
57.11. Japanese, Ashikaga period (13892-1568). Album of 8 paintings in ink
on paper and 8 pages of calligraphy; by Sdami (d. 1525) ; 16 seals.
Average page: 0.280 x 0.51440.
100 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
POTTERY
56.23. Chinese, Sung dynasty (960-1279). Shallow dish of Tz‘u-chow type; buff
stoneware covered with white slip; decorated with green and red
enamels over the glaze. 0.032 x 0.130.
56.24. Chinese, Sung dynasty (960-1279). Tea bowl of Ohien type; coarse buff
stoneware with thick blackish-brown glaze. 0.055 x 0.110.
56.25. Chinese, Ming dynasty, Hstian-te period (1426-1435). Bottle-shaped vase
of gray stoneware covered with thick, even, sea-green celadon glaze;
six-character mark of the period incised under glaze on base.
0.257 x 0.139.
56.30. Chinese, Six Dynasties (265-589). Ewer of coarse gray stoneware covered
with thick, oily, blackish-brown glaze; Yiieh ware of Te-ch‘ing type.
0.235 x 0.116.
56.32. Chinese, Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Plain white porcelain vase in form
of a faceted cube with cylindrical neck, two loop handles, high flaring
base; four characters ssii-nien-shih-yang in underglaze blue under base;
early 15th century. 0.240x 0.131.
56.13. Japanese, 17th century, Kakiemon ware. Large white porcelain jar
decorated in colored enamels over the glaze. 0.404 x 0.310. (Illus-
trated.)
57.1. Japanese, 18th century, Imari ware. Large white porcelain dish dec-
orated in underglaze blue and enamel colors and gold. 0.555 x 0.077.
57.10. Japanese, 18th century, Kutani ware. White porcelain octagonal dish on
high round foot; decorated in underglaze blue and enamel colors;
character fuku in underglaze blue under base. 0.087 x 0.228.
REPAIRS TO THE COLLECTIONS
Thirty-two Chinese and Japanese objects were restored, repaired,
or remounted by T. Sugiura. In addition to this work on the collec-
tions, Mr. Sugiura completed ¢ao for 26 Chinese books. Assisted by
his son Atsushi, he also mounted a large wall map, which was hung
in the office. One Chinese painting was repaired for Dumbarton Oaks
Library and Collections, and one page of calligraphy was mounted for
the United States Department of State.
CHANGES IN EXHIBITIONS
Changes in exhibitions amounted to 1,603. This unusually large
number is accounted for by the air-conditioning of the building, re-
decoration of exhibition galleries, and reinstallation of exhibitions.
The changes were as follows:
American art:
CO iy Sama Gira se ee eo pe ea re ae 132
Pastele and Ora wil fs_0 css tee ee oS Sees eee 34
IWisitercolorsw= 22502 2e8 oe eee Co ia See ae a 32
Chinese art:
Br@mzeet hie seo Ba) LS ot ANE Cs Op ORT oh A men ae ee 179
(GX) (o LA eat Sea RARE Pa meine OU ola Meme ae jules let of id 11
AEs o Usps ies YUE 28 a or et Lille aN gin A hl Vogl ae tate NG ZA
SECRETARY’S REPORT 101
Chinese art—Continued
IMamble2ee one ce Ss os ee eR Mad ye ee eee 3
Wile tialliwior koe eet ee ce erase apie A Et ae es 26
PSG S551 et cule oe, ae OPN Re SP i Se aE ae 135
LEE YS HST cp Ns A NAD eR eta at al a i aR rat Meee 292
Stonesseulpturets 91.4 J) 29. 20) Ee 522 oe ee 26
Christian art:
irs tale yk Se et be ep ENE Ss eS ay oe ee 2
(Gulists ste i Sper ee ete tee 4
(Se ha tay eter 205 Rais A erg Ne LR On eeE MIE ef an Ll BA Teed a Nae 18
BENTO LISTS) 0) Hep Mee ay a pn RR seg alae epg 18
Batrrpimerge ety ee MAAR as kee A ae ee MOE ofa 2 ae 8
Stone sculpturesss. ese. 8S. Skee eee a ee 2
Indian art:
APS TRGHTN 7, ee ge a 2 eS ek Lt | ey es cy
Wantiscripts= ss. === e— 5= Ee pn bites as 0 es lek 26, Pie Nae a 12
j Bers irhayers ee 2) eA Sek ee BA cy Oh (Da eRe Bi 26
Stoneweulptures sa.) sl. i ds Bae Se ae ee 8
Japanese art:
IBTOD ZOE fate ee oe Sneha) a ee ae Seal es 2
IGREQUGr Ee eee he. 2) Ss Lk cee ee alae 34
eves Uas HL ayes ahs a Ee ame ye ec hl eS eae ee 180
EG ptenys Sone geese cela ds lah Aa ee ee Cae ee oe 44
Wioedisculpturereees ee hoe ew Se a Ee es eee 6
Korean art:
ESO TUZ © Se eater BE hoe hs ey ce ee 2
Reuters remn aphen oe ia Ud as Me 2 el 2 eee ees 36
Near Eastern art:
Bookbmaoimngaecoenecs sof e se hee ed oS eee 10
rey Sts ese ee ee es Ce Se a LS ee 2,
Clase ease seem serene PLATA N D2 ee Rea one 8
Ia mtiseripteeer— eee oss aee © oe Ua dS aah y ee a ee ee 16
INA GVO bc en eee a a eee 36
Dean bin ese ee meee nee A EE eee a 86
| RAO i to) cy i ae ene TOD SVR SIN 5 TU TS py Vc) oh a ae 36
Stoner sculptures tao! aa bile Ue a Cee eee ee 2
Tibetan art:
| PEAT hat ad RTP EN eS reg ae I a 4
LIBRARY
The specialized museum library must combine many services. It
must be a research unit for the staff and graduate students for docu-
menting the gallery’s objects and its possible acquisitions; it must
serve the high-school, college, and university students, and all those
studying the Oriental arts.
The reference service of the library is the most difficult to measure
statistically. Each request answered requires immeasurable time, in-
genuity, and imagination. The number of scholars from all parts of
the world who used the library nearly doubled in number during the
year. One visiting scholar, Miss Wellesz, was very grateful when the
librarian was able to give her the name of the library in Washington
102 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
that had the rare book she had been searching for in Berlin, the British
Museum, and the Library of Congress.
With the decataloging of material not in the Freer library subject
field it is planned that the future acquisitions adhere to the policy of the
library—to supplement the objects of art in the collections. Limited
stack space is another governing control.
The most important acquisitions to the library in the past year were
784 books, pamphlets, and periodicals. Of these, 452 were welcome
gifts from individuals and exchanges from other institutions. Out-
standing among the purchases were Art and art industry in Siam,
published in two elephant-sized folios, which describe and illustrate
the technique of Siamese black-and-gold lacquer work; A/ateriaua
pour un corpus inscriptionum arabicarum, issued in three parts in
seven tomes of sixteen fascicles and as a part of the M/émoires pub-
lished by the members of the Mission Archéologique Frangaise au
Caire; and the first three volumes of Dr. Sirén’s work on Chinese
painting, leading masters and principles. James Michener presented
the library with the large folio of Ukiyoe hanga senshu (Selected
masterpieces of Ukiyoe prints). Microfilms were purchased of the
out-of-print books to round out some of the reference materials.
Many bibliographies were compiled; some for publication, a few for
replies to letters, and many others for the objects of art in the
collections.
PUBLICATIONS
There were no publications issued during the year. Ars Orientalis
II was in press at the close of the year.
REPRODUCTIONS
The photographic laboratory made 2,510 items during the year as
follows: 1,924 prints, 291 negatives, 1,255 color transparencies, and
40 black-and-white slides. Total negatives on hand, 11,308; lantern
slides, 10,000; 121 reproductions in the round of Freer Gallery objects
were sold.
BUILDING
The general condition of the building is good. Minor repairs were
made when necessary throughout the year, and broken and damaged
skylights were replaced and waterproofed. Paint was removed from
the flagpole and two new coats applied.
Installation of air-conditioning equipment in the building, begun on
August 6, 1956, was continued. A cooling tower was installed on the
north side of the roof to work in conjunction with the air-conditioning
equipment in the subbasement, and other major changes throughout
the entire building were made.
Secretary's Report, 1957 PEA ETS
56.26
Recent addition to the collections of the Freer Gallery of Art.
Secretary's Report, 1957
56.13
Recent additions to the collections of the Freer Gallery of Art.
PLATE 4
SECRETARY’S REPORT 103
Sections of the terrazzo floors in Galleries 13 and 17 were laid or
reground and polished. A viny] tile floor was installed in the techni-
cal laboratory.
The work of making exhibition cases for the galleries continued
in the cabinet shop, and miscellaneous odd jobs related to storage,
exhibition, restoration, crating, and maintenance of office and Gallery
equipment were carried on as usual. Much time was given to various
jobs arising as air conditioning of the building progressed, such as
dustproofing all grills throughout the entire gallery floor, offices, and
storage rooms.
In the court all plantings appear to be doing well. A few replace-
ments were made in the azalea bed, and one American boxwood and
one Ligustrum were set out to fill in the southeast corner of the court.
The fountain was drained, cleaned, repointed, and waterproofed, and
drainage around the fountain was corrected. To provide adequate
watering, four 20-foot sprinklers were installed in the four corners of
the court.
ATTENDANCE
The Gallery was open to the public from 9 to 4:30 every day except
Christmas Day. The total number of visitors to come in the main
entrance was 112,443. The highest monthly attendance was in April,
14,452, and the lowest was in January, 4,124.
Even while undergoing a major building change of air-conditioning,
the office handled 1,948 visitors for the following purposes:
Generaieln ORM etl Ome se ee ee eT Oe te A Ee, 861
To submit-objects torjexamination=.2 2-222 Lo eee 370
FRouseeyStail Mem DerS Sees ser ee Os ee See 173
To take photographs in court or exhibition galleries___._._._.__._____ 121
TROESCUC:Yy? inh libratye es eee ses Be Ae oe en ek EET ee 252
Toesee building wand) installations=- > — ees eee eee 25
Lotexamine or: DOLrOw-Slidesh 22 ui 8 2k ae et eee 12
Torsketeh™ ine gcallerias ss asi e ke i ee 21
ToruseHerzfeldMArchiversic. 22 fun elece aye b oS Ue Dee 1
To see objects in storage:
AINA OTC EUTIEY UT 5s a a cn nn wl nl Mi ke PA a, SE: 19
Armenian, Byzantine, Greek MSS., ete____-_.____________ 3
Christian) art -(Washington’ MSS:)S2s 222 18
Far Eastern jade, lacquer, wood, ivory, textiles, ete_______ 11
Mare Wasternemetalwor ke see eee a eee ee 12
MariMasternepaintings) 20.0) ee eS 83
Marshastern pottery. pent 2oe se 2s os, ee el ee Se oe eon. te 48
Near Eastern glass, bookbindings, ete____________________ 13
Nearnehastermumetalworks. 200 ooo 2 so eee lee ween ee 1 8
Nearehastern: paintings es 2-0 SS ahas De eneenei es Meee far ee 21
Near Hasternspotteryaoce 2-8. nee eee een eae 9
451800—58——__8
104 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
AUDITORIUM
The series of illustrated lectures was continued as follows:
1956
October 16. Dr. Richard Edwards, Washington University (St. Louis).
“Unique Aspects of Chinese Painting.” Attendance, 119.
November 13. George N. Kates, ‘The Imperial Lakes of the Forbidden City,
Peking.” Attendance, 208.
1957
January 15. Dr. Carl H. Kraeling, Oriental Institute, University of Chi-
cago. “Recent Explorations in Libya.” Attendance, 63.
February 12. James I’. Cahill, Freer Fellow. “Painting—Albums in China
and Japan.” Attendance, 119.
March 19. i. Arthur Lane, Keeper of Department of Ceramics, Victoria
and Albert Museum, London. “Islamic Pottery, XIV-
XVIII Centuries.” Attendance, 116.
April 16. Dr. Alexander Soper, Bryn Mawr College. ‘The Southern
Contribution to Early Buddhist Art in China.” Attend-
ance, 71.
Three outside organizations used the auditorium, as follows:
1956
November 27, 28. The United States Department of Agriculture held meetings
for field staff members of the Federal Hxtension Service.
Attendance, 78 and 95, respectively.
1957
February 5. Under the auspices of the Turkish Embassy, Prof. Nureddin
Sevin, Ankara State Conservatory, Ankara, Turkey, lec-
tured on “Turkish Art Through the Centuries.” (Illus-
trated.) Attendance, 163.
February 25. The Agriculture Extension Wives Group held a conference.
Attendance, 14.
Four other meetings were held in the building by the Board of
Governors, Washington Society, Archaeological Institute of America,
Rutherford J. Gettens, president, as follows:
Bl Ub le Ut aa (9 5 Me ape OO AE gic LA Attendance, 8
OGCtO DST A SOG ee Pee ee en Attendance, 9
Mebru ary t28 sei Oy ea eee lea eae eae Attendance, 8
May: 20201 Gi ieed ak ee ee ee Attendance, 10
STAFF ACTIVITIES
The work of the staff members has been devoted to the study of new
accessions, of objects contemplated for purchase, and of objects sub-
mitted for examination, as well as to individual research projects in
the fields represented by the collections of Chinese, Japanese, Persian,
Arabic, and Indian materials. Reports, oral or written, and ex-
clusive of those made by the technical laboratory (listed below) were
made on 3,660 objects as follows: For private individuals, 1,603; for
SECRETARY’S REPORT 105
dealers, 787; for other museums, 1,270. In all, 1,850 photographs were
examined, and 568 Oriental language inscriptions were translated for
outside individuals and institutions. By request, 16 groups totaling
314 persons met in the exhibition galleries for docent service by stati
members. Two groups totaling 25 persons were given docent serv-
ice in the storage rooms by staff members.
Among the visitors were 57 distinguished foreign scholars or per-
sons holding official positions in their own countries who came here
under the auspices of the State Department to study museum admin-
istration and practices in this country.
In the technical laboratory 51 objects from the Freer collections and
46 from outside sources were examined. The following project was
begun:
1. Collection of specimens and information on various efllorescences on objects
in museum Cases.
The following projects were continued :
1. X-ray diffraction studies on jade objects in the Freer collections.
2. Collection of further specimens and information about the occurrence and dis-
tribution of smalt (cobalt blue glass pigment) in the Near and Far Hast.
8. Collection of further specimens and information about Maya blue pigment
from Central American sources.
4, Collection of further specimens and information on the red pigment vermilion
on ancient Chinese objects.
5. Examination of specimens of wall paintings from the ancient Christian church
of the Chora in Istanbul in cooperation with Dumbarton Oaks Research
Library and Collection.
The following projects were completed :
1. Development of technique of mounting paint cross sections in cold-setting
polyester resin for microscopic identification.
2. Preparation of a selected bibliography on the conservation of ancient bronzes.
. Conservation and treatment of several Freer objects, including bronzes, pot-
tery, stone reliefs, and wooden sculptures.
4. Collection of about 400 quantitative chemical analyses of ancient bronzes re-
ported in the literature.
oo
During the year, 7 written reports were made and 37 verbal reports
given on objects examined in the technical laboratory.
In August, Dr. Pope began a 7-month trip to the Far East and
Southeast Asia to study museums, private collections, and kilnsites in
connection with his research in various phases of Far Eastern ceramics.
After brief visits to the museums in Seattle and Honolulu, he spent
2 months in Japan, 2 weeks in Formosa, 10 days in Hong Kong, 5
days in Saigon, 3 days in Phnom Penh, 6 days at Angkor, and a week
in Singapore. Then followed 17 days in Java, 2 weeks in Sarawak, a
month in Thailand, 3 days in Rangoon, a week in Calcutta, and 2 weeks
106 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
in London to see further collections and consult with colleagues en
route home.
By invitation the following lectures (illustrated unless otherwise
noted) were given outside the Gallery by staff members:
1956
July 9.
September 24.
October 16.
November 9.
November 14.
1957
January 7.
February 12.
February 13.
February 14.
February 25.
March 20.
April 29.
June 22.
Dr. Ettinghausen, at the opening of an exhibition of Islamic
art sponsored by the Summer Institute of Middle Eastern
Studies of Ohio State University at the Ohio State Histori-
cal Museum, on “Islamic Art.” Attendance, 175.
Dr. Pope, at the American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan, on
“Chinese Ceramics in the Freer Gallery of Art.” Attend-
ance, 40.
Dr. Pope, at Jimbun Kagaku Kenkyusho (Institute for
Humanistic Studies), Kyoto, Japan, on “Chinese Porce-
lains from the Ardebil Shrine.” Attendance, 100.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in Baltimore, to the Women’s Commit-
tee, Baltimore Museum of Art, on “Persian Miniature
Painting.” Attendance, 196.
Mr. Gettens, in Bethesda, Md., at the Abracadabra Club, on
“The Van Meegeran Art Forgery Case and Trial.” (Illus-
trated with his own photographs.) Attendance, 25.
Mr. Stern, at the University of Maryland, on “Japanese
Wood-block Prints” at the opening of an exhibition of
Ukiyoe wood-block printing. Attendance, 50.
Mr. Gettens, at the Broadmoor Hotel, Washington, D. C., to
the American Ceramic Society, Baltimore-Washington
Section, on “The Early Use of Cobalt Minerals in the
Coloring of Smalt, Glass and Pottery Glaze.” Attendance,
80.
Mr. Stern, at the opening of the exhibition of the Hauge
Collection, American University, Washington, D. C., on
“Japanese Art.” Attendance, 60. This was recorded for
future broadcasts by the Voice of America, television and
radio.
Mr. Gettens, at the Presbyterian Church, Falls Church, Va.,
to the Women’s Group, on “Some Personal Experiences
with the Dead Sea Scrolls.” Attendance, 140.
Dr. Pope, at the Siam Society, Bangkok, on “The Smith-
sonian Institution and the Freer Gallery of Art.” At-
tendance, 50.
Dr. Pope, at the Oriental Ceramic Society, London, on
“Things of Interest Seen on My Trip.” Attendance, 125.
Dr. Pope, at the Cosmos Club, Washington, D. C., on “Art
in the Orient.” Attendance, 275.
Mr. Gettens, at the Presbyterian Church, Mooers, N. Y.,
Sesquicentennial Celebration, on “Some Personal Experi-
ences with the Dead Sea Scrolls.” Attendance, 125.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 107
Members of the staff traveled outside Washington on official busi-
ness as follows:
1956
July 17-20. Mr. Gettens, in Cambridge, Mass., Fogg Art Museum, con-
sulted the Conservation, Oriental, and Photography De-
partments about old records and photographs on smalt.
Sampled three Fogg objects in connection with this tech-
nical problem.
July 21-22. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Cincinnati, Ohio, the Cincinnati Mu-
seum of Art, to study Near Eastern and Indian collections.
August 2-6. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Ann Arbor, at the University of Michi-
gan, discussed Ars Orientalis III. Also visited the Kelsey
Museum of Archaeology to see a Coptic exhibition.
August 7. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Detroit, to see the Near Eastern col-
lection at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
August 11. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Corning, N. Y., examined objects at
the Corning Museum of Glass and discussed research prob-
lems with their staff.
August 24. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Cambridge, Fogg Art Museum, saw an
exhibition of Islamic art and studied their photographic
collection. Examined objects at the Center of Middle
Eastern Studies and in two private collections.
August 28. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Cambridge, examined Russian publica-
tions on Near Eastern archeology in the Semitic Mu-
seum, Harvard University. In Boston, examined objects
at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Museum
of Fine Arts.
September 4. Mr. Stern, in New York, examined objects at dealers.
September 5. Miss Elisabeth West, in Toronto, Canada, at the Royal On-
tario Museum of Archaeology, visited their laboratory
where she examined objects and obtained samples of early
Chinese blue glass for the Freer Gallery technical labora-
tory.
September 6-7. Mr. Gettens, in Corning, N. Y., examined objects at the
Corning Museum of Glass and watched the processing and
etching of glass.
September 20. Mr. Gettens, in Atlantic City, N. J., read a paper entitled
“On the Origin of Smalt and the Early Use of Cobalt in
Blue Glass and Pottery Glazes”’ at a symposium held by
the American Chemical Society on “Ancient Chemistry.”
Attendance, 30.
October 5. Mr. Wenley and Mr. Stern, in Philadelphia, attended the
opening of the exhibition of the Caspary Collection at the
Philadelphia Museum of Art.
October 9. Dr. Ettinghausen, in Baltimore, examined objects at the
Walters Art Gallery and the Baltimore Museum of Art.
October 28-30. Mr. Wenley, in Ann Arbor, attended a meeting of the Freer
Fund Committee and conferred with staff members about
Ars Orientalis.
108
1956
November 9-10.
November 23-26.
November 30.
December 3-7.
December 28-29.
1957
January 10-13.
January 24.
February 1.
February 2.
March 8-9.
March 11.
March 12.
March 11-13.
April 2-5.
April 2-6.
April 11-12.
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Mr. Stern, in New York, examined objects at the Willard
Gallery and the Oriental Art Gallery.
Mr. Gettens, in New York, examined objects at dealers and
in one private collection. Conferred with the Director of
the Metropolitan Museum of Art about qa Rembrandt
painting.
Mr. Gettens and Miss Elisabeth West, in Baltimore, examined
paintings in the Walters Art Gallery and obtained paint
samples from Flemish and Florentine paintings.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in New York, examined objects belonging
to dealers.
Mr. Gettens, in Philadelphia, attended the annual meeting
of the Archaeological Institute of America; examined ob-
jects in the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and the
University of Pennsylvania Museum, and also observed
the restoration work in progress in Independence Hall.
Mr. Stern, in New York, examined objects at dealers and in
the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in New York, examined objects at dealers
and in one private collection.
Dr. Hitinghausen, in Baltimore, examined objects at the
Baltimore Museum of Art.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in Baltimore, examined objects at the
Walters Art Gallery.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in Chicago, attended a conference on the
composition of a manual for the teaching of Islamic
civilization sponsored by the University of Chicago and
the Rockefeller Foundation. Examined photographs at
the Oriental Institute.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in Minneapolis, examined objects at the
Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Dr. Ettinghausen, in Chicago, examined objects at the Art
Institute of Chicago.
Mr. Gettens, in Chicago, attended a Conference on Archaeo-
logical Identification and the Cooperation of Specialists in
Related Disciplines at the Oriental Institute, University
of Chicago, under the auspices of the National Research
Foundation. He read a paper entitled “Problems in
Archaeological Identifications: the Identification of Mate-
rials of Cultural Remains.” Attendance, 40.
Mr. Gettens, in Oberlin, Ohio, attended a seminar on “Resin-
ous Surface Coatings” at Oberlin College under the aus-
pices of the Intermuseum Conservation Association. He
read a paper entitled “Summary of the History of Resinous
Surface Coatings.” Attendance, 50.
Mr. Wenley, in Boston, attended the sessions of the Ninth
Annual Meeting of the Association for Asian Studies
(formerly the Far Eastern Association, Inc.), the Far East-
ern Ceramic Group, and the Far Hastern Ceramic Group
Council.
Mr. Wenley, in Ann Arbor, attended a meeting of the Freer
Fund Committee at the University of Michigan.
1957
April 23-25.
April 26.
April 27.
May 21.
May 25-26.
June 3-5.
June 24-26.
June 25-28.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 109
Mr. Wenley, in Princeton, N. J., attended sessions of the Amer-
ican Oriental Society, and in the absence of Dr. Schuyler
Cammann, presided as chairman at the meeting of the Far
Hastern Section.
Mr. Wenley and Dr. Httinghausen, in New York, examined
objects at dealers. Attended the dinner and formal open-
ing of the Kevorkian Gallery of Ancient Near Eastern Art
at the Brooklyn Museum of Art.
Mr. Wenley and Dr. Httinghausen, in New York, examined
objects at dealers.
Mrs. Lnor O. West, in Chicago, attended the Museum Store
Association meeting at the Art Institute of Chicago.
Mr. Wenley, in St. Louis, Mo., attended the Association of
Art Museum Directors meetings at the City Art Museum.
Mr. Gettens, in Winterthur, Del., attended the symposium on
Museum Operation and Connoisseurship and participated
in the round-table discussion on “Case Study, Identifying
and Interpreting an Object” at the Henry Francis du Pont
Winterthur Museum.
Mrs. Bertha M. Usilton, at Kansas City, Mo., attended the
annual meeting and Art Reference Round Table of the
American Library Association.
Mr. Gettens, in Boston, examined objects at the Fogg Art
Museum in connection with his technical projects.
Members of the staff held honorary posts, received recognition, and
undertook additional duties outside the Gallery as follows:
Mr. Wenley:
Dr. Pope:
Research Professor of Oriental Art, Department of Fine
Arts, University of Michigan.
Member, Visiting Committee, Board of Overseers of Dum-
barton Oaks Research Library and Collection.
Member, Smithsonian Art Commission.
Member, Advisory Committee on Exchange in the Arts, De-
partment of State, United States Advisory Commission on
Educational Wxchanges.
Member, Smithsonian Institution Sub-Committee on Re
search Programs.
Chairman, Louise Wallace Hackney Scholarship Committee
of the American Oriental Society.
Vice President, Textile Museum, Washington, D. C.
Vice President, Cosmos Club, Washington, D. C.
Member, Visiting Committee, Board of Overseers of Harvard
College to the Department of Far Eastern Civilizations.
Member, Editorial Board, Archives of the Chinese Art So-
ciety of America.
President, Far Hastern Ceramic Group.
Made three tape recordings for Radio Sarawak, Kuching:
(1) An interview with Tom Harrisson, Curator, Sarawak
Museum, about Dr. Pope’s interest in the ancient Chinese
porcelain trade; (2) an interview by Mr. Harrisson on
Dr. Pope’s impressions of the excavations made by Mr.
Harrisson in the Santubong delta; (3) a talk on Charles
Lang Freer and the Freer Gallery of Art.
110 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Dr. Pope:
Dr. Ettinghausen :
Mr. Gettens:
Mrs. Usilton:
While going through the Freer exhibition galleries, made a
tape recording in French in reply to questions by Mme.
Fevrier for Voice of America broadcasts.
Organized an exhibition of Islamic art at the Ohio State
Historical Museum, Columbus, Ohio, for the Summer Pro-
gram on the Middle Hast at Ohio State University.
Discussed the Freer Gallery of Art and its collections in
Persian with Mahmoud Danishvar of Tehran. This was
tape recorded for use on Voice of America broadcasts.
Translated into Persian his “Foreword, An Exhibition of
Illustrations to Fifty Quatrains by Omar Khayyam by the
Contemporary Iranian Painter, Hossein Behzad” to be
used on Voice of America broadcasts in Iran by Morteza
K. Yahyavi.
Made a tape recording in German for Voice of America
broadcasts in Vienna, Austria, on “The Freer Gallery of
Art and Its Collections.” The interviewer was Oliver
Bryk.
Chairman, Art Committee, Cosmos Club.
Member, Ad Hoe Committee on Restoration of Catlin Paint-
ings, Smithsonian Institution.
President, Washington Society, Archaeological Institute of
America.
Member, Council of the District of Columbia, Library Asso-
ciation, as Publicity Chairman.
Advisor and critic of the schedules for 700’s (Fine Arts) of
the Dewey Decimal Classification, 16th edition.
Respectfully submitted.
A.G. WENLEY, Director.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the National Air Museum
Str: I have the honor to submit the following report on the activities
of the National Air Museum for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957:
The occurrence of greatest importance to the National Air Museum
during the fiscal year 1957 was the introduction in Congress of a bill
proposing the reservation of a definite site on the Mall, in Washing-
ton, for the National Air Museum building. Introduced in the Senate
on May 2, 1957, by the Honorable Clinton P. Anderson, this bill,
S. 1985, would reserve for this Museum an area directly across the
Mall from the National Gallery of Art. The site is bounded on the
north by Jefferson Drive, on the east by Fourth Street, on the south
by Independence Avenue, and on the west by Seventh Street, and
would provide space for a building with a base of approximately
300,000 square feet. It has been approved for the Museum by the
Reatowal Capital Planning Commission.
Great progress was made in establishing a shop for the Peta
of aircraft that have long been in storage. The exhibition area re-
mains the same as in former years, but rearrangements were made
to give more space to individual exhibits. Important accessions were
received. The number of sources from which specimens were ob-
tained compares favorably with other years, while the number of
specimens acquired is greater than in any previous year owing to an
important transfer of aeronautical instruments and similar material
from the National Bureau of Standards.
The fame of the National Air Museum as a depository for evidence
of aeronautical history and progress is constantly increasing. More
and more time is required from the staff to furnish information to
visitors and correspondents. Many demands for facts are received
by phone from Government agencies. It is increasingly apparent
that the aircraft industry and persons engaged in aeronautical
research depend on the Museum for this service. Accurate replies
should be given promptly, but the present curatorial staff can no
longer keep abreast of the increased demand. Two additional
curatorial positions have been authorized, and it is hoped that quali-
fied persons can be obtained to fill them.
ADVISORY BOARD
Two meetings of the Advisory Board of the National Air Museum
were held, at which progress was reported and plans discussed.
111
2 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Two changes occurred in the membership of the Board. Maj. Gen.
John P. Doyle, who retired from the Air Force, was succeeded by
Maj. Gen. Reuben C. Hood, Jr., as representative of the Chief of Staff
of the Air Force. The vacancy created by the death in 1956 of
William B. Stout was filled by the Presidential appointment of
Lt. Gen. James H. Doolittle. The other members of the Board, Dr.
Leonard Carmichael, chairman; Rear Adm. James S. Russell, repre-
senting the Chief of Naval Operations; and Grover Loening,
Presidential appointee, continued their service on this Board.
At the meeting of the Board on December 14, 1956, all members were
present. ‘The chairman summarized the history of the National Air
Museum ; described progress in the care of stored aircraft; and again
acknowledged the generous gift from the Aircraft Industries Associa-
tion and the Air Transport Association of $25,000, used for an archi-
tectural study of a National Air Museum building. Mr. Loening
advocated the division of the Museum into two parts: a monumental
exhibition building for outstanding specimens, and a secondary facil-
ity in suburban Washington for the study collections. Dr. Carmichael
outlined the difficulties encountered during efforts to obtain a preferred
site for the exhibition building. Because of prospects of expansion,
the appointment of a director for the Museum was urged. Coopera-
tion with the new Air Force Central Museum recently established at
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio was discussed. A letter
affirming Air Force policy was presented by General Hood, in which it
was stated that aeronautical specimens held by the Air Force that were
primarily of national importance would be transferred to the National
Air Museum whenever space becomes available for their display. A
progress report was presented on the sculpturing and casting of the
William Mitchell statue. The Board resolved that it be accepted and
an appropriate ceremony be scheduled for its presentation. Follow-
ing a discussion of several aircraft believed to be available to the
Museum, and a statement by Admiral Russell regarding the problems
experienced by the Navy in recording and storing specimens being pre-
served for the Museum, the meeting adjourned.
The next meeting of the Advisory Board was held on May 24, 1957,
following the news of the bill introduced in Congress to reserve a site
on the Mall for the National Air Museum. All members attended the
meeting and enthusiastically discussed the advantages of this site and
plans for the building. It was poimted out that details of building
construction and exhibition arrangements studied during the planning
of buildings for other proposed sites could be utilized in determining
the form of structure and interior arrangements for this latest project.
It was agreed that the next step would be to obtain authorization by
the Congress for the construction of the building and funds for the
preparation of plans.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 113
A written report of curatorial activities since the previous meeting
was submitted ; the need for additional staff, including a director, was
considered; and activities of other aeronautical museums were dis-
cussed in terms of relation to and cooperation by and with the National
Air Museum. Particular attention was given to progress with the Wil-
liam Mitchell statue project.
STEPHENSON BEQUEST
Previous annual reports have included details regarding the author-
ization by Congress for the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
to accept as a gift from the late George H. Stephenson of Philadelphia
a statue of Brig. Gen. William Mitchell. The sculpturing by Bruce
Moore progressed during the year to the completion of the full-sized
plaster cast and its delivery to the foundry for casting in bronze. The
granite base is being cut. The full-length figure, in World War I uni-
form, mounted on its base will be about 10 feet in height and, pending
completion of the Aeronautical Hall of Fame in the proposed new
building, will be placed in the Arts and Industries Building adjacent
to Air Force displays. The formal presentation ceremony is scheduled
for December 17, 1957, as a climactic feature of the year that celebrates
the 50th Anniversary of the United States Air Force.
SPECIAL EVENTS AND DISPLAYS
The year 1956 was celebrated in Denmark as the 50th anniversary of
the first flight there by James Christian Ellehammer, which occurred
September 12, 1906. A reproduction of his airplane of 1906 was con-
structed in Denmark, and a copy of his 1909 airplane was flown there.
Another feature of the anniversary year occurred on December 11,
1956, when a model of the 1906 aircraft was presented to the Secretary
of the Smithsonian Institution for the National Air Museum by His
Excellency, the Ambassador of Denmark, Henrik Kauffmann, in the
Regents’ room of the Smithsonian Building, and in the presence of a
distinguished group of officials, aeronautical historians, and Smith-
sonian personnel. The model is constructed to a scale of 1:14 and
reflects Ellehammer’s earlier interest in kites in the diamond shape of
its principal surface. A miniature reproduction of the engine that
Ellehammer made is mounted at the front, and the 3-wheeled chassis
and tethering connection illustrates how the aircraft was guided over
its circular path and rose for a flight of about 140 feet at a height of
about 18 inches, with Ellehammer on a bicycle seat just behind the
engine.
For the annual meeting of the Regents of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion on January 18, 1957, the National Air Museum displayed a series
of scale models illustrating development of United States naval air-
114 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
planes. This display was particularly timely because the Vought
F8U-1 “Crusader” Navy fighter plane had recently established a new
national speed record of 1,015.4 miles an hour. Contrasted with a
model of that jet-powered swept-winged fighter was a similarly scaled
1: 16-size reproduction of the Navy’s first seaplane of 1911, which flew
at about 50 miles an hour, and of models of Navy planes used in
World Wars I and II.
The National Air Museum was represented by the head curator at
the National Air Races held at Oklahoma City on Labor Day; at the
directors meeting of the National Aeronautic Association, held in
Washington on October 2, on the Brewer Trophy Committee to choose
the person most prominent in 1956 in the field of aviation education
for youth; at the Wright Brothers Banquet of the Aero Club of
Washington, on the 53d anniversary of the first flight, December 17,
1956; and at the American Helicopter Society Forum held in Wash-
ington on May 10, 1957. At the model airplane exhibition held at
Cleveland on February 22, the head curator served as chief judge,
selecting three outstanding models for the Museum collections. For
the First National Conference on Aviation Education, organized by
the National Aviation Education Council and held in Washington
March 7-8, 1957, the National Air Museum was represented by both
the head curator and the associate curator, the former as speaker on
“Aviation as a Vocation and Avocation” and the latter as consultant
on Aviation Curriculum Enrichment. Among the 23 lectures given
on various aspects of flight during the year by the head curator,
two were presented to aeronautical groups at universities, three to
units of the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences, and three to military
units. Six lecture tours of the aeronautical exhibits were given, five
to military units, and the other to a group of progressive youths spon-
sored by Representative Peter Mack of Ilinois.
The Museum participated in three television programs on aero-
nautical history during the year; the head curator spoke on three radio
programs and made sound tapes for two others, all relative to the
functions and exhibits of this Museum. Numerous persons preparing
broadcast programs consulted the Museum for facts.
IMPROVEMENTS IN EXHIBITS
Many of the displays maintained in the Aircraft Building and in
the Aeronautical Hall of the Arts and Industries Building were im-
proved during the year. Several specimens were added to the Robert
J. Collier Trophy display illustrating annual awards “for the greatest
achievement in aviation in America, the value of which has been
thoroughly demonstrated by actual use during the preceding year.”
The display of the Klemin Plaque awarded annually by the American
SECRETARY'S REPORT 115
Helicopter Society to outstanding personages in that field; the
case containing mementos of Wiley Post and his two world flights;
the Postal Aviation exhibit featuring models of historic airmail
planes; the Amelia Earhart Memorial Collection; and the aeronau-
tical instrument collection were improved. A series of paintings of
jet-powered aircraft by the noted artist Charles Hubbell was added to
the exhibition of the Whittle jet engine. The case containing noted
aeronautical awards, including the Curtiss Marine, Pulitzer, Harmon,
Brewer, and Wright brothers trophies, was rearranged and labels
were rewritten. The case containing model aircraft of the first World
War and the commercial models exhibit were rearranged, and the im-
pressive series of models illustrating types developed by the Wright
brothers and their company was improved by the addition of several
models, prints, and structural specimens. A seasonal exhibit of kites
attracted attention from the younger visitors and from aeronautical
historians who recognize the kite as the fundamental manmade air-
craft. Some of these early types of kites embody the genesis of im-
portant aerodynamic features.
The 40-year-old prefabricated steel Aircraft Building, actually a
World War I airplane hangar, was provided with a new skirting
around its lower edge, extending over the concrete curbing so that rain
will drain outward instead of seeping inward. The sloping wall was
painted.
The Smithsonian Print Shop prepared a number of labels to replace
the former temporary ones, greatly improving appearance and legi-
bility. All the suspended airplanes in the Arts and Industries Build-
ing were cleaned, and several fabric repairs were made. The Wright
Military and Curtiss Pusher airplanes were provided with glass
screens at their wing tips to protect them from handling by visitors.
The Langley quarter-size model aerodrome was re-covered; the large
display case containing airplane models of the pre-World War I
period was disassembled, moved from the Arts and Industries Build-
ing and re-erected in the Aircraft Building, and the models rein-
stalled ; and exhibits of relics associated with the first transcontinental
flight and the First Aero Squadron of World War I were improved.
The Air Force Central Museum at Wright-Patterson Field trans-
ferred to this Museum a 3-unit wall case in which scale models show-
ing the progress in design of Air Force planes have been installed.
This new case is provided with shielded lighting and illuminated label
frames and is a great improvement over the floor case formerly used.
Many of the new accessions listed at the end of this report were
prepared for exhibition during this year; others must be held in stor-
age until the new building is completed.
116 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
RESTORATION OF STORED AIRCRAFT
At the end of the previous fiscal year all the buildings at the Na-
tional Air Museum Restoration Facility in the Suitland, Md., build-
ing area had been erected; a force consisting of a foreman, two air-
craft mechanics, a vehicular mechanic, and an aide had been engaged,
and they were setting up a shop in the largest building. In that shop
the stored aircraft, principally those World War II planes that had
been transferred from the Air Force by order of Gen. H. H. Arnold,
will be prepared for eventual exhibition and study.
That large building, known as No. 10, and measuring 200 by 180
feet, was improved by the addition of a concrete ramp in front; instal-
lation of gas heat in one of its 60-foot-wide sections, involving the
erection of a 200-foot partition to confine the heat to that area; and
insulation of the ceiling and walls. Electric service was increased and
extended to the newly installed power tools and equipment, including
a metal-cutting band saw, punch press, belt and disk sanders, air
compressor, plastic-heating oven, drill press, and other devices for the
fabrication and repair of aircraft parts. This shop area is becoming
a well-organized and efficient unit of the Museum. Using scrap ma-
terial for the most part, the facility personnel have constructed a tool
crib, sheet-metal rack, scrap boxes, parts bins, welding area, and
benches for special tools.
Because many of these aircraft were stored at Park Ridge, Ill., for
a long time in the open, and then subjected to the hazards of overland
shipment, they must be removed from their boxes and cared for as
quickly as possible in order to arrest deterioration. During the year
seven airplanes and seven rotorcraft were unboxed, inspected, and
corrective work started. One aircraft, the World War I De Havil-
land-4, was completely restored. This entailed splicing the broken
longerons; cleaning and repairing the transverse frame of the fuse-
lage; re-covering the control surfaces, with assistance from the fabric
shop at Bolling Air Force Base; cleaning and redoping the wings;
cleaning the engine; and making numerous repairs to equipment.
This airplane is now ready for exhibition. In connection with the
work on other aircraft a number of pieces of shop equipment have
been made, including fuselage and wing cradles, engine covers, and
handling gear. Some special tools had to be fabricated from raw
stock.
In response to a request from the Department of Justice all the
autogiros in the facility were moved to Building 10, unboxed, and
partly assembled for examination in connection with investigation
of patent claims against the Government. The information thus
obtained was helpful in studying details of the case. The DC-3
transport airplane, given to the Museum in 1953 by Eastern Airlines
SECRETARY’S REPORT 117
and flown into the Washington Airport, was disassembled there by
Museum personnel with help of the airline crew and hauled by truck
to Suitland, the fuselage being towed on its own wheels. The Ger-
man V-1 buzz bomb of World War II was assembled and painted,
with the assistance of Andrews Air Force Base mechanics. At the
close of the year preparations were being made to set up our own
paint-spraying booth.
In Building 1 a shop for maintenance of vehicular and handling
equipment has been organized. Because much of the equipment for
lifting heavy loads was obtained from Government surplus stock, it
has required reconditioning. Repairs have been conducted during the
year on five forklifts, a crane, truck, and bulldozer, and the associated
slings, dollies, jacks, hoists, and other material. Some repairs have
been made to the roads connecting the buildings.
The four large aircraft that remain stored in the open at Andrews
Air Force Base, and which suffered from vandalism and exposure
until Museum personnel could be engaged to care for them, were the
first to receive preservative attention from the Museum crew. All
openings on these aircraft were sealed; control surfaces, propellers,
and tires removed; engines cleaned and sprayed; landing gears
shored; and the wings and fuselages securely tied down.
Final prejects of the year were the unloading of the Bell VTOL
aircraft, and the removal of two airplanes from exhibition for repair.
ASSISTANCE TO GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS
During the fiscal year it was acknowledged by the Court of Claims
that the Curtiss Army racing airplane of 1925, preserved here since
1927, embodies wing details that enabled the Government successfully
to defend itself against a claim involving nearly half a million dollars.
That amount alone is several times the annual appropriation for this
Museum. In addition, the Justice Department was furnished infor-
mation and shown material relative to claims pertaining to rotorcraft,
airplane control devices, and parachute releases. The fact that this
information was readily made available to the investigators saved time
and expense to the Justice Department. If the related specimens had
not been preserved the Government’s cause would certainly have been
weakened.
Many offices within the Government requested and received as-
sistance and information from the Museum during the year. Among
these were the U. S. Information Agency; the Office of Military
History; the Air Force Information Service; the Department of
Defense, Office of Public Information, and the same Department’s
Office of Scientific Information; the Air Force Research Unit; the Air
Research and Development Command; the State Department, Office of
118 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Dependent Area Affairs; the Voice of America; and the Government-
published magazine America Illustrated. Subjects included the
history of jet aircraft and guided missiles, identification of per-
sons in photographs, the story of skywriting, flight clothing and uni-
forms, addresses of companies and persons, the history of trans-
atlantic flying, lives of aeronautical pioneers, data on famous aircraft
and some obscure ones, first instances of structural details and acces-
sories in aircraft, air-sea rescue devices, and many others. The De-
partment of the Interior asked about early uses of airplanes in
Alaska, the Air Force Museum was supplied with photographs for
its displays, the Coast Guard received help with an exhibit on ant-
arctic flying, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics was
aided in locating data on a helicopter pioneer, and the Geological
Survey was interested in maps used by Charles Lindbergh when he
flew across the Atlantic in 1927. The Civil Aeronautics Administra-
tion was helped with facts about airmail history, in identifying an
obsolete “flying wing” aircraft, and pioneer flyers. Speech writers
in the Navy Department requested help in assembling facts for talks
to be given by their head officers; at the beginning of the Naval
project, which culminated in establishing a new altitude record for
balloons, the Museum was asked to furnish information about earlier
attempts to reach record heights; and the Navy’s Hydrographic
Laboratory, experimenting with hydrofoils, was informed about
earlier experiments with water vanes. Several times during the
year the Navy was assisted in preparation of a film illustrating
the development of Naval aviation as recalled by the pilots and en-
gineers who helped to make that history. Such assistance with im-
portant projects admittedly saved time for the research workers, and
prevented duplication of work already accomplished and a search for
details proved or rejected. From the offices of a number of Congress-
men requests were received for information needed by constituents,
and in every case help was given to the extent possible by the limited
staff and facilities of the Museum.
PUBLIC INFORMATIONAL SERVICE
As stated in the opening paragraphs of this report, furnishing in-
formation to the public is a function most demanding on the time of
the staff. This service occupies a large portion of each Museum day,
but space permits only a few highlights to be given here.
General Dynamics Corporation’s Convair Aircraft, preparing a
history of its third of a century in aircraft production, used the Na-
tional Air Museum’s reference files and photographic prints to pre-
pare the background, and Capital Airlines found useful information
here for its historic review. Many aeronautical organizations found
SECRETARY'S REPORT 119
Museum records to be helpful: the Aero Club of Washington selected
its honor guests for the annual banquet on the basis of accomplish-
ments determined in part from information furnished by the Museum ;
the Air Force Association used the Museum’s files in planning its con-
vention; the OX-5 Club, formed of pilots who flew behind the
worthy engine of that name, was aided in preparing its meetings; and
the reunion of the World War I 20th Squadron was made more en-
joyable because of help from the Museum. The Early Birds, an or-
ganization of those who flew solo during the first 13 years of human
flight, continue to ask the Museum to help in arranging meetings, re-
calling historic events, and preserving their treasures associated with
early flying.
The city of Philadelphia was assisted in celebrating the 45th
anniversary of a “race” between Lincoln Beachey, Hugh Robinson,
and Eugene Ely, flying from Governors Island, N. Y., to Phila-
delphia in Curtiss pusher airplanes. The Art Center at Kalamazoo,
Mich., was helped in preparing a display of artistic and aerodynamic
kites. Artists were aided in preparing authentic paintings of World
War aircraft, airmail planes, and Zeppelins. Many reporters consulted
the Museum for details, especially at the time when the Presidential
helicopters landed on the White House lawn, and newspapermen
wanted to know of previous instances when landings had been made
there. The Museum told them about Harry Atwood making a Presi-
dential visit in his Wright-B airplane in 1911 and James Ray piloting
an autogiro to land beside President Hoover in 1981.
Among the many publications that checked their articles from
Museum facts were the National Geographic Magazine inquiring
about airplane control, and Air Force history; Reader’s Digest asking
about Sikorsky’s helicopters and Lindbergh’s flight to Paris; Life,
needing details on polar flying; the Saturday Evening Post to get the
story of the first transcontinental flight; Fairchild Aircraft’s Pegasus
to obtain photographs and to learn about the military demonstration
flights at Fort Myer, Va., in 1909; Coronet asking about the pioneer
of rocketry, Robert Goddard; and the World Book Encyclopedia to
receive help with biographies of noted flyers.
Many schoolteachers received help in planning their aviation
courses, and numerous students appealed to the Museum for answers;
the newly established school at Cedar Rapids, named for the Wright
brothers, obtained from the Museum a series of photographs of
Wright aircraft to decorate its halls; while college students used
Museum facts in preparing their theses.
Several of the aviation motion pictures that were shown during the
year had utilized Museum records in their preparation, notably, the
“Spirit of St. Louis.” Aeronautical books reflected the work of their
451800—58——_9
120 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
authors who came to the Museum for assistance. Persons construct-
ing full-sized reproductions of famous aircraft in which to recapture
the romance of flying of the early days, and modelmakers enjoying
the hobby of building noted aircraft in miniature, wrote or came to
the Museum for help.
REFERENCE MATERIAL
The National Air Museum library, reference files, and documents
form an indispensable supplement to the knowledge of the staff and
are of great value to researchers who come to the Museum. These
records are used when labels are written, catalogs compiled, letters
answered, and statements require authentication. Realizing that all
this constitutes a valuable public service, a number of other aeronau-
tical historians and collectors have deposited their reference material
with the Museum, where it continues to be available to themselves
and also serves others. The cooperation of the following persons and
organizations is sincerely appreciated :
BERLINER, Henry A., Washington, D. C.: Two scrapbooks assembled by his father,
Emile Berliner, recording experiments by father and son with helicopters, air-
planes, and aircraft engines from 1903 to 1925.
Bopinz, Joun W., West Trenton, N. J.: Selection of aeronautical periodicals to
aid in completing Museum volumes.
Bowen, Trevor, Burry Port, Wales: Photographs of the monument commemorat-
ing the arrival of Amelia Earhart at the end of her first transatlantic flight
in the Fokker Friendship, with Wilmer Stutz and Louis Gordon, June 8, 1928.
Cuine, Capt. JosEpH, Coronado, Calif.: Photograph album illustrating activities
of the First Aeronautie Detachment, U. S. Navy, in World War Ii (loan).
Fire, Ray, Coronado, Calif. : File of newspaper articles pertaining to the airplane
Spirit of St. Louis and reference items on Convair aircraft.
First MARINE AVIATION ForcE VETERANS ASSOCIATION, through J. EH. Nicholson,
Adjutant, Baltimore, Md.: Photographs of U. 8. Marine aircraft and personnel
operating in France during World War I (loan).
FRANKLIN INSTITUTE, Philadelphia, Pa., through Director A. C. Carlton and Capt.
Ralph Barnaby, U.S. N. (Ret.) : A scrapbook and a selection of aviation prints
collected by the late S. 8S. Jerwan, pioneer flyer in Moisant airplanes, 1910, and
later an instructor in flying.
Greea, RicHARD, Kalamazoo, Mich.: Photographs and slides of a special display
of kites assembled by him at the Art Center (loan).
HAMILTON STANDARD, Windsor Locks, Conn.: A motion-picture film, “Keep ’Em
Flying,” describing the operation and servicing of a hydromatic propeller.
JARRETT, Cot. BuRLING, Aberdeen, Md.: A motion-picture film compiled by himself
and Maj. Kimbrough Brown, describing the life and flight of the German
World War I Ace, Baron Manfred Von Richthofen (loan).
Jones, Mrs. Ernest L., Clifton, Va.: Original manuscript of the chronology com-
piled by her late husband, Col. E. L. Jones, comprising a detailed listing of
events in aeronautical history. A very valuable reference work.
Kirk, Preston, North Platte, Nebr.: An original booklet describing aircraft
engines developed by Charles Lawrance.
Lzver, Harry (Estate of), Washington, D. C.: Two aeronautical dictionaries used
by him while aviation editor of the Washington Star.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 121
Liprary or Coneress, Washington, D. C.: Charts showing details of aeronautical
equipment, drawings of German aircraft, World War I recognition posters of
German airplanes, 21 photographs of historic aircraft, and, through Dr.
Robert Multhauf, a copy of Locomotion Aerienne by D’Amecourt, 1864.
LIncoLn Press, Washington, D. C.: Copies of Jane’s “All the World’s Aircraft”
(loan) ; bound volumes of the magazine Aero Digest, and a quantity of back
issues of this magazine (gift).
MANDRAKE, CHARLES G., and Lonao, Rosert, Wichita, Kans.; Copy of “The Gee
Bee Story,” a history of Granville brothers’ racing planes, 1920-1939.
Navy, DEPARTMENT OF THE, Washington, D. C.: A reprint of the log of the Navy’s
first airplane, the Curtiss A—1 of 1911; drawings of the N-9 training plane and
of the F5L patrol plane of World War I.
NIcEWARNER, Mrs. R. J., Bethesda, Md.: Album of photographs assembled by her
father, Capt. Kenneth Whiting, U. 8. N., illustrating his experiences as a pioneer
in naval aviation and in the development of the aircraft carrier (loan).
Nieto, JoserH, San Antonio, Tex.: Drawings of World War I airplanes and of
commercial planes of the 1930’s (purchased). Motion-picture films of notable
flights (gift).
Nreron AEro Cxiup, Tokyo, Japan, through 8. Sonoda: Recent Japanese aviation
periodicals.
PRUDENTIAL INSURANCE Co. or AMERICA, Newark, N. J.: Motion-picture film of
the “You Are There” television program “Benjamin Franklin and His Kite.”
Reap, Rosert E., Alexandria, Va.: A contemporary poster of the editorial in the
New York Sun, May 21, 1927, “Lindbergh Flies Alone.”
SEELEY, R. D., Fort Meade, Md.: A collection of photographs of foreign aircraft
and engines, principally German and Italian types of World War II (loan).
SHarp, Joun R., Sioux Falls, 8. Dak.: Book by this author listing Aces of World
War I.
Unitep ArrcrArr CorPorRATION, East Hartford, Conn.: With the assistance of
Harvey Lippincott, a file of the Corporation magazine Bee Hive, copies of the
publication Aerosphere, and a selection of texts describing Pratt & Whitney
aircraft engines.
VERVILLE, ALFRED, Washington, D. C.: Drawings and texts describing the Verville
“Messenger” airplane, 1920.
ACCESSIONS
Additions to the National Aeronautical Collections received and
recorded this year total 1,050 specimens in 33 separate accessions from
30 sources. Those from Government departments are entered as
transfers; others were received as gifts except as noted.
Arg Force, DEPARTMENT OF THE, Washington, D. C.: Twin floats devised and
constructed in 1907 by Orville and Wilbur Wright and tested on the Miami
River, Dayton, Ohio, during experiments to develop a seaplane intended to
be flown over the assembled world fleets at Hampton Roads, Va., during the
Jamestown Exposition of that year, and a drawing illustrating that experiment
(N. A. M. 945). Two dioramas, first received of a series illustrating the
history of the United States Air Force. One diorama depicts a scene during
the Civil War: the inflation of a captive balloon, piloted by T. S. C. Lowe and
used for military observation of Confederate operations; the other diorama
illustrates an important operation during World War II, after the capture of
Finschafen, New Guinea, when a landing and takeoff strip had been prepared
for use of Lockhead P-38 Lightning fighter planes (N. A. M. 946).
122 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
ATCHISON, Jos. ANTHONY, Washington, D. C.: Two paintings for an exhibit on
Natural Flight, showing the extinct pterodactyl and the dragonfly (N. A. M.
918, purchased).
Betz Arrcorsrr Co., Buffalo, N. Y.: VTOL aircraft (Vertical Take Off and Land-
ing), developed by Lawrence Bell and associates in 1954. Fairchild J-44
engines, located each side of the fuselage, were pivoted into vertical position
for direct upward takeoff, and after gaining altitude were rotated to horizontal
position for forward thrust. A conventional wing provided lift for forward
flight, and a French Palouste compressor provided air blasts at the wing tips
and empennage for reaction control. Landings were made either by descend-
ing gradually during forward flight, or by pivoting the Fairchild engines into
upright position and descending vertically (N. A. M. 943).
BERLINER, Cot. HeNRy, Washington, D. C.: Two wing ribs from the Wright
brothers’ airplane of 1908 which was the first to be demonstrated to Govern-
ment officials at Fort Myer, Va., those demonstrations being suspended by the
unfortunate accident of September 17, 1908; an Erco propeller blade of about
1945 formed of impregnated wood and plastic; and a portrait photograph of
the donor’s father, Emile Berliner, who, beginning about 1890, and continuing
later with the assistance of his son, experimented with rocket-powered model
airplanes, full-scale helicopters, and engines. The donor developed helicopters
that achieved vertical lift, successful airplanes, and aeronautical equipment
(N. A. M. 987).
Borine AIPLANE Co., Seattle, Wash.: A scale model, 1:48 size, of the Boeing
B-52 Air Force bomber which was the subject for the 1955 award of the
Robert J. Collier Trophy (N. A. M. 933).
Bouanp, JosrerH, Frederick, Md.: A scale model, constructed by himself, of the
Boland Tailless Pusher airplane developed by him and his brothers at Rahway,
N. J., 1909. It incorporates a unique “jib” control and was flown most notably
by Frank Boland in Venezuela and Trinidad, 1912, it being the first aircraft
to fly in those places (N. A. M. 917).
Byrp, Mrs. THomas, Boyce, Va.: Plaster cast of the Congressional Medal
awarded posthumously to Brig. Gen. William Mitchell, August 8, 1946, “for
outstanding pioneer service and foresight in field of American military avia-
tion.” Sculptured by Erwin Springweiler (N. A. M. 927).
Cessna Argorart Co., Wichita, Kans.: Models, scale 1:36, of three airplanes:
the Comet of 1911 developed by Clyde VY. Cessna during the pioneer days of
aeronautics; the Type 180, 4-seated high-wing monoplane introduced in 1953;
and the Type 182, which is a 1956 improvement of the Type 180 having
smoother flight characteristics (N. A. M. 936).
Commence, U. S. DEPARTMENT of, NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS, Washington,
D. C.: A large and valuable collection of instruments dating back to the
practical beginnings of aircraft instrumentation, including some types used
with early lighter-than-air craft, compasses, engine instruments, navigation
devices, fuel regulators, flight performance instruments, bombsights, and other
equipment, both American and foreign. This material has been collected over
the past 40 years or more in connection with the testing work of the Bureau’s
laboratories. The assistance of Dr. W. G. Brombacher in listing and identi-
fying this collection is gratefully acknowledged (N. A. M. 924).
GarBer, Paut Epwarp, Washington, D. C.: A Japanese “cricket” kite, embody-
ing pouches and dihedral angles for stability made in 1956 (N.A.M. 915) ;
a sculptured portrait of Dr. Samuel Pierpont Langley, third Secretary of the
Smithsonian Institution, renowned astronomer, scientist, and pioneer of avi-
ation; sculptured head by Joseph Anthony Atchison, 1957 (N. A. M. 939).
SECRETARY’S REPORT 13
GRUMMAN AIRCRAFT ENGINEERING CORPORATION, Bethpage, L. I., N. Y.: Two
seale models, 1:16 size, of the Grumman F11F-1 “Tiger” airplane in current
use as a Navy fighter. One of these models is shown with the Robert J.
Collier Trophy, it being the first airplane to embody the Area Rule principle
developed at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics laboratories
by Richard Whitcomb who was recipient of that Trophy for the year 1954.
The other model is in the series illustrating naval aircraft (N. A. M. 985).
HAVEN, GiILBert P., Glastonbury, Conn.: Two load calculators, resembling a
slide rule and used in determining the amount and dispositions of fuel, cargo,
and other load factors to insure safe operation of aircraft. These are for
B-17 and B-29 airplanes (N. A. M. 938).
HUBBELL, CHARLES H., Cleveland, Ohio: Scale model, 1:16 size, of the Morane-
Saulnier monoplane of 1914, one of the first fighter airplanes used by the
French in World War I (N. A. M. 922, purchased).
JERWAN, S. S., Philadelphia, Pa.: An autographed photograph of Admiral
Richard EH. Byrd, inscribed to the donor, who was a pioneer pilot of Moisant
airplanes in 1910 (N. A. M. 931).
Kirk, Preston, North Platte, Nebr.: Three aircraft engines, a British Bentley
BR-2, rotary engine used in World War I pursuit planes; an American Law-
rance 2-cylinder opposed A-3 used in training airplanes of the same period;
and an American Irwin 4-cylinder radial developed in 1926 for light airplanes
(N. A. M. 929).
Liver, Harry, Washington, D. C.: A propeller blade from a Curtiss electric
propeller, 13 feet diameter, made for a Convair CV240 transport plane, and an
airplane bomb casing used for practice during World War II (N. A. M. 920).
Martin Co., Baltimore, Md.: An oil painting by Charles Baskerville of Glenn
L. Martin, the renowned aviation pioneer who died December 4, 1955 (N. A. M.
932).
McDonneELL AIRCRAFT Corp., St. Louis, Mo.: A scale model, 1:16 size, of the
McDonnell F3H-2N “Demon” swept-wing single-place, all-weather jet fighter
in current use by the U. 8. Navy (N. A. M. 923).
NATIONAL COLLECTION OF Finer Arts, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C.:
A group of 16 framed portraits in chalk by John Elliott and four photographic
prints of portraits by the same artist of members of the Lafayette Escadrille,
a renowned group of American flyers who fought with the French in World
War I (N. A. M. 921, loan).
Navy, DEPARTMENT OF THE, Washington, D. C.: The original insigne of the Naval
Aircraft Factory, Philadelphia, Pa., organized during World War I, where
many notable aircraft were developed and manufactured (N. A. M. 916). A
Kaman K-225 helicopter, developed in 1948 and adopted the following year by
the Navy as a utility type. Its rotor assembly is of the twin-intermeshing
type, and its power was supplied by the Boeing 175-hp. YT-50 gas-turbine
engine. The assistance of the Kaman Aircraft Corporation in conditioning
this helicopter for Museum preservation is gratefully acknowledged (N. A. M.
940).
NortH AMERICAN AVIATION, INc., Columbus, Ohio: A scale model, 1:16 size, of
the FJ-4 “Fury,” naval fighter; the first aircraft developed by this division of
this company, produced 1955. This airplane incorporates such advanced
features as mechanically drooped leading edge, slotted flaps, and split ailerons
(N. A. M. 934).
PARKER, WILLIAM, Bartlesville, Okla.: The indicating unit of the radio compass
used by Wiley Post during his extended substratosphere cross-country flights
in the Winnie Mae, 1935 (N. A. M. 928).
124 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Porter, STANLEY L., Alexandria, Va.: A diamond-celled box kite of the type in-
vented by his father, Samuel Potter, who was a pioneer in the development of
cellular kites and their use for meteorological research by the U. S. Weather
Bureau (N. A. M. 914).
Royat DanisH AERO CLuB, Copenhagen, Denmark, through His Excellency the
Ambassador of Denmark, Henrik Kauffmann, Washington, D. C.: A scale model,
1:14 size, of the airplane designed, constructed, and flown by Jacob Christian
Ellehammer on the island of Lindholm, September 12, 1906. The assistance of
Erik Hildes-Heim in obtaining this model is gratefully acknowledged
(N. A. M. 926).
Ryan AERONAUTICAL Co., San Diego, Calif.: A scale model, 1: 16 size, of the Ryan
M-1 mailplane used on commercial postal aviation routes of the mid-1920’s and
the basic form of high-wing closed-fuselage monoplane from which the Spirit
of St. Louis was evolved by the same company (N. A. M. 930).
SperRyY GyRroscore Co., Great Neck, N. Y.: A scale model, 1: 8 size, of the original
“Aerial Torpedo,” pilotless guided missile developed by the donors during the
first World War (N. A. M. 919).
TuSTAN, MicHAEL, Cleveland, Ohio: A scale model, 1:16 size, of the Pfalz D-3,
German World War I fighter airplane introduced in the spring of 1917 and
favored by some of the German Aces because of its maneuverability and strong
construction (N. A. M. 941).
Vaai, Ernest F., Cleveland, Ohio: A scale model, 1:24 size, of the British
F. E. 2B World War I two-seated fighter, developed by the Royal Aircraft Fac-
tory. Because its propeller was behind the wings, the gunner in the front seat
had a wide angle of fire (N. A. M. 942).
WHITNEY, Cart. REGINALD, Baldwin, L.I., N. Y.: A Japanese aviator’s flying suit
used in World War II (N. A. M. 925).
WISEMAN, Mrs. 8. A., Washington, D. C.: Four silver trophy cups awarded to
the pioneer aviator Arthur L. Welsh in 1911 and a framed photograph of him
and Robert J. Collier seated in a Wright-B airplane. Welsh was taught to fly
by Orville Wright and became instructor and test pilot at the Wright School
in Dayton. He taught Lt. H. H. Arnold (later General of the Air Force) how
to fly. Welsh was killed in the crash of a Wright-C at College Park, Md., in
1912 (N. A. M. 944).
Respectfully submitted.
Pau Epwarp Garser, Head Curator.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the National Zoological Park
Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report on the activities
of the National Zoological Park for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957:
This has been a year of many changes in the administration of the
Park, as four men in key positions reached the retirement age. The
first to leave, on October 31, 1956, was Dr. William M. Mann, who had
been Director of the National Zoological Park since 1925. During his
term of office the number of animals in the collection increased from
1,600 to 3,000, much of the increase being due to collecting expeditions
he headed. Under his direction three modern exhibition buildings
were erected and a new wing was added to the bird house. Also built
under his administration were the machine shops, garage, a new res-
taurant, and the building that houses the police headquarters and pub-
lic restrooms. Dr. Mann’s enthusiasm for his institution endeared him
to friends all over the world. He remains in touch with the Zoo as
Honorary Research Associate of the Smithsonian Institution. On
June 11, 1957, the American Association of Zoological Parks and
Aquariums honored Dr. Mann at a luncheon in the Zoo, paying tribute
to his many years of leadership in zoological park management.
Those attending from out of town were Lee Crandall, formerly Direc-
tor of the New York Zoological Park; Freeman Shelly, Director of
the Philadelphia Zoo; Roger Conant, Curator of Reptiles, Philadel-
phia Zoo; Clyde Gordon, Director of the Staten Island Zoo; and
Roland Lindemann of the Catskill Game Farm, Catskill, N. Y.
The Assistant Director, Ernest P. Walker, retired on December 30,
after nearly 27 years with the Zoo. Asa mammalogist, especially in-
terested in small mammals and wildlife conservation, his services were
invaluable. He developed new diets for animals, and devised new
methods of exhibiting them. He is continuing to write about
mammals.
On February 28, Frank O. Lowe, head keeper, said farewell to the
animal charges he had worked with for 48 years; and on April 2, Peter
Hilt, superintendent of maintenance and construction, retired after
36 years with the Zoo. Both of these men were remarkably efficient in
their fields and were respected and liked by the men who worked under
them.
EXHIBITS
Plans for the future of the Zoo are to maintain a well-balanced zoo-
logical collection, with special emphasis on the exhibition and propa-
125
126 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
gation of North American animals, inasmuch as this is the National
Zoological Park. The exhibition of exotics will not be neglected, but
an attempt will be made to feature such animals as Rocky Mountain
goats, Rocky Mountain sheep, prong-horned antelope, and other native
species. Variety of species will be emphasized rather than numbers
of individuals.
This year, for the first time, an outdoor exhibit of trained birds of
prey was started. With the cooperation of local falconers, a red-
tailed hawk and a Swainson’s hawk were taken from the Zoo’s col-
lection and trained to a stoop and to the wrist. A duck hawk, or
peregrine falcon, already trained, was presented by a falconer. The
public has shown much interest in this new exhibit, where the birds
are to be seen at close range and with no bars between them and the
visitors.
Albinism, a curious phenomenon, has been prominent in 1957, and
an unusual number of birds, mammals, and reptiles have their pink-
eyed representatives within the present collection—in fact, to an
extent seldom seen in zoos. The mathematical improbabilities of a
male and female albino black snake meeting in their natural habitat
are staggering, but such might be possible under zoo conditions. It
is hoped that some interesting genetic implications may develop
from these exhibits.
ACCESSIONS
A number of outstanding additions came to the Zoo this year.
The most important was a pair of white or square-lipped rhinoceroses,
(pl. 5, fig. 1), purchased from John Seago, an English collector, who
had been trying for two years to secure them for the National Zoo-
logical Park. They were the first ever to come to this country and
are still the only ones in the United States. Another purchase was
a pair of snow leopards, commonly considered the most beautiful of
the bigcats. (PI. 5, fig. 2.)
The Government of the Belgian Congo, through the Minister of
Colonies, presented the National Zoological Park with a fine pair of
okapis (pl. 6), the first ever to be exhibited here. They were flown
from Leopoldville to Hanover, Germany, for a 60-day quarantine and
then to the United States Quarantine Station at Athenia, N. J., for a
30-day quarantine. Upon arrival at the Zoo they were formally pre-
sented by Baron Leopold Dhanis, Counsel at the Belgian Embassy in
Washington. With their glossy, dark-brown coats and striped legs
they form an outstanding exhibit.
An inconspicuous small black bird, with red eyes, which was ob-
tained from an animal dealer, turned out to be an ornithological
prize. It is a Colombian red-eyed cowbird (Tangavius armenit),
127
which had not been observed since 1866 and was assumed by scientists
to be extinct.
Six poisonous black-and-white-striped sea snakes (Zaticauda colu-
brina) were obtained through the efforts of Frederick M. Bayer, of
the United States National Museum. These are seldom seen in cap-
tivity, as they are difficult to keep. Shortly after their arrival here,
one of them laid 15 eggs, attracting a great deal of interest, as most
reference books state that sea snakes are viviparous. Disappoint-
ingly, none of the eggs hatched.
The United States Army Signal Corps, giving up its homing
pigeon loft at Fort Monmouth, N. J., brought two hero pigeons to
the Zoo. These birds, known as Anzio Boy and Global Girl, com-
pleted, between them, 61 important World War II missions in the
Mediterranean area and were given citations by the Army. They
have been placed in an outdoor cage, and an account of their military
history appears on a large label nearby.
SECRETARY'S REPORT
GIFTS
Other gifts of special interest were received from the following:
Ballou, George, New York, N. Y., 19| Kerwin, Charles H., Rockville, Md.,
spiny mice (Acomys).
Bonawit, George O., Suitland, Md.,
white-crested cockatoo.
Broadhead, William S., Middleburg,
Va., Azara’s wild dog.
Brown, Mrs. Helen, Washington, D. C.,
black spider monkey.
Cleveland Wild Boar Club, Cleveland,
Tenn., wild boar.
Coalson, H. B., Berryville, Va., spider
monkey.
Dennis, Wesley, Warrenton, Va., emu.
DePrato, Mario, Langley Park, Md., 125
hermit crabs, 7 turtles, 23 snakes, 6
frogs, 8 lizards, 1 toad.
Du Pont, Irénée, Wilmington, Del., 4 Cu-
ban iguanas.
Gasch, Manning, Forestville, Va., Amer-
ican bison.
Gianturco, Delio, Washington, D. C.,
Mexican spider monkey.
Hamlett, George W., New Orleans, La.,
3 western rattlesnakes.
Harbaugh, George, Safeway Ware-
house, Washington, D. C., 3 tarantu-
las and 2 cat-eyed snakes, which had
come in on bunches of bananas.
Hoffman, Irvin, Cabin John, Md., 2
Reeves’s pheasants.
Virginia deer.
Lichtenecker, Dr. Karl, Washington,
D. C., collection of tropical fish and
aquarium plants.
Martin, Mrs. Roy M., Winston-Salem,
N. C., ocelot.
McBride, W. W., Chevy Chase, Md.,
kinkajou.
Medley, Miss Virginia,
D. C., margay cat.
Muddiman, Buddy, Washington, D. C.,
collection of reptiles.
Murphy, Robert, Westtown, Pa., duck
hawk.
National Aquarium Society, Washing-
ton, D. C., 2 black angelfish.
Operation Deepfreeze, Washington,
D. C., through Cmdr. F. Dustin, black
swan.
Overton Park Zoo, Memphis, Tenn., 2
anhingas.
Pabst, G., Jr., Washington, D. C., 2
masked lovebirds.
Palmer, Miss Gaela, Chevy Chase, Md.,
macaque.
Patuxent Research Refuge, Laurel, Md.,
through Dr. C. M. Herman, 8 par-
tridges.
Washington,
128
Pifer, Ray F., Takoma Park, Md., col-
lection of local snakes.
Pittman, Miss Irma F., Washington,
D. C., Indian hill mynah.,
Pope, Mrs. Esa B., Berryville, Va., 6
ring-necked pheasants, chukar quail.
Rivero, Juan, Mayagtiez, Cuba, 6 tree
boas.
Royal Zoological Society, Amsterdam,
Holland, European stork.
Sadler, Mrs. W. L., Monrovia, Liberia,
golden cat (Felis aurata), and a
small-clawed otter.
Sand Lake National Wildlife Refuge,
Oberon, S. Dak., 6 blue geese.
Schmid, Paul F., Bethesda, Md., collec-
tion of local snakes.
Shearer, Miss Julia, Locust Dale, Va.,
yellow-thighed caique.
Sinsabaugh, Miss Doris, Washington,
D. C., white-breasted toucan.
Sorensen, H. P., El Paso, Tex., cock-
atiel.
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Stewart, Mrs. Elizabeth, Washington,
D. C., Florida gallinule.
Sultan, W. E., Baltimore, Md., collec-
tion of tropical fish including the re-
cently imported Distichodus sexfasct-
atus.
Turner, William, Washington, D. ©.,
marsh hawk.
Wampler, Capt. French, Alexandria,
Va., ringed aracari toucanet.
Warner, Mrs. C. F., Washington, D. C.,
collection of reptiles.
Welsh, Neal, Rockville, Md., collection
of tropical fish.
Wheeler, Mrs. T. E., Cheam, Surrey,
England, 40 grass parakeets, a su-
perior English strain of birds.
Xanten, William R., Jr., Washington,
D. C., collection of reptiles and a
tarantula.
Zoologisk Have, Copenhagen, Denmark,
2 European oystercatchers, 2 ruff
shorebirds.
EXCHANGES
The Zoo often obtains specimens of interest through exchanges with
other zoos or with private individuals. Worthy of mention this year
are a black-and-white casqued hornbill, obtained from Dr. Lawrence
Kilham, Bethesda, Md.; four roadrunners, from the San Antonio Zoo,
San Antonio, Tex.; Todd’s toucan, from William H. Paul, Washing-
ton, D. C.; a collection of Florida reptiles, from Lewis H. Babbitt,
Petersham, Mass.; four peafowl from the San Diego Zoological So-
ciety, San Diego, Calif.; and an albino black snake, from Allan G.
Dillon, Arlington, Va.
PURCHASES
Purchases of special interest not previously mentioned were as
follows:
An African elephant, about 214 years old, named Nancy. The Zoo
had lacked the African species since the death of Jumbina.
A young Asiatic elephant, named Dixie, purchased as a companion
for the young African elephant.
Seven hoopoes (pl. 7). These attractive European birds had not
been in the collection before. They are now mating, and it is hoped
some young birds can be raised.
A male hippopotamus, purchased as a mate for the female bought
last year.
A hawk eagle, a rare species from Colombia.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 129
Two jacanas. A young giant anteater.
Two oropendolas. Three red howler monkeys.
One Cayenne kite. Two pygmy cormorants.
One blue toucan. One blossom-headed parakeet.
Four giant tortoises. Two slaty-headed parakeets.
Two African wild dogs. 25 golden frogs.
BIRTHS AND HATCHINGS
One of the signs that an animal is doing well in captivity is its
ability to reproduce its kind and, as the following list shows, the
number of mammals, birds, and reptiles born in the National Zoologi-
cal Park during the year is gratifying:
MAMMALS
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
MUA Se a ee ee a ee tee @himpanzeesccsceee ss Sent e iL
Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus_------- Guenon 2) 1 38 2 hk cet GA pee 1
Cernconithecus neglectits== = ee ae = DeBrazza's suenon.. 2222. -- 1
Hylobates agilis X H. lar pileatus___-- iFikvoridtaio bone = ee a ee 1
Fig Viobalesplan sis S = Siaisl ies ef Bk White-handed gibbon__________- 1
Gholoemus didactytus- eS Two-toed sloth: 2-2. 22 a oe 1
Ciynomys ludovietanus 2 24. 2 SSeS IPPSTR EMCO eres ene es 5
Phloeomys cumingi.----------------- Slender-tailed cloud rat_______-. 1
PREGA IILCR UM = oa a ee eee AGTIGAn DOrGupmen va. ee 1
Dasyprocta prymnolopha_-_----------- Agoutil_L22 et aA a es Bee 8
WAIST Oe ON eae ce ets 4 Oe ee ee WEG LOR eee ee ee ba} 2 5
AGHEEE VOM GPTROSUS BoB Seabee ees Wister civet. soot cares ane ee 1
aye maritimus X Ursus midden- Hybrid bear (second generation) _- 3
or ffi.
MOR OUT UTL ES tos ee trent alts kl Grizzhy: Dean = eet ae ae ee 2
RCL IR TCO ae Se Sc ak RAO TS ase ps ae ee EE af ST. 3
Equus burchelli boehmi___-.---------- Grants zebras J oe ee 1
RATES LTE ae ar rene aR EES Daler epee SM ee AREER hak 3
PATRI ES eee ee ee ee are See ce AxIstdeere= see ee ee 2
ET VISICONQUCTIStE. on a Ree ee American lice ene 2m 1
CETUUISLELO DUSe aes eee ee ee Redtdeeren. oma mee. to ner 1
CerusMip POnse me. oe eas pike bac eee MEAN s Lise SARE Wak ha 2
Lown fallow decrease ——=—e ee 2
Dama dama__----~------------------ Wihitesfallowad cers ae ee 6
Odocotleuswirginianus.— - — sees Vitginiia: deer tata Soe 4
Odocoileus virginianus costaricensis.... Costa Rican deer_____.-.---_--- 1
Girajaicamelopardalise as. essoe—2—— Nubian girafiels sa £2 2
PSTUOS JOUTUSIN Ee Roce we ou oe Gare e ee ho teense tee 1
PAT OONUEDTESSUCOTNVES eae ae Se a An a2 D2 eee ares eee ee 1
NTR OREGOS UCI se ee eee Aoudad or Barbary sheep--_-___-_-_ 2
TOM ORGDS ORB ooo Sener lat Ge. 2 shee pe oe een eae aa 1
GREG RECUSE EES See to he ere aS Common poatsoos seat ee eas 2
BIRDS
PAGE NONIIS: DETSONULAS 22 = 6. ek Masked lovebirdisscce 2222 2) ie. 1
PARAEADIOLITYNCROB= cas Se a Mallard’ ducks sae s2ocae.cn 2 12
BSR UTLONCOMALCNStSe tn = ee Canada cousesiin See ee 10
Matra farquala jae ee ck SS oo ae Crested) Seneamers eee 2 a oe 1
CULYSOLODNIS Pachis SS PS 2S Golden pheasant) 22 22225 2. b 5
(CONIA TON G17 eee ae ee ee Pigeon eee eee 2h BE 2
Gennaeus leucomelanus_.___--------- Nepal kaleege pheasant________- 1
Larus novaehollandiae__...--.------- Silverfall eee ee a 5
Melopsittacus undulatus_......_.------ Grassiparakeeteaeo2 sk = ec eseeS 7
130 |§ ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
BIRDS—continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Manta org2vora.2- = 2o-s-seee ae J&Ve SpaITOW. 2 eee 15
Nycticorax nycticorax hoactli__...----- Black-crowned night heron. _-___- 15
Maentopyogra Castanotisas sae ee oe Zebra finch | oo ah2 see 4 Be 10
TROTISOMA INECLUM oe ee ee Tiger bitter: eee seen eee 2
REPTILES
Chamaeleon bitaeniatus hoehneli__--_--- African chameleon__.....--.---- 21
Chelydrarsenpentina 25-2. Hoses Snapping turtle: s252-2 eee 6
GChajsemys:picia = rs ane oe ee Raimbed turtle ss: ut Saar s ie eae 10
Fiprerates anguiijer. 2220 Mesa. wae oi Cuban*tree boa leet Sees Sree 2
Lan pronelvesigeuiluse nea eee ee AGing: Snake ures iis Bevey eee ee 2
INIQUTIC ISTE CON = aera = eee nie near a at Wiater snakes 2225552. Jee bh sea 21
JERGICLOND Con Dt ee oe wood Red=linediiturtles-242 tessa 11
Storeria dekayi_---.-- Se ea A eae DeKay's snakes.) 220 02s 45
The total number of accessions for the year was 1,851. This in-
cludes gifts, purchases, exchanges, deposits, births, and hatchings.
Space is too limited to list here the numbers of ducks, chickens, and
rabbits, usually given to children at Easter time, which eventually
find their way to the Zoo, or such pets as monkeys, parakeets, alli-
gators, caimans, and guinea pigs. Many of the common local wild
things are found by persons, often children, who, thinking the crea-
tures need help, bring them to the Zoo. They include gray squirrels,
cottontail rabbits, opossums, raccoons, foxes, woodchucks, blue jays,
robins, sparrows, box turtles, and other less plentiful forms. Some
are kept, some are exchanged, and some are liberated.
STATUS OF THE COLLECTION
Class Species or | Individuals
subspecies
Mismo mala sie 2 ise BES yaaa ere IE eee ee ee ee 289 696
BS es ett ay aR I 307 1, 251
Repiiles.= oc ec oA ao eel eee es See 166 864
Wish? 2 = 5220 2. oo 3 lt et eee ee 25 97
ATENTODOGS 222 = 2. fe ee eee 6 149
Wiollhisks 22s 2:40) se" oe 2 Ea eae ree 1 100
Lotal ou0teonpetes th aap ee Fes He 794 3, 157
Animals on hand: July 1; VOoOs eee ne eee ee oe ee 2, 965
Accessions' during thevyear S22 "2 ss see ee ol ee ee 1, 851
Total number of animals in collection during the year____-------- 4, 816
Removals for various reasons such as death, exchanges, return of animals
onideposit, CtCs2 clues toe sae ee Oe ee ee ee ee eee 1, 659
In:collection on June 30; 195/22 see ses oo eee eee eee eee eee 3, 157
SECRETARY’S REPORT
ANIMALS IN THE COLLECTION ON JUNE 30, 1957
MAMMALS
MONOTREMATA
Scientific name Common name
Tachyglossidae:
Tachyglossus aculeatus_..---------- Echidna, or spiny anteater____-
MARSUPIALIA
Didelphiidae:
Caluromys philander__.---.------- Woolly opossum.......-..----
Didelphis marsupialis virginzana_..- QOpossum=s_—----22222--
Phalangeridae:
CU@URITAYNOTOICENSIS 6 oe Lesser flying phalanger_____-_--
TTZCHOSUTUS, VULPECIIG So ae ee Viulpine:oposstim <<< = 24 eee
Phascolomyidae:
Lastorhinus latifrons_......--_---- Hairy-nosed wombat__________
Wombats insite ess sae ee es Mainland wombat_..__._..-_-
Macropodidae:
IDENGrOlagusUNUSLUSs eee eae ae Tree. Kkanvaroon = sere see
Hypsiprymnodon moschatus - - ------ Ratckangaroo so ee eo
WVUGETO DUSIOUGATHERIS =a ee as a Gray-kanvaroo eo 2s
MIC HONES UN ieee oe eS eee Redvkangarqossee se oe ee
Prpiemnodon Ogg. = 202 eo Wieltsiby esi ox e ss sl ee
Provemnodon: bicolor 22 SSS Swamp wallaby =e 222 4_ 22 2
PRIMATES
Lorisidae:
Galago crassicaudatus___...-------- CARGO ee ase Sa eee
Galage senegalensis... APTIC ans lA CO ars eee ee
WN ICUICLDUS COUCENM 3-5 amet Slows Loris. 2 ~ eee
Lemuridae:
PEN TATN OR OO 2 ee es eee oh Mongooz femuren 525522222
Cebidae:
Altus tTevEngalus. = 2 Night monkey |= 22342241232
Ateles fusciceps robustus_____------ Colombian black spider monkey_-_
Ateles geoffroyi geoffroyt or griscesens. Spider monkey_--------------
Ateles geoffroyi vellerosus__._.------- Spider monkey —2- i 4seb4-22s2
CMCATOOMUDICUNOUS. 2h oe oo Red: uakarissess 2 sono ets
Brown capuchin monkey ------
CLUUSICANUEINUNS eee te Ghose ae ao a White-throated capuchin monkey_
Capuchin;monkey o=- 3224-225
Lagothria pygmaca_......-..222-2* Woolly: monkey 22-22 252-5-— 2 =
QUUIUUESCUULEUS a ee ee ee SqQuinrelemonke yee sees ease
Callithricidae:
alata aes tA Ed AERO Red-mantled marmoset-----_--
Cebucilamygmaen 2 2. oes Pigmy, marmoset. 2 22222.
Leontocebus rosalia_..........=-J52 Golden marmosets.2-5-22----
Marikina Nigricouis.c..2.---~=-+- Black and red marmoset- -----
Cercopithecidae:
Allenopithecus nigroviridis__._------ Allen’s monkey .<5 52. eUce
Cercocebus albigena__....---------- Gray-cheeked mangabey ------
Cercocebus aterrimus___.----------- Black-crested mangabey-_-_-_---
Cercocebus aterrimus opdenboschii__. Crested mangabey___---------
Cercocebus chrysogaster___..-------- Golden-bellied mangabey__----
Cercocebus fuliginosus._----------- Sooty, mangabey — 22 2 sob os
Cercocebus galeritus agilis._-------- Agile mangabey _.- 4.222.452 2.
Cercocebus torquatus_.._..---------- Red-crowned mangabey--_---.--
Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus_----- Green guengie= =." o_—. 8. 488
Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus X C.a. Hybrid, green guenon X vervet
DUGCHILERUS = ee Eas i a Suen One ss ea ee oe
Cercopithecus cephus__...-.-------- Mustached monkey-_._--_-----
Cercopithecus diana_....-.-------- Diana, monkey 221.4528 ys
Cercopithecus diana roloway-------- Roloway monkey_-.-...------
131
a
eee hoe Reh FOO
BRhweo S&S Wher
| 15
mOWh COND Pee Peo Heep AH
132 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
MAM MALS-—-Continued
PRIMATES—continued
Scientific name Common name
Cercopithecidae—Continued
Cercopithecus neglectus__...-------- De brazza sisvenone sass eee
Cercopithecus nictitans....----.---- White-nosed guenon___--______-
Cercopithecus nictitans petaurista.._... Lesser white-nosed guenon____--_-
Cercopithecus preusst 22 = = ner ee oe Preussi’s gucnons.02 =. 2-25 lee
WMacacaunus mordaga ss) see =es a5 SAN ARITA AGU ene ee
Macaca lasvotizen = a ene Chinese macaques 2252222. s5eeee
VEC COCOMITUG TRUS ee ye Moorimacaques = aa =e
VAC CCCOMTUTLLC Caen yee Rhesus monkeys 2222-2" 2 =a ees
Me@caca nemesirina=j2 2555022225229 5 Pigtailed monkey 2: -- 2245-46
Macaca philippinensis____..-.----- Philippine macaques +. -—-
Macach, Stnveao = 2 Sanne 2 pens ne Toque or bonnet monkey-__----_-
IMGCACAISPeClOsG = ies =a eae PTS Red-faced macaque_--.--.------
Micaca sylWwani sie see eee. se Barbary apes 222. 5a se
Mandmllas sphinte ves. 2. ee oe Mandi] eas 25m Ses | eae
ODO CONGUE Ae oe ok wee Chacma jbabcons - =. = ae =p eee
PG PvOsCUNOCEPNALUS > pee ees Golden ‘baboons 3 2 ee
Rapio- hamadryas 22 oe ee ilamadryas baboon! ase 2.2 see ae.
RCSDYIES DIU ae os Sense ay ted Spectacled langur. i. 22s es
Therapithecus gelada ss 0802 oe Gelada baboon) —- oo ae
Pongidae:
Garvie GOT a sc ts A Mee eae Gora a ee ee
Hylobates agilis X H. lar pileatus.... Hybrid gibbon__-..-.___._____-
Enjlovgtes ROOLOCk ae a ee ee Higolock2k. Bese. Sagas eee
EAT OUGLE SIU = 2 eee a 2 ee OE rere White-handed gibbon__.-__----_-
diylobates moloch. 2222 22k BS Wisu-wau cibbones22 2 see 2 aoe
DEAT OPS EAT [EO pci Re eS a ye oR, EN Chimpanzeerzeerst eae ees ee
Pongo pygmaeus abelii__.__..__._---- Bornean orangutan -...=__._---
Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus_--._---- Sumatran orangutan__.._.----~-
EDENTATA
Myrmecophagidae:
Myrmecophaga tridactyla........--- Giant-anteaters Us Sos Jo a
Bradypodidae:
Choloepus didactylus__.........---- Two-toed sloth 22)228 ee Se
Dasypodidae:
Dasypus novemcinctus._....-------- Nine-banded armadillo_...-...--
LAGOMORPHA
Leporidae:
Oryctolagus cuniculus_._...-------- Domestic rabbit. =. -32- 2k eee
Syloilagus foridanus... ¢-22--o- 2" Cottontail rabbitz_. 8 ee
RODENTIA
Sciuridae:
Callosciurus nigrovittatus._......--- Southern Asiatic squirrel. __----.
Cynomys ludovicianus_-_._-_.------ Prairie. dog otek Bie eee
Glaucomys volans volans_..__..._--- Eastern flying squirrel__._____--
Marmota monaz 2 baie oan Groundhog =~ — 22th a ease
Ratifa andica s+. NAGeeian being Giant Indian squirrel. _.._-__-_-
Sciurus carolinensis___.....------- Gray squirrel, albino_._/-_-____-
SClURUS: NIgens 225 = Veale YIOO. Fox squirrel: = 2. Zoey an eas
Scturus vartegatus._= 2320 Sul ale Mexican red-bellied squirrel______
Tamias. striaius2o2auei Dewees? Eastern chipmunk, albino____-_-
Cricetidae:
Mesocricetus auratus___.....-.---- Hamsters 2004 24069) poe ge
Muridae:
Acomys: cahirinus. 222 50% Dengan st Egyptian spiny mouse_________-
Cricetomys gambianus...-...--_--- Giant pouched rat___._._______-
Meriones unguiculatus__.-.....__-- Mongolian gerbil_______.___-_--
Phioeomys cumtngs-<.. 2258 3222 Slender-tailed cloud rat_-_.-_.---
=
ag
—
NR NRF OR RD HBR RE NRE NOR NR HE ON He eee OO
ONwRa 0 palpate peliPalpetr eee oe
—_
SECRETARY’S REPORT 133
MAMMALS—Continued
RODENTIA—continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Gliridae:
GROPIUUTUS MUTT US =a ee Dormouse 2. 282 Aa see aaah 1
Hystricidae:
Acanthion brachyura_....---------- Malay. porcupine: - ee ee82 st 1
1:3 (UNG POLS UOLA ATT eno eae eee African! porcupine 2225 e use 5.46 6
Erethizontidae:
Coendou prehenstlis—...4-.~ =. ---5e- Prehensile-tailed porcupine_-_-_-_-_-_ 1
Caviidae:
@amasporcellusse ise o- nao a5 boon Guines=pigac gee eT eee 16
Hydrochoeridae:
Hydrochoerus hydrochoeri_....--.~-- @Capyburse 25.7 os: eee en apse 3
Dasyproctidae:
OUIICUINIS (POCG ee ko ee Pacae = 2 a) us nee Ap pipe 4
DWasyprocia punciata..= basse} Speckled aroutin 22 ja-8ae ane 7
Chinchillidae:
Chinchilla chinchilla bes < 2 Chinchilla 302 yee ee ee 3
UMGUAtIEN UISCACCIOs = -— hess Se Perivian! VISCaCelaas= 58655 1
Capromyidae:
WGIGEGSEGT COU DUS 25 te. seer aye Sys Coy pues he eke ere tele 2
CARNIVORA
Canidae:
CONISGANTORCLICUS api oe Doe Din gos334 255 eee se 52 igo 1
Canislupusinubilus. 50.25. 5>SS0us Gimberwolks 2527524 0 Sees, 4
OTIS POET ROM OT 1 oe lane es ea A edi wolfssssso4 coos le eee 1
CPR OCG HOUSon as ea kel SO pouth American fox...) . eee 1
AMM OMS CONG <= 315 ay oe es eg Ore Henneciioxe 355 se sera 2
TEGO ADUCLUS Eso so so OY African hunting dogo.- 4. sees 2
Nyctereutes procyonoides__...------ INAYOCOOIN Glover Se 6
Otocyonvmegalotis_....5- L4AeoS) Seek bis cared fOxe wae eee soe 4
Specthos wenaticuse =. 22028 328 Se Bushidogts son de. 5. 5a See 2
Urocyon cinereoargenteus._.__--___- Cees Aya a 2 x Se AE 8
edifoxees is Sie ei AeA 13
Vulpes fulua___------------------ eae fOx Sue G1 Le Bee 3
Ursidae:
Fuarctos americanus_....---------- Black beareie 22 oo. Abeer ees 2
Felarctos malayanus).> =... Ueul Malavasunvbeamo. 22-2 cus 3
Selenarctos thibetanus____..-------~- lntinally Ain [OC oo Bee 2
Selenarctos thibetanus japonicus _-__- Japanese black bear... ==. 2222.2. 1
Selenarctos thibetanus ussuricus_- ~~ Koreantbeare s= 228-255. sae 2
Thalarctos manhmuss 22. 5 i222 5i2 Polar bears 2222. aaa g eRe 1
Thalarctos maritimus * Ursus mid- Wybrid bear___-_-------_----_- 4
dendor ffi.
MREMOTCLOS OFNOHUSS <a 3 en Spectacled: bean. 2222-2 dawe ue, 1
(GES PREITY ON a ces tna Un en a Alaskan, brown, bears =... 2-.2---- 1
WRN ShCmCLOS ee ON Nt a ls European brown bear__._..-_--_- 4
Ursus arctos occidentalis__..-..---- Sasha loon iaw lee 2
OES) Tat 1 yo ae ee ely On A nena ee Alaskan Peninsula bear________-_ 2
Wrsusorniviliss. 2222S eee Grizzly. bears at Ne eee ee 2
Wrsusimiddendorfi-.-—.2--.-=4-2.- Kodiaki besreaece esses waco ie yas 1
URUS RURENSISS = 2 ace eee ee Sitka brownibear == 22225 58 = 2 2
Procyonidae:
AU LUTURS UL Gena n eee. Se eS OS Lesser panda=tess 22S eeu et fale 2
BaSsaricyon gauots2 oe SIL Olingos ss. Ae sees se My OY 1
IS ARSUMISCUS GSLULUS ee 2 Ringtail, or cacomistle___...___- 1
ISDE VIES UG4 1 pean, ae aE OD Catania ciao ee 1
NGSURROASUC 2 on one on Red coatimundis2-s225 552222202 2
Uealost avis ssa TA ps ata Fin kejjouis 32 Bes Ie Bye 3
ZT OCI ONMLOLON Ste ae ape ae SP RR EL RACCOON EL ee eee i 2 Bee pt 13
Mustelidae:
HU RONCLNET CNS 5.5 u's EUR: HO African clawed otter.._....--_--- 1
Mephitis imenhitis: 2:2. 2920s. suds Common skunk... 2... 338953 28 1
Mustela eversmanni__------------- Ferret, albino. 222 24s sees 1
134 | ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
MAMMALS—Continued
CARNIVORA—continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Mustelidae—Continued
VMaistelairendld saan ee ee Weasel) <j2'5 26 2 2 A ae 1
Pieronura brasiliensis__.._.-...---= South American flat-tailed otter_- 1
Spilogale phenamiovsfse sonst es California spotted skunk______-- 3
PACideaitacuse ss eee ae Americansbad rena. 4 5a ae 1
Raynanvar land eeeee ee ee ee Ma Paes oo kewl see 1
Cryptoproctidae:
Gryptopracta gerot..8 2s Cas ae Rossaei seek 2 he 1
Viverridae:
Ar CLUCHISNOLTEUTONG = sine eee eee Binturong 222222) 2 32 eee 1
Atlas paludinosuso een oe Water-civets.<0 cee) eee 3
Geneiia geneua 72228 vee Sas ew Genet). tol se5 be 2
Genetta genetta neumanit__--------- Genet icxtal yale i 2
iHerpestes/tenneumone = oa African: civets=-4 22a. Sonam 2
Tehneumiavaloicaudas=2 22225 2s White-tailed civet____._....__._- 2
Paguma larvata taivana_----------- Formosan masked civet_._------ 1
Viverratangalinga-222 et es Ground'civets= 22 ee eee ul
Hyaenidae:
Crocuta crocuta germinans__-------- Spottedthyenas. ==. ee eee 2
EAC IVETE NL ee ee oe See Striped hyenas... = 2-5. Sees 2
Felidae:
AlCIROT EG DOLG. 2 oe ee Oneétabt 2208 222 ae 2
CUUSN CIN UUS rae ei hes I eS Ent i Jungle cathss2=. 2-233 sae ee 2
Plelisieoncoloye 2) 3 = SU hee sk eye Pumas. 260222 | See es ees 4
LEGS UFO SS aE nee eee elon she Ee a oe eee eee 9
Helistoned 2482 eek aah he ee JACUat eee Les) oS Se ee 3
Welawajeros =<... 22 ee ae Pampasicatc.... 9 = eke eae 1
Metis mardalie. <hr e ase a Bee Cosi Saale RRM Z
: rican leopard)scsn2ees-. 2 seee
Felis pardus__-------------------- {Bin leopard. 2-2. 3s ee ee 2
Helis serval ce. = RS aly ee Serval cat2 5 25=22 seo. eee 1
eles sylvesinuse ae ee ee Atrican «wildcat sss =e 2
EMS UGnING see Mareay Cateones> 322s" see 2
Melisitegrisese £2 Sts 5 ee mie creo beeness Bengal tigen tsa 2) 5st ee 3
FE CUISUTCT Oe Oe See Sree ee fee SHO COPA sas = see ee 2
yn (canadensis. 20.2 553 eee Mynx oo Socotra ae 1
DEEP UP USS ke oa ea le Ree Bobcat... 52. leeks = see 2
PINNIPEDIA
Otariidae:
OiariasilavescensSa ae ae eee Patagonian sea-lion_.-__---__--- 2
Zalophus californianus___-_-.------ Ses-lionst). 0. St ee, ee 2
Phocidae:
Phoce vittting.coosc 222 ae Harbor-séal.-= 222-522 Seca 2
TUBULIDENTATA
Orycteropodidae:
Oniucteropus Glen wes re eee Antbear, or aardvark.._..------ 1
PROBOSCIDEA
Elephantidae:
VE DRGSHILOLENLUS = ot eee lndiranvelephante =22 =22 2 sss see 3
Gorodonia ajricana..-. 232222228 African elephsnt = “22.4.5. 1
PERISSODACTYLA
Equidae:
PEW USTOSINU BS oo oe es Burro,/or donkey... .._..23s8ce 1
Equus burchelli antiquorum___.----- Chapman's zebra_- 2. 2324 see 1
Equus burchelli boehmi____..------- Grant’s Zebra..22 2 4225-2 eee 4
Bawusigrevyen 2 Wek So ay eet Grevys zebtacs3 hee 3
GUUS RIO se ne ek oe ae erage Asiatic wild ass, or kiang_------- 1
Equus praewaishktt.22. 2g ees Mongolian wild horse.---------- 1
SECRETARY’S REPORT 135
MAMMALS—Continued
PERISSODACTYLA— continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Tapiridae:
PACT OCOALO MNO = so Indian. tapin e225 Sse ee) See 1
EM UNUSHUCTNESUT US = ree sno ets eee Brazilian tarp yess ee er 1
Rhinocerotidae:
Geratothervum simume = - = === White or square-mouth rhinoc-
GTOS 8 22 yD peel lbigel teh ih
Diceros bicornis......-.--...-2-4-- African rhinoceros) oo. ssa 2
Rhinoceros unicornis.. 2 eee etys Great Indian one-horned rhinoc-
CEOS ee eee he heelys i a
ARTIODACTYLA
Suidae:
SS aISCR Oe oe Ne ed pe Kuropean wild boar____.-_-_---- 2
Tayassuidae:
Pecari tajgacu angulatus._-----22~<- Collared peccary~.- 22.422 .22 2
Hippopotamidae:
Choeropsis liberiensis__------------ Pygmy hippopotamus_.___.____-_ 4
Hippopotamus amphibius-.-------- HD PO POLAT Sa ee ee 4
Camelidae:
Camelus bactrianus__---. 2 Sess sey Bactrianiweamel_.=.--- 22-222. 2
Comets CrOmedantus=- = 22252 = = Single-humped camel____________ i
JEAN ATL 17 SERIAL ET Aes aeRO TES HB}: 00: CR RE ME ee ie OTR 6
Lama glama guanicoe_ 2-32 (Guanes COj: feet eae Sse iia me Ua A 3
TEA OCOS a Ncaer ac aU Al paGge s&s. Sue ee | sO. e emai 4
Cervidae:
ALISA EOE ea ie) AE AIS. eer aoe. Stes ce a 6
Oenius congdensts noo soe eo American els 26at le Jose ees 5
CO CRITSUCLO TIL US a eos a es ks Redideere 22 22s ies ae are 2
WO CRAOSTSEE DIONE sere ee a Dike Geer gee. meee a eee 10
Cervus nippon manchuricus___.----- Pee Bee ls ecetah Syl falls 2
LOWOLall Owe CCCr ae a ee ee 16
Dama dama__-------------------- {Wane fallow; deere, ae ete ee ee 17
BLGDRUTIIS CQULATON US 2 ee PérerDavadis decrease. sean 2
AAT ODOLESRETIC IIIS a ra Chinese water deer_______-___-- 3
ManiOcus mung Oh 2-2 so — ene Rib=taced deer222-— = Vesa) 2s i
Odocotleus virgimanus. 22 =e Virginia deers 25-222. 2 ec) ae 17
Odocoileus virginianus costaricensis_. Costa Rican deer_._--------__-- 3
Giraffidae:
Giraffa camelopardalis___---------- Nubian eiraiies 2 aaa Soe ea 4
Okape johnstond TuQut 30wW or) ae Okapii 3S 28 eh SE aoa 2
Antilocapridae:
Antilocapra americana_._---------- Pronghorn antelope._..) 22222422 1
Bovidae:
PAMMINOLTOgIS VET UIA a oo a Aoudad. .. 34 22he. 2.0. Pe 14
Anog, depressicornis. iW) uo ee Anoa. =... 5222 3e ei) Se ne 3
JEANS GEOR AE oes Ne Sal ea Gaur tose ON Ea Ae ee Se end 4
SESOT USO Mr te LO American bisons.. 29S 2 Dime 8
BISON UONGSUS. ~ ee European bison, or wisent____-~-- 2
Bos 4ndtcus pe US. 1s ie Mee OUD Heke eto 2
est Highland or Kyloe cattle_- 4
Bos taurus_---------------------- British} Barkweatiless eee 6
Capra aegagrus cretensis__..._----- Cretan agrimi goat_.._.________ 1
Cape RinCusin deen eeu a RIC TONER: Domestic goatee 2IeN 2 bein 5
Cephalophus nigrifrons____--_----- Black-fronted duiker___________- 1
Hemitragus jemlahicus__.---------- Tabrs 2 Sea Oey. Bie Ae 2
OVISIUUSTRON Se SOIR A ee Moutflonz2c 232022 3b. Saat ay i, 2
Poephagus grunniens___----------- Valin 2 ON Ea ei to Oa 5
Pseeudors nayaur +. Neue Ages Blue-sheeps 222i fa ny eg Oz es i
DS OLGGNtGtGTUCG == ee Saiga antelope =< = 2200). Su Sia 1
PSIRCOTUS CU ER aca i ee Soe Africamebuthalomeses == sigs an 2
POAT OLGQUS) OR ge iese Sr Flaite reece oS tae Ss 2
451800—58——10
136 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
BIRDS
STRUTHIONIFORMES
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Struthionidae:
wUnuineo, CAMenis= 2 =~. - sivas seeeh Ostrich. .225- 4.326 nash eels 1
RHEIFORMES
Rheidae:
TERED AIVETICAN Gs bo nici is Rhea. Woes Jct ee 2
CASUARIIFORMES
Casuariidae:
Casuarius wunappendiculatus unap- One-wattled cassowary ---------- 1
pendiculatus.
Dromiceiidae:
Dromiceius novaehollandiae_-_.------ PO Ue ere Sees be 5
TINAMIFORMES
Tinamidae:
TenAMusvMCgor ssa OMe ere Me ee & Chestnut-headed tinamou - - ----- 1
SPHENISCIFORMES
Spheniscidae:
Aptenodytes patagonica_...-------- King penguins 422 seer eee 4
TUGOSCELE ACL nae ee he Adelie penguins] 222 1
Spheniscus humboldti__------------ Humboldt’s penguin.__-.-_____- 2
PELICANIFORMES
Pelecanidae:
Pelecanus erythrorhynchus__-------- Wihitespelicane. =~ == so. seas 7
Pelecanus occidentalis occidentalis... Brown pelican_._..------------ 2
Pelecanus onocrotalus .------------ Rose-colored pelican._._..--.--- 2
Phalacrocoracidae:
Phalacrocoraz auritus albociliatus..... Farallon cormorant.------------ 1
CICONIIFORMES
Ardeidae:
PlonidacGeruleg= 2 = ase ee ee Blue cheron =.4.54:3:14 532-4 lee 2
CUucopnoycitii Gan see a ee Snowy egret. 2255-55-25 5 eae 2
Notophoyx novaehollandiae_--.-.--- White-faced heron_.-=---_--=---- 1
Nycticorax nycticorax hoactli___----- Black-crowned night heron --_-- 24
LL OTeSOILGNLUILEGIILI ae ee Tiger bittern. 2.2225. 2. -e eRe 4
Balaenicipitidae:
Walaeniceva rer. 6o ce ae See eee ‘Siete’ | ee Se eee 1
Cochleariidae:
Cochlearius cochlearius_..---------- Boat-billed heron. o2422e2s640)- = 3
Ciconiidae:
IDiSSOUnd CDISCODUS= =~ ae ae Woolly-necked stork__-_-_------ i
Leptoptilus crumeniferus_---------- Marabou stork... 2-2" -.gec,ns eee 1
epto pilus Javantcus se ee ee Ibesseradjutants. 2-2 2 eae 2
Threskiornithidae:
AjGtG GJOjG. .. - -— ai tvan te St tela Roseate spoonbillz2.-= 22-2222 2
Budocmus alba... seas 4a4es 222 oe White ibis.2 22 ae eee ae 4
Budocimus ruber..<--- eee. se heees pearlet ibis. 22 oc ok ee 2
Mycteria americangick J22nush-lee Wood ibis’... . 2 242282e0-n 228 ese il
Threskiornis melanocephala__.------ Black-headed ibis.......-----.-- 1
Phoenicopteridae:
Phoenicopterus antiquorum--------- Old World flamingo__.---------- i
Phoenicopterus chilensis___.-------- Chilean flamingo. —.. -=:u0s-2 2253 2
Phoenicopterus ruber... — acaiase eee Cuban flamingo. .....-iacesteee 1
SECRETARY’S REPORT 137
BIRDS—Continued
ANSERIFORMES
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Anhimidae:
Chauna -torquaia. .. — fern ¢ tote 32 Crested. screamer. + Seon. tect a 4
Anatidae:
PUR TITRE Sato cs = Kees ep Wood) due kee eye 9
Aix sponsa X Aythya americana-.--- Hyped, wood duck X red-headed 2
uck.
TAOS CCULE = Piss cis Sys eet tL Fintan Quek ae eek 4
VATS YOUSCONS see = cae tk eh eS Blue-winged teal___-.._._------_- 1
Mallardiduckcanc- ent ae ek ee 57
Anas platyrhynchos =o ass ose so IOUCTYGIIC Kai see pe et 8
Wihitemnallardiducke sees 1
Anas platyrhynchos X A. acuta__--- Hybrid, mallard duck X Ameri- 1
can pintail duck.
Anas platyrhynchos X A. p. domes- UHybrid, mallard X Pekingduck._ 20
tica.
Anas platyrhynchos domestica__-_----- Peking QUCka S222 4 aos eee 102
Anas poectlorhyncha.__.....-..---- Indian spotted-bill duck_________ 1
ANGE TUOTENCS. 28 ee eS tte Black ducks: 3.5) a 2p epee 1
AMtSer GLUT TONS. 228. Stee tee White-fronted goose___._.__--_- 3
Anser anser domesticus. -.--------- Domestic Chinese goose__-_____-_ 7
Anseranus semipalmata__---------- Australian pied goose______-__-- 1
PAUIEIU) COMCILERUC CTL ee te ee ee Red-headed’duck=22-s see sen a45 4
LEIA G) VOLIRUNCTIO = 8 oe rec @anvasbacki@uck i. (as 3
SRL QC ILA CCIUS See ee Canddar GOUSe Laas ema eee 40
Branta canadensis canadensis XX Hybrid, Canada goose X blue 2
Chen caerulescens. goose.
Branta canadensis minima-.-------- Cackling po0se: = saoe eee eee 13
Branta canadensis occidentalis - - - -_- White-cheeked goose_________-_- 27
Carrindimoschatg a ae ee Muscovy, nck seen ee 7
Cereopsis novaehollandiae-_-_-------- Cape Barren goose__.._.____--_- 1
ChenraulanticG ee eee ae eee ee ae SNOW: LOOsea a. Sees eee eee a
Chenicaenulescens= ae ee IBIWe POOSES. 2 ee oe eae 6
Chere WuDeroOred see tee IhesseriSnOw) POOSe sere a eee 2
CIDE: ESTs ea ea pp ps eee NL: eas TLOSS'S, ROG8CS - oe eee ne 4
ORENODUSAUOL Ot en a eee Blackiswant] eet ocen ecm 4
Chloephaga leucoptera___._---------- Upland) goose. = = Seat rene aia’ 1
Cygnus columbtanius.--=- 2-2 --=- 7. Wiis Glim’ets waits ee eee ee ea 5
OUARUS CUGIUS a a a ae ee WhHOoper SWalee= cee eos neers 2
Dendrocygna autumnalis.---------- Black-bellied tree duck______---_- 30
Dendronessa galericulata_...-.----- Manga rina click ee 2
Jip ayyras (ysie ii ora eps, Mes sy NN ey le le Indian bar-headed goose_____---- 5
Moarecd americana... oe eee Baldpate tw. 6 ae ae eee eee 1
ES ATIE RESIN (1 (2 eagle Sa cea lead a eR Red-crested pochard__-_-._----- 1
INTOCUOLIUSS ae eee Lesser Statiplo- eee ee eke 1
eA OULCLERCOMC G1 CO ae eee ee IBN PELOL SOOSO Seer eee ee 2
Plectropterus gambensis__---------- Spur-winged goose___--________- il
Sarkidiornis melanota_---.-------- Comb atic Cera. see sees ee i
Somateria mollissima__..-.-------- Hider Guck 22 2 tere ees wee ee, 1
DAQONG (AGO dee European shell duck___________- 1
FALCONIFORMES
Cathartidae:
STILTS ACCOM T ITY 1 Sad ele tS ae sLurkey Vualiirese.. oo. ou kee 4
Corngyps atratus. © toes Set. Beh te Black’ vultiires 222 Sue te ee 6
GUUS NEU PEt. so eee Se Ruppell’s vultures2 22-2. -fat pc 2
Pseudogyps africanus..---.-------- White-backed vulture__.....--_- 1
NarcoOranpnus PAVG.—.=.-.--.--==- King vulture sve 2 sae 22 os 1
Sagittariidae:
Sagittarius serpentarius...--------- DECrevary OITG sete he 2
138 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
BIRDS—Continued
FALCONIFORMES—continued
Scientific name Common name
Accipitridae:
Buico gamaicensts..- Nee Lees Red-tailed hawk __-------_-_-__-
ULED TREGIUS HA ee ees Cae! Red-shouldered hawk_______=__-
Buteo poectlochrows.---~-~* $2222 L Buzzard: eagle-: = =< 2.2 2 NNO
Butea swatns0nts 22 UL2 PROe i tt Swainson’s hawk_______._______
Haliaeetus leucocephalus__--------- Bald eaple.. - os Soe be ae
Haliaeetustieucogaster=="ene ee White-breasted sea eagle________
Haltasiuriinduss =e Aa ie ee Brahminy-kites 2-22 222 one ee
Harpraharpyjas << eRe Wee LAID VCORE Soe i See
Lentodoen-cayanensis-== = =2) US ane Cayenne-kites = 22 22a BS
IM ilbagoercht mangos.) se Sui eit Sn Chimangoue 22. 2 Jou o. 5 ee ae
Milvus migrans parasitus_.-------- African yellow-billed kite________
Mornknus guianensises Sanaa te Guianan crested eagle__.-__._-__-
Pandion haliaetus carolinensis _ - - ~~~ Osprey. 28.2% _ 2k A aan
Puhecophague jejeryin= = Monkey-eating eagle__..--__---_-
WDICGELUSOrn licen mae ee en cee Manduit’s hawk-eagle___-______-
Falconidae:
Ralco-mecicanis 22 228 en SI Aes Prainietfaleon= ==-=+2 = 10s s aee ee
Falco peregrinus anatum-__--------- Duckthawike= 225-222 eee ee
alco snarvertiera. = oe ee ee Sparrow hawk 2s2ceur on wei tas
Polyborus planes. = ee es South American caracara__-__-_-_-
GALLIFORMES
Megapodiidae:
Alleria MURGiNi Sn. ee Brush turkey ote ee ee
Cracidae:
Crasialberie sn eee a Se eae Blue-cered curassow- -----------
Crary lb0ulosa. ee eee Wattled*cilrassow. 2.22.5 eee
Cran panumensis. son toe Panama Curassow 22 oe ee
Phasianidae:
Allectornts graced. = Sen Te ae Chiikar quail s2e2 35S 2 eee
Arqustanis argues... Sass 22 ee 8S Aros’ pheasants... ean eee
Chrysolophus amherstiae__--------- Lady Amherst pheasant___-___--
Chrysoloplius pichis= 22> > poe phearante Ss tes sos eee
Colinus virginianus———-—-—-----—- {Red Bobwhite yiiaites >: Subhas
Crossopitlon auritwm=— — 2-8 Se Blue-eared pheasant_-__-_-_-_---
Redo unglefowleat ee ee
Mong=tailedtfowle =a oe
Mighting fowl sovsse. caste. ee
Bantany chickentouee os oe
Diley, Waibhine SOS Sanne ee eee
Silver-spangled Hamburg fowl - --
Gallus gallus Rene 2 See ae
Gennaeus leucomelanus_----------- Nepal pheasants: 220202. we Se
Hierophasts swinhotiz 2-5. 2 + Swinhoe’s pheasant______-______
Lophortyz californica vallicola__----- California valley quail____---_--
Lophortjx gambettts = 22222 ee Ganibel’s quale oon eee
Pavoleristutae eee te a ee Pesto wlst seston e aeea
erie ehaie. Se ete nas, ee Hungarian partridge. 2222-25
Ring-necked pheasant__..___-__-
Phasianus colchicus torquatus___---~- White ring-necked pheasant____-
MENaLiCus:Teevest— 3 Se ee Reeves’s pheasant___.-.--------
Numididae:
Numada-meleagria_-<2 <-2 502 Aone White guinea fowl_______-__-_--
Meleagrididae:
Meleagris gallopavo____-_---------- Domestic turkey__.2_+-.2--2-2.
GRUIFORMES
Gruidae:
Anthropoides virgo.....----------- Demoiselle crane_..______------
ibaleanica navoninGes eee ee ea West African crowned crane---_--
Balearica regulorum gibbericeps_---- East African crowned crane-_-_----
5
:
WOR Pt et ND et tt CO St OD
aS & NNN RNR REWIND HWW Oo ebb oe
SECRETARY'S REPORT
BIRDS—Continued
GRUIFORMES—continued
Scientific name Common name
Gruidae—Continued
Gils ;cOnaddensis...— 5 =. saws See Florida sandhill erane._-....----
Giusleucogeranuseseus hh on. eel Siberiany Crane se ase hel
Psophiidae:
SODULGICTED UALS Sanne Sue eo Gray-backed trumpeter --_------
Rallidae:
PULICOIaMericangd asa Be ale fie Bie AMenicanicoot sano aa — aoe eee
Gallinula chloropus cachinnans_----- Kloridaygallinule seas = meee
Laterallus leucopyrrhus_...-------- Black-and-white crake______-_--
Porphyrio poliocephalus.....-.----- South Pacific swamp hen____----
Rallus limicola limicola._.._-_------ Virginia, rails. 52 2 aheee es Bees
Eurypygidae:
Buropyga helias... izeobeu_ ase Sun, bitterna-+2 seen -- te eedsess
Cariamidae:
Cantamarcristala =.= 2 as Aer es pee Cariama, on seriamasitoaaee aoke
Otididae:
Chlamydotis undulata macqueeni.... MacQueen’s bustard____._------
CHARADRIIFORMES
Jacanidae:
Jacana spinosa hypomelaena____---- Black..jacang...--£) 20a) Sais
Recurvirostridae:
Himantopus mexicanus...--------- Black-necked stilt... 2Lss 220
Burhinidae:
Burhinus bisiriatwe ei) Deo aer Auk South American thick-knee_-_-_-__-_
Haematopodidae:
Haematopus ostralegus__..--------- Oystercatcher... 2 -S4Isuss ea
Charadriidae:
Belonopterus cayennensis____------- South American lapwing--------
Charadnivusvocifenis: 2) soso Sebi Kulldeers ss 5...
Philomachus pugnag...2...-.+---- RuUfirewre el snd Ae SSO Ne OU
Stercorariidae:
Catharacta maccormicki....-------- Mine Cormickis sku aeesseess sas
Laridae:
DOrOSternd INCO. - aoa a a es es mea terre so oa oie ea antes
TEGTUSTCUTCL Ges eee ee Mawehin gto eee ee See
aruadelawarensts. ===. =. 245 Ring-billed) guile. 4s. es
IGOTUSAOMUNICONUS = = ne op mi Kelp gullies =.) ane eee ae go
Larus novaehollandiae_.----------- Silver cull. (ose oe ee eae
COLUMBIFORMES
Pteroclidae:
Wierocles) orientaliseeso 2.5558 < DANG Prousee eee aes ce ee
Columbidae:
Calinbanna sees 22 2e ek ee oo Homing: pigeones= 3.22222. e
Columba nigrirosiris... 22. =~. - Black-billed pigeon__-__________
Gallicolumba Vazontca 22223 2 2 Bleeding-heart dove___-___-___-_
Geopelsaicuncatassesees, 2k Diamond(dovebocas ool cares
Goimninscorige so ees te Crowned pigeon’ asset aoa ine: a
pirepiopelia Gecaocto. |. 2-38.22. =-— 2 Ring-necked*dovers2e)-- >.
Streptopelia tranquebarica...-.------ Blue-headed ring dove____----_-
IC TOICONASTALIC me ees eee White-winged dove____-__-____-_
WET ULLUGCRINOCLOUnO aan en ee = Mourning tiove meses os eee eS
PSITTACIFORMES
Psittacidae:
Agapornis fischert..=2-==-2220). 02021 Yellow-collared lovebird_____--_-
Agapornis personata___._....------ Masked lovebird_ .-......_.----
Agapornis roseicollis.___.__.__.-.----- Rosy-faced lovebird_____._______-
PIG COMULGERING Sot es SN Blue-fronted parrot......-._----
Amazona auropalliata.__.._.------- Yellow-naped parrot.-.-_-------
Amazone finscht. 22252. <l2sc2-o Ue Finsel’sparrote-=2=0-~=22..22.5
—
139
= do BRR OR = ee
—_
—_
Db co oO me bh C |
CID dO bbe ore CO oe
Whee ATR
140 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
BIRDS—Continued
PSITTACIFORMES—continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Psittacidae—Continued
Amazona leucocephala__....------- Cubaniparrotus. .. ee ees 1
Amazona ochrocephala__.-...------ Yellow-headed parrot__--.--._-- 1
AGG CONOR Bea ae eee Double yellow-headed parrot__-___ 2
Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus___.---- Hyacinthine macaw_____-------- 1
PAT ON ORON CAEN Cnn ae epee ae Yellow-and-blue macaw-_----_-_- 3
Araichloropieng ss a2 so ee Red-and-blue macaw___.----___- 3
Ara macdos lees. 2 a Red-blue-and-yellow macaw- --_-_ 4
Aratinga canicularis: Lo. 2-2-2. 4- Petz’s:parakeetzusz2eeuud aioe 1
Aratinga periinase ees Ses ees Rusty-cheeked parrot_--..---__- 4
Brotogerts Gugularts ne SUL Tovi parakeet_fucesul ewe ae i
Callocephalon fimbriatum__.-------- Gang-gang cockatoo___-.------- 5
Calyptorhynchus magnificus.------- Banksian cockatoo______-----_-- 2
Domicellaigaynlal see eae ee Redilonyse sa. =o eee ie 1
Helectus pectoralishe ian Oe Melectus. parrots. 2 Sie eee 1
iRikatoevaliaer tesa oe ee oe Ua White cockatoo2224._-- 3. See 2
Kakatoe ducrops. D228 Boon! Solomon Islands cockatoo- ----_-- 1
Makatbewaleniass 222.222 e Les Sulphur-crested cockatoo_-----_-- 6
iKakatoevleadbeatenimas a> a= a= ae Leadbeater’s cockatoo_.._.------ 10
Kakatoe moluccensis. == i=2--2525 Great red-crested cockatoo- -- --- 1
Kakatoe sanguineus_-.------------ Bare-eyed cockatoo___.-..------ 5
Melopsitiacus undulatus_..--------- Grass parakeet... - _.2.-hieoute 45
Nestor motabilia- 22) thee Pepto lit WMeawparrot. =. 3 vtnaiew epee 3
Nymphicus hollandicus-.----------- Cockatiel <2 222.025 50 22 eee 4
Pronus mensisuusses. xetivgus th five Blue-headed conure__...--.----- 1
RlgtyCeTrcuslelegans.2 222525552242 o2 Pennant’s parakeet.__....__---- 3
Platgcercuseximius.-. setetesogiee Rosella parakeet. ..-.---.------ 1
Poles smainsont. 225-225-2222 Barraband’s parakeet__...------ 2
Psittacula cyanocephala___.-------- Plum-headed parakeet_--.--_--- 1
ASULOCULONGILD CUnTG sa aoe eer Red-shouldered parakeet --_----- 1
Peciccula fascia... 00 a Moustache parakeet. ....-.----- 2
Psvttaculavkramenrt se oN ee! Kramer’s parakeet... 2 228s hea 1
Psitiacusienthacuss2422 tak waa African gray partotea.45ec ot. 1
CUCULIFORMES
Cuculidae:
Eudynamys scolospacea___.-------- Koel 7s'4)+'-0 2 oe eee ee 1
Geococcyx californianus_----------- Roadrunner! 22 sa seeelses eae ae 2
Musophagidae:
Canwerniariconus los 2 ee Plantain-eater.<e< 28 eels aes see 2
RaurGco COnstnaie 2.22 eee HOUtHEATTICan LUTaCQuless == === == il
ROURACOSD ESOS a eta ee ae Purple wuracol= sass 2 === eee 1
STRIGIFORMES
Tytonidae:
Rytovaloa pratincolane sen ee Barlow cee ss Sh soe eee eee 2
Strigidae:
BSALDOWUNGENTONUSe = ee eee Great horned. owl <> is ee 6
Bubo virginianus elutus._..._-------- Colombian great horned owl----- 1
Kenna KElu pu. 2 eee Be ee Malayefishinclowlee === iL
OTR ROE es. ee eae ae DereeehOwles. see. aces me eee 1
ELE PANtG VOTO). = 2 Seo ee barred: OWli. == ee aon eee 11
TROGONIFORMES
Trogoniidae:
Priotelus temnurusw2s Joe ee Cuban trogon! 222 052 ane eee 2
SECRETARY'S REPORT AY 141
BIRDS—Continued
CORACIIFORMES
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Alcedinidae:
Dacelo gi gasirs SEO Ee Li Son sat Kookaburrac]: ace ceo o
Bucerotidae:
ACENOR UNGULOLUS SUT EOT Be Sea Malayan bor billise aes 1
Anthracoceros malabaricus__-------- Pied hornbill i222 sear ss Sas 1
BeerOS\ OLCOTIUS =e eee ee ee Concave-casqued hornbill________ 1
Eecerosiydrocoracesy. O32 e oS. 2. Philippine ‘hornbill 22222... 2 99D 1
Bucorvvus Qoyssinicus.— 2 solo eee Abyssinian ground hornbill______ 1
Bycanistes subcylindricus_..-.------ Black-and-white casqued hornbill_ 3
Momotidae:
iMeamotus lessont_La ay ot Feu Sie 2h » Motmotsc. Lear ows Bay 2
Upupidae:
inwnE epopsiies. SSE ee! Hoopoe el eueeei et 20 Ree oh 5
PICIFORMES
Ramphastidae:
Andigena hypoglauca_------------- Blue: toucan. 2 2 2té dee yes ol 1
Avlacorhampus albivittatus--------- White-lined toucanet__--_______- 2
Pteroglossus torquatus..____.------- Ringed: toucanet=.22 5255. ssa asks 3
Ramphastos carinatus_------------- Sulphur-breasted toucan_________ 2
Ramphastos culminatus-_----------- White-breasted toucan____.____- 1
Ramphastos swainsoni-_------------ Swainson’s toucan__.______.____- 1
RG DNGSstOst0CO. 25 Saree Baer ost Tocostoucan. -. 227. = Wahi nian 3
Capitonidae:
Cyanons astaticass no. basset s oe Asiatie red-fronted barbet_-____-_- 1
Megalaima zalonica__--.---------- Streaked barbet.... siacend ahh. 2
PASSERIFORMES
Cotingidae:
Chasmorhynchus nudicollis_-_------ Bellbirge = S22 7D eee ee ee 1
PAU UCOLENTLD LC OLA eae te Orange cock-of-the-rock________- 2
Rupicola sanguinolenta__--.-------- Searlet cock-of-the-rock_________ 1
Tyrannidae:
PHONGUS SUlPRUTOLS so. ae Kiskadee flyeatcher__._._..._.__. 4
Alaudidae:
PAL ARUGNGTUCTISIGS 2 ome a8 oo ae Sylar is oe ene ae oes Fa eee 2
Corvidae:
Caloenia formosa. 4 Magpie jayetes se oes ye ae 1
ComsionachynnynCnos- a. == a | CRO Were eee ichate oe seeds noe aaa 6
Corvus corax principalis___.__------- UA VCTi a aes Savina eek in een oe 1
COVNUS) TRSOLEN ED 5 aah a Se itidlian Crowe Sens Se ee ee, 2
OUDNOCULONCTISLOLG = =a ae BiUe [ayes 2. ee see ee ou 2
Gymnorhina hypoleuca...---------- White-backed piping crow______- 1
J ERY ME (Et | RO Re See ee ee ee Yellow-billed magpie__._______-- i
PCG ICG WUASONICE = <— -toe he 5/2 Magpies ae aes cere ae eee 4
WOCiSSONCReTULCO a eae Formosan red-billed pie___.____- 1
Ptilonorhynchidae:
Ptilonorhynchus violaceus__.-------- Satin bowerbird= ou foe Ste 2
Timaliidae:
(GOTT ABLOD DLC OL OT ce Se oa asp Bae White-headed laughing thrush --_- 1
Pycnonotidae:
Heterophasia capistrata_--.-------- Black-headed sibia___..________-_ 1
ERONOLUS COLET oo ooo ok Red-vented bulbul___..._......-. 1
Pycnonotus leucogenys.--.--------- White-cheeked bulbul___.._.--_. 1
Mimidae:
TGS MOL QIOUO So aa a soar alr 2 Mocking birdic ays ese 1
142 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
BIRDS—Continued
PASSERIFORMES—centinued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Turdidae:
Geokichia ettring. = 2-2 - = saeeaten Orange-headed ground thrush_ --_- il
Thamnolaea cinnemomeiventris_.- - - - - Cliff chatos4..-).. 2 se a 2
Turdus grayi_..-.- Judzped_ eerste D Bonaparte’s thrush. 3245-042 4e 1
Turdus migratorius..__.- 62425-2522 Robin: 2.22 343 eee ae eee 1
Albino Tobin= 22225 2s 6 eee a
Sturnidae:
Acridotheres tristts J soj2ee + sete ose Jungle-mynah- <j: 5 heswp ieee meen 1
Gracilamelvgiosasscs 23 hee sea et il am yara hn 3:5 sealer eal cea Seg alta ees 2
Gracula religiosa indica___.-------- ihesser hill mynaho os 22s eee 2
Gracula religiosa robusta__--------- Nias wattled mynah__---__--_-- 1
Lamprocolius purpureus_—.-------- Burchell’s glossy starling__-_._-- 3
IPOStOT\TOSEUS ee ee a ey Rose-colored pastor_____-------- 1
(S107, O18207). CTCL mye ea a Tricolored or superb starling_- __- 1
SOR OE ICMMAN PUT AE eS ae Gray-headed mynah-_-_--__----- 1
Shinns Onlgarisa. (90 2 oo) eee SELIM Sh elas Suds Lye sss el 2
Ploceidae:
Aidemosyne modesta__------------- Plum-headed finch___----------- i!
Amadinafascralasu sess eee Cut-throat weaver finch_______-_- 10
Diatropura procne= 2 sano as Se eens Gisntswhy dah wish! © eee 5
Estrilda amandava® {ae eee Strawberry, fincheseset see 1
Estrada angolensis ss 22 ene esas Cordon bleu finch] sees 2 Senne 6
Estilda.astrild.2 282002 5 AGeUEYE Red-eared waxbill_..__--------- 1
ESP GiCINeTned== ee ae ee eee Commoniwaxbill == S50) saeanae 4
Estrilda coerulescens_.._...—-=------ Lavender finch. ..-_..-_ _-9eiaae 2
Estrilda melpoda.. .--~----22-+-L-- Orange-cheeked waxbill-_---_-__-- 1
EigtreldgsSenegald a= == eee eee Str a Hire finehs.- =... 325s eee 2
ECCLES OING eas mee a eee a Yellow-crowned bishop weaver___ 10
iBniplectes OTIS. =.= ------ gee eee Red bishop weaver... --=-.-----< 4
GRGRULG ANOIGe cam 2h poe a White-headed num... 3-2 228 16
WONGhUTG MGIGCCO.. S252 - oe ee Black-throated munia___-_-_---_- 1
Lonchura panciuiata === 22 === 22 See Spice finches 2k. ee eee uf
MAU DAROT UZ UU OT ae ee Javoninch {454s see2 Nr as soe 30
eloceppasceronanglts = = seo = ee a Mahalinweaverz sea = sa a= seme 1
IELOCCUSROGY Os ae ee ee ee DAViS WeAVCr=-2 225 ese. ee eee 12
iPlocewsxortelliniwsee es ee ee ee Vitelline masked weaver__----- ah 3
Poephila acuitcauda. 2). 23 3p Shatt-tailed finch. --o 2. 22 eae 2
Poepnila gouldiaes2==2=>-=" 222 5.ue Veneers finch =.40= <0) eer eee 3
Black-headed Gouldian finch___-_- 2
Poephila guttata castanotis___------- Zebra tinche 355! sea See eareene 47
Poenitleruficandas:2s222"22 52222" Star tioch = *) =" Sees ee eee 1
Ouclea queleg- 222 secanaasaa el ed-billed:weaversass2=2= ase 1
Steganopleura bichenovit__.-------- Bicheno's finch: *sas=e Tes wer eae 1
Steganura paradisea. -22224--2----- Paradise-whydahs-422 02a eter ua
Icteridae:
Agelaius icterocephalus____--------- Yellow-headed marshbird___-_--- 1
Uigieriee GinGiat 252" eats = ea eee Giraud’s:orioless2247e =e eee 1
Uchenusiclenue nn eee ee ae phrowplal ahs 2 2+an hee eee 1
Molothrus bonariensis_..---------- Suky cowbitd.2222) 32. ee ee if
ES OMTOCOLOTIONUZ UOT a eae ee a iRiceygrackles 222s Sse Se see 1
QiaS COLA CULSCUIGE ae i ee Purplergrackle 2.22.3 see ee 1
HONGGuiuLshanmentieme = see ae Colombian red-eyed cowbird----- 1
Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus_-_---- Yellow-headed blackbird___------ 1
Xanthornus decumanus-_----------- Crested oropendola__--_-------- il
Thraupidae:
Calosmza rujicapilas: tases Brown-headed tanager__-------- 1
somocolac leventand= sean Black-and-white tanager___--_---- 2
Ramphocelus dimidiatus_-.-.------ @rimsonitanager2s=2 455 ee eee 3
Ramphocelus passerini__._---------- iPasserimi/s tanacerl.2 = oe 6
ORL USRCOT Cee are a ee Blue tanagers.. 22222 2s Sees 4
Rhraupis leucoptendi-a-22 = seee eee White-edged tanager______---.-- 1
Thraups palmarum... 2222s. - =e Black-winged palm tanager-_-_---- 2
SECRETARY’S REPORT 143
BIRDS—Continued
PASSERIFORMES—continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Fringillidae:
Ganmueisiconaueltseee eee eee ee Huropean-coldfinch=s2en2 saa ess 6
Carduelis carduelis X Serinus ca- European goldfinch X canary---- 1
nartus.
Carpodacus mexicanus frontalis_ — ~~. House tin chee == ane Se Ua ae 1
Melospiza melodia= === -S0S_ Eee Sone sparrowe= soe. ea ee ae 1
BOTUONTORCUCTULLOLG Ee =e a eee Brazilianicardinals22 2 eas 1
Paroaria gularis nigro-genis___----- Black-eared cardinal....--____-- 3
FZ0OSPiZa tOnTgUalaen eae ee ae ee Ringed warbling finch_-.._.__--__ 1
Richmondena cardinalis.__....-----~- Cardinals: 2 lec ee Ba Oy 1
Saltater MILIMuUS= a2 eee eee Buff-throated saltator_..._....--- 1
SEMIS CONANIUSS eee ee Canaryouen bean See PN 3
ISLCCEESILULLCOLG = = ae eee ee ater Saffron’ finch] <2 2 == Ss ee ee 6
Bupropiiaguituraiig 022s Yellow-billed finch.........---=- 32
REPTILES
LORICATA
Crocodylidae:
Alligator mississipiensis_-_.---.---- Allieater= = <\. == Si fasten se 19
Alizgator sinensis 222 £8 = Moree Chinese alligator.__....---_2.-- 2
Carnvan eclerone = 2 ese Sens SOF Caiman. 7 lo aets tS ete 16
Cracod pins Gciiig ee Oks BOE WOe American crocodile__—-_---.-.-.- 2,
Crocodylus cataphractus._---------- Narrow-nosed crocodile____-_.--- 1
Cracodylus*ndoticus= 22 == =F e0s sok African crocodiles 22 <5 2a 2s aaa 1
Crocodglus-porvsus=» -CePCe Me Re Salt-water crocodile___._____._.-- 1
Osteolaemus tetraspis....---------- Broad-nosed crocodile__.-_------ 3
Tomistoma schlegelt_ -.-2----.----- Gavia 20ro ris Bawah Set 1
SAURIA
Gekkonidae:
Geckolsmithee 2 SE Raa 2 Reena Oe Giant cecko.. {a aa ened ees se 1
Tarentola mauritanica__....------- eckow. 32 oe Soe ee eel 1
Gerrhosauridae:
Gerrhosaurus. majors 2229-020 alle Plated lizardii. 22 -esissncuiiiss 24 8
Iguanidae:
Anolis carolinensis 22520 Ue p22 2 Ls 2 Americanranolises — se sae nas en ie 35
Anolis cristatellusic eee sae Little crested anolis_____.___----- 5
Anolisikruge se ca ek ecu eae go1k Krug’s anolis___-- Boao ass 5
Anolis stnaiiie Rees ew Tat West Indian anolis_..__.-._-.-= 4
Cychiza macleayise. 0422. Aes Le Cubandguanalss Ves ce see pees 3
Cyclura: stejnegert .<..22.22.982982 Mona Island iguana___2--.----- 1
WiGHlanaitouanae lee. see Sees Commonucuana 22222 Sense as 11
Phrynosoma cornutum_------------ Horned: toadest wen eatiaa oe oe nae 10
Sceloporus undulatus_.....--------- Fence. lizard. Ue eit ims Beeoes 8
Helodermatidae:
Heloderma horridum_.--.---------- Mexican beaded lizard__._------ 2
Heloderma suspectum_._.—..-=-----= Gila monster 22322225 u 52 tees 5
Varanidae:
Varanus.variuec 2 oo 0occe 2 8300222 Australian lace monitor----.---- 2
Teiidae:
Tupinambis nigropunctatus__.------ Black tepnee 2sCte. ke NS 1
cincidae:
Chalcides sepoides__......--------- Three-fingered skink____-_------ 2
Boernia) luctuosa 22. seh ea Hole Mourning, skinkoe ween ee ee area 2
Egerniaiwhitet_ 222 Soules beet White’siskink22 <2 20. 22 apatite esky 8
Eumeces fasciatus._._.......-------- Greater five-lined skink____._---- 5
emeus. oficinalis..... SA 20829151 AX Sandi skink: 3252922 5 gagSveveah gy sh 9
Trachysaurus rugosus__...--------- Stump-tailed lizard...s.2.-.-.-+- 1
Anguidae:
phisaurus ventralis.___.......--.~- Glass lizard) 2%. - = 2 een gee 1
Chameleontidae:
Chamaeleon dilepis__.....--------- Flap-necked chameleon____------ 1
Chamaeleon jacksoni.._..---------- Three-horned chameleon- ------- 2
144 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
REPTILES—Continued
SERPENTES
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Boidae:
Boa enydris cookit_...2.---------- Gook:s, tree boas=. +8. 5 aes 1
Boe enydyis enyares 4. . 22 ee Pree DOs Po ee ta ee 1
Constrictor consirictor.._..-.------- Boa, constrictors. 222 20 22 2
Constrictor imperator._.----------- FAM PCTORIDOR 8 ee Ao ae eee 2
Efpicrates angulifer--—-—- a. -=,--- Cuban Doses 05. - We ees 5
ipierates €encnrid._ te oon eee Rambows,boa..2 02: ok eee ee 5
DF ret 112 1 Ye 1 aN OEY OR RR Sharp-tailed sand boa___._------ 1
UBRUNLECLES) STATINS Edie Se eB ale Re es ANB COGS jc Na Le a ke anne 5
Pat TROUT US oe os aes ie Ba Inciancrock Pythons oc 526k 1
Python equus |. ents Shy Be bee Bally py phone ioeeh eis ou eee 5
thon Teueculavue. oi so ee Be eral pybhONen aon 2 ok oe 3
IPLRON: SCDBES Dota 22 eee et Africanpython..u.2. 2. Loe a 2
Colubridae:
Abastor erythrogrammus___--------- Rainbow snake. 020 le eee 1
Boaedon: laneatuina.- o-5 222 ae African house snake, or musaga_ - 2
Coluber constrictor constrictor _------ Black PAGER iney lu! wie 1
Diadophis punctatus edwardsi___---- Ring-necked snake_____._...-._. 1
Elaphe obsoleta confinis__._-------- Southern pilot black snake_______ 1
Elaphe obsoleta guitata___-_-------- Comm, Snake. tiki 2822 8A eee 2
Elaphe obsoleta lindhetmert__------- Sa ae zat Snake: ..joeereee 3
lloty black snake-- 22-3 2a. oes 10
Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta- ----------- {pilot black snake, albino________ 2
Elaphe quadrivittata__.-.---------- Chicken Snake? cri ete se hee 8
Maroncia, AACUTD.. -. 28S rinse wee Mudiisnaike. 2 25 coo eee 2
Heterodon contortrig. 2 -2----=-28 Hog-nosedisnakes 2222 2-2 ee ee 1
Lampropeltis doliata___------------ Scarlet, kingsnake. 223. eet 1
Lampropeltis getulus californiae__---- California king snake____.______ 2
Lampropeltis getulus getulus__------ King snakeie2 sole Dole ee 3
Lampropeltis getulus splendida_-_._-- Sonoran king snake... 2-2 222) 1
Lampropeltis rhombomaculata___---- Mole;snake 22-02 33 ce eaeiags 1
Lampropeltis triangulum_---------- Milk snakenoe) 2 60 = ca. Ae 2
Leptodiera,.annulaia_....-=---=2e2 Cat-eyed snake_.1-sss2uosu-L ale 4
Masticophis flagellum flavigularis._.... Coachwhip snake_____.__.-_-__- 6
Natrix erythrogaster_—....2. 2.222 Red-bellied water snake_________ 3
BeBe redicka Poke vers: 17) ea ee aa fot meg sO Southern banded water snake____ 3
Natriz. pictiventris__... 2/224 sued Florida water snake__-..._.....-. 11
Natrix septemvittata_........------ Queen water snake___---..-..-- 2
Neatrinis pedo... RA Water snake. 22. 3 aeyak gs 6
Opheodrys vernalis___...---------- Smooth-sealed green snake_______ 2
Piluophis, 6Gytes on 2k Besos) sel Bull snake. 2 ee ate ee 1
Simocephalus capensis__....------- Wile snake. 2 22. (eels ate 1
Storeria. dekayi_ 2 REWER Boss DeKay’s snake..i 2. ween 2
Storeria o. occipitomaculata___------ Red-bellied snake_.._.......-.-. 1
Thamnophis.sauritus. 2 pase aie Ribbon,snake. ...gc8sichse seems 1
Thamnophis sirialis_ 2-2 eS Garter snake... 020.2 Unk 3
Zamenis florulentus_....-.-------- Egyptian racer... 8 abies d cape 1
Elapidae:
(ST TE is Re a Se RSS ae Meyptian.cobra-. 22252 s9R8 9
Naja,hannah..298 bus. nee tenia: King cobra... ac.d.. 4 ay ieee 1
Waja melanoleucan2s.=.-<<---=-=<= lace. cobras. Le. ele ee 1
INEIGNGIE A os ons ee Imdiam cobras yes cee: 2 od ae 5
Crotalidae:
Ancistrodon contortrix mokeson_----- Northern copperhead snake__--__- 7f
Ancistrodon piscivorus__..--------- Watermoceasin 22. S225 544 ee 4
Crotalus atrotieJjois25. Asses Bia Texas diamondback rattlesnake_ - 6
Crotalus horridusivi_benvewics sade Timber rattlesnake_-_.-..--2=- 1
Crotalusilepidus eh Rock rattlesnake... 2. .028e se 1
Sistrurus miliarius__s2------------ Pygmy rattlesnake____......--- 2
Sistrurus miliarius streckert_—-.---- Ground rattlesnake___....-.-<s= 1
TVimeresurusSps_.-—=.-._ Deee se Korean yiper=.....-ewesies saeune 1
Trimeresurus flavoviridis.....------ Habu._.---522525-_ 45 sea ianel 1
SECRETARY'S REPORT rT 145
REPTILES—Continued
TESTUDINATA
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Chelyidae:
Batrachemys nasuta...------------ cea American _side-necked 2
turtle.
Chelodina longicollis__.......-.---= Australian side-necked turtle____- 3
Hydromedusa tectifera_------------ Small side-necked turtle_--_.-_-- 2
Phrynops geoffroyana__------------ Geoffroy’s side-necked turtle_--__- 1
ay eOp Sut vee me ee Large side-necked turtle________- 15
Platemys platycephala__.-.-------- Flat-headed turtle._-_.___--_--__- 5
Kinosternidae:
Kinosternon cruentatum_----------- South American mud turtle__-__- 1
Kinosternon subrubrum-_-_---------- Mind) turtles sa es Se ee 5
Sternotherus odoratus_.------------ Miusk'turtless... 2 sete 6
Chelydridae:
Chelydra serpentina_-------------- Snapping turtle. 2steac. estuJsske 12
Emydidae:
Battgur vasha. So assesses Indian fresh-water turtle_.----_- 1
Chrysemys picta eres baccs Painted turtle.....-seqemseu. dt 31
Clemmys guttata.._.- bao ees Spotted, turtle.......-- sate sews 2 2
Clemmys.insculpta._2— set deal Wood turtle... .--ses. se 8
Clemmys marmorata marmorata----- Pacific pond turtles cu <ssen 4. = 1
Cyclemys amboinensis_-.---------- Kura kura box turtle_-.-....--- 1
Pimyaare. kne git... ree Basses Krefit’s: turtle... a el-gae ok 3
Emydura macquariae_.------------ Murray turtle_....-2s2h¢j2ah4 8
Pmys.orbicularist. basse d_esliieeia. Kuropean pond turtle__.-__------ 3
Graptemys barbourt 125222 425255825 Barbour’s: turtle... =*4=< sustecke a
Graptemys geographica___---------- Map turtle. 220 850 20d ae 3
Graptemys pseudogeographica------- False map turtle... asus 4S 4
Rinizys beliana +. eet eau. seo'v2 Hinge-back turtle_ ~~ ~~-++-2--=-. il
Malaclemys terrapin_.------------- Diamondback turtle_--_--.------ 6
Pseudemys decussata_..----------- Cuban water turtle_-....----_--- 1
Pseudemys elegans 222 ~22222-22222+ Mobile turtle. seeececeeec be skis 12
Psendemys floridang= 01.0 est onie Florida water turtle__._._.------ 10
Pseudemys floridana suwannensis__. Suwannee turtle_-..------------ 7
Pseudemys ornate 222 2 ose Sakis Central American turtle___.__--- 2
Pseudemys rubriventris__...-------- Red-bellied turtle__._..__..-----= 6
Psendemys seriptas 22 en ke Red-lined turtle_ 2220 02-=. = 2528 12
Pseudemys scripta callirostris__----- South American red-lined turtle__ 8
Pseudemys scripta troostti_...------ Cumberland turtle_...---------= 10
PEMA DERE, UGUTE 2) ea ase) Florida box turtle 24235245 34s 1
Perrapene canrounas 222s ease Box turtles. =. ..-. 34 -eeeyeteaus 50
Terrapene carolina triunguis_------- Three-toed box turtle__._-_----- 3
Terrapene ornata ornata__..-------- Western box turtle.____--_-___- Z
Pelomedusidae:
Pelomedusa galeata._.....---------- African water turtle_.._-.-.---- 1
Pelusvosinignicans as - aeee y African black mud turtle._...__- 3
Pelusvos suiuatus. 2 ase eee ae African snake-neck turtle______-- 8
Pinymans.gzovas os. Jedeh. Behe nds South American gibba turtle____- 3
Podocnemis: uni filas:_..- 3224 eat Amazon spotted turtle-__......- 13
Testudinidae:
Testudo elephantina_..------------ Giant Aldabra turtle_......_---- 6
estuao. ephingtum ... - esahece Duncan Island turtle.___--___-- 3
PRE SULLEL OVE URL LEe ee NND South American turtle___-_-_---- 2
Mestudowicine 225 222. ae ot 2 Galépagos turtle« = 222 -o2susuwe i
Trionychidae:
Petoniye yeron. 2 yiethpis Seat American soft-shelled turtle__---- 7
RCONUGIUITTUNGUSs ee ol al eee African soft-shelled turtle______-- 2
146 ANNUAL REPORT
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
AMPHIBIANS
CAUDATA
Scientific name Common name
Ambystomidae:
Ambystoma opacum_....-=--2..4-- Marbled salamander......__--_-
Salamandridae:
Diemictylus viridescens__-...------- Red-spotted newt..---___.____-
TOTUCNG UAGOBG 0 oly pete oe oe California Newt. co eee eee
Priturus DUTT nOggstenee pee Red-bellied newt___.._--.-_-__-
Amphiumidae:
Amphtiuma means...- 2222222222225 Congo.éel: -- ee See eee
SALIENTIA
Dendrobatidae:
Dendnovatesis pes. joao sese Hen Green poison-arrow frog__.---_-_-
Dendrobates auratus__._..--.------ Black poison-arrow frog_-_------
Dendrobates typographus__...------ Yellow poison-arrow frog_-____--
Bufonidae:
Bufo amencanuseccnealw ile Sani e Amenican, toad 202. be sens
Bufo gqutlatusy sce aoe hajlods Horest, toad... ie ig ategetenay
Buse MGOrtinuse resid con VELL Doo Giantitoadj.255.3 206 Sean ee
Bujoparacnemiseee atu? aoe “ings Rococoltoad x tse eee yee _ pee
Bufo peltocephalus__.-...--------- Cuban:tdad__.. a she een eels
Bugoivsridts soo ste Os 2 ie 2 Buropean toad:. 2222s iaed sede
Leptodactylidae:
Ceratophrys calcarata__..---------- Colombian horned frog__-_--_-_-
Ceratophrys ornata__.-.------------ Argentine horned frog_----------
Hylidae:
Merasigneyllusutwetss Ot GLE Ua pale Cricket frogeassusconusat aseeees
Hyla .crnerednecca SU TULL J96Le UR GLE Greentree frog__2...2395le6 sees
Ayla versicolor. .ViUy asad osomel Gray. tree frog. s2<erat 2yaos58u
Hylambates maculatus. _...._------ African flash tree frog___._._.----
Megalizalus fornasinii_.-.--------- African green frog. 2ux.l. suc lles
Microhylidae:
Microhyla carolinensis__.._..------ Narrow-mouthed toad_--_--_----
Pipidae:
Pine piper ncewdl Mle Surinam toad ssebeo let sees
Ranidae:
Ran@adspersau.-20. LOO ue. US Os African: bull: frogwssigaesu ae eee
Rana-catesberanan.0. ius Jvwusad ota American bullifroguccisy. zeaysee
Ranaclamitanssol uel OU eee Green frogs: jaye a. Vs) meereenes
ROWG:DPUDENG ss oc pn SUSU beopard frog... sul ees
FISHES
Acanthodoras spinosissimus__..-_----- Talking catfish... sires scored
Acanthophthalmus semicinctus_-—__-~- Large kuhli 2. celtes ee sabe
Anabas testudinensi 2vuros ru w ees Climbing perch... sudowsse sane!
Astronotus ocellatusiioe Lioruuuds. Giuve Peacock .cichlid_...o1_ Doaen saanes
Barbus.everetit. Je TULL Datious gosguah Glown, barbs. 2 ce Sees
1 BX ATA] 0) 3 See aa ELC LSI SE nS Riohtingefishi) 222205 Senees
Brachygobius xanthozonus.__.-..------ Bumblebee-fish___.___2__--_-_--
Corydoras-hastatuse- 210) Dial seapp) Corydoras... as sue oe ees
Distichodus sexfasciatust animus, Wjy0s Bish Se ene
Electrophorus electricus_.....-------- Hlectricseely..._ 1s Saas
Gambusiai punctatus... ee Blue gambusia__. =.-___:aabiing
Labeo chrysophekadion__._._________- Black sharkfish.4.. = 2-860 sae
. . UP Pie. ee eed SS scene
elpercerrecticuratus. 2s eee tae eee {Fi metalled suppyed o..4cc.cbes
Leptdosiren paradota....... 2-22 == South American lungfish. .____-_-
RTI Te Es] 2 RT ee OE STAT Dieta Tis tai mk 2 a
Plecostomus plecostomus___._.-------- Armoreqgucatlishy ye. eau eee
Protopterus annectens__.........----- Atraeen lunetigh aegis
Pterophyllum eimekiit__.......---_--- Blatkangelishs so. bute
Serrasalmus niger 2 es PAPE Se os a ee
—
Nn oO NW HK OPE PRP KF DO FOrRNNR NR Re
10
a Oe
RKPNF PNR OON OHH Oe ep ph Ree
SECRETARY’S REPORT 147
FISHES—Continued
Num-
Scientific name Common name ber
Sternarchella schottt_.__._.______..__- Atricanuknifefisht siya 5 ae 2 a2: 2
Mowichthaysalbonubes= 522 a 2 See White Cloud Mountain fish__--_- 1
Trichogaster trichopterus_.-.--------- Pearl Pour amiss seetan cee eel ee 8 1
Auphophorus) hellert s-j220 Pea ee ok Greéniswordtaile® J 228 2) eas 4
Xiphophorus maculatus__._...___-._-- Plstys On mMognis hese eey es leery 6
Umidentificd sy 2.24. A252 Wah ae Mouthbreeders)&. OO Say 2 2
ARTHROPODS
Crustacea:
LEXA LANE Rae p ee Se yg ih SL Coconuticrab aaa eee ee 1
Coenobita clypeatus_2. S20 42 5 hand ehermitierao ss ene 35
Arachnida:
Ceninuroldes (ial ise eee Hlorida; scorpiouss see ee 2
BRUTY DELINOIS DM eta. Merseete ye lees 6 Parantulas 22 ose ee Sn See 10
METULODECLILSE INL ACLATUS IIs a a ae Black-widow spider___..--.----- 1
Insecta:
slaberus crancviper: 2th 82 Ie ee 2 Tropical giant cockroach -___---- 100
MOLLUSKS
LO VETEAC TAINS) 0 Raa DARN ge Aa Sa Pond suailsss soe el Sn 100
FINANCES
The appropriation for the National Zoological Park is carried in
the District of Columbia Appropriation Act. In the fiscal year 1957,
$720,000 was appropriated, of which $545,627 was alloted for sala-
ries, leaving $174,373 for the operation of the Zoo. Included in this
last figure is $65,000 for animal food, $29,000 for maintenance and re-
pair, and $15,000 for the purchase of animals. In addition to animals
purchased from appropriated funds, many valuable animals are
acquired through judicious exchange.
The estimated net worth of the Zoo is approximately $4,500,000,
which includes the value of the land, buildings, improvements, ani-
mals, and the current appropriation.
PERSONNEL
J. Lear Grimmer, formerly Assistant Director of the Lincoln Park
Zoo, Chicago, Ill., was appointed Assistant Director of the National
Zoological Park on June 3. Mr. Grimmer is a trained zoologist,
specializing in herpetology but interested in the entire field. He has
had eight years experience in zoological park administration.
Former assistant head keeper Ralph Norris, who has had 25 years
experience, has been appointed head keeper.
James M. Derrow, an employee since 1931, was promoted from
assistant superintendent of maintenance and construction to superin-
tendent.
There are 137 authorized positions at the Zoo, which at the present
time are divided as follows: 12 in the administrative office, 52 in the
animal department, 21 police, 47 in the mechanical shop, and 5 in the
grounds department.
148 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
During this fiscal year $15,310.87 was utilized for terminal leave
payments for retiring personnel. Funds are not appropriated for this
purpose. In order to absorb this amount it was necessary to main-
tain vacancies throughout the year. To meet this unique situation
all employees had to put forth extra effort. Their loyalty and de-
votion to the Zoo and their hard work have been reflected in the
excellent health of the animals and the general appearance of the
Zoo. Great credit is due the employees for their cooperation during
this trying time.
Other personnel items referring to retirements are mentioned at the
beginning of this report.
INFORMATION AND EDUCATION
The Zoo continues to handle a large correspondence with persons
all over the world who write for information regarding animals.
From every part of this country citizens write to the Zoo as a national
institution. Telephone calls come in constantly, asking for identifica-
tion of animals, proper diets, or treatment of disease. Visitors to the
office as well as to the animal exhibits are constantly seeking
information.
The Acting Director spoke before three civic groups and made one
television appearance.
The Assistant Director made one television appearance, in which
he showed the feeding and handling of gorillas. On another occa-
sion, the Zoo’s three baby lion cubs appeared on television.
Two groups of naval medical officers were taken on a tour of the
Zoo, special attention being paid to those animals which are reservoirs
of human infection, and those with which they might come in contact
at their stations.
Malcolm Davis, assistant head keeper, in charge of birds, continues
to contribute notes and observations to ornithological journals and
publications. He helped revise “Parrots Exclusively” and assisted in
the preparation of “Pet Mynas,” both published by All-Pets Magazine.
Mario DePrato, principal keeper in charge of the reptile house,
talked before a Navy Research group on poisonous reptiles. On a
collecting trip in Florida and another in the Dismal Swamp, Va., Mr.
DePrato gathered a number of interesting reptiles, which were added
to the collection.
Travis Fauntleroy, administrative assistant, and Ralph Norris, head
keeper, were sent to the Cincinnati Zoo for two days to study manage-
ment problems and animal-handling techniques.
While the Zoo does not conduct a regular research program as such,
every effort is made to study the animals, and to improve their health,
housing, and diet in any way possible.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 149
VETERINARIAN’S REPORT
The work in this department during the past year has been some-
what curtailed in its professional aspects owing to the promotion of
the veterinarian to Acting Director upon the retirement of Dr. William
M. Mann. The majority of his time has been absorbed in administra-
tive duties which have, regrettably, necessitated leaving undone much
of the routine veterinary work.
Several programs that had been started and that require much time
and constant attention have been curtailed. Every effort has been
made to see that the health of the animals in the Park is safeguarded,
and necessary medications and treatment have been given. Particu-
lar emphasis has been placed upon the nutritional aspects of veterinary
practice and changes in and additions to the diets have been made.
This has meant a great deal of extra work on the part of the veteri-
narian with rather long hours. He has had to be on duty almost every
day of the year to fulfill the dual requirements. With the addition
of Mr. Grimmer as Assistant Director, the administrative duties have
become less arduous. It is expected that after the first part of the
next fiscal year a full-time veterinarian will be in residence, so that the
programs already started can be continued, and new and better prac-
tices put into effect.
Owing to the intense interest among zoo veterinarians and all zoo
people in the aspergillosis infection of birds, particularly penguins,
there has been instituted a cooperative study with Dr. William Sladen,
an English medical biologist, in residence at Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity on a Rockefeller scholarship, and Dr. Carlton Herman of the
United States Fish and Wildlife Research Laboratory at Patuxent,
Md., on various aspecis of aspergillosis. Studies are being under-
taken (1) to determine the best method of artificial infection; (2) to
find the mode of natural transmission; (3) to develop a sensitivity test
or some other method that will lead to an early diagnosis of this
disease; (4) to find the most efficacious method of treatment. In con-
nection with this last problem, several new drugs have been tried out
by various routes of administration. So far, the work has been prom-
ising and many new facts have been learned about the disease although
no definite conclusions have as yet been reached.
Following are the statistics for the mortality rates during the past
fiscal year and a table of comparison with the last 5 years:
Mortality, fiscal year 1957 Total mortality, past 5 fiscal years
S50 ga 2 TJS tN Eh NB LOD ELS as eae ae seem re eres Me AEG TS ROY NS Be 672
1 BUG LSP AR AAR Ee A Eg mg Pe 5c Rea OL a A vd MR A OOO 648
Reptiles eres Sea os se es BY 0 | I oy GH 2 a ee NK a 735
PAID hi Di sins Sere Le Ree ee PELE a ere ee anal Ne) aL A 618
Fishes, arachnids, insects, ete_____ pe PATS ay (Ae 2) LN NEAR aL 5A9
150 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Many of the losses during the year were natural attrition due to
senility. During the war years the normal flow of animals was re-
duced, and since then political situations in many parts of the world
and animal disease conditions (necessitating expensive quarantine)
have made replacement of stock difficult. It is extremely gratifying
to the veterinarian that this year shows a decrease in the number of
deaths in comparison with the increase in total animal population
and number of species.
COOPERATION
At all times special efforts are made to maintain friendly contacts
with other Government and State agencies, private concerns and in-
dividuals, and scientific workers for mutual assistance. As a result the
Zoo receives much help and advice, and many valuable specimens,
and in turn it furnishes information and, whenever possible, speci-
mens it does not need.
Special acknowledgment is due Howard Fyfe, United States Dis-
patch Agent in New York City. He is frequently called upon to
clear shipments of animals coming from abroad, often at great per-
sonal inconvenience. The animals have been forwarded to Washing-
ton without the loss of a single specimen.
United States Marshal Carlton G. Beall turned over to the Zoo
800 pounds of whole eggs and 18 cases of crabmeat which had been
condemned by the court as unfit for human consumption but was fit
for animal feed. The poultry division of the Department of Agri-
culture gave several thousand day-old chicks, which are good food
for many young animals. The National Institutes of Health coop-
erated in many ways, helping with postmortems, giving valuable ad-
vice, and donating surplus laboratory animals, some of which were
exhibited and some used as food. Laboratory animals that had served
their purpose were also donated by the Army Medical Center and the
Navy Medical Center.
The Fish and Wildlife Service donated a pair of whistling swans
and an eastern weasel, and placed on exhibition in the Zoo two mallard
ducks, named MacMallard and Susie, which they intend to use in
promotion work for wildlife conservation, much as “Smoky” the bear
has been used by the Forestry Service in fire prevention.
In cooperation with Dr. Ray Erickson of the Fish and Wildlife
Service, Department of the Interior, Mr. Davis has worked on the
development of a brail for Canada geese. The purpose of this
project is to develop a brail that will prevent flying but at a later
date may be removed and permit the birds to have full use of their
Secretary's Report, 1957 PLATE 5
1. Willie and Lucy, white or square-lipped rhinoceros, were captured for the Zoo in Uganda.
They are the first of their species to be exhibited in the United States.
2. The snow leopard, or ounce, inhabits the high altitudes of central Asia. A pair of these
beautiful cats was purchased by the Zoo in the late summer of 1956. Photograph by
Ernest P. Walker.
Secretary's Report, 1957 PLATE 6
a OMY Fea A
& ae he
i Sere) A
Masudi and Hanadi are the first okapis to be exhibited at the National Zoological Park.
Gifts of the Belgian Government, they were formally presented on November 28, 1956.
Photograph by Rohland, Washington Post and Times-Herald.
Secretary’s Report, 1957 PEATE)7.
Wild-caught hoopoes are too nervous to adapt themselves to captivity. The ones now in
the Zoo were taken as nestlings and hand-raised by a collector in Hungary. Photo-
graph by Ernest P. Walker.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 151
wings. It is the desire of the Fish and Wildlife Service to use this
brail in establishing flocks of geese in areas that they formerly in-
habited, but which they have abandoned owing to hunting pressure
and environmental changes.
VISITORS
Attendance at the Zoo this year reached a total of 3,998,546, an all-
time high record. In general this figure is based on estimates rather
than actual counts.
Estimated number of visitors for fiscal year 1957
Bly C1956) oa ee 548950) | Hebruary2]-—- 2. 206, 850
PARTREUISS tte eee te Ree at EN 491300) WMiarchs2— 22-223 eee eee 315, 900
September22 2222s. tee 442) COOCApTITS eG See eee 403, 346
October222 22 Uw hh S137900) Maye) 22 oe eee en 468, 200
INovembersfec 2 fu ee ee 1897400) June te! oe es ee ee 389, 300
December se eae ee 100, 800 —_—_———-
WaMUary. (OD ()iasee ae 127, 900 PTO Cees Ao Sa 3, 998, 546
Number of groups from schools
Number | Number Number | Number
of in of in
Locality Locality
groups groups groups | groups
INE Nach ee eee 21 903) ||P Muississippiesssesse sane see ee 6 204
Californmiato2 scot go. fe of 1 8° | Nebraskass. 31452 _ See es 2 93
Gonnecticut#s--6-2==--eee--—— 9 475 || New Hampshire___._-.-.---_- 1 45
Delaware esos reir pT. St 16 730) || New: Jersey.i22 222 2h eee shee 20 3, 130
District of Columbia-.-------- 148 8:/521:'|| ING wayork: 20" - ear Soe l 120 6, 154
MlOriGdaseer ee ete Loner 14 045 || North Oarolina___._.-.-----_- 262 11, 718
Georgia: f22 502-53 - sone 55 6,759 |} North Dakota_.--------------
Miinoiss estan ses. Sek OS) ib Sha FON tees aes ee 52 2, 362
Mnidianas ses eke c es See 7 A491] Pennsylyaniaue 5-2 -eeee ee 259 14, 644
TOW ess so soe eee eee ee 2 45 ||| SouthiC@aroling=- -2="- 22s -= 75 2, 589
UCN t OS oes ION aS ee 1 1-||? Pennessegevelt See ee 63 2, 622
Mentucky#22s2042 9.2 -24__ es 15 667 ll Wermontets= seers see soe 35
ouisiangs a1. J) ers hss 8 3 125i], Virginia t ah: Del ie sees ee yay Se 567 38, 266
Wein ees 28 eae oe Se aL 17 $22) 1) Wiest) Virginian 2222522 2 She 53 4, 346
MMervland a i22 fy Oe 549 387713" || e WAScOnsine soso sass e ele Tees 2 167
Massachusetts....-.-----=---- 17 580 E —
Michicantt f2ti 5. css 3452s 9 496 MNotalvesi ie ke S28 2, 388 148, 064
Winn esotar: oo stele ees 8 75
Other groups, totaling 278 persons, visited the Zoo: two groups from
Japan, one from Germany, one from Canada, and three convention
groups from the United States.
About 2 p. m. each day the cars then parked in the Zoo are counted
and listed according to the State, Territory, or country from which
they came. This is, of course, not a census of the cars coming to the
Zoo but is valuable in showing the percentage of attendance by States
of people in private automobiles. Many District of Columbia, Mary-
451800—58——11
152 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
land, and Virginia cars come to the Zoo to bring guests from other
States. The tabulation for the fiscal year 1957 is as follows:
Percent Percent
Marvyinnd oe 3.5 eo ee 28. 7| Massachusetts. = 2222222220) UL 0.9
Verran chp aS 7 22 0. Connecticut. + 22 seen ig 7
District of Columbias. 2222052 2. 22 EET OIS 2 ho eee es eee et UF
Pennsylvaniageas- 20.4.4... 46 4 0) South, Carolina ry). ek ie
Neri Ol Kew nee Ome UE ea Di ak | VAN aT eas ee ee a . 6
Norn WarOnnte toe se hee 2 2 CaMOr nla oe ok Lee ee ee iL
INE W ICTR Ye sree eet ee Ok 1:'6'| Georgia... -....- SLE ae 8
OMG = Seo Syne ee NS Fert 1. 6) Tennessee. 2 ee Se ee 6
West Virginia__*S38icne lees 10 Si Pexasd nue: Daloeyses oe 5
loridae ah ake 2. = ee ube ea
94. 0
The remaining 6 percent came from other States, Canada, Alaska,
Newfoundland, Okinawa, France, Hawaii, Cuba, Panama, Germany,
Mexico, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, England, Guam, South Amer-
ica, Philippine Islands, and Puerto Rico.
On the days of even small attendance there are cars parked in the
Zoo from at least 15 States, Territories, the District of Columbia, and
foreign countries. On average days there are cars from about 22 States,
Territories, the District of Columbia, and foreign countries; and dur-
ing the periods of greatest attendance the cars represent not less than
34 different States, Territories, and countries.
Parking spaces in the Zoo now accommodate 1,079 cars when the
bus parking place is utilized, and 969 cars when it is not used.
GROUNDS, BUILDINGS, AND ENCLOSURES
The National Zoological Park covers an area of 176 acres. There
are 8 miles of automobile roads, 3 miles of trails, 7 miles of pedestrian
walks, 2 miles of boundary fence, and 8 miles of paddock fence. All
told, there are 201 houses: 7 large exhibition buildings; the office; a
building that contains police headquarters, public restrooms, and
gardener’s storeroom; the cafeteria; 19 service buildings, and 172
shelters for animals and equipment. There are 762 animal cages and
16 large outdoor pools.
Also to be considered under maintenance are a central high-
pressure heating plant, which includes 1,800 linear feet of conduits,
or 3,600 feet of steam lines to the buildings, and six smaller heating
plants.
During the year there were extensive replacements, remodeling, and
repairs to paddocks, cages, and water lines, with major repairs to the
roofs of 12 large animal shelters. A large outdoor pen was re-
modeled for the African buffalo; the mouflon yard was enlarged by
combining two paddocks, and the cage that had formerly housed the
SECRETARY’S REPORT 153
gaur, in the elephant house, was remodeled to make it suitable for the
forest-dwelling okapis.
Nine new picnic tables were made in the mechanical shop and set
out in various parts of the grounds.
The work of the gardener’s force has been mainly that of removing
dead trees, which are a menace to both animals and visitors, and
replacing them with young trees. The animal department is fur-
nished with forage which is very beneficial for animals. In an ex-
change with the Park Department of Norfolk, Va., we supplied a few
animals for the Zoo there, and received a large shipment of azaleas
and camellias, which add greatly to the attractiveness of the Park.
Although the greater part of the Park is kept as natural woodland,
there are 22 acres of lawn, which require 128 man-hours to mow, using
the present equipment.
The accumulation of trash is still a major problem. After days of
heavy attendance, such as Easter Sunday and Monday, 5 to 10 days
are required to sweep walks, rake lawns, and make the Park present-
able again.
PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
Owing to lack of appropriated funds, no major improvements
were undertaken during the fiscal year. The old buildings continue
to deteriorate, and even the newest exhibition building is now 20
years old and needs painting and repairs. Ten enclosures, including
the pools for exhibition of aquatic mammals, have been abandoned
for nearly 10 years. It is hoped that in the near future funds will
be appropriated for the following badly needed new construction and
improvements:
Buildings.—A building to house antelopes and other hoofed ani-
mals that require a heated building. The present structure, built in
1898 for $3,500 is inadequate, dimly lighted, and poorly ventilated.
The rare and beautiful okapis had to be placed here when they ar-
rived last November. The building houses a miscellaneous collection
of cats, kangaroos, gaur, the rare agrimi goat, and others. The
Zoo has made it a policy not to purchase or accept antelopes, because
of the lack of housing for them.
A new administration building to replace the 152-year-old historic
landmark, which is still in use as an office building but is not well
adapted for the purpose. Termites destroyed the photographic file
this year, and most of the Zoo library has now been moved to the
second floor of the building to postpone the day when the invaders
will attack this valuable collection of scientific books. A thorough
examination of the office was made by the District of Columbia De-
partment of Buildings and Grounds, which recommended that unless
154 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
extensive repairs are undertaken immediately, the building be con-
demned as unsafe.
A hospital, which will also serve as a fireproof receiving station
for animals shipped in, for quarantining them when necessary and
with facilities for caring for those in ill health. This building should
also contain an office and laboratory for the veterinarian. There is
no structure within the National Zoological Park suitable for conver-
sion into an animal hospital. The building now in use is an ancient
stone building, formerly used as a hay barn and storage shed, which
was hastily cleaned out and sketchily furnished at the time the vet-
erinarian was appointed in 1955.
E'nclosures.—Enclosures and pools for beavers, otters, seals, and
nutrias, which cannot be adequately cared for or exhibited under
existing conditions.
New paddocks for the exhibition of such animals as deer, sheep,
goats, and other hoofed animals, to provide for the exhibition of a
greater assortment of these attractive and valuable animals.
Installations —Extensive remodeling of some of the buildings is
needed to bring them up to date with the latest techniques of zoologi-
cal exhibits, making them more pleasing esthetically for the visitors
and ecologically for the animals.
Respectfully submitted.
TueroporE H. Resp, Acting Director.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the Canal Zone Biological Area
Sir: It gives me pleasure to present herewith the annual report on
the Canal Zone Biological Area for the fiscal year ended June 30,
1957.
SCIENTISTS, STUDENTS, AND OBSERVERS
Anyone with serious interest in tropical wildlife may use the field,
laboratory, and living facilities on Barro Colorado Island. These
people may stay on the island overnight, or for periods of weeks or
months. Some who visit the island carry out technical scientific re-
,search, while others come to familiarize themselves with the wildlife
and its environment. Most of them are residents of the United
States, but some are from the Canal Zone or Europe. Following is a
list of the 61 scientists, students, and observers who, during the past
year, used the island living facilities and stayed at least one night.
Name Principal interest
Ansley, Dr. and Mrs. H., Insect cytology.
Johns Hopkins University.
Banting, Mr. and Mrs. W. L., Wildlife observation.
Amsterdam, Holland.
Barbash, Miss B., Wildlife studies.
Swarthmore College.
Bartel, Mr. and Mrs. J. N., Bird observation.
Pomona, Calif.
Bates, Mr. and Mrs. R. H., Wildlife observation.
Exeter, N. H.
Blakely, R. L., Wildlife observation.
Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago.
Burckle, L. H., Forest ecology.
Army Map Service.
Burkhart, Mrs. H. H., Nature writing.
Sarasota, Fla.
Burroughs, R. P., Wildlife observation.
Board of Directors, Panama Canal.
Carson, Dr. and Mrs. H. L., Genetics of Drosophila.
Washington University, St. Louis.
Carter, Mr. and Mrs. J. P., Wildlife observation.
Berkeley, Calif.
Clark, Dr. W., Photographic tests.
Eastman Kodak Co.
Coursen, Mr. and Mrs. B., Bird observation.
General Biological Supply House.
Cronin, Mr. and Mrs. W. J., Wildlife observation.
Panama, R. P.
Deusing, Murl and Don, Wildlife photography.
Milwaukee Public Museum.
155
156 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Name
Hisenmann, Eugene,
New York City.
Enders, Dr. R. K.,
Swarthmore College.
Fast, A. H.,
Arlington, Va.
Forbes, Dr. and Mrs. A.,
Milton, Mass.
Fouquette, M. J.,
University of Texas.
Galler, Dr. S. R.,
Office of Naval Research.
Graf, J. E.,
Smithsonian Institution.
Greenewalt, C. H.,
Wilmington, Del.
Grégoire, Dr. and Mrs. C.,
Brussels, Belgium.
Groner, Miss D.,
Los Angeles, Calif.
Hartman, Ziska,
Chiriqui, Panama.
Heed, Dr. W. B.,
The Genetics Foundation.
Howes, P. G.,
Bruce Museum, Connecticut.
Hughes-Schrader, Dr. S.,
Columbia University.
Johnson, Dr. P. T.,
U. 8. Department of Agriculture.
Johnston, H. R.,
U.S. Forest Service.
Kellogg, Dr. Remington,
Smithsonian Institution.
Kosan, W. M.,
Margarita, Canal Zone.
Lee, Mr. and Mrs. G. E.,
Balboa, Canal Zone.
Marsh, Miss R. E.,
Margarita, Canal Zone.
McHale, J. P.,
Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago.
McRoberts, Mr. and Mrs. D.,
Colorado Springs, Colo.
Musteriec, J. P.,
Army Map Service.
Napier, F. C.,
Frick Park Museum, Pittsburgh.
Preston, Dr. and Mrs. F. W.,
Butler, Pa.
Reed, Mr. and Mrs. C. S.,
Board of Directors, Panama Canal.
Rettenmeyer, C. W.,
University of Kansas.
Principal interest
Bird observation.
Survey of mammal population.
Bird observation.
Wildlife observation.
Amphibians.
Investigation of laboratory facilities.
Inspection of facilities.
High-speed photography of birds.
Microscopy of insect blood.
Bird observation.
Wildlife observation.
Genetics of Drosophila.
Wildlife photography.
Insect cytology.
Arthropods.
Inspection of termite tests.
Inspection of facilities.
Wildlife photography.
Wildlife observation.
Wildlife photography.
Wildlife observation.
Mammals.
Forest ecology.
Wildlife observation.
Wildlife observation.
Wildlife observation.
Army ants,
SECRETARY’S REPORT 157
Name Principal interest
Reynolds, Dr. Orr E., Investigation of laboratory facilities.
Office of Naval Research.
Schull, Lieut. Gov. and Mrs. H. W., Wildlife observation.
Balboa, Canal Zone.
Smith, V. K., Inspection of termite tests.
U.S. Forest Service.
Sonneborn, D., Wildlife observation.
Swarthmore College.
Soper, Dr. C., Deterioration studies.
Eastman Kodak Tropical Research
Laboratory.
Stappenbeck, Dr. and Mrs. C., Wildlife observation.
Lake Junaluska, N.C.
Stultz, Mrs. O. M., Bird observation.
Montebello, Calif.
Sturn, Dr. H., Plant ecology.
Mainz, Germany.
Thurman, FE. B., Arthropods.
National Institutes of Health.
Tryon, Drs. R. M. and A., Ferns.
Missouri Botanical Garden.
Usinger, Dr. and Mrs. R. L., Insects.
University of California.
Vogel, Dr. S., Plant ecology.
Mainz, Germany.
Walch, Miss C., Wildlife observation.
Swarthmore College.
Ward, Mr. and Mrs. R., Bird photography.
Kennett Square, Pa.
Wasserman, M., Genetics of Drosophila.
The Genetics Foundation.
Weatherwax, Dr. and Mrs. P., Grasses.
Indiana University.
Weber, Dr. N. A., Fungus-growing ants.
Swarthmore College.
Wetmore, Dr. and Mrs. A., Bird observation.
Smithsonian Institution.
Wilmar, Mr. and Mrs. H., Wildlife photography.
Walt Disney Productions.
VISITORS
Visitors for the day were permitted on the island twice a week.
Most of these were guided on a walk through the forest by the Resi-
dent Naturalist. In all, about 750 visitors, including organized
groups of Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and military personnel, took advan-
tage of the opportunity to spend a day on the island. This increase
of 310 over last year was primarily due to special charges made on
an experimental basis to organized groups, particularly Boy and Girl
Scouts. The visitors are met in the morning by the launch at Frijoles.
Then they are taken to the Island, guided on a 3-hour walk in the
forest, provided with lunch, and returned to Frijoles in time for the
evening train. In order to aid in accounting for visitors, a system
of issuing tickets was introduced.
158 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
RAINFALL
During the dry season (January through April) of the calendar
year 1956, rains of 0.01 inch or more fell during 55 days (279 hours)
and amounted to 12.53 inches, as compared to 10.78 inches during 1955.
During the wet season of 1956 (May through December), rains of
0.01 inch or more fell on 215 days (989 hours) and amounted to 101.52
inches, as compared to 103.62 inches during 1955. Total rainfall for
the year was 114.05 inches. During 32 years of record the wettest
year was 1935, with 143.42 inches, and the driest year was 1930, with
only 76.57 inches. February was the driest month of 1956 (2.11
inches) and July the wettest (19.5 inches). The maximum records
for short periods were: 5 minutes 1.30 inches; 10 minutes 1.65 inches;
1 hour 4.11 inches; 2 hours 4.81 inches; 24 hours 10.48 inches.
TaB LE 1.—Annual rainfall, Barro Colorado Island, C. Z.
Total Station Total Station
Year inches average Year inches average
1 8 15 ee ae ie ae 104.37. <eeet OAD eae hep ta ee eee 91.82 108. 41
MOOG ons cake sen VIS92. 113: 561942222. 0 ena ss 111.10 108. 55
HQ OQ eren eer ares VIGS36: LAGS O43hs 2 ene ewe 120.29 109. 20
AODSG was es 2 LOW 520 Woo Oda eee ae ee eee 111.96 109.30
VOD tke Seppe See Sies4 TOG. 56) 1o4n22. 2 eee eee 120.42 109. 84
1OSQES 4 ee eo TORS ONO o TW POAC Lae. see ee 87.38 108. 81
LOST eae ees ot eee 1238830) 1O4; COMO 4 Ge seas ee 77.92 107. 49
LOS 2 Rese ee eee eee NAS 52) MOS OWO4B 2. 2 ee 83.16 106. 43
LOSS eee HOM von LObrs2 G40 ees see eee 114.86 106. 76
VOSA ee es Sle pape 122A OURO O SOs = 2h nee ee 114.51 107. 07
HOSS pe se el 2 TAS MAD I OTMIONS oH 195M a oe ee T1272: 7107228
NOR een Sie ee 98°88) 108.98) MOoz= 2-522 eee 97.68 106. 94
LOST ee eee W241 S ee CUOMO howe oe ee Se 104.97 106. 87
LOSSUM ue, BE Te 107209) V0; O21 95 4255 ees eee 105.68 106. 82
19392 58 Deanne Mies Se Tals OOF Go bes ee eee 114.42 107.09
1940 Se en eee 86:51 1O092435)| 1956... eee 114.05 107. 30
TasBLE 2.—Comparison of 1955 and 1956 rainfall, Barro Colorado Island (inches)
nnn ene eee EEIEET nEESEEEEEESSSS SS EIEET GaSSEnSSSSSSSSNSDSSEE (SSSI (SSRSSRSESENNER?
Total Accumu-
Month Station | Years of | 1956 excess | lated excess
average record jor deficiency|or deficiency
1956 1956
TEVATIIN A (eS ie ee ee sa 9. 05 5. 57 2.19 31 +3. 38 +3. 38
INA DIUSTY coe s eae econ ae ene ee ae 0. 46 2.11 1, 25 31 +. 86 +4. 24
WY GC Ss ee ee ae ee Se eee ees Sp ee 0. 90 2. 24 1.19 31 +1.05 -++5. 29
ADH eee ae = | ae Se eoe aero aan 0. 37 2. 61 3. 06 32 —0. 45 +4. 84
NB a aoe eee eee eet ee cea seetort 10.58 | 16.55 11. 01 32 +5. 54 +10. 38
JUnessase eos a a ses Beebe eee 13. 54 6. 85 11.11 32 —4, 26 +6.12
DU Vines nee eens a eae e na nee en 11. 49 19. 55 11.81 32 +7. 74 +13. 86
PAVE SE See See ee ere ane eee erate 11. 36 9. 48 12.18 32 —2.70 +11. 16
Senteniberns etre noe eee ee eee = 9.27 | 11.27 9. 97 32 +1. 30 +12. 46
OCtO her en sa i 16.33 | 18.64 13. 90 32 +4. 74 +17. 20
INOWeln Denn sess eaten eee eee eee 18. 35 12. 37 18. 81 32 —6. 44 +10. 76
Deen bekees 2c siete ee ee see eee 12. 72 6. 81 10. 82 32 —4.01 +6. 75
Worn © Abie hoes Weak oes 114.42 | 114.05 107/30)\|'2 532 ee +6. 75
ID pete elgaeemen ss Sees eee estecs= 10.78 | 12.53 WOO: foes weed eee eee +4. 84
‘Wratiseason =. teenece- sade eee an aoe oeee 103. 64 | 101. 52 QONG TR S22. Tae eee SS +1.91
eee ee eee — ne
SECRETARY’S REPORT 159
Evaporation in excess of precipitation is of greater ecological im-
portance than rainfall alone. To measure this quantity a 4-foot-
diameter evaporation pan was installed near the laboratory. Water
loss in excess of rainfall for the dry season of 1957 was as follows
(inches) :
January 3.511 March 6.629
February 5.344 April 8.146
The dry season was unusually long and rainfall did not exceed
evaporation until the last few days of May. For that month the net
gain was 0.8 inch.
BUILDINGS, EQUIPMENT, AND IMPROVEMENTS
The major building project of the year was the construction of a
12-by-24-foot above-ground wooden house for use of the workmen
living on the island. This house has shower, toilet, and full concrete
slab floor at the ground level. The generator house and floor were
enlarged, and a third diesel generator was installed in this building.
Near Chapman House a new concrete septic tank was built. In order
to decrease fire hazard, an isolated gasoline-kerosene storage shed was
constructed.
A large part of the work of building a new unloading dock was com-
pleted. The project requires bridging of the mouth of Allee Creek,
cutting and filling a slope to make a bed for car track and walkway,
and extending the unloading dock in front of the generator house.
Completion of this work will permit abandonment of the old wooden
dock which has been extended again and again because of silting.
Minor construction and maintenance work included building steel
and wooden shelves and tables for the darkroom and stockroom in the
new laboratory; repairing and painting metal cabinets and shelves
which were badly rusted; painting two launches, the aluminum run-
about, and several of the old wooden buildings; and replacing all
broken screens. All this construction and repair work was done by
Mr. Vitola and the regular staff of island laborers.
Among the equipment received on the island was a 14.5-K WA Cater-
pillar generator. The electric plant now includes three generators,
each sufficient for all present electrical needs. Additional electrical
apparatus has increased the danger of fire which would cause ir-
reparable loss of the valuable materials on the island. As an added
safeguard, 5 CO, and 3 water-pump extinguishers were added to the
fire-fighting equipment.
Much of the equipment received was for use in the laboratory and
in scientific work. This included two window air-conditioners, attic
fans, oscillating fans, study lamps, room dehumidifiers, a laboratory
refrigerator and freezer, small drying oven, compound and dissecting
160 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
microscopes, microscope lamp, binoculars, a spotting telescope, port-
able typewriter, 4-by-5 Crown Graphic camera, tripod, telephoto lens,
exposure meter, photographic enlarger, projection screen, thermo-
graph, hygrograph, small and large live-mammal traps, insect nets,
and a metal label embosser. Some of this equipment was donated by
the General Biological Supply House. Many needed reference books
and a subscription to Ecology were purchased. To facilitate shoreline
exploration, two 12-foot cayucos were acquired.
James Zetek, soon after his retirement, gave to the island most of his
extensive biological library. This created the major task of transfer-
ring hundreds of books and reprints from the Balboa Office to Barro
Colorado Island. With the former island library these publications
are now shelved in dehumidified rooms of the new laboratory. One
large room of the laboratory is used as a stockroom for supplies which
scientists may borrow. Almost the entire present stock of vials, flasks,
graduates, and other laboratory glassware, as well as most of the
chemicals, was donated by Mr. Zetek. The herbarium, bird skins,
and alcoholic collections were also moved to the new laboratory. Now
all indoor scientific work may be carried on in this one building, well
separated from eating, sleeping, recreational, and other living areas.
The administrative office was moved from Mr. Zetek’s house in Bal-
boa to a building in nearby Diablo Heights.
PLANS AND URGENT REQUIREMENTS
Inasmuch as the large wooden water-storage tank near the kitchen
may not last even a few more yeazs, the possibility of supplementing
stored rainwater with spring water during the dry season has been in-
vestigated. A spring was located about 1,000 feet from the concrete
water tank at the new laboratory, and 40 feet above the level of this
tank. As this spring continued to run throughout the abnormal dry
season of early 1957, it should be enclosed and the water piped to
the concrete storage tank. It is doubtful, however, that this addi-
tional water supply will eliminate the need to replace the wooden
water tank. But, with the spring water, a moderate-sized replace-
ment tank may suffice.
The short bridge from the Frijoles dock to the shore must be re-
built. Materials have been obtained. Most of the ties forming the
walkway from this dock to the railroad station need replacement. The
trackway from dock to station should be straightened and lengthened,
to facilitate the handling of heavy loads. An unloading ramp to aid
in carrying gravel, machinery, and other heavy materials from a
freight car to the launch is also needed at Frijoles.
Among other projects planned for the coming year on Barro Col-
orado Island are the following: completion of bridge, trackway, and
SECRETARY'S REPORT 161
unloading area of new dock; overhaul of gasoline winch engine;
sheathing the ceiling of the lower floor of the new laboratory, strength-
ening hallway floor of new laboratory; insulating two rooms of lab-
oratory for efficient air conditioning; construction of clothes-chang-
ing rooms at dock level; partitioning the old Zetek office into a sepa-
rate living apartment and storeroom; construction of drying rooms in
the old and new laboratories; addition of dry closets to the Z-M-A
and Barbour houses; installation of shower and toilet in Barbour
house; installation of shower in Chapman house; rebuilding of dock
at Drayton trail-end house; and replacement of termite-eaten timbers
of Chapman House.
From the foregoing plans it is apparent that our present labor
force of one foreman and two laborers is totally inadequate, consider-
ing that these men must also operate the launches, haul supplies, keep
the trails clear, guard against poachers, dispose of refuse, and perform
other maintenance chores. Ways must be found to augment the labor
force with contractual labor, or to increase funds for adding other
laborers to our staff. Shortage of labor, especially of skilled type, is
the greatest hindrance to proper maintenance and to completion of
the construction program.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
The United States Forest Service made final inspection of all ter-
mite-resistance tests on the island, with the exception of Drayton trail-
end house. Completion of these tests leaves the way clear for the re-
pair or reconstruction of some of the former test houses, if there is
demand for their use.
To aid 1-day visitors and naturalists who visit the island, informa-
tion leaflets were prepared and multilithed for distribution.
More than 1,000 identified plant specimens were mounted on her-
barium sheets by women of the Canal Zone College Club, under di-
rection of Mrs. C. B. Koford. These women also bound reprints,
sorted publications, and performed other helpful tasks, voluntarily.
To inaugurate population studies on the island many vertebrates
were captured, banded or otherwise marked, and released. These ani-
mals included more than 100 birds of 31 species, 58 mammals of 11
species, and several reptiles and amphibians. Birds and bats were
banded with regulation Fish and Wildlife Service bands.
As part of long-range ecologic studies of forest vegetation, the
Naturalist, aided by Joseph Musteric of the Army Map Service,
staked out two permanent transects 200 feet in length, plotted the
forest profiles, and measured the diameter of the trees. Many more
transects should be established, and the vegetation remeasured at in-
tervals of a few years. Many plants, animals, and scenes were photo-
162 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
graphed in color for a permanent file of 2-x-2-inch slides. These will
be used on the island as orientation and identification aids and as a
record of habitat conditions.
The major ornithological event of the year was the discovery in
January of a young king vulture (Sarcoramphus papa), still largely
covered with down, on the forest floor. Heretofore little was known
of the nesting and young of this huge spectacular bird. Also of note
was the return of the oropendolas (Zarhynchus wagleri) to a con-
spicuous nesting site in the laboratory area. ‘Twenty nests were con-
structed above the Kodak Test Table Building.
Principally through use of mist nests, the number of species of
bats known to occur on Barro Colorado Island was increased from
17 to 28. These bats included two species apparently not previously
recorded for Panama (Centurio senew and Micronycteris hirsuta).
Including these, and deleting a few old, unconfirmed, or unnatural
reported occurrences, the number of species of mammals known to
occur on Barro Colorado Island is 70.
FINANCES
Trust funds for maintenance of the island and its living facilities
are obtained by collections from visitors and scientists, by table sub-
scriptions from institutions, and by other donations. The table sub-
scriptions were greatly appreciated as they helped to defray the cost
of maintaining the island facilities. Organizations that continued
their subscriptions, and the amounts donated, are as follows:
Hastaran oale) o.oo te UE ae A A 2 A ee $1, 000. 00
New? York) Zoological: Society sce.) ee ee oe REE ey 300. 00
Smithsonians, Institution wa lee ee ME he eel ew eas op 300. 00
Donations are also gratefully acknowledged from Blair Coursen,
Eugene Eisenmann, C. M. Goethe, Frank Hartman, and F. W.
Preston.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The Canal Zone Biological Area can operate only with the excellent
cooperation of the Canal Zone Government and the Panama Canal
Company. Thanks are due especially to Executive Secretary Paul
Runnestrand and his staff, the Customs and Immigration officials,
personnel of the Panama Railroad, and the Police Division. The
technical advice and assistance provided by P. Alton White, Chief of
the Dredging Division, and members of his staff was of invaluable
help to the Island.
Cart B. Kororn, Resident Naturalist.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the International Exchange
Service
Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report on the ac-
tivities of the International Exchange Service for the fiscal year
ended June 380, 1957:
The Smithsonian Institution is the official United States agency
for the exchange with other nations of governmental, scientific, and
literary publications. The International Exchange Service, initiated
by the Smithsonian Institution in the early years of its existence for
the interchange of scientific publications between learned societies
and individuals in the United States and those of foreign countries,
serves as a means of developing and executing in part the broad and
comprehensive objective, “the diffusion of knowledge.” It was later
designated by the United States Government as the agency for the
transmission of official documents to selected depositories throughout
the world, and it continues to execute the exchanges pursuant to
conventions, treaties, and other international agreements.
The number of packages of publications received for transmission
during the year increased by 43,184 to the yearly total of 1,205,039,
and the weight of the packages increased by 24,841 to the yearly total
of 827,897 pounds. The average weight of the individual package de-
creased to 10.99 ounces as compared to the 11.14-ounce average for
the fiscal year of 1956.
The publications received from foreign sources for addressees in
the United States and from domestic sources for shipment abroad
are classified as shown in the following table:
Classification Packages Weight
Number | Number | Pounds | Pounds
United States parliamentary documents sent abroad_-__-------- 686;446) |zooneeoe ee 231 66Un| hes ee Lee
Publications received in return for parliamentary documents--_}---------- Se oG4 See Lae 14, 644
United States departmental documents sent abroad__---_------ 279,520 ul tees 283k 245 |e a eee
Publications received in return for departmental documents-.--- =--~------ G55 7/2 AN ee ene 19, 035
Miscellaneous scientific and literary publications sent abroad-_-| | 164,541 |_--___.__- Dey Pia y je) RS La
Miscellaneous scientific and literary publications received from
abroad for distribution in the United States_.__-_-.----------|---------- bOSSOP ee ese 101, 981
Rotel ema saan sek Se Bg ee le ee 1,130,507 | 74,532 | 692,237 | 135, 660
Grand Gta) ee ok Te a 1, 205, 039 827, 897
163
164 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
The packages of publications are forwarded to the exchange bu-
reaus of foreign countries by freight or, where shipment by such
means is impractical, to the foreign addressees by direct mail. Dis-
tribution in the United States of the publications received through the
foreign exchange bureaus is accomplished primarily by mail, but by
other means when more economical. The number of boxes shipped to
the foreign exchange bureaus was 3,132, or 58 more than for the pre-
vious year. Of these boxes 911 were for depositories of full sets of
United States Government documents, these publications being fur-
nished in exchange for the official publications of foreign governments
which are received for deposit in the Library of Congress. The
number of packages forwarded by mail and by means other than
freight was 208,503.
There was allocated to the International Exchange Service for
transportation $40,900. With this amount it was possible to effect
the shipment of 859,071 pounds, which was 21,883 pounds more than
was shipped in the previous year. However, approximately 10,540
pounds of the full sets of United States Government documents accu-
mulated during the year because the Library of Congress had requested
suspension of shipment to certain foreign depositories.
During the year ocean freight rates per cubic foot increased from
the June 30, 1956, average of $1.28 to $1.464. However, about a fourth
of the cost of this increase will be offset by a reduction on June 18,
1957, of approximately 17 percent in the truck rates to the Baltimore
piers.
The total outgoing correspondence comprised 2,406 letters, exclusive
of information copies.
With the exception of those to Taiwan, no shipments are being
made to China, North Korea, Outer Mongolia, Communist-controlled
area of Viet-Nam, or Communist-controlled area of Laos.
Shipping arrangements were completed with the newly established
Rumanian International Exchange Service and the first postwar
shipment was made to Rumania on November 29.
With certain exceptions the regulations of the Bureau of Foreign
Commerce, Department of Commerce, provide that each package of
publications exported bear a general license symbol and the legend,
“Export License Not Required.” 'The International Exchange Serv-
ice accepts for transmission to foreign destinations only those packages
of publications that fall within the exception and those packages of
publications to which the general license symbol and legend have been
applied by the consignor.
FOREIGN DEPOSITORIES OF GOVERNMENTAL DOCUMENTS
The number of sets of United States official publications received
by the Exchange Service for transmission abroad in return for the
SECRETARY’S REPORT 165
official publications sent by foreign governments for deposit in the
Library of Congress is now 105 (62 full and 48 partial sets), listed
below. Changes that occurred during the year are shown in the
footnotes.
DEPOSITORIES OF FULL SETS
ARGENTINA: Divisi6n Biblioteca, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Culto,
Buenos Aires.
AUSTRALIA: Commonwealth Parliament and National Library, Canberra.
New South WAtgEs: Public Library of New South Wales, Sydney.
QUEENSLAND; Parliamentary Library, Brisbane.
SoutH AUSTRALIA: Public Library of South Australia, Adelaide.
TASMANIA: Parliamentary Library, Hobart.
Victoria: Public Library of Victoria, Melbourne.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA: Public Library of Western Australia, Perth.
Austria: Administrative Library, Federal Chancellery, Vienna.
BEete1uM: Bibliothéque Royale, Bruxelles.
Braziu: Biblioteca Nacional, Rio de Janeiro.
BurieartA: Bulgarian Bibliographical Institute, Sofia.’
BugMa: Government Book Depot, Rangoon.
CanapDA: Library of Parliament, Ottawa.
Maniropa: Provincial Library, Winnipeg.
Ontario: Legislative Library, Toronto.
Qursec: Library of the Legislature of the Province of Quebec.
CEYLON: Department of Information, Government of Ceylon, Colombo.
CurIte: Biblioteca Nacional, Santiago.
Cuina: National Central Library, Taipei, Taiwan.
National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan.
CoLoMBIA: Biblioteca Nacional, Bogota.
Costa Rica: Biblioteca Nacional, San José.
Cusa: Ministerio de Estado, Canje Internacional, Habana.
OZECHOSLOVAKIA : National and University Library, Prague.
DENMARK: Institut Danois des Echanges Internationaux, Copenhagen.
Eayret: Bureau des Publications, Ministére des Finances, Cairo.
FINLAND: Parliamentary Library, Helsinki.
FRANCE: Bibliothéque Nationale, Paris.
GERMANY: Deutsche Staatsbibliothek, Berlin.
Free University of Berlin, Berlin.
Parliamentary Library, Bonn.
GREAT BRITAIN:
ENGLAND: British Museum, London.
Lonvon: London School of Economics and Political Science. (Depository
of the London County Council.)
Huneary: Library of Parliament, Budapest.’
Inp1a: National Library, Calcutta.
Central Secretariat Library, New Delhi.
InDoneEs1IA: Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Djakarta.
IRELAND: National Library of Ireland, Dublin.
IsrAEL: State Archives and Library, Hakirya, Jerusalem.”
Iraty: Ministerio della Pubblica Istruzione, Rome.
JAPAN: National Diet Library, Tokyo.*
1 Shipment suspended.
2 Changed from Government Archives and Library, Hakirya, Tel Aviv.
® Receives two sets.
166 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Mexico: Secretaria de Relaciones Exteriores, Departamento de Informacié6n para
el Extranjero, México, D. F.
NETHERLANDS: Royal Library, The Hague.
NEw ZEALAND: General Assembly Library, Wellington.
Norway: Utenriksdepartmentets Bibliothek, Oslo.
Peru: Seccién de Propaganda y Publicaciones, Ministerio de Relaciones Ex-
teriores, Lima.
PHILIPPINES: Bureau of Public Libraries, Department of Education, Manila.
PoLANnD: Bibliothéque Nationale, Warsaw.*
PortuGa: Biblioteca Nacional, Lisbon.
SPAIN: Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid.
SwepENn : Kungliga Biblioteket, Stockholm.
SwITzERLAND: Bibliothéque Centrale Fédérale, Berne.
TURKEY: Department of Printing and Engraving, Ministry of Education,
Istanbul.
Union or SoutH Arrica: State Library, Pretoria, Transvaal.
UNION oF Sovrer SocraList ReEpuBLiIcs: All-Union Lenin Library, Moscow.
UnitTEp Nations: Library of the United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland.
Urvuaevuay: Oficina de Canje Internacional de Publicaciones, Montevideo.
VENEZUELA: Biblioteca Nacional, Caracas.
Yueos.avi4: Bibliografski Institut, Belgrade.*®
DEPOSITORIES OF PARTIAL SETS
AFGHANISTAN: Library of the Afghan Academy, Kabul.
ANGLO-HayPTIAN SupAN: Gordon Memorial College, Khartoum.
BouiviA: Biblioteca del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Culto, La Paz.
BRAZIL:
Minas GerRAIs: Directoria Geral de Estatistica em Minas, Belo Horizonte.
BriTIsH GUIANA: Government Secretary’s Office, Georgetown, Demerara.
CANADA:
ALBERTA: Provincial Library, Edmonton.
BriTIsH CoLUMBIA: Provincial Library, Victoria.
New Brunswick: Legislative Library, Fredericton.
NEWFOUNDLAND: Department of Provincial Affairs, St. John’s.
Nova Scorra: Provincial Secretary of Nova Scotia, Halifax.
SASKATCHEWAN: Legislative Library, Regina.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Biblioteca de la Universidad de Santo Domingo, Ciudad
Trujillo.
Ecvuapvor: Biblioteca Nacional, Quito.
EL SALVADOR:
Biblioteca Nacional, San Salvador.
Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, San Salvador.
GREECE: National Library, Athens.
GUATEMALA: Biblioteca Nacional, Guatemala.
Hait1: Bibliothéque Nationale, Port-au-Prince.
HONDURAS:
Biblioteca y Archivo Nacionales, Tegucigalpa.
Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Tegucigalpa.
IcELAND: National Library, Reykjavik.
INDIA:
BompBay: Secretary to the Government, Bombay.
Bruar: Revenue Department, Patna.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 167
Inpra—Continued
Uttar PRADESH:
University of Allahabad, Allahabad.
Secretariat Library, Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow.
West Beneat: Library, West Bengal Legislative Secretariat, Assembly
House, Calcutta.
Iran: Imperial Ministry of Education, Tehran.
TrAQ: Public Library, Baghdad.
JAMAICA;
Colonial Secretary, Kingston.
University College of the West Indies, St. Andrew.
Lespanon : American University of Beirut, Beirut.
Liper1a: Department of State, Monrovia.
Mataya: Federal Secretariat, Federation of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.
MALTA: Minister for the Treasury, Valleta.
NICARAGUA: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Managua.
PAKISTAN: Central Secretariat Library, Karachi.
PANAMA: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Panama.
PaRAGUAY: Ministerio de Relaciones HExteriores, Seccién Biblioteca, Asuncidén.
PHILIPPINES: House of Representatives, Manila.*
ScoTLanpD: National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh.
Sram: National Library, Bangkok.
SrinGAPorRE: Chief Secretary, Government Offices, Singapore.
VATICAN City: Biblioteca Aspostolica Vaticana, Vatican City.
INTERPARLIAMENTARY EXCHANGE OF THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL
There are now being sent abroad 77 copies of the Federal Register
and 89 copies of the Congressional Record. This is an increase over
the preceding year of 1 copy of the Federal Register and 1 copy of the
Congressional Record. The countries to which these journals are be-
ing forwarded are given in the following list:
DEPOSITORIES OF CONGRESSIONAL RECORD AND FEDERAL REGISTER
ARGENTINA:
Biblioteca del Poder Judicial, Mendoza.°
Boletin Oficial de la Republica Argentina, Ministerio de Justica e Instruc-
cién Publica, Buenos Aires.
Camara de Diputados Oficina de Informacién Parlamentaria, Buenos Aires.
AUSTRALIA :
Commonwealth Parliament and National Library, Canberra.
New South WaAteES: Library of Parliament of New South Wales, Sydney.
™ QUEENSLAND: Chief Secretary’s Office, Brisbane.
Victor1A: Public Library of Victoria, Melbourne.®
WESTERN AUSTRALIA: Library of Parliament of Western Australia, Perth.
Brazit: Secretaria de Presidencia, Rio de Janeiro.°
British HonpurAs: Colonial Secretary, Belize.
4 Added during the year.
5 Federal Register only.
® Congressional Record only.
451800—58——12
168 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
CANADA:
Library of Parliament, Ottawa.
Clerk of the Senate, Houses of Parliament, Ottawa.
CryLton: Ceylon Ministry of Defense and External Affairs, Colombo.®
CHINA:
Legislative Yuan, Taipei, Taiwan.°
Taiwan Provincial Government, Taipei, Taiwan.
CUBA:
Biblioteca del Capitolio, Habana.
Biblioteca Publica Panamericana, Habana.°
CzECHOSLOVAKIA: Ceskoslovenska Akademie Ved, Prague.‘ ®
Eayrr: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Egyptian Government, Cairo.°
FRANCE:
Bibliothéque Assemblée Nationale, Paris.
Bibliothéque Conseil de la République, Paris.
Library, Organization for European Economic Cooperation, Paris.®
Research Department, Council of Europe, Strasbourg.®
Service de la Documentation Etrangére, Assemblée Nationale, Paris.®
GERMANY:
Amerika-Institut der Universitit Miinchen, Miinchen.°
Archiv, Deutscher Bundesrat, Bonn.
Bibliothek der Instituts fiir Weltwirtschaft an der Universitit Kiel, Kiel-
Wik.
Bibliothek Hessischer Landtag, Wiesbaden?
Der Bayrische Landtag, Munich.°’?
Deutschen Institiut fur Rechtswissenschaft, Potsdam-Babelsberg II.‘*
Deutscher Bundesrat, Bonn.°
Deutscher Bundestag, Bonn.®
Hamburgisches Welt-Wirtschafts-Archiv, Hamburg.
Guana: Chief Secretary’s Office, Accra.®
GREAT BRITAIN:
Department of Printed Books, British Museum, London.
House of Commons Library, London.’
Printed Library of the Foreign Office, London.
Royal Institute of International Affairs, London.*
GREECE: Bibliothéque, Chambre des Députés Hellénique, Athens.
GUATEMALA: Biblioteca dela Asamblea Legislativa, Guatemala.
Hartt: Bibliothéque Nationale, Port-au-Prince.
HonpbuvuRAs; Biblioteca del Congreso Nacional, Tegucigalpa.
HuncaArRY: National Library, Budapest.
INDIA:
Civil Secretariat Library, Lucknow, United Provinces.® FED Gs
Indian Council of World Affairs, New Delhi.®
Jammu and Kashmir Constituent Assembly, Srinagar.°
Legislative Assembly, Government of Assam, Shillong.
Legislative Assembly Library, Lucknow, United Provinces.
Legislative Assembly Library, Trivandrum.°®
Madras State Legislature, Madras.°
Parliament Library, New Delhi.
Servants of India Society, Poona.®
7 Three copies.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 169
IgeLanpD: Dail Eireann, Dublin.
IskaEL: Library of the Knesset, Jerusalem.
ITaty:
Biblioteca Camera dei Deputati, Rome.
Biblioteca del Senato della Republica, Rome.
European Office, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,
Rome.
International Institute for the Unification of Private Law, Rome.
JAPAN:
Library of the National Diet, Tokyo.
Ministry of Finance, Tokyo.
JORDAN: Parliament of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Amman.°
Korea: Secretary General, National Assembly, Pusan.
LuxEMBOURG: Assemblée Commune de la C. E. C. A., Luxembourg.
MExIco:
Direccién General Information, Secretaria de Gobernacién, México, D. F.
Biblioteca Benjamin Franklin, México, D. F.
AGUASCALIENTES : Gobernador del Estado de Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes.
Basa CALIFORNIA : Gobernador del Distrito Norte, Mexicali.
CAMPECHE: Gobernador del Estado de Campeche, Campeche.
CHr1aPas: Gobernador del Estado de Chiapas, Tuxtla Guitiérrez.
CHIHUAHUA: Gobernador del Estado de Chihuahua, Chihuahua.
CoAaHUILA: Periddico Oficial del Estado de Coahuila, Palacio de Gobierno,
Saltillo.
Cortima: Gobernador del Estado de Colima, Colima.
GuaNAJUATO: Secretaria General de Gobierno del Estado, Guanajuato."
JALISCO: Biblioteca del Hstado, Guadalajara.
México: Gaceta del Gobierno, Toluca.
MicHoacAn: Secretaria General de Gobierno del Estado de Michoacan,
Morelia.
MoreEtos : Palacio de Gobierno, Cuernavaca.
Nayarit: Gobernador de Nayarit, Tepic.
Nuevo Le6n: Biblioteca del Estado, Monterrey.
Oaxaca: Periddico Oficial, Palacio de Gobierno, Oaxaca.®
PUEBLA: Secretaria General de Gabierno, Puebla.
QUERETARO: Secretaria General de Gobierno, Seccién de Archivo, Querétaro.
SINALOA : Gobernador del Estado de Sinaloa, Culiacan.
Sonora: Gobernador del Estado de Sonora, Hermosillo.
TAMAULIPAS: Secretaria General de Gobierno, Victoria.
VERACRUZ: Gobernador del Estado de Veracruz, Departamento de Gober:
nacion y Justicia, Jalapa.
YucatTAn : Gobernador del Estado de Yucatan, Mérida.
NETHERLANDS : Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague.’
New ZEALAND: General Assembly Library, Wellington.
Norway: Library of the Norwegian Parliament, Oslo.
PaNnaMA: Biblioteca Nacional, Panama City.°
PoLanpD: Kancelaria Rady, Panstwa, Biblioteka Sejmova, Warsaw.‘
PorTuGUESE Timor : Reparticaio Central de Administracio Civil, Dili.
170 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
SwiTzERLAND: Bibliothéque, Bureau International du Travail, Geneva.°
International Labor Office, Geneva.*®
Library, United Nations, Geneva.
UNION oF SouTtH AFRICA:
Capes oF Goop Hope: Library of Parliament, Cape Town.
TRANSVAAL: State Library, Pretoria.
UnIon or Soviet Sooratist RepusLics: Fundamental’niia Biblioteka Obschest-
vennykh Nauk, Moscow.
Uruevuay: Diario Ofical, Florida 1178, Montevideo.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE SERVICES
Exchange publications for addresses in the countries listed below are
forwarded by freight to the exchange services of those countries.
Exchange publications for addresses in other countries are forwarded
directly by mail.
LIST OF EXCHANGE SERVICES
Austria; Austrian National Library, Vienna.
Be.eium: Services des Echanges Internationaux, Bibliothéque Royale de Bel-
gique, Bruxelles.
Cuina: National Central Library, Taipei, Taiwan.
CZECHOSLOVAKIA: Bureau of International Exchanges, University Library,
Prague.
DENMARK: Institut Danois des Hchanges Internationaux, Bibliothéque Royale,
Copenhagen.
Eeypt: Government Press, Publications Office, Bulag, Cairo.
FINLAND: Delegation of the Scientific Societies, Helsinki.
France: Service des Echanges Internationaux, Bibliothéque Nationale, Paris.
GERMANY (Hastern) : Deutsche Staatsbibliothek, Berlin.
GERMANY (Western): Notgemeinschaft der Deutschen Wissenschaft, Bad
Godesberg.
Huneary: National Library, Széchényi, Budapest.
Inp14 : Government Printing and Stationery, Bombay.
INDONESIA : Minister of Education, Djakarta.
ISRAEL: Jewish National and University Library, Jerusalem.
Iraty: Ufficio degli Scambi Internazionali, Ministero della Pubblica Istruzione,
Rome.
JAPAN: Division of International Affairs, National Diet Library, Tokyo.
NETHERLANDS: International Exchange Bureau of the Netherlands, Royal Li-
brary, The Hague.
New SoutH WaAts&s: Public Library of New South Wales, Sydney.
NEw ZEALAND: General Assembly Library, Wellington.
Norway: Service Norvégien des Echanges Internationaux, Bibliothéque de
l’Université Royale, Oslo.
PHILIPPINES: Bureau of Public Libraries, Department of Education, Manila.
PoLAND: Service Polonais des Echanges Internationaux, Bibliothéque Nationale,
Warsaw.
PortuGaL: Seccio de Trocas Internacionais, Biblioteca Nacional, Lisbon.
QUEENSLAND: Bureau of International Exchange of Publications, Chief Secre-
tary’s Office, Brisbane.
8 Two copies.
SECRETARY’S REPORT ly gl
Rumania: International Wxchange Service, Biblioteca Centrala de Stat, Bu-
charest.
Sout AUSTRALIA: South Australian Government Hxchanges Bureau, Govern-
ment Printing and Stationery Office, Adelaide.
Spain: Junta de Intercambio y Adquisicién de Libros y Revistas para Bibliote-
cas Publicas, Ministerio de Hducacién Nacional, Madrid.
SwEpDEN : Kungliga Biblioteket, Stockholn.
SwirzERLAND: Service Suisse des Echanges Internationaux, Bibliothéque Cen-
trale Fédérale, Palais Fédéral, Berne.
TASMANIA: Secretary of the Premier, Hobart.
TURKEY : National Library, Ankara.’
Union or SoutH ArricaA: Government Printing and Stationery Office, Cape
Town.
Union oF Soviet Socratist Repusiics: Bureau of Book Exchange, State Lenin
Library, Moscow.
Victoria: Public Library of Victoria, Melbourne.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA: State Library of Western Australia, Perth.”
YuGosuavia: Bibliografski Institut FNRJ, Belgrade.
Respectfully submitted.
D. G. Wuu1aMs, Chief.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
® Changed from Ministry of Education, Istanbul.
10 Changed from Public Library of Western Australia, Perth.
Report on the National Gallery of Art
Sir: I have the honor to submit, on behalf of the Board of Trustees,
the 20th annual report of the National Gallery of Art for the fiscal
year ended June 30, 1957. This report is made pursuant to the pro-
visions of section 5 (d) of Public Resolution No. 14, 75th Congress,
first session, approved March 24, 1937 (50 Stat. 51).
ORGANIZATION
The statutory members of the Board of Trustees of the National
Gallery of Art are the Chief Justice of the United States, the Sec-
retary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of
the Smithsonian Institution, ex officio. On May 1, 1957, Chester
Dale was reelected a general trustee of the National Gallery of Art
to serve in that capacity for the term expiring July 1, 1967. Mr.
Dale was also reelected by the Board of Trustees on May 2, 1957, to
serve as President of the Gallery, and Ferdinand Lammot Belin was
reelected Vice President. The four other general trustees continu-
ing in office during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957, were Ferdi-
nand Lammot Belin, Duncan Phillips, Paul Mellon, and Rush H.
Kress.
On September 13, 1956, the Trustees of the Gallery elected Perry
B. Cott as Chief Curator and Mrs. Fern R. Shapley as Assistant
Chief Curator. At this same meeting the Trustees approved the
appointments of William P. Campbell as Curator of Paintings and
John E. Pancoast as Registrar.
The executive officers of the Gallery as of June 30, 1957, are as
follows:
Huntington Cairns, Secretary-Treas- Huntington Cairns, General Counsel.
urer. Perry B. Cott, Chief Curator.
John Walker, Director. Macgill James, Assistant Director.
Ernest R. Feidler, Administrator.
On July 1, 1957, Macgill James retired as Assistant Director of the
Gallery.
The three standing committees of the Board, as constituted at the
annual meeting on May 2, 1957, are as follows:
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Chief Justice of the United States, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
Earl Warren, Chairman. tion, Dr. Leonard Carmichael.
Chester Dale, Vice Chairman. Paul Mellon.
Ferdinand Lammot Belin.
172
SECRETARY’S REPORT 173
FINANCE COMMITTEE
Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
George M. Humphrey, Chairman. tion, Dr. Leonard Carmichael.
Chester Dale, Vice Chairman. Ferdinand Lammot Belin.
Paul Mellon.
ACQUISITIONS COMMITTEE
Ferdinand Lammot Belin, Chairman. Paul Mellon.
Duncan Phillips. John Walker.
Chester Dale.
PERSONNEL
On June 30, 1957, full-time Government employees on the staff of
the National Gallery of Art numbered 313 as compared with 312 as
of June 30, 1956. The United States Civil Service regulations gov-
ern the appointment of employees paid from appropriated public
funds.
APPROPRIATIONS
For the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957, the Congress of the United
States in the regular annual appropriation for the National Gallery
of Art provided $1,505,000 to be used for salaries and expenses in
the operation and upkeep of the Gallery, the protection and care of
works of art acquired by the Board of Trustees, and all administra-
tive expenses incident thereto, as authorized by Joint Resolution of
Congress approved March 24, 1937 (20 U.S. C. 71-75; 50 Stat. 51).
Congress also included in a supplemental appropriation act $30,000
to cover (a) the additional cost of steam for heating and air-condi-
tioning the Gallery, which cost exceeded the original estimate of
General Services Administration by $18,000; (b) the increased cost
of electric current ($3,800), and (c) the increase of salaries of em-
ployees whose rates of pay were adjusted as of December 2, 1956, by
Wage Board determination under authority of Public Law 763, 83d
Congress ($8,200). The total appropriation for the fiscal year was
$1,535,000. The following expenditures and encumbrances were
incurred :
Personal services (including $413,088.28 for guard protection)____ $1, 298, 635. 00
Othertthanppersonaleservices se ee ee 2 241, 336. 07
Wnobligatedubalanceses ssn he eet Bl oe 28. 93
LMG Ey My ah ea Rade ol Pt ch SA ka MIEN Ne oe AAD) Fi BT ae 1, 535, 000. 00
ATTENDANCE
There were 942,196 visitors to the Gallery during the fiscal year
1957 as compared to an attendance of 1,013,246 for the fiscal year 1956.
The average daily number of visitors was 2,596.
174. ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
ACCESSIONS
There were 650 accessions by the National Gallery of Art as gifts,
loans, or deposits during the fiscal year.
GIFTS
During the year, the following gifts or bequests were accepted by
the Board of Trustees:
PAINTINGS
Donor Artist Title
William Robertson Coe. 22-. \-Renoirs 222 2205-2 Girl with a Basket of Fish.
William Robertson Coe_._. Renoir__---------- Girl with a Basket of
Oranges.
Lewis Hinstein-..-..-~-- Fravonerd.; 2a... Adoration d’un trone.
Lewis Einstein. .-..-----=- School of Antwerp_- Goosen van Bonhuysen.
Lewis Hinstein=< = .2 = 252. = Greco-Egyptian___. Portrait of a Woman.
Howard Sturges.-.....--- Gainsborough_---_-- Shepherd Boys and Dog
Sheltering from Storm.
Howard Sturges__-------- Guardié Vises. 2 22 Castel Sant’ Angelo.
Howard Sturges_--_------ Blea el welyel tS ah eee The Earl of Beverley.
Howard Sturges. -_------- Shee Wait og. 8 be The Countess of Beverley.
Howard Sturges__-------- Hoppers 3.223. te. Portrait of a Man.
Miss Edith Reynolds_-____- Eenriets fs 2 apes ee Edith Reynolds.
Horace Havemeyer- ------ Manet sew ore ees Gare Saint-Lazare.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Buddington__------ Father and Son.
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Chambers--------- The Connecticut River Val-
bisch. ley.
Col, and :Mrs..-E.«W. Gar=, Field 2-022. == += Ark of the Covenant.
bisch.
Coll and” Mrs. Es W.Gar-" Hashasen’ 222251 S- Ship Arkansas Leaving
bisch. Havana.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- MacKay---------- Catherine Brower.
bisch.
Colt ‘and “Miss is W. Gare) “Repese see 2 a 22 = Mount Vernon.
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Unknown2-------=- Boy and Girl.
bisch.
Col..and, Mrs, EY W. Gar- Unknown. ---_- -_ Brothers.
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Unknown_--------- Miss Daggett.
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Unknown-_--------- Landscape with Group of
bisch. Buildings.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Unknown_-_-------- Woman Taking Footbath.
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Unknown---------- Washington, the Mason.
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Unknown-_--------- ““We Go for the Union.”
bisch.
Col. and Mrs. E. W. Gar- Vanderlyn, attr. to-. Miss Van Alen.
bisch.
SECRETARY'S REPORT Ls
PAINTINGS—Continued
Donor Artist Title
Alexander D. Thayer- ---- VAT OO Geese ees ae Charles Carroll of Carrollton.
William Nelson Cromwell_. Goya___---------- Victor Guye.
George Matthew Adams... lLegros__---------- Memory Copy of Holbein’s
Erasmus.
Katharine Husson Horstick. Hakins___--------- Louis Husson.
Katharine Husson Horstick. EHakins_----------- Mrs. Louis Husson.
Albert M. Friend, Jr__---- ING Res aoe ee George Dodd.
Albert M. Friend, Jr___--- INeasieng: ose 2 Julia Anne Dodd.
Avalon Foundation_-_----- Pemettas sean My Gems.
Curt H. Reisinger-_-___-. OT ee ee ee Hugo Reisinger.
Curt H. Reisinger ---_----- pesmards—- 32.2" - = Nude.
Curt H. Reisinger--_--_---- Melechers..=2—-=.-2 The Sisters.
SCULPTURE
George Matthew Adams_-- Dalou__.---------- Alphonse Legros.
Miss Syma Busiel__.----- HOUdOnee= = sens se — Diana.
Mellon Collection____._--- Bellows: 2<2222ce= 15 lithographs.
Mrs. Andrew Carey_-_----- Various. see 17 prints and drawings.
Herbert and Claiborne Pell. Various___-------- 8 prints.
Mrs. Roger H. Plowden_-. MHazeltine----._---- 2 watercolors.
Howard Sturges_.--..---- Various-s=2s--=22 10 drawings.
George Matthew Adams_-. Legros__---------- 24 prints and drawings.
William Robertson Coe___._ Various___-------- 1 print, 17 books.
Lewis Einstein -_......_.- Various: 322k 3 drawings.
WORKS OF ART ON LOAN
The following works of art were received on loan by the Gallery:
From: Artist
The Putnam Foundation, San Diego, Calif. :
WiCWaOr ViOlLGrT teats ewer ee es Fa eee Corot.
Virgin and Child with St. Elizabeth, the Infant St. John and Veronese.
St. Justine.
@hristion the) Crosses esa eae oe Murillo.
Chester Dale, New York, N. Y.:
IPOLEPaii Ora pial tole! Grin eee ee ere er Higleton (7).
Col. and Mrs. Edgar W. Garbisch, New York, N. Y.:
Highty-two early American paintings.
Peter Jay, Havre de Grace, Md.:
Robert Woods Bliss, Washington, D. C.:
Twenty-two objects of Pre-Columbian art.
Mrs. Eugene Meyer, Washington, D. C.:
Vit SQ O bap LO WC S a es Se Cezanne.
PEATE er FEW ROS EA SED UL Gy pipe St i me eS pe Cezanne.
BPG TNE SUTIN GO Ler a ag re I Cezanne.
PSTD SOA tHe ph ee 5 kD AL Tc Nea NSO SS a) Cezanne.
ESS tr DL'S Cop Wet a ES NS ee RE |e ee Dufresne.
ESF BI 9 Dia BP ke a NR A i an a ee sl oe re Manet.
DSU TE Ce a eS lB Be a a a i te a ea a Renoir.
POE GES TG Fey I Da cele pa a ee eh Ne Renoir.
176 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
WORKS OF ART ON LOAN RETURNED
The following works of art on loan were returned during the fiscal
year :
LG: Artist
Samuel H. Kress Foundation, New York, N. Y.:
75 paintings and 2 sculptures.
Mr. and Mrs. C. B. Wrightsman, Palm Beach, Fla.:
Portrait ofa, Young: Girls 222 === sss ose eee eee ee Vermeer.
Claiborne Pell, Washington, D. C.:
The Jolly shlatboatmen’ 222 tas =a ese eee Lee eee Bingham.
Mrs. Eugene Meyer, Washington, D. C.:
IVEISOM OL DLO WET Sere a ta coeeme sec a eee See 8 Se ee Cezanne,
Portraitiot.anSaloris 22 See oe Se ee Sa ene Cezanne.
Me Cha teas INO = a aj Sc es ep le Dae a Cezanne.
SGI geri ei 5 = ae i 9 ah lee AS he Rn > eee Cezanne.
SS ETD eT ee tu ee 2 De ean Ble 2s ee ee Dufresne.
SS GULL aD eaeT Ge A ce 2 ee Manet.
SING UNE ak as Se CE RE ee 2 ee Renoir.
1 2X0) cep ers WN we hes Heed eT) 3 Ye ors ee aa en SR DUNT ey Se 4 Ser ee ee ae Renoir.
Chester Dale, New York, N. Y.:
FLOR OL Ra pW. OT air eee a ee a ee ee Derain.
WomansinjanVArm chaiir= =. see) 2 oe ee eee Derain.
Womantinieu@hemises:2 eee. = 2k a ee a ee Derain.
Mine Bat nersee > xen Sk ea ek ee a ee ee Tondu.
Indian @Miaiden’. +2227 _ joo Pe he a eh Wright.
Robert Woods Bliss, Washington, D. C.:
Six objects of Pre-Columbian art.
WORKS OF ART LENT
During the fiscal year the Gallery lent the following works of art
for exhibition purposes:
To:
American Embassy, Paris: Artist
IVE SReTeay oS SANS Ya ee a Ss ree ee ce es ee a Stuart.
PATI | BAT y eee 2S Oke eee ee ee DY i ES Era Stuart.
TWORGTa wanes Ol (ClASSI@ my Unis eee eee ee eee Guardi.
Blair-Lee House, Washington, D. C.:
LEEy a Sa ETT Daa EES Gp aS [Lee ep ie ae Sa ng Salar i oe erie Pear tr 8 Stephens.
Secretary = Worrestal se eo oe eee ee Ne ote eS are eee Murray.
Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C.:
Mending the) larness® oa 2. See ie oe eee oe eee Ryder.
Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, Dallas, Tex.:
Andrew Jackson. 2.22 oe ee ee ee Se ee Karl.
Manik lin WPier@e 222s 22 ee ee ae ee Healy.
Walia: enya rrison= 2 =. eae ee eee re Lambdin.:
TheuWashin atone hamal yn (ene vith) net ee ope ee eee Savage.
John Ouiney Adams 2 os oe ee ae ne mene aye ate Sully.
ANG ACK SOms Le = eae ae eo See eee tee ern caeeee Sully.
General “Dwight Hisenhowerssa nese eee ee eee Stephens.
Georres Washing tons. 20 ee se eee One eee Stuart.
Alexander Hamilton Bicentennial Commission, Washington,
D. C.:
AVCXANG OT VELA CON Se ees eee eet ge eee Trumbull.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 177
To:
Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Ohio: Artist
Mending the: Harness ets eo i ae Ryder.
Virginia 350th Anniversary, Jamestown Festival, Williams-
burg, Va.:
Pocahontas 222 ks ee ne i ee British School.
Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Conn. :
NV WAR TT 0 Fa ER Ore a aS ek se Se Trumbull.
Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Mich.:
Siegfried and the Rhine Maidens_____________________- Ryder.
Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts, Columbus, Ohio:
@hreste rs ale eee se ees es 2 Be a ee ee Bellows.
Connecticut Historical Society, Hartford, Conn.:
Miss Dagcett to 0h 2 ie be hh ee ee Artist unknown.
Institute of Contemporary Arts, Washington, D. C.:
SSS AS POTENT G5 ese ee aes Canaletto.
IOUT a UTES oie ee eee ee a ee A, ps Piranesi.
Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, Wash-
ington, D. C.:
Forty-five modern German prints.
EXHIBITIONS
The following exhibitions were held at the National Gallery of
Art during the fiscal year 1957:
Masterpieces of Graphic Art from the Rosenwald Collection. Reopened May
23, 1956, continuing through July 8, 1956.
American Paintings from the Collection of the National Gallery of Art. July
18, 1956, through August 12, 1956.
Prints by the French Impressionists. From the Rosenwald Collection. August
15, 1956, through December 31, 1956.
A Retrospective Exhibition of the Work of George Bellows. The first one-
man show in the history of the National Gallery of Art. January 19, 1957,
through February 24, 1957.
American Primitive Paintings. From the Collection of Edgar William and
Berince Chrysler Garbisch (2d exhibition). March 16, 1957, through April
28, 1957.
“One Hundred Years of Architecture in America.” An exhibition celebrating
the Centennial of the American Institute of Architects. May 15, 1957,
through July 14, 1957.
TRAVELING EXHIBITIONS
Rosenwald Collection.—Special exhibitions of prints from the
Rosenwald Collection were circulated to the following places during
the fiscal year 1957:
Rijks Museum, Amsterdam, Holland:
Three Rembrandt drawings____________ May-—October 1956.
Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis,
Minn.:
Exhibition, “Prints, 1400-1800,” three
DEIN GS eee See ee Se bea a es 2 he October-November 1956.
178 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Philadelphia Art Alliance, Philadelphia, Pa.:
Twenty-nine Rowlandson prints________
Marion Koogler McNay Art Institute, San
Antonio, Tex.:
Twenty-two Rembrandt etchings________
North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, N. C.:
Exhibition, “Rembrandt and School,” 54
The Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore,
Md.:
Exhibition, “4,000 Years of Modern Art,”
one! print 2 2 eee ee ee
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Tex.:
Exhibition, “The Life of Christ,” 68
PrIintse Sire 2h SONS Se Se ee”
Art Institute of Chicago, II1.:
Exhibition, “Prints, 1400-1800,” three
DIINtS! 222 eee ee ee LO ee
The University Gallery, University of Minne-
sota:
Exhibition, “Musieal Exhibition,” 33
Fort Worth Art Center, Fort Worth, Tex.:
Exhibition, “Horse and Rider,” eight
JOG RN OY SYS ae aN ILS ayer b lr ef nl ya ehh aad alec
Literature and Fine Arts Gallery, Michigan
State University :
Exhibition, “Impressionist Prints,’ 30
JS gba of taal SOLA ya kA di Tiled re NA Sy he
Museum of Modern Art, New York, N. Y.:
Exhibition, “Munch,” one print_________
Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibi-
tion Service, Washington, D. C.:
Exhibition, “Bellows,” 19 prints
Grolier Club, New York, N. Y.:
Exhibition, “Blake,” four prints_________
Community Arts Program, Munson-Williams-
Proctor Institute, Utica, N. Y.:
Exhibition, “Portraiture: The 19th and
20th Centuries,” six prints
Index of American Design.—During the fiscal year 1957, 23 travel-
ing exhibitions (including 804 plates) with 50 bookings were circu-
October-November 1956.
November—December 1956.
November—December 1956.
November 1956—June 1957.
December 1956—January 1957.
January 1957.
January-February 1957.
January—March 1957.
February—March 1957.
February—March 1957.
March-— 1957.
April-June 1957.
April—December 1957.
lated to the following States and Germany :
Number of Number of
State erhibitions | State enhibitions
A ae aa re cere ee ee ee 2 || Minnesota |. = 2 Set eee pees
AT RAN SAG ieee ceo a ee ee ee Ay AMET SSO UTS te tse eee se es
Connecticuts =. eee Bi INGW ext CO ne ee oe eee arene
District) of ‘Columbia= 222. ZING Wie VOR KE 22: Ou nee anne eee
LOLI Cage een se ees eee eens a North’ Carolina. 22222) 2 ae
TUG OD Re ee ee soe ee TV Oklahomas 2222222222. eee
Kentucky sre ce ta eee 2 | SOUL OATOL Na = =e see enmenee
Maine 2:2 SUR eerie) as ante 2! Tennessee Vixens see eee
Marylanyl Ge. soe) setae a WO eT HY Bat e-g be > ip ua psa MOSEL ol CaS
BBE GWU Wiser oR dade fuse lipase er Si Germany, 22 20502 Se ee, SL
SECRETARY’S REPORT 179
CURATORIAL ACTIVITIES
The Curatorial Department accessioned 131 gifts to the Gallery
during the fiscal year 1957. Advice was given with respect to 346
works of art brought to the Gallery for expert opinion, and 10 visits
to collections were made by members of the staff in connection with
offers of gift or for expert opinion. About 1,520 inquiries requiring
research were answered verbally and by letter.
William Campbell gave three lectures on American primitive
painting at the Cooperstown summer seminars and also spoke to a
women’s group at Shepherdstown, W. Va. He assisted in the judging
of an exhibition of the art work of State Department employees.
John Pancoast judged an art contest for AMVETS. Erwin O.
Christensen lectured on African Negro sculpture at Howard Univer-
sity, gave a Washington Seminar lecture on the Index of American
Design, and held 12 monthly talks for USIA groups on the Index.
Miss Elizabeth Mongan lectured at the Detroit Institute of Art,
served on a jury for an exhibition in Philadelphia, and spoke to 10
groups visiting Alverthorpe Gallery. Miss Elizabeth Benson spoke
to two women’s organization meetings. Hereward Lester Cooke
assisted in the judging of seven art exhibitions in the Washington
area.
Perry B. Cott served as a member of the Board of Governors of
the Archaeological Institute of America, Washington Society. Miss
Katherine Shepard was secretary of this organization and went as
official delegate to its General Meeting in Philadelphia. Miss Mongan
was Honorary Vice President of the American Color Print Society,
served on the American Jury of Selection of the International
Graphic Arts Society and was a director and member of the Execu-
tive Committee of the Print Council of America.
RESTORATION
Francis Sullivan, Resident Restorer of the Gallery, made regular
and systematic inspection of all works of art at the Gallery, and
periodically removed dust and bloom as required. He relined 6 paint-
ings, and gave special treatment to 34 paintings. Nineteen paintings
were X-rayed as an aid in research. Experiments were continued
with the application of 27H and other synthetic varnishes developed
by the National Gallery of Art Fellowship at the Mellon Institute
of Industrial Research, Pittsburgh, Pa. Proofs of all color repro-
auctions of Gallery paintings were checked and approved, and tech-
nical advice on the conservation of paintings was furnished to the
public upon request.
Mr. Sullivan inspected all Gallery paintings on loan in Govern-
ment buildings in Washington. He also gave advice on and special
180 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
treatment to works of art belonging to other Government agencies
including the White House, the Freer Gallery of Art, and the Smith-
sonian Institution.
PUBLICATIONS
The Director’s book on The Feast of the Gods and related paint-
ings, entitled “Bellini and Titian at Ferrara,” appeared during the
year. Mrs. Fern R. Shapley was the coauthor of a book “Compari-
sons in Art,” also published by the Phaidon Press. She also prepared
the text for the Gallery’s Portfolio No. 5, “Masterpieces from the
Samuel H. Kress Collection.” Mr. Campbell compiled the data for the
Bellows and Garbisch exhibition catalogs, and wrote the introduction
to the Garbisch catalog. Mr. Christensen prepared a guide to the
Chinese porcelains of the Widener Collection, and wrote an article
on “An American Primitive Portrait Group” for Antiques magazine.
Mr. Cooke’s research on “Documents Relating to the Fontana di
Trevi” was published in the September Art Bulletin, and six of his
short articles for the Ladies Home Journal appeared during the year.
Mr. Pancoast reviewed a book on Ghiberti for The American Scholar.
During the past fiscal year the Publications Fund published three
new 11-x-14-inch color reproductions, and two more were on order.
Eleven new color post cards were published; and plates were made for
seven new Christmas and Easter folders. Two more large collotype
reproductions of paintings on exhibition, distributed by a New York
publisher, were placed on sale; 11-x-14-inch reproductions printed on
canvas, an entirely new type of item, were also on order.
Two new books of A. W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts, “The Art
of Sculpture,” by Herbert Read, and “The Nude,” by Kenneth Clark,
were placed on sale. “American Primitive Paintings,” Part II, was
made available, and a book “Portrait of Jesus,” by Marian King, based
on pictures in the National Gallery of Art, was stocked, as well as a
paper-bound edition of a booklet, “Favorite Paintings from the Na-
tional Gallery of Art,” by present and former members of the Gallery
staff. There was a fourth printing issued of the Gallery’s Handbook
No. 1, “How to Look at Works of Art; The Search for Line,” by
Lois A. Bingham.
Catalogs of the George Bellows show and “One Hundred Years of
Architecture in America” exhibition were distributed.
A boxed set of ten 2-x-2-inch color slides with text was made avail-
able.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
The program of the Educational Office was carried out under the
supervision of the Curator in Charge of Educational Work and his
staff who lectured and conducted guided tours in the National Gallery
of Art on the works of art in its collection.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 181
The attendance for the general tours, Congressional tours, “Tours
for the Week,” and “Pictures of the Week,” totaled 43,954 while that
for the 51 auditorium lectures on Sunday afternoons was approxi-
mately 11,488 during the fiscal year 1957.
Tours, lectures, and conferences were arranged by special appoint-
ment for 322 groups and individuals. The total number of people
served in this manner was 7,640. This is an increase over last year
of 23 groups and 350 persons. These special appointments were made
for such groups as representatives from high schools, universities,
museums, governmental agencies, and distinguished visitors.
The program of training volunteer docents was continued during
the fiscal year. Fifty-seven ladies were given special instruction un-
der the general supervision of the Curator in Charge of Educational
Work and under the specific direction of one of the members of the
staff. By arrangement with the school systems of the District of
Columbia and surrounding counties of Virginia and Maryland, these
ladies assisted in giving guided tours for the children from these
schools. In all, 751 classes, with a total of 22,561 children, were given
the tours during the fiscal year. This represents an increase over last
year of 4,046 children in attendance.
The staff of the Educational Office delivered 20 lectures in the audi-
torium on Sunday afternoons. Twenty-four lectures were given by
cuest speakers, and during April and May Dr. Sigfried Giedion de-
livered the Sixth Annual Series of seven A. W. Mellon Lectures in
the Fine Arts on the theme “Constancy and Change in Art and
Architecture.”
During the past year 205 persons borrowed a total of 6,110 slides
from the slide lending collection.
The office completed in May two new slide strip films on paintings
in the National Gallery of Art which will be available for sale about
July 1, 1957. These are in addition to two other slide strips (one on
sculpture, and one on prints) and one strip film, which have been
available.
The centers throughout the country that distribute the National
Gallery of Art film, “Your National Gallery,” report approximately
72,339 persons viewed the film in 310 showings.
Members of the staff prepared leaflets on the works of art in in-
dividual galleries; prepared mimeographed material for school tours
and to accompany slide loans; and prepared and recorded 33 radio
broadcasts for use during intermission periods of the National Gallery
concerts.
The printed Calendar of Events announcing all the Gallery’s activ-
ities was prepared by the Educational Office and distributed monthly
to a mailing list of approximately 4,500 names.
182 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
LIBRARY
The most important acquisitions to the Library this year were 2,137
books, pamphlets, periodicals, subscriptions, and photographs pur-
chased from private funds, and 53 books, pamphlets, and subscriptions
to periodicals purchased from Government funds made available for
this purpose. Gifts included 849 books and pamphlets; while 713
books, pamphlets, periodicals, and bulletins were received in exchange
from other institutions. More than 420 persons other than Gallery
staff spent time in the Library for study or research, and approxi-
mately 1,500 telephone reference requests were handled.
The Library is the depository for photographs of works of art in
the collections of the National Gallery of Art. A stock of reproduc-
tions is maintained for use in research occupations by the curatorial
staff and other departments of the Gallery, for the dissemination of
knowledge to qualified sources; for exchange with other institutions;
for reproduction in scholarly works; and for sale at the request
of interested individuals. Approximately 5,000 photographs were
added to the Library’s stock; 585 mail orders, and 500 direct sales
were handled; and 300 permits to reproduce 680 subjects were proc-
essed in the Library.
INDEX OF AMERICAN DESIGN
The work of the Index continued as in previous years. The Curator
in charge of the Index continued to take part in the orientation pro-
gram for United States Information Agency personnel with thirteen
50-minute illustrated talks on the background and purpose of the
Index and on the folk arts and crafts in the United States.
A new project of printed guide leaflets on the material in the Index
was started, as well as a project of 20 color-slide sets which were
placed on sale.
The Index cooperated with the USIA in making these slide sets
available to their overseas personnel. Approximately 704 persons
studied the Index material for purposes of research or exhibition, to
gather material for publication and design, and to become familiar
with the Index.
Twenty groups of color slides (801 in all) were lent in eight States
and India. Three exhibitions of Index material were held in the
National Gallery of Art, and 23 traveling exhibitions were circulated.
MAINTENANCE OF THE BUILDING AND GROUNDS
The Gallery building, its mechanical equipment, and its grounds
have been maintained at the established standard throughout the year;
emphasis, however, has been given to reducing the water leaks which
are common to skylight roofs.
Secretary's Report, 1957
PLATE 8
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Secretary's Report, 1957
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SECRETARY'S REPORT 183
With funds made available by the A. W. Mellon Educational and
Charitable Trust, the air-conditioning system has been extended to
cover first-aid rooms, other areas on the ground floor, art storage
rooms, and shops.
With funds made available by Congress a contract has been let for
changing the elevator in the west wing of the Gallery building from
operator controlled to passenger operated.
A contract has been let for an experimental electronic installation of
a 10-minute tape-recorded Gallery broadcast providing a lecture, re-
ceivable on an earphone device, pertaining to the works of art in
several gallery rooms. It is proposed to rent the earphone receiving
devices at a small fee to persons wishing to hear the lectures in the
wired gallery rooms.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
Forty Sunday evening concerts were given during the fiscal year
in the East Garden Court. The National Gallery Orchestra, con-
ducted by Richard Bales, played 10 concerts at the Gallery. Two of
these concerts were made possible by the Music Performance Trust
Fund of the American Federation of Musicians. The first eight con-
certs of the series were given in commemoration of the Mozart Bi-
centennial. A string orchestra under Mr. Bales’ direction played
during the opening of the Bellows Exhibition on January 19, 1957,
and during the Garbisch Exhibition opening on March 15, 1957. The
Orchestra was engaged to play a concert at Constitution Hall on
February 3 with Mr. Bales conducting. In September 1956 Mr. Bales’
cantata “The Union” (premiere at the National Gallery of Art June
10, 1956), was recorded at the Gallery by Columbia Records. The
National Gallery Orchestra and soloists played for the recording.
During May 1957, the four Sunday evening concerts were devoted to
the Gallery’s Fourteenth American Music Festival. All concerts were
broadcast in their entirety by Station WGMS AM and FM,
Washington.
The American Institute of Architects commissioned Mr. Bales to
compose an orchestral work as part of its Centennial Celebration.
This composition, “National Gallery Suite No. 3,” was premiered on
May 26, 1957. The intermissions during the Sunday evening con-
certs featured discussions by members of the Educational Office staff
and Mr. Bales.
During the fiscal year 2,056 copies of nine press releases were issued
in connection with Gallery activities. One hundred and fifty permits
to copy and 208 permits to photograph in the Gallery were also issued.
The Photographic Laboratory of the Gallery produced 12,967
prints, 242 black-and-white slides, 814 color slides, 1,974 black-and-
451800—58——13
184 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
white negatives, 52 color-separation negatives, and 126 color trans-
parencies, 8 infrareds, 5 ultraviolets, 10 X-rays, and 5 film positives.
OTHER GIFTS
Gifts of money were made during the fiscal year 1957 by the Old
Dominion Foundation, Avalon Foundation, Corning Museum of
Glass, J. Hopkins Smith, Jr., and Donald F. Hyde.
AUDIT OF PRIVATE FUNDS OF THE GALLERY
An audit of the private funds of the Gallery will be made for the
fiscal year ended June 30, 1957, by Price Waterhouse & Co., public
accountants, and the certificate of that company on its examination
of the accounting records maintained for such funds will be for-
warded to the Gallery.
Respectfully submitted.
Huntineton Catrns, Secretary.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on the Library
Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report on the activities
of the Smithsonian library for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1957:
The 54,316 publications received during the year included purchases
and gifts, but the larger number of them came, as usual, from scien-
tific, technical, and cultural institutions and societies all over the
world, in exchange for publications of the Smithsonian Institution.
These exchange publications, foreign and domestic, especially the
files of scientific serials, form the backbone of the library’s collec-
tions and are the principal primary sources of information upon
which the library’s services to the Institution are based. ‘There were
87 new exchanges arranged this year.
Many friends of the Institution gave books and papers to the library.
Among the 7,972 publications so received were L. L. Buchanan’s gift
of 475 books and many bulletins, pamphlets, and separates from his
own private scientific library; Frank Morton Jones’s gift of 39 vol-
umes on Psychidae; and Mrs. George P. Merrill’s gift of 100 volumes
from the library of her late husband, formerly head curator of geol-
ogy. Harold J. Coolidge most generously turned over to the library
some 400 handsome publications of the Institut des Parcs Nationaux
du Congo Belge, with the privilege of selecting anything needed to fill
gaps in our own sets, the remainder to be sent to a designated library
on the west coast.
From among the much larger number of recommended titles, funds
permitted the purchase of only 621 books and subscriptions for 475
periodicals not obtainable in exchange. These were the reference
books and journals most urgently needed for the common use of all,
and the most important of the primary sources of information in
special subject areas of the Institution’s researches and curatorial
responsibilities. The list of desiderata of books, new and old, that
it would be useful and time-saving for the curators and other special-
ists to have immediately at hand continues to grow. The expanding
program of work and the many new projects being initiated in the
Institution find many subjects inadequately covered by the literature
in the library, and there are serious gaps in the working collections
that ought to be filled. Unfortunately, the prices of books and peri-
odicals continue to rise, and a good many institutions and societies
that formerly sent their journals freely in exchange, or gratis, now find
185
186 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
it financially necessary to charge for them in order to assure continuity
of publication.
There were 22,359 publications sent to the Library of Congress,
5,086 of which were books and periodicals to be added to the Smith-
sonian Deposit. The others, not individually recorded in the library,
were documents, doctoral dissertations, and miscellaneous publications
of no immediate interest to the Institution. The library transferred
1,474 publications, mostly medical dissertations, to the National
Library of Medicine.
The year’s record of cataloging included a total of 4,044 volumes
cataloged, 26,184 cards filed, and 238,178 periodicals entered. The cat-
alog section had full responsibility for the much-expanded bindery
program which was continued for the second year, and 11,900 volumes
of periodicals and books, new and old, were prepared and sent to be
bound or rebound. Again, through a waiver from the Government
Printing Office, the work was done by a commercial binder, under con-
tract. The very considerable reduction in the long-standing arrearage
of binding during the past 2 years has saved from progressive deteri-
oration and possible loss many thousands of hitherto unbound num-
bers of important scientific journals, and has greatly increased the
ease of use of the journals. By no means to be minimized is the im-
proved appearance that fresh, newly bound volumes give to the library
shelves.
The position of bindery assistant skilled in the repair of rare and
fragile old books has been vacant since October 1956, and so only
321 volumes from among the large number requiring special handling
were repaired in the library. It is regrettable that there are now so
few available craftsmen skilled in the hand-binding and repair of
books.
The staff of the catalog section continued the work begun last year,
partly in connection with the binding program, of sorting and arrang-
ing the accumulation of wholly uncataloged or incompletely cata-
loged publications in the library of the Bureau of American Ethnol-
ogy. Those needed to fill gaps in sets, or found to be otherwise im-
portant to the work of the Bureau, were processed, and 4,406 others
as well as 1,360 similar pieces culled from the main library shelves
were discarded.
David Ray, foreign language specialist of the catalog section, was
called upon frequently by staff members of the Institution to trans-
late short letters written in different languages, including Russian, to
make résumé’s, in English, of longer ones, and to give advice about
meanings of special words and phrases. Requests for more extensive
help, such as translating scientific articles from the Russian, had to
SECRETARY'S REPORT 187
be refused, because they would have encroached too much on the time
needed to do the regular cataloging of incoming foreign publications.
It is apparent that the full time of a language ‘specialist, whether at-
tached to the library staff or to some other office of the Institution,
might easily be occupied in making translations.
In the reference and circulation section, the record of 9,537 publi-
cations borrowed for use outside the library represented Sale a small
part of the actual use of books and periodicals. To this figure might
well be added the 8,493 publications that were sent to the sectional
libraries for intramural circulation and filing, as indicative of the
uncounted use of the library’s collections that is made in all the
bureaus, divisions, and sections throughout the Institution.
Interlibrary loans of 1,110 gon were made to 116 Government
and other libraries Batoue Bede the country. The largest borrowers
were the Department of erealtar the Geological Sie and the
Indian Claims section of the Department of Justice. This library, in
turn, borrowed 607 publications from libraries other than the Library
of Congress, chiefly from the Department of Agriculture, the Geologi-
cal Survey, and the National Library of Medicine.
Except as interlibrary loans, the library does not lend books to
individuals outside the Institution, but it is freely open for reference
to any responsible person. Among the 7,000 readers counted in the
reference room during the year, there were occasional visitors from
many different countries of all the continents, some of whom made
more or less extensive use of the collections.
Some 13,000 reference questions of all degrees of difficulty, many
of them requiring extensive bibliographical research, were answered
in response to inquirers who came to the library in person or who
wrote or telephoned for the information wanted.
A special summer task force, engaged in mid-June to help clear
the west stacks for other use, has already made good headway in
preparing duplicates, special collections, and other stored material
for transfer elsewhere or for other suitable disposal. It is hoped
that the project may be completed by September 1.
Following the death of Mrs. Hope Simmons, chief of the acquisi-
tions section, just at the close of the preceding fiscal year, Mrs. L.
Frances Jones was made acting chief of the section. Mrs. Elisabeth H.
Gazin has continued to be chief of the reference and circulation sec-
tion, and the catalog section has been headed by Miss Ruth Blanchard.
188 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
SUMMARIZED STATISTICS
ACCESSIONS
Total
Volumes | recorded
volumes,
1957
Smithsonian Deposit at the Library of Congress------_- 253 586, 700
Smithsonian main library (including former Office and
Museum dibrariés) p28 esesp bet peo eee sheer 8, 230 308, 613
Astrophysical Observatory (including Radiation and
Orennisniny! oe oe ee ee ee eee 103 14, 945
Bureau of American Ethnology----------------------- 1, 373 37, 350
National Air Mise usin oop ce SS cos 64 497
National Collection of Fine Arts_-------------.------- 209 14, 079
National:Zodlogidd] Rarksa2e- posed seer te SU Fo hee 12 4, 217
TOURER SE Oy, SO aS See ALE PS SE ae eee 10, 244 966, 401
Unbound volumes of periodicals, and reprints and separates from serial publica-
tions, of which there are many thousands, have not been included in these totals.
EXCHANGES
New, exchanges alrane ed ee eee eee es 87
Specially requested publications received__---------------~----------- 485
CATALOGING
Volumes vCataloged 2 en Se ee ee ee 4, 044
bry ed case Geta MS a ee 26, 184
PERIODICALS
Periogicaleparcs eM tere ee ee ee ee 235ebie
4,833 were sent to the Smithsonian Deposit.
CIRCULATION
Loans’ of books and periodicals22 ef ease ee eee 9, 5387
Circulation in sectional libraries is not counted except in the Division of
Insects.
BINDING AND REPAIR
Volumes sent to the bindery-.--.-_____________________+_____________ 11, 900
Volumes repaired inthe library 228-22 - See oe eee 321
Respectfully submitted,
Lema F, Cuarn, Librarian.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.
Report on Publications
Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report on the publi-
cations of the Smithsonian and its branches for the year ended June
30, 1957:
The publications of the Smithsonian Institution are issued partly
from federally appropriated funds (Smithsonian Reports and publi-
cations of the National Museum, the Bureau of American Ethnology,
and the Astrophysical Observatory) and partly from private endow-
ment funds (Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, publications of
the Freer Gallery of Art, and some special publications). The Insti-
tution also edits and publishes under the auspices of the Freer Gallery
of Art the series Ars Orientalis, which appears under the joint imprint
of the University of Michigan and the Smithsonian Institution. The
second volume in this series was about ready to print at the end of the
year. In addition, the Smithsonian publishes a guide book, a picture
pamphlet, post cards and a post-card folder, a color-picture album,
color slides, a filmstrip of Smithsonian exhibits, and popular publi-
cations on scientific and historical subjects related to its important
exhibits and collections for sale to visitors. Through its publication
program the Smithsonian endeavors to carry out its founder’s ex-
pressed desire for the diffusion of knowledge.
During the year the Institution published 15 papers and title page
and contents of 38 volumes in the Miscellaneous Collections; 1 Annual
Report of the Board of Regents and separates of 19 articles in the
General Appendix of the Report; 1 Annual Report of the Secretary ;
2 special publications; and a reprint of 1 special publication.
The United States National Museum issued 1 Annual Report, 17
Proceedings papers and title page, table of contents, and index to 1
volume of the Proceedings, 5 Bulletins, and 1 paper in the series Con-
tributions from the United States National Herbarium.
The Bureau of American Ethnology issued 1 Annual Report, 2
Bulletins, and 1 miscellaneous publication.
The Astrophysical Observatory issued 6 numbers in the series
Smithsonian Contributions to Astronomy.
The National Collection of Fine Arts published 2 catalogs, and
the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Service, under the National
Collection of Fine Arts, published special catalogs for two of its
circulating exhibits.
There were distributed 405,266 copies of publications and miscel-
laneous items. Publications: 32 Contributions to Knowledge, 31,786
189
190 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Miscellaneous Collections, 8,252 Annual Reports and 17,658 pamphlet
copies of Report separates, 449 War Background Studies, 24,136
special publications, 475 reports of the Harriman Alaska Expedition,
46,378 publications of the National Museum, 28,558 publications of
the Bureau of American Ethnology, 20,907 publications of the Na-
tional Collection of Fine Arts, 574 publications of the Freer Gallery of
Art, 6,370 publications of the Astrophysical Observatory, 228 reports
of the American Historical Association, and 1,147 publications not
issued by the Smithsonian Institution. Miscellaneous: 74 sets and
540 prints of North American Wildflowers and 3 Pitcher Plant vol-
umes, 60,621 guide books, 16,720 picture pamphlets, 128,896 post cards
and post-card folders, 809 photo sets, 16,456 color slides, 4,666 color-
picture albums, 64,406 information leaflets, 41 New Museum of His-
tory and Technology pamphlets, and 139 statuettes.
The 1957 allotment from Government funds of $152,000 for print-
ing and binding was entirely obligated at the close of the year.
SMITHSONIAN PUBLICATIONS
SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS
VOLUME 125
Title page and table of contents. (Publ. 4262.) [August 16], 1956.
VOLUME 126
Title page and table of contents. (Publ. 4263.) [August 16], 1956.
VOLUME 128
Title page and table of contents. (Publ. 4264.) [August 16], 1956.
VOLUME 129
Small arms and ammunition in the United States Service, 1776-1865, by Berkeley
R. Lewis. 338 pp., 52 pls., 28 figs. (Publ. 4254.) August 14, 1956. ($8.00.)
VOLUME 130
Annotated, subject-heading bibliography of termites, 1350 B. C. to A. D. 1954,
by Thomas E. Snyder. 3805 pp. (Publ. 4258.) September 25, 1956. ($4.00.)
VOLUME 131
No. 7. The upper Paleocene Mammalia from the Almy formation in western
Wyoming, by C. Lewis Gazin. 18 pp., 2 pls. (Publ. 4252.) July 31, 1956.
(35 cents.)
No. 8. The geology and vertebrate paleontology of upper Eocene strata in the
northeastern part of the Wind River Basin, Wyoming. Pt. 2. The mam-
malian fauna of the Badwater area, by C. Lewis Gazin. 35 pp., 3 pls., 1 fig.
(Publ. 4257.) October 30, 1956. (55 cents.)
No. 9. Breeding and other habits of the casqued hornbills, by Lawrence Kilham.
45 pp., 6 pls., 2 figs. (Publ. 4259.) (70 cents.)
SECRETARY’S REPORT 191
No. 10. Crustacean metamorphoses, by R. HE. Snodgrass. 78 pp., 28 figs.
(Publ. 4260.) October 17, 1956. (80 cents.)
No. 11. The ventral intersegmental thoracic muscles of cockroaches, by L. E.
Chadwick. 30 pp., 18 figs. (Publ. 4261.) January 15, 1957. (40 cents.)
VOLUME 134
No. 1. Periods related to 273 months or 22% years, by C. G. Abbot. 17 pp.,
7 figs. (Publ. 4265.) September 13,1956. (20 cents.)
No. 2. The Asiatic species of birds of the genus Criniger (Aves: Pycnonoti-
dae), by H. G. Deignan. 9 pp. (Publ. 4266.) October 25, 1956. (20 cents.)
No. 8. Loop development of the Pennsylvanian terebratulid Cryptacanthia, by
G. Arthur Cooper. 18 pp., 2 pls., 12 figs. (Publ. 4267.) (35 cents.)
No. 4. Geology and vertebrate paleontology of upper Eocene strata in the
northeastern part of the Wind River Basin, Wyoming. Pt. 1. Geology, by
Harry A. Tourtelot. 27 pp., 1 pl., 7 figs. (Publ. 4269.) March 27, 1957.
(45 cents.)
No. 5. Trochamminidae and certain Lituolidae (Foraminifera) from the Re-
cent brackish-water sediments of Trinidad, British West Indies, by John B.
Saunders. 16 pp., 4 pls. (Publ. 4270.) March 15, 1957. (85 cents.)
No. 6. Studies by phase-contrast microscopy on distribution of patterns of
hemolymph coagulation in insects, by Charles Grégoire. 35 pp., 1 pl., 4 figs.
(Publ. 4271.) May 8,1957. (60 cents.)
No. 7. Early White influence upon Plains Indian painting: George Catlin and
Carl Bodmer among the Mandan, 1832-1834, by John C. Ewers. 11 pp., 12
pls. (Publ. 4292.) April 24,1957. (50 cents.)
No. 8. A skull of the Bridger Middle Hocene creodont Patriofelis ulta Leidy,
by C. Lewis Gazin. 20 pp.,4 pls. (Publ. 4293.) April 30,1957. (40 cents.)
ANNUAL REPORTS
Report for 1955.—The complete volume of the Annual Report of
the Board of Regents for 1955 was received from the printer October
22,1956:
Annual Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution showing
the operations, expenditures, and condition of the Institution for the year
ended June 30, 1955. ix-+537 pp., 70 pls., 24 figs. (Publ. 4232.)
The general appendix contained the following papers (Publs. 4233-
4952) :
Science serving the Nation, by Lee A. DuBridge.
The development of nuclear power for peaceful purposes, by Henry D. Smyth.
The time scale of our universe, by E. J. Opik.
Solar activity and its terrestrial effects, by Sir Harold Spencer Jones.
Forty years of aeronautical research, by J. C. Hunsaker.
A transatlantic cable, by H. A. Affel.
Genetics in the service of man, by Bentley Glass.
Cultural status of the South African man-apes, by Raymond A. Dart.
The history of the mechanical heart, by George B. Griffenhagen and Calvin H.
Hughes.
Some chemical studies on viruses, by Wendell M. Stanley.
The scent language of honey bees, by Ronald Ribbands.
The army ants, by T. C. Schneirla.
192 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
The hibernation of mammals, by L. Harrison Matthews.
Parasites common to animals and man, by Benjamin Schwartz.
Some observations on the functional organization of the human brain, by Wilder
Penfield.
The place of tropical soils in feeding the world, by Robert L. Pendleton.
Tree rings and history in the western United States, by Edmund Schulman.
New light on the dodo and its illustrators, by Herbert Friedmann.
George Catlin, painter of Indians and the West, by John C. Ewers.
Report for 1956—The Report of the Secretary, which will form
part of the Annual Report of the Board of Regents to Congress, was
issued on January 18, 1957:
Report of the Secretary and financial report of the Executive Committee of the
Board of Regents for the year ended June 30, 1956. ix+211 pp., 8 pls.
(Publ. 4268.)
SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS
The national aeronautical collections, by Paul E. Garber. 166 pp., illustr.
(Publ. 4255.) [August 20], 1956. ($1.50.)
The world of the dinosaurs, by David H. Dunkle. 22 pp., illustr. (Publ. 4296.)
[May 24], 1957. (50 cents.)
REPRINTS
A biographical sketch of James Smithson, by Samuel Pierpont Langley. 20 pp.,
4pls. Smithsonian Spec. Publ. 2276. 1956. (50 cents.)
FILMSTRIP
Let’s Visit the Smithsonian, a filmstrip with 48 color views of the buildings,
exhibits, and activities of the Institution, a recorded 30-minute lecture, and
an accompanying booklet containing pictures and text. Produced under a
grant from the Link Foundation by the Society for Visual Education. 1957.
($10 complete ; $6.50 without record.)
PUBLICATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM
REPORT
The United States National Museum annual report for the year ended June 30,
1956. Pp. ix+105, illustr., January 18, 1957.
BULLETINS
185, part 6. Checklist of the coleopterous insects of Mexico, Central America,
the West Indies, and South America, by Richard E. Blackwelder. Pp. viii+-
927-1492, May 15, 1957.
207. American moths of the subfamily Phycitinae, by Carl Heinrich. viii+581
pp., 1,188 figs., September 18, 1956.
209. Nearctic wasps of the subfamilies Pepsinae and Ceropalinae, by Henry
Townes. iv+286 pp., 161 figs., 4 pls., March 11, 1957.
210. The first quarter-century of steam locomotives in North America: Re-
maining relics and operable replicas, with a catalog of locomotive models
in the United States National Museum, by Smith Hempstone Oliver. 112 pp.,
81 figs., frontispiece, August 6, 1956.
213. Automobiles and motorcycles in the U. S. National Museum, by Smith
Hempstone Oliver. 157 pp., 103 figs., frontispiece, June 25, 1957.
SECRETARY’S REPORT 193
PROCEEDINGS
VOLUME 104
Title page, table of contents, and index. Pp. i-iv, 651-694, June 5, 1957.
VOLUME 106
No. 3364. Chiggers of the genus Huschéngastia (Acarina: Trombiculidae) in
North America, by Charles E. Farrell. Pp. 85-235, 8 figs., 21 pls., October 19,
1956.
No. 3365. A new pinecone fish, Monocentris reedi, from Chile, a new family
record for the eastern Pacific, by Leonard P. Schultz. Pp. 237-239, 1 pl., July
24, 1956.
No. 3366. Some crickets from South America (Grylloidea and Tridactyloidea),
by Lucien Chopard. Pp. 241-293, 6 figs., September 20, 1956.
No. 3367. The Nearctic species of tringonalid wasps, by Henry Townes. Pp.
295-304, 1 fig., October 16, 1956.
No. 3368. Latheticomyia, a new genus of acalyptrate flies of uncertain family
relationship, by Marshall R. Wheeler. Pp. 305-314, 2 figs., October 2, 1956.
No. 3369. A tribal revision of the brachycyrtine wasps of the world (Cryptinae—
Ichneumonidae), by Luella M. Walkley. Pp. 315-329, 1 fig., October 16, 1956.
No. 3870. A new species of Candacia (Copepoda: Calanoida) from the western
North Atlantic Ocean, by Abraham Fleminger and Thomas HE. Bowman. Pp.
331-337, 2 figs., October 15, 1956.
No. 3371. HEmended description and assignment to the new genus Ronalea of
the idotheid isopod Hrichsonella pseudoculata Boone, by Robert J. Menzies
and Thomas BE. Bowman. Pp. 339-348, 1 fig., October 17, 1956.
No. 3372. Observations on the amphipod genus Parhyale, by Clarence R. Shoe-
maker. Pp. 345-358, 4 figs., October 15, 1956.
No. 33738. A revision of the acrocerid flies of the genus Pialea Erichson with
a discussion of their sexual dimorphism (Diptera), by Evert I. Schlinger.
Pp. 359-375, 4 figs., October 12, 1956.
No. 3374. Further data on African parasitic cuckoos, by Herbert Friedmann.
Pp. 377-408, 4 pls., October 24, 1956.
No. 3375. Studies in Neotropical Mallophaga, XVI: Bird lice of the suborder
Ischnocera, by M. A. Carriker, Jr. Pp. 409-489, 9 figs., January 30, 1957.
No. 3376. A new genus and species of marine asellote isopod, Caecianiropsis
psammophila, from California, by Robert J. Menzies and Jean Pettit. Pp.
441-446, 3 figs., November 2, 1956.
No. 3377. Mammals of the Anglo-Hgyptian Sudan, by Henry W. Setzer. Pp.
447-587, 10 figs., November 28, 1956.
VOLUME 107
No. 3378. A new species of Wysidopsis (Crustacea: Mysidacea) from the south-
eastern coast of the United States, by Thomas FE. Bowman. Pp. 1-7, 2 figs.,
February 15, 1957.
No. 3379. Rhynobrissus cuneus, a new echinoid from North Carolina, by C.
Wythe Cooke. Pp. 9-12, 1 pl., June 18, 1957.
No. 3380. Formosan ecossonine weevils of bamboo (Coleoptera: Curculionidae:
Cossoninae), by Elwood C. Zimmerman. Pp. 13-28, 2 figs., March 25, 1957.
ConrTRIBUTIONS FROM THE U. S. NaTIONAL HERBARIUM
VOLUME 32
Part 2. A revision of the genus Nissolia, by Velva E. Rudd. Pp. iii+-173—206,
3 figs., November 7, 1956.
194 | ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
PUBLICATIONS OF THE BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY
ANNUAL REPORT
Seventy-third Annual Report of the Bureau of American Hthnology, 1955-1956,
ii+23 pp., 2pls. 1957.
BULLETINS
Bulletin 161. Seminole music, by Frances Densmore. xxviii+223 pp., 18 pls.,
1fig. 1956.
Bulletin 162. Guaym{f grammar, by Ephraim §S. Alphonse. ix+128 pp. 1956.
MIscELLANEOUS PUBLICATIONS
List of publications of the Bureau of American Ethnology, with index to authors
and titles. Revised to June 30,1956. 112pp. 1956.
PUBLICATIONS OF THE ASTROPHYSICAL OBSERVATORY
SMITHSONIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO ASTROPHYSICS
VOLUME 1
No. 1. New horizons in astronomy. Thirty-nine papers, edited by Fred L. Whip-
ple. Pp. i—x, 1-181, 6 figs., 1 pl. December 19, 1956.
No. 2. Papers on reduction methods for photographic meteors. Papers by Fre¢
L. Whipple and Luigi G. Jacchia; Gerald S. Hawkins; Richard BH. McCrosky ;
Allan F. Cook and Robert F. Hughes; and Fred L. Whipple and Frances W.
Wright. Pp. 1-iii, 1838-248, 4 figs., 5 pls. May 8, 1957.
VOLUME 2
No. 1. Notes on the solar corona and the terrestrial ionosphere, by Sydney
Chapman, with a supplementary note by Harold Zirin. Pp. 1-14, February 18,
1957.
No. 2. Chromospheric spicules, by Sarah Lee Lippincott. Pp. 15-23, 6 figs., 4
pls. June 14, 1957.
No. 3. Studies of solar granulation: I. The statistical interpretation of gran-
ule structure from one-dimensional microphotometer tracings, by Gerard
Wlérick. Pp. 25-34, 8 figs. June 14, 1957.
No. 4. Variations in the thermodynamic state of the chromosphere over the
sunspot cycle, by R. G. Athay, D. H. Menzel, and F. Q. Orrall. Pp. 35-50, 9 figs.
June 14, 1957.
PUBLICATIONS OF THE NATIONAL COLLECTION OF FINE ARTS
Meissen and other German porcelain in the Alfred Duane Pell collection, by Paul
Vickers Gardner. 66 pp., 31 pls., 11 figs. (Publ. 4256.) 1956. ($2.00.)
Alice Pike Barney: Paintings in oil and pastel. With introduction and bio-
graphical note by Thomas M. Beggs. 99 pls. (Publ. 4291.) 1957. ($1.50.)
SMITHSONIAN TRAVELING EXHIBITION CATALOGS
Canadian abstract paintings. Illustr. 1956.
George Bellows prints and drawings. Illustr. 1957.
SECRETARY'S REPORT 195
REPORT OF THE AMERICAN HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION
The annual reports of the American Historical Association are
transmitted by the Association to the Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution and are by him communicated to Congress, as provided in
the act of incorporation of the Association. The following report was
issued during the year:
Annual Report of the American Historical Association for the year 1955. Vol.
1. Proceedings. 1957.
REPORT OF THE NATIONAL SOCIETY, DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN
REVOLUTION
The manuscript of the Fifty-ninth Annual Report of the National
Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, was transmitted to
Congress, in accordance with law, on April 1, 1957.
Respectfully submitted.
Pau H. Oruser,
Chief, Editorial and Publications Division.
Dr. Lronarp CARMICHAEL,
Secretary, Snuthsonian Institution.
Report of the Executive Committee of the
Board of Regents of the Smithsonian
Institution
For the Year Ended June 30, 1957
To the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution:
Your executive committee respectively submits the following report
in relation to the funds of the Smithsonian Institution, together with
a statement of the appropriations by Congress for the Government
bureaus in the administrative charge of the Institution.
SMITHSONIAN ENDOWMENT FUND
The original bequest of James Smithson was £104,960 8s. 6d.—
$508,318.46. Refunds of money expended in prosecution of the claim,
freight, insurance, and other incidental expenses, together with pay-
ment into the fund of the sum of £5,015, which had been withheld dur-
ing the lifetime of Madame de la Batut, brought the fund to the
amount of $550,000.
Since the original bequest, the Institution has received gifts from
various sources, the income from which may be used for the general
work of the Institution. These, plus accretions, are listed below,
together with a statement showing the income for the present year.
ENDOWMENT FUNDS
(Income for the unrestricted use of the Institution)
Partly deposited in the United States Treasury at 6 percent and partly invested
in stocks, bonds, and other holdings
Fund Investment | Income 1957
1957
Parent Fund (original Smithson bequest, plus accumulated savings) ------_- $729, 218. 73 $43, 740. 94
Subsequent bequests, gifts, and other funds, partly deposited in the U. S.
Treasury and partly invested in the consolidated fund:
J\)0) 00) aN focal Vents) 012161 6: | ee eR ee TS OS ee ots ee 19, 266. 29 1, 007. 04
Avery, (RObert Sand ly Gist. ee ee Lee ee oe eae ee 65, 079. 69 3, 509. 97
Endowments sou. sis os oe 2 ED eee ee ee ee Se 457, 060. 68 23, 890. 54
Habel DrsiS eae sos a he Re ets Be ete oe en I ey forte eee Pn 500. 00 30. 00
Hachenberg, Georgese. and) Osroline seets 2 ae eee eee a ae eee 5, 200. 82 271. 85
Iamilton ;JQmese: = 220) aes oak es een ee ee 2 3, 022. 02 177. 29
en ry Caroline so 2a mee a ee Tt ep NY eae ee 1, 563. 98 81.75
Bodekins’ Thomas: Gi se. Sa eee eee en ee ere eee oe 155, 178. 52 9, 007. 61
Olmsted, HelermAqe ) 222 ae ee Se ee ee eee 1, 036. 08 54.18
‘Porter: Henry: Karke sco. 2 2 eee a eee eee 2 Ry eee 370, 358. 60 19, 358. 62
Rhees;; William: Joneste sett he wee eee ee ee eee 1, 201. 81 67.38
Sanford |;GeorgevHe2 2 So a ee 2, 251.16 126. 14
Witherspoon Thomas vA® ers 22 Ese et ee 166, 885. 20 8, 723. 08
FINO GE a8 cen sk TU Te ne 1, 248, 599. 85 66, 305. 45
Grandi Totals isa i ee i SE ace 1, 977, 818. 58 110, 046. 39
196
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 197
The Institution holds also a number of endowment gifts, the income
of each being restricted to specific use. These, plus accretions to date,
are listed below, together with income for the present year.
Fund Investment | Income 1957
1957
Abbott, William L., for investigations in biology_--------------------------- $135, 097. 58 $7, 047. 04
Arthur, James, for investigations and study of the sun and annual lecture on
(SEW PEG ss a ata es NR ER A A a pea a OD 51, 718. 65 2, 703. 32
Bacon, Virginia Purdy, for traveling scholarship to investigate fauna of
Countries other than! theUnited:States=-_-- 2-2 2- === 29 a ee eee 64, 789. 42 3, 386. 56
Baird, Lucy H., for creating a memorial to Secretary Baird-_-------_-------- 31, 135. 76 1, 627. 48
Barney, Alice Pike, for collection of paintings and pastels and for encourage-
Te E OfeAumerican\ artistic Gnd CAVOlses ose se a a ae ee eae eae 37, 090. 52 1, 938. 71
Barstow, Frederick D., for purchase of animals for Zoological Park___--__--- 1, 292. 87 67. 59
Canfield Collection, for increase and care of the Canfield collection of min-
yo Niemen eee Ae a oe te eee eee eae SS Cee le 49, 460. 38 2, 585. 28
Casey, Thomas L., for maintenance of the Casey collection and promotion
Olreseurchesirelating to © oleopterawccsse- == == ee a 16, 209. 36 847. 26
Chamberlain, Francis Lea, for increase and promotion of Isaac Lea collection
Oncemis andemollusks: 5-22 oo ko ns A Cys Et ene 8 ead SES 36, 416. 63 1, 903. 53
Dykes, Charles, for support in financial research_._--.-.--------------------- 55, 682. 00 2, 910. 18
Eickemeyer, Florence Brevoort, for preservation and exhibition of the photo-
graphic collection of Rudolph Eickemeyer, Jr_.-.-------------------------- 14, 056. 61 734. 75
Hanson, Martin Gustav and Caroline Runice, for some scientific work of the
Institution, preferably in chemistry or medicine--------------------------- 11, 496. 22 402. 98
Higbee, Harry, Memorial Fund, for general use of the Institution after the
period of 10iyears\from)datelof gift (1957) 2---- --_-------------==-----_- + -- 651. 53 None
Hillyer, Virgil, for increase and care of Virgil Hillyer collection of lighting
Objects eee abe 2 eee A te eee 8, 499. 03 444. 23
Hitchcock, Albert S., for care of the Hitchcock Agrostological Library___---- 2, 040. 55 106. 66
Hodgkins, specific, for increase and diffusion of more exact knowledge in
regard to nature and properties of atmospheric air_-__---------------------- 100, 000. 00 6, 000. 00
Hrdlitka, AleS and Marie, to further researches in physical anthropology and
publication;iniconnection\therewith= . J2-2--- 2 = ee ee ee 50, 539. 03 2, 510. 45
Hughes Brice, totound ‘elushesialcove...--------=.-- 5 --- == ee 24, 753. 23 1, 293. 84
Loeb, Morris, for furtherance of knowledge in the exact sciences___---------- 112, 704. 44 5, 891. 06
Long, Annette and Edith C., for upkeep and preservation of Long collection
Offembroidenries. laces; and textiles. 2-22-22 - == ee 702. 18 36. 73
Maxwell, Mary E., for care and exhibition of Maxwell collection___.-------- 25, 365. 22 1, 325. 83
Myer, Catherine Walden, for purchase of first-class works of art for use and
benefit of the National Collection of Fine Arts____-_----------------------- 26, 121. 00 1, 365. 37
Nelson, Edward W., for support of biological studies____--._.---_----------- 26, 349. 32 1, 251. 85
Noyes, Frank B., for use in connection with the collection of dolls placed in
the U. S. National Museum through the interest of Mr. and Mrs. Noyes_- 1, 242. 43 64, 93
Pell, Cornelia Livingston, for maintenance of Alfred Duane Pell collection_-- 9, 585. 64 501. 01
Poore, Lucy T. and George W., for general use of the Institution when prin-
CipalPAMOUNtSTLOM2b0 WOU scm ane nel ete ee ane eee eect ee eae 220, 684. 42 11, 158. 09
Rathbun, Richard, for use of division of U. S. National Museum containing
OTTISER CC Rite erate ere Oe ate or Ne Re SAE Se See pee 13, 754. 25 718. 95
Reid, Addison T., for founding chair in biology, in memory of Asher Tunis_- 34, 319. 05 1, 868. 68
Roebling Collection, for care, improvement, and increase of Roebling col-
ACCUOMOlIMIN ela Seen eee eee eee ne Le Sh Se eee 156, 071. 71 8, 157. 87
Roebling Solarskesearchence sess. ane 2s De epee Be 39, 285. 46 2, 184. 11
Rollins, Miriam and William, for investigations in physics and chemistry__.| 135, 217. 06 6, 486, 66
Smithsoniamemployeessretirements+—- 22s essen ee ee ee 32, 573. 79 1, 783. 44
Springer, Frank, for care and increase of the Springer collection and library _- 23, 190. 43 1, 212.15
Strong, Julia D., for benefit of the National Collection of Fine Arts__.------- 12, 929. 83 675. 85
Walcott, Charles D. and Mary Vaux, for development of geological and
paleontological studies and publishing results of same__..-_-.--_----------- 618, 547. 12 32, 433. 75
Walcott, Mary Vaux, for publications in botany__-_------------------------- 74, 856. 02 3, 912. 71
Vounger, telenawalcott, heldiin triste. oon ee een ee 85, 733. 85 4, 676. 71
Zerbee, Frances Brinckle, for endowment of aquaria___.-.-_-_---.-----__---- 1, 226. 64 64. 13
Rotalecrtiase 2 ear a Se ee ea ee A Se 2, 341, 389. 23 122, 229. 74
198 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
FREER GALLERY OF ART FUND
Early in 1906, by deed of gift, Charles L. Freer, of Detroit, gave to
the Institution his collection of Chinese and other Oriental objects
of art, as well as paintings, etchings, and other works of art by Whis-
tler, Thayer, Dewing, and other artists. Later he also gave funds for
construction of a building to house the collection, and finally in his
will, probated November 6, 1919, he provided stocks and securities to
the estimated value of $1,958,591.42, as an endowment fund for the
operation of the Gallery. The fund now amounts to $7,915,270.67.
SUMMARY OF ENDOWMENTS
Invested endowment for general purposes___-_____-_--__---_-- $1, 977, 818. 58
Invested endowment for specific purposes other than Freer
CHAGWMEN bees ene Se hl se hh ge ae ee See) 2, 341, 389. 23
Total invested endowment other than Freer_____-_-___- 4, 319, 207. 81
Freer invested endowment for specific purposes_______-_____-- 7, 915, 270. 67
Total invested endowment for all purposes___-___--__-~- 12, 234, 478. 48
CLASSIFICATION OF INVESTMENTS
Deposited in the U. S. Treasury at 6 percent per annum, as
authorized in the U. S. Revised Statutes, sec. 5591___________- $1, 000, 000. 00
Investments other than Freer endowment (cost or market value
at date acquired) :
TEXG 0(0 (18 ie Bk SON AR a RRR RE SAT Mee ie tan Ge Te $1, 270, 497. 53
STOCKS ee ame eens cee rs eee Ue eee ee 2, 0238, 334. 66
Real estate and mortgages_____-____---_.-- 5, 846. 00
Uninvested" capitalea=s221o ees ee 19, 529. 62
—_———__———— 3, 319, 207. 81
Total investments other than Freer endowment_________~_ 4, 319, 207. 81
Investments of Freer endowment (cost or market value at date
acquired) :
BLO) 00s (Ogee ee UPL WR SE Ta AU Bad Ay fi 9) A TED ee $4, 829, 318. 79
Stocke FS as Whey abe DOD Sint Te Ae 3, 085, 059. 87
ninvested: capital 22. 2 ee 892. 01
7, 915, 270. 67
Total sInVeStm ents ae eet bee Se ee ee eee 12, 234, 478. 48
ASSETS
Cash:
United States Treasury cur-
rent) account2 2222522 es $1, 541, 981. 31
In banks and on hand___-___- 362, 090. 88
1, 904, 072. 19
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 199
ASSETS—Continued
Less uninvested endowment
iW OVS ES ph Ss a a ta ad ey $20, 421. 68
$1, 883, 650. 56
Mraveland other ad. vances__- 2 >> eee eee eee 6, 497. 00
Cash invested (U.S. Treasury notes) _____--_- 939, 115. 70
——————— 82) 829) 2638. 26
Investments—at book value:
Endowment funds:
Freer Gallery of Art:
Stocks and bonds_- $7, 914, 378. 66
Uninvested cash___- 892. 01
Investments at book value other
than Freer:
Stocks and) bonds.-—-_=- == 3, 206, 697. 33
Uninvested cash__-..------ 19, 529. 62
Special deposit in U. S.
Treasury at 6. percent
IMICCTOSE aeste weer oe eS 1, 000, 000. 00
Other stocks and bonds__--~ 87, 184. 86
Real estate and mortgages__ 5, 846. 00
4, 319, 207. 81
12, 234, 478. 48
4 MLO ECS TT TES = Pa SS A I a ee eee eee 15, 063, 741. 74
UNEXPENDED FUNDS AND ENDOWMENTS
Unexpended funds:
Income from Freer Gallery of Art endowment___-------~-~- $583, 498. 24
Income from other endowments :
IRGSETI Cle Gee wee ee oe eee $368, 279. 95
OTC De ea SEP Aa er es se a a 306, 682. 34
— 674, 962. 29
Gilispandr Conti bihlon see et ee ee ae eee 1, 570, 802. 73
2, 829, 263. 26
Endowment funds:
HreeniGallery of Ah. sees aoe oo ee $7, 915, 270. 67
Other:
RESET Che Gere eae i ee 2, 341, 389. 23
Generale -ee ff Wea | ocheeiada eres ne 1, 977, 818. 58
—__—___—_—__——_ 12, 234, 478. 48
210 1:61) eee er ee ee 15, 063, 741. 74
451800—58—_14
200 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
CASH BALANCES, RECEIPTS AND DISBURSEMENTS DURING
FISCAL YEAR 19577
Cash)balanceion*hand dune's03195622. 222 ee $1, 034, 355. 59
Receipts, other than Freer funds:
imeome fromainvestments2- a ae eee $254, 083. 84
Gifts and contributions 7-2-2 2 ee 2, 324, 648. 60
Booksyand publications==oseesa nae sea 55, 825. 93
Miscellaneous 222 222 ot ee a, Fe 61, 719. 40
Employees’ payroll withholdings and refund of
advances? (net)22222 2 sso sorte ek 2, 264. 22
Proceeds from real estate__.___..-_--------_- 326. 72
Proceeds from sale of securities (net) :
Consolidatedstung= 3) 2222 ee 569, 412. 38
Currentifund 222 ees aes ae eee eee 490, 237. 50
Opher than ds EAs ae ee Peale 15, 395. 69
Total receipts other than Freer funds__________-__-_- 3, 773, 914. 28
Freer fund receipts:
Ge Ee eer ee Le es a eee $25, 000. 00
Income trom: investmentss2=2 =) —— === 365, 341. 06
IMISCelANCOUS iis te ee See 71. 04
iBooksyandsapuUblication Ss = — eee ees eee 6, 526. 39
Proceeds from sale of securities (net) —---_--- 1, 973, 005. 86
—_—____—_——_ 2, 869, 944. 35
A Do 62) EIS cork RES PA ele er ee NU kee SS a 7, 178, 214. 22
Disbursements other than Freer funds:
Administrationy2:S-sSe2e cn eee ee $127, 479. 93
Publications ote. Ol vl A eee Oar ee ee 65, 241. 44
DAM Oy geri et ep er et eg a a TES See ee 1, 192. 53
Custodian fees and servicing securities_______ 4, 738. 96
Miscellaneous 222952 see le eee ae 22, 322. 61
Researches and explorations *__-_-__________ 1, 221, 855. 67
Purchase of securities (net) :
Gonsolidated shun d =e eee 657, 496. 23
Current etun di eiee ek 2 ies se Peele ey ei 611, 346. 82
Other Shum se sece- i oles eT eas eae oe eae 10, 467. 19
SHB GLITCMeH TAS y SUCTION eee 74, B38), BP
Total disbursements other than Freer funds____--__-____ 2, 724, 464. 70
Disbursements, Freer funds:
Nal AICS tystee eree sb ie ae ia eee eee ena CE $125, 637. 86
Purchasesfor collection. 22s oe ee eae 171, 733. 34
Custodian fees and servicing securities_______ 11, 246. 43
Purchase of securities) (net) _------£--—=— =~ 2, 178, 598. 22
IMPS COL] ST COTS te es ae 2 a a ne 62, 461. 48
Total hreer: GiShurseMents a2. ee eee 2, 549, 677. 33
Total disbursementsee 282 24 02 bor ae ee ee 5, 274, 142. 03
Cash: balance’ June’ S0) Ona ee ee ee ee ene 1, 904, 072. 19
No) 0 ae eae ce eee arene Suey Ota ae Se te 7,178, 214. 22
1This statement does not include Government appropriations under administrative
charge of the Institution.
2Includes receipts for IGY program.
%Includes disbursements for IGY program.
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 201
The practice of maintaining savings accounts in several of the
Washington banks and trust companies has been continued during the
past year, and interest on these deposits amounted to $10,704.92.
Deposits are made in banks for convenience in collection of checks,
and later such funds are withdrawn and deposited in the United
States Treasury. Disbursement of funds is made by check signed
by the Secretary of the Institution and drawn on the United States
Treasury.
The Institution gratefully acknowledges gifts and grants from the
following:
Mr. Claude C. Adams, gift to establish “The Harry Higbee Memorial Fund.”
American Philosophical Society, grant for an eastern Ecuador archeological
project of Clifford Evans and Betty J. Meggers.
American Philosophical Society and National Science Foundation, grants-in-aid
for archeological research in Shanidar Cave, Northern Iraq.
Atomic Energy Commission, additional grant for the study of specific biological
indicators of ionizing radiation and the mechanism of the action of such
radiation.
Atomie Energy Commission, additional grant for the purpose of conducting a
biochemical investigation of photomorphogenesis in green plants.
Atomic Energy Commission, grant for tritium, helium-3, and meteorite research.
Mrs. Laura D. Barney, additional gift for the Alice Pike Barney Memorial Fund.
Bollingen Foundation, Inc., gift for the purpose of publishing color illustrations
for a manuscript by Elsie Clews Parsons.
Mr. and Mrs. J. Bruce Bredin, gifts for the Smithsonian-Bredin Expeditions
Fund.
Carter Oil Company, grant for a research project on echinoid spines.
Carter Oil Company and Gulf Oil Corporation, grants for the Planktonic
Foraminifera Project.
Colortone Press, grant to be used to defray the pre-press production costs
of a booklet, ‘Adventure in Science at the Smithsonian.”
Committee of the Weston United Nations Paintings, gift for the purchase,
maintenance, and circulation of the six paintings depicting scenes during
the construction of the United Nations buildings.
General Electric Company, gift to purchase the original Réntgen X-ray tube.
Geological Society of America, Inc., grant for the purpose of bringing Dr.
Muir-Wood to the United States for collaboration for the revision of the
manuscript on “The Morphology, Classification, and Life-Habits of the
Productoidea.”
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, gift to assist the publication
of “The Customs and Religion of the Ch’iang,” by D. C. Graham.
BH. P. Henderson, gift for editorial assistance in preparing notes on studies on
meteorites.
Frank Morton Jones, gift to be used to further a project looking toward
revisional study of lepidopterous family Psychidae.
Kevorkian Foundation, gift to the Freer Gallery of Art.
Edwin A. Link, additional gift for historical research (marine archeology).
The Link Foundation, grant for the purpose of preparing booklets, filmstrips,
slides, and other educational materials.
Malcolm MacGregor, additional gift for the Philatelic Fund.
202 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
National Geographic Society, grant for the National Geographic Society-
Smithsonian Institution Ecuadorian Anthropological Fund.
National Geographic Society, additional grant to complete the excavations
and related work at the archeological site in Jackson County, Alabama.
National Science Foundation, additional grant for study of physical changes
in the Indian population of Hacienda Vicos.
National Science Foundation, grants for an optical tracking and scientific
analysis program for the U. S. Earth Satellite Program.
National Science Foundation, additional grant to make possible the continuation
of work of the Canal Zone Biological Area on Barro Colorado Island.
National Science Foundation, additional grant for taxonomic study of the
phanerogams of Colompia.
National Science Foundation, additional grant for the support of research
entitled “Monograph of Fresh-water Calanoid Copepods.”
National Science Foundation, additional grant for research on _ recent
Foraminifera from Ifaluk Atoll.
National Science Foundation, grant for the support of research entitled
“Photoregulation of Growth in Plants.”
National Science Foundation, additional grant for research on “Taxonomy of
the Bamboos.”
National Science Foundation, grant for a research project entitled “Earth
Albedo Observations.”
National Science Foundation, grant for support of a “Third Symposium on
Cosmical Gas Dynamics.”
National Science Foundation and U. S. Department of Agriculture, for the
support of research entitled “Systematic Studies of Cerambycidae (Wood-
boring Beetles).”
National Science Foundation, grant for the support of research entitled
“Morphology and Paleoecology of Permian Brachiopods.”
Office of Naval Research, additional gift to perform psychological research
studies.
Office of Naval Research, additional gift to assist work in progress on the
preparation of a synoptic catalog of the mosquitoes of the world.
Office of Naval Research, gift to perform aeronautical research studies.
Office of Naval Research, additional gift for research on mammalian hosts and
their parasites.
Nelson and Goldman Orchard Co., additional gift for biological studies.
New York Zoological Society, gift for the Penguin Fund.
W. Daniel Quattlebaum, gift to purchase American blown glass for the U. S.
National Museum.
United States Information Agency, grant for an exhibition of “Paintings by
John Marin.”
United States Information Agency, grant for four copies of an exhibition entitled
“This is the American Earth.”
For support of the Bio-Sciences Information Exchange:
Atomic Energy Commission.
Department of the Air Force.
Department of the Army.
Department of the Navy.
National Science Foundation.
Public Health Service.
Veterans Administration.
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 203
Included in the above list of gifts and contributions are reimbursable
contracts.
The foregoing report relates only to the private funds of the
Institution.
The following appropriations were made by Congress for the
Government bureaus under the administrative charge of the Smith-
sonian Institution for the fiscal year 1957:
SALORCS AMC MeCN SES 2a acus Les ei Ae ee $4, 425, 000. 00
APUG LOAM a yea CELL Ee Wa) ea A RE cae NEY 720, 000. 00
MUSE MO EMStOnyeand: Lechnology ia. 22 2 a ee 33, 712, 000. 00
The appropriation made to the National Gallery of Art (which is
a bureau of the Smithsonian Institution) was $1,505,000.00.
In addition, funds were transferred from other Government
agencies for expenditure under the direction of the Smithsonian
Institution as follows:
Working funds, transferred from the National Park Service, Interior
Department, for archeological investigations in river basins
PHTOUSH OU LAC MUMI TEC States Sees atk aes ee ee $108, 500. 00
The Institution also administers a trust fund for partial support
of the Canal Zone Biological Area, located on Barro Colorado Island
in the Canal Zone.
AUDIT
The report of the audit of the Smithsonian private funds follows:
WASHINGTON, D. C., September 19, 1957.
THE BoarD OF REGENTS,
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
Washington 25, D.C.
We have examined the financial statements and schedules, as listed in the
accompanying index, of the Smithsonian Institution relative to its private
endowment funds and gifts (but excluding the National Gallery of Art and other
departments, bureaus or operations administered by the Institution under
Federal appropriations) for the year ended June 30, 1957. Our examination
was made in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, and accord-
ingly included such tests of the accounting records and such other auditing
procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances.
The Institution maintains its accounts on a cash basis and does not accrue
iucome and expenses. Land, buildings, furniture, equipment, works of art,
living and other specimens and certain sundry property are not included in the
accounts of the Institution.
In our opinion, the accompanying financial statements present fairly the
position of the private funds and the cash and investments thereof of the
Smithsonian Institution’ at June 30, 1957 (excluding the National Gallery of
Art and other departments, bureaus or operations administered by the Institu-
tion under Federal appropriations) and the cash receipts and disbursements for
204 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the year then ended, in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles
applied on a basis consistent with that of the preceding year.
Prat, Marwick, MITCHELL & Co.
Respectfully submitted.
CLARENCE CANNON,
Cary P. Haskins,
Rosert V. FLEMING,
Executive Committee.
GENERAL APPENDIX
to the
SMITHSONIAN REPORT FOR 1957
205
ADVERTISEMENT
The object of the Genrrat Aprenpix to the Annual Report of the
Smithsonian Institution is to furnish brief accounts of scientific dis-
covery in particular directions; reports of investigations made by staff
members and collaborators of the Institution; and memoirs of a
general character or on special topics that are of interest or value to
the numerous correspondents of the Institution.
It has been a prominent object of the Board of Regents of the
Smithsonian Institution from a very early date to enrich the annual
report required of them by law with memoirs illustrating the more
remarkable and important developments in physical and biological
discovery, as well as showing the general character of the operations
of the Institution; and, during the greater part of its history, this
purpose has been carried out largely by the publication of such papers
as would possess an interest to all attracted by scientific progress.
In 1880, induced in part by the discontinuance of an annual sum-
mary of progress which for 30 years previously had been issued by
well-known private publishing firms, the Secretary had a series of
abstracts prepared by competent collaborators, showing concisely the
prominent features of recent scientific progress in astronomy, geology,
meteorology, physics, chemistry, mineralogy, botany, zoology, and
anthropology. This latter plan was continued, though not altogether
satisfactorily, down to and including the year 1888.
In the report of 1889, a return was made to the earlier method of
presenting a miscellaneous selection of papers (some of them original)
embracing a considerable range of scientific investigation and discus-
sion. This method has been continued in the present report for 1957.
Reprints of the various papers in the General Appendix may be
obtained, as long as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Edi-
torial and Publications Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washing-
ton 25, D. C.
206
Science, Technology, and Society’
By L. R. HaFstap
Vice President in charge of Research Staff
General Motors Corporation
Detroit, Mich.
“\WHEN ONE READS the history of science one has the exhilarating
feeling of climbing a big mountain. The history of art gives one
an altogether different impression. It is not at all like the ascension
of a mountain, always upward whichever the direction of one’s path;
it is rather like a leisurely journey across hilly country. One climbs
up to the top of this hill or that, then down into another valley, per-
haps a deeper one than any other, then up the next hill, and so forth
and so on. An erratic succession of climaxes and anticlimaxes the
amplitude of which cannot be predicted.” (1)?
Many will recognize the above as a quotation from George Sarton,
the eminent historian of science, and will concur in the idea that in
working in science one has indeed the “exhilarating feeling of climb-
ing a mountain.” As working scientists, and fully recognizing that
we may be naive, we still cling stubbornly to the faith that we are
somehow contributing to human comfort and human happiness, and
that however stumbling our progress, this progress is upward.
The great acceleration of both science and technology on a world-
wide scale since the war seems to confirm this impression. So does the
great increase in suggestions in books, and in articles in journals and
periodicals, to the effect that we are on the threshold of a second in-
dustrial revolution. Many predictions are extant as to the high
standard of living which will be obtainable in a matter of a few
decades. The problem of the shortage of raw materials has been em-
phasized by various writers, but technological ingenuity in the de-
1Presented before Sigma Xi and Scientific Research Society of America at
the Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Sci-
ence, December 27, 1956. Reprinted by permission from American Scientist,
vol. 45, No. 2, March 1957.
* Numbers in parentheses refer to notes at end of text.
207
208 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
velopment of substitutes is such that so far as material prosperity is
concerned the possibilities do indeed seem limitless.
Much has been written in recent months about the shortage of
scientists and engineers. This seems to be a worldwide problem and,
as might be expected, is most acute where the development of tech-
nology is the most intense. It would seem to be axiomatic that the
brave new world of plenty so earnestly desired cannot be attained
without an adequate supply of scientists and engineers. To me, and
I am sure to many of you, it seems somewhat surprising that so much
campaigning and propaganda should be necessary to correct a short-
age so obvious. In this area, however disappointing and annoying
delays may have been, forces are now beginning to act in the direction
to correct the dislocation. That at least is reassuring.
Following not more than a decade or two behind the Russians, in
this country and in fact in the free world at large we are now be-
latedly beginning to use a very potent force—the incentive system—to
correct the shortage. Once the forces acting can be identified, we can
isolate trends and begin to foresee at least the immediate future.
Accordingly, since this nation chose not to act on this problem until
the shortage was upon us, I will now venture to predict the following
sequence of events:
1. A continuation of the current hectic recruiting campaign with
increasing salary scales for anyone with a semblance of training in
science or technology, and particularly for people with advanced
degrees.
9. A marked decrease in emphasis on quality in our schools to meet
the increasing popular demand for quantity.
3. A period of progressively diminishing returns to industry and
society from the attempt to substitute standardization and quantity
for quality in an essential creative activity.
4, A period of disenchantment with paper credentials as a substi-
tute for education, and finally a renewed appreciation of scholarship
and achievement.
There is nothing either profound or new in this cycle. It is an
example of the “hunting” process under the action of central forces,
which is familiar to all of us. It is interesting, however, to speculate
upon the time scale involved.
There is now public recognition of the problem created by the short-
age of trained personnel of all kinds. It happens to be, however,
just about 10 years since this problem with regard to scientists and
engineers had already reached the table-pounding stage on the part
of a few forward-looking individuals in Washington such as Van-
nevar Bush, Merriam Trytten, and Alan Waterman. We must con-
clude, then, that in matters of this kind our particular type of society
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY—HAFSTAD 209
seems to have a time constant—an RC, or response time, if you
please—of roughly 10 years. Successive responses to the four im-
pulses listed above can therefore be predicted to require about 40
years! Now it is true that in the historical sense 40 years is not long
in the life of a civilization, but one begins to wonder what the time
constants are in competitive societies and how such societies are likely
to react under similar impulses. Above all, one wonders why, with
our highly developed communications facilities, our response times
should be so surprisingly long.
Perhaps no small part of the explanation lies in the fact that
scientists and engineers, who have long been aware of this situation,
are, after all, a numerically very small fraction of our population.
Added to this is the fact that the effects on a society of the activities
of this group are invariably long delayed. A complete work stoppage
on the part of the creative scientists would not, for example, be felt
by our society as a whole for a decade or more. Thus it is difficult
for the majority of our population to appreciate fully the function
or significance of this relatively inconspicuous group. After all, the
larger affairs of our society are, and no doubt always will be (and
quite properly), handled by nontechnical people.
It is interesting to speculate about the somewhat anomalous situa-
tion into which we have gotten ourselves. There seems to be a tacit,
but not clearly expressed, assumption that the purpose of the kind of
society we favor is one which gives the greatest good to the greatest
number. Our society has seized upon technology as a clearly appli-
cable means to this end, so far as gratifying material wants is con-
cerned. One would then assume that society, or more accurately
the nontechnical controllers of that society, would as a matter of
enlightened self-interest pay particular attention to the education
and training of an adequate supply of what they refer to as “techni-
cians.” Instead, it is the technicians, the scientists and engineers,
who have been calling for an increase in the supply of talent even
though it would be to their own self-interest to restrict this supply
of skills and thus improve their bargaining position. As scientists
and engineers we ask the question from time to time, “For what and
for whom are we working?” The sociologists from whom we assume
we should expect a reply seem bewildered that the question should
even be asked. By them technology seems to be considered as some
extraneous activity apparently introduced or perpetrated by the
scientists.
It is this deeper conflict in outlook and attitude between the hu-
manist or sociologist and the scientist or engineer which gives me the
ereatest concern. The shortage of scientists 7s serious; but here the
incentive forces are being brought into play in a direction to correct
210 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the anomaly in due course. However, in the philosophical conflict,
with our technology tending to become ever more complex, and with
increasing specialization, unless current educational trends are re-
versed, the technical and nontechnical components of our society will
continue to travel diverging paths, with hunting oscillations not of
decreasing but of increasing amplitude.
As Sarton has pointed out, “The ominous conflict of our time is the
difference of opinion, of outlook, between men of letters, historians,
philosophers, the so-called humanists, on the one side, and scientists
on the other.” (2) Similarly, Mees has stated :
While the relation between the progress of scientific discovery and the
structure of society is of the utmost interest and importance to those who desire
to understand it or, still more, to control the changes that are occurring, there
is a cleavage between those who follow the discipline of history and of the
humanities and those who are eagerly pursuing the quest for scientific knowl-
edge. Humanistic learning is the learning of the ancients; it is a study of the
accumulated thought of mankind so far as it has been transmitted to us.
Scientific knowledge, on the other hand, is a development arising from the
observation of facts and their classification into patterns. The separation of
these two types of learning has always been unfortunate; at present it is
serious, and it may, indeed, be disastrous. (3)
Many of you will recall that there is a principle in physics which
says that in order for energy to be transmitted efficiently from one
electrical network to another it is necessary that there be an im-
pedance match between the two circuits. Very similarly it has been
my experience that for the transmission of information, or more ac-
curately human understanding, between two individuals it is neces-
sary that there be a matching of backgrounds. Historically such a
matching has not existed between devotees of the humanities and
of the sciences. As far as the development and enjoyment of the
sciences by and for scientists are concerned, no matching is really
necessary. Similarly, the humanities as a discipline are completely
self-sufficient. If, however, the humanist chooses to wse science as
the basis of technology designed to advance the standard of living of
mankind, then it becomes incumbent on the humanist to so fashion an
educational system that Ae can communicate with scientists and engi-
neers. This he has failed and is failing to do. Teaching less science
and mathematics and more art and music to scientists may enrich
the life of the scientist, but it will not help solve the basic problem
of the humanist, which is to create what he has concluded to be the
good society. If there is to be a sizable component of technology in
his good society, he must at some point face up to the problem of
matching impedances with the scientist.
Let us take a look at some of the facets of this problem which
might have to be considered. Very early in my career as a student
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY—-HAFSTAD yA)
I became aware of the definition, “Life zs struggle,” and in my day
we were so reactionary that we even came to accept it. It also be-
came clear to me that the struggle was for an intangible something
called “progress.” This was a much more elusive concept and one
which I have found intriguing even up to this day. Somewhat
surprisingly, I learned that the idea of progress was itself a relatively
recent concept in human affairs. Still more significantly, it was not
accepted without considerable opposition and conflict. People were
burned at the stake! All this, of course, is spelled out in the literature
and is particularly well summarized in the too little known book by
Professor Bury (4). The important fact which emerges, however, is
that the idea of progress and the development of technology are in-
extricably interlinked. As stated by Mees, “Technology 1s at once
the source and the justification for the idea of progress.” (5) That
this is true seems to be accepted by scholars throughout the world
as is evidenced, for example, by the determination of the underde-
veloped countries to industrialize. The fact seems to be accepted
everywhere except where it should be most obviously true and that is
here in our own United States. Here in our society we demand
progress—in fact, we seem to take it for granted as a law of nature—
but there are influential people who seem to be doing their best in
our education process to escape or circumvent science and technology,
which alone can make progress possible.
Perhaps I have overstated my case. Let us hope so. But a re-
view of some recent evidence may give us a perspective in which
to view the problem. In a recent study of high-school students re-
ported from Purdue (6) it was found that—
14 percent of the students think there is something evil about
scientists.
30 percent believe that one cannot raise a normal family and
become a scientist.
45 percent think their school background is too poor to permit them
to choose science as a career.
9 percent believe that one cannot be a scientist and be honest.
25 percent think scientists as a group are more than a little bit
“odd.”
28 percent do not believe scientists have time to enjoy life.
35 percent believe that it is necessary to be a genius to become a
good scientist.
27 percent think that scientists are willing to sacrifice the welfare
of others to further their own interests.
This is indeed a devastating comment, either on scientists or on
our educational process, or both. With this the attitude among
students, can there be any mystery as to why there is currently a
212 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
shortage of scientists and engineers? Since the world managed
to survive for some centuries before the advent of scientists or engi-
neers, the attitudes expressed would be quite understandable if the
students were or proposed to become mystics and lead the contempla-
tive life, which certainly has its advantages. But these were normal
American boys and girls demanding and getting 100-horsepower
cars for transportation, radios, television, movies, juke boxes, and all
the other paraphernalia of our modern civilization. How could they
have grown to high-school or college age without learning the simple
facts of cause and effect with respect to the technological civilization
in which they are clearly planning to live?
EDUCATORS AND HUMANISTS
l
SCIENTISTS STANDARD
AND ===> OF
ENGINEERS LIVING
TIME =>
Ficure 1.
In this respect our school system is quite inadequate, in my opinion.
The shortage of scientists and engineers is bad enough, but with some
effort these immediate shortages can be corrected since the total
numbers needed are not really large in proportion to the population.
What is more serious (and more dangerous in the long run) is that
the mass of our population, who, in a society dedicated to the greatest
good for the greater number, must in the end control it, remains
in ignorance of the foundations on which that society is based.
The contrast between the studied complacency of the educators and
the concern of scientists and engineers with regard to this situation
can perhaps be emphasized or dramatized by Koestler’s device of using
a staircase to show the effects of different points of view bearing on
the same problem. In figure 1 the humanist or so-called progressive
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY—HAFSTAD 213
educator looking from above sees a series of plateaus or tableaus
(since they are flat to him) and notes with amazement and delight
that each successive tableau shows a successively higher standard of
living. With only a limited imagination he can make the slight ex-
trapolation to the point where no one has to work. Being foresighted
he places great emphasis on training for leisure. Being also suffi-
ciently observant to note an increase of population with time, and
being aware of the frictions and struggles brought about by individual
differences, great emphasis is also placed on standardization. For the
convenience of all concerned, why shouldn’t the “lowest common de-
nominator” solution be picked? From his point of view it makes
: GROWTH OF WORLD POPULATION
TIME SCALE: 10,000 YEARS
1?
BILLIONS
OF tr?
PERSONS uv
:
TECHNOLOGY CONTRIBUTION
-6000. -4000. -2000 0 2000. 4000
-5000 -3000 -1000 1000 3000
YEAR
Ficure 2.
Now look at the same staircase from the point of view of the
scientist. He sees each plateau merely as a hesitation point between
struggles to attain a higher level. To him progress represents work,
and he is convinced that further progress cannot be made without
struggle. To him there is nothing automatic or guaranteed in the
comfortable and continuous progress which the humanist and progres-
sive educator seem to take for granted.
A rough indication of the relative contributions of science and tech-
nology can be seen from figure 2, adapted from the book by Harrison
Brown (7). This shows the extent to which science and technology
have dominated modern life. Art, literature, poetry, warfare, trade,
government, law—all have been with us from prehistoric times. As
214 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
H. G. Wells pointed out, the first episodes in recorded history involve
the quarrels of Sumerian priests. Apparently none of the accomplish-
ments of these groups was sufficient to break the monotonous cyclical
rise and fall of the same kind and level of civilization in merely
different locations, such as in China, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Tak-
ing simple survival as the lowest level of human happiness and in-
tegrating for all mankind, we find a total contribution for the
humanities, as given by an extrapolation to the present time, of the
first part of the curve of figure 2. The rapid growth of the popu-
lation curve after the seventeenth century is commonly attributed to
the development of science and technology, so the relative contribu-
tion of these disciplines to humanity as a whole can be taken as
roughly three to one over that of what used to be called the humani-
ties. Considering the relative contribution of these two kinds of
activities to the good of mankind, one wonders whether perhaps the
names should not be interchanged!
Since our society has chosen for itself a kind of civilization which
is so overwhelmingly dependent on advances in science and tech-
nology, it is only prudent to ask how we can expedite our progress in
these fields. Here is where the shortage of scientists and engineers
comes in. I will not attempt to review but merely cite some of the
many excellent and realistic articles on this subject. Significant, in
my opinion, are recent articles by Stratton, Rassweiler, Rickover,
Bestor, and Beckman (8).
These articles, by unquestioned authorities in their fields, point out
inadequacies in our present educational system in so far as the produc-
tion of technical personnel is concerned. I agree heartily, but I wish
to make a deeper criticism. Even if an entirely separate educational
channel were provided which more than supplied our foreseeable
needs for engineers, I contend that the education of the rest of the
citizenry should include a basic understanding and appreciation of
our technological society, both its strengths and its limitations. Above
all, at some point in the education process it should perhaps be
brought to the attention of the students (very delicately, to be sure,
to avoid psychological trauma) that progress cannot be made without
struggle, nor freedom enjoyed without personal responsibility.
It has long been my contention that those who have done should
teach, and accordingly that those who have taken an active part in
creating our technological society should be best able to interpret it
for others. Unfortunately the very shortage of technical talent exerts
great pressures on individuals skilled in these fields to concentrate on
technical problems. Scientists and engineers are notoriously inarticu-
late, so a suitable education should include a heavy concentration on
the arts of communication. This might be acquired in our elementary
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY—HAFSTAD 2kS
or secondary schools, but in our present predominantly superkinder-
garten system of education it is postponed until college. Here it is
in conflict with the needs of ever more highly specialized professional
training. The engineer remains inarticulate and the general public
uninformed; thus the impedance mismatch is continuously increased,
not decreased, and must eventually approach instability.
Dr. Glenn Frank stated this problem with fine understanding.
He said,
The practical value of every social invention or material discovery depends
upon its being adequately interpreted to the masses. ‘The future of scientific
progress depends as much on the interpretative mind as it does upon the
creative mind. ... The interpreter stands between the layman, whose knowl-
edge of all things is indefinite—and the scientist whose knowledge of one thing
is authoritative.... The scientist advances knowledge.... The interpreter
advances progress.... History affords abundant evidence that civilization
has advanced in direct ratio to the efficiency with which the thought of the
thinkers has been translated into the language of the masses. (9)
In contacts with students and even with reasonably informed
grownups, I have found not only that such simple and basic things as
the relation between research and engineering, between technology
and the standard of living, or between progress and incentive, are
not understood but also that the discussion of these concepts is itself
a fascinating new experience. An Operations Research approach
to some of these problems might prove quite rewarding.
Here are some simple examples which I have found to stimulate
considerable interest in discussion groups.
First, in regard to the relation between science and engineering
or research and engineering, let us look at figure 3. This graph shows
the usual growth curve for costs of a project of some kind. Note
that the costs during the research or information-gathering phase
are small. It is only at the beginning of the development or inven-
tion phase that there is anything tangible to consider and that costs
begin to mount. It is here that the businessman first begins to take
an interest, and it is this phase of the effort which he considers
important.
To a research man, however, the picture looks entirely different.
The business of the researcher is to get really new information, to
discover a relationship which previously had never been known, to
do something—not better or cheaper than somebody else—but to do
something for the first time in the history of the human race. Re-
search discoveries are rarely spectacular but may nevertheless be
highly significant. Thus, to bring out what is important in research
we might plot, not dollars expended, but the ratio of the information
available in a certain field before an experiment to that available
after the experiment. If something truly new has been discovered,
451800—58 15
216 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
this ratio becomes infinite and a replot of our previous figure in
terms of this information ratio becomes as shown in figure 4. This
curve emphasizes baste research, the acquisition of knowledge for
its own sake.
DEVELOPMENT CONTRIBUTION
DOLLARS
TIME
Ficure 3.
The scientist’s work as a scientist is completed when a new item
of information is established and recorded. It is no concern of the
scientist, as a scientist, whether the information is useful or not.
It is for this reason that we can say with conviction that it is not
scientists who create technology. It is society itself which chooses
to create a technology based on the information which the scientist has
uncovered. This problem of application is the function of the engi-
neer. At the beginning of the scientific era, science and engineering
were widely separated in time. With the development of our current
technological civilization, applications have followed more and more
closely on the heels of discovery, with the result that in many fields
the search for new information and understanding is carried out
simultaneously with the application—that is, the effort to solve some
practical problem. Though activities may overlap, the distinction
in function remains. The same man who makes a discovery may
choose, or be persuaded, to attempt to apply it to a practical problem.
In this case he ceases to be a scientist and works essentially as an
engineer, and is motivated not internally as a scientist but externally
by society. I dwell on this point to counter the argument often
advanced that it is the scientist who has created the complexities of
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY—HAFSTAD PANE
our modern industrial civilization. I maintain it isnot. It is society
itself, and particularly the nontechnical part of society, which creates
the demands that are the motive force behind our technology.
Let us turn to another basic question, the relations between stand-
ards of living, education, and technology. Much of the energy in our
educational system these days is focused on new thories of teaching
which will avoid grading and thus any semblance of conflict and com-
petition. This is no doubt desirable sociologically, but apparently
so is a rising standard of living. This presents a painful choice.
In technology if incentive is removed, so is struggle, and if struggle
is stopped, so is progress. This leveling process could, of course,
be carried out at any point in the history of a civilization, so it is of
interest to see what would have happened had it been carried out at
some previous times in our own history. The results are shown in
figure 5 (10). Who made the greatest real contribution to the goal of
the humanist, the engineers or the self-appointed Robin Hoods of
1909, those people who thought all our social problems could be solved
by a redistribution of the wealth at that time?
RESEARCH CONTRIBUTION
Ze
IMPROVEMENT f
ae
TIME -——
Ficure 4.
Finally, let us consider a little further the relationship between
incentive and progress. Let us assume, following the late Dr. Dicken-
son of the Bureau of Standards, that the actual innate abilities of
a population are given by a probability distribution curve such as
A in figure 6. As a base for comparison let us now imagine a per-
fectly “efficient and just” social system which extracted from each
individual a contribution proportional to his ability and rewarded
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
218
2400
2000
1600
US
STANDARD 1200
OF LIVING
800
DUE TO
REDISTRIBUTION
° 1800 1850 1900 1950
YEAR
Ficure 5.
coms DISTRIBUTION OF ABILITIES |
waeem= US INCOME
feveecsoncouseocon EARLY MARXIAN
mimseorms PROBABLE CURRENT
MARXIAN
4
=
aE TTP
4,
PEOPLE |
ABILITIES
INCOME
=
es
o
=
=
=
=
a
=
=
=
2
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
=
~
=
o
=
=
=
=
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Ficure 6.
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY—HAFSTAD 219
him in accord with his contribution. The dollar income curve would
then coincide precisely with the ability curve A. But there are many
other criteria society can choose to specify the income curve. In the
United States we originally chose to give “rate of progress” great
importance in our specification, and emphasized incentive, but we
balanced this with benefits for the underprivileged, which gave us
a distribution curve, according to Dickenson, something like B. The
Marxian criterion, on the other hand, was “From each according to
his ability to each according to his need.” The experiment was tried,
as we all know, and according to reports resulted in a peaking of the
curve just at or barely above the subsistence level, as in curve C.
Clearly this represented a sharing of poverty, as Herbert Hoover has
so aptly phrased it. This failure of a social theory forced the Soviet
to adopt the “New Economic Plan,” with a return to emphasis on
incentive to bring out the potential contributions of the able. The
new curve, of course, has a new specification which I am sure is in-
tended to maximize progress. To attain such progress, however, the
Communists have distorted their reward curve to some such curve
as D, with the mass of the population at subsistence level and a
pampered elite at the top. The stresses and strains thus introduced
into their society are only now becoming evident.
In summary, there is a continuing divergence in point of view
between the sciences and the humanities. With the sciences, through
the mechanism of technology, being called upon to make an ever-
increasing contribution to a society as specified by the humanists,
there is serious cause for concern in the fact that the educational sys-
tem at the elementary and secondary levels seems to be out of step
from a systems-engineering point of view with the foreseeable needs
of such a society. The desire for “progress” cannot be reconciled
with the lack of attention to, and an incentive for, students of ex-
ceptional ability. Similarly the desire for “progress” is inconsistent
with the trend toward effortless education, and the substitution of
pastimes for disciplines. Finally, the assumption that a larger and
larger population can be supported on and by the work of a smaller
and smaller fraction of highly trained creative specialists leads to a
social structure like that of an inverted pyramid. Even more acute
than the current shortage of scientists and engineers is the shortage
of people who both can and will carry responsibility.
With increasing complexity and specialization in the technical
fields, the gap between the sciences and the humanities becomes an
ever-widening one. This adverse tendency could be reduced by in-
suring that students of science were given a better grounding in the
humanities, while students in the humanities were given a better
background in science. This, however, would require more rather
220
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
than less disciplined study in both fields, and runs counter to the
current educational trends.
(1
—
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
NOTES
George Sarton, The History of Science and the New Humanism, p. 11,
Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1937.
Ibid., p. 54.
C. E. K. Mees, The Path of Science, p. 15. New York.
J.B. Bury, The Idea of Progress, New York, 1932.
C. E. K. Mees, The Path of Science, p. 18. New York.
Report of Poll No. 45, The Purdue Opinion Panel, July 1956. Division of
Educational Reference, Purdue University.
Harrison Brown, The Challenge of Man’s Future, p. 49. New York, 1954.
The articles referred to are: J. A. Stratton, Science and the educated
man, Physics Today, April 1956.
C. F. Rassweiler, Producing more technical man power, Technology Re-
view, May 1956.
H. G. Rickover, Engineering and scientific education, Technology Review,
April 1956.
H. G. Rickover, The education of our talented children, Thomas Edison
Foundation, November 1956.
Arthur Bestor, We are less educated than 50 years ago, U. S. News &
World Report, November 30, 1956.
Arnold O. Beckman, A business man’s view of the failure of education,
U.S. News & World Report, November 30, 1956.
Dr. Glenn Frank, late President of the University of Wisconsin.
The standard-of-living data are from a recent Brookings Institution study.
The increment shows the increase in average standard of living due to
a redistribution, or leveling, of income of all kinds, salaries, rents,
dividends, ete.
Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D. C.
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey,
1807-1957'
By Evtiotr B. Roserts
Chief, Division of Geophysics
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey
[With five plates]
Wuen the Coast and Geodetic Survey opened its doors to business
on February 10, 1957, it became our Nation’s first technical bureau
to celebrate a 150th birthday, and one of the few agencies besides
the Army, Navy, and other executive departments to reach such age.
An infant bureau of the early nineteenth century has grown into a
modern service responsible for much geographical exploration and
scientific and technological accomplishment. The birthday of this
service draws attention to its long history—one having many high-
lights of significance to the Navy.
It is hard to believe that only 150 years ago the charts of our coastal
waters were so few and sketchy that navigation was uncertain and
dangerous—that our 60,000 coasting vessels had to endure heavy
losses each year because every move about the coast was an uncertain
adventure. Isolated sketch maps from the British Neptune, the in-
adequate notes of Captain Southack and of the British Pilot, and
the charts and sailing directions published by Blunt—all were in-
complete and full of errors. The country was essentially without
charts—of all instruments of navigation the most fundamental!
Thomas Jefferson and others, including members of the American
Philosophical Society, had long agitated for a Federal program of
hydrographic surveys. In 1807 Congress took care of the matter, in
effect ordering complete surveys of our waterways, by authorizing
the “Survey of the Coast,” a new bureau to be assigned to the Treas-
ury Department. The fledgling agency, for which no precedent
existed, had a hard time getting started. After long delays, however,
under the ministrations of a scientific genius who antagonized and
1Reprinted by permission from the U. S. Naval Institute Proceedings,
February 1957.
221
222 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
angered almost all officialdom, it finally found its place in the grow-
ing land. As new territory was annexed, the job grew larger before
it was even started. This undertaking, which Congress supposed
would be finished in a few years, has now taken 150 years, and no
end is in sight.
The “Survey of the Coast,” known in midcentury as the “Coast
Survey,” eventually became the “Coast and Geodetic Survey” when,
in 1878, its nationwide geodetic surveys, necessary as a foundation
for maps, were recognized as a basic function. In 1903, the Survey
was removed from the Treasury to what is now the Commerce De-
partment. In its long history there have been many events and
outstanding men, of which we can here glimpse but a few.
In this period of serving the maritime, mapping, and, more lately,
the aviation interests of the country, the work of the Survey has
brought it into continuous and often intimate relations with the mili-
tary agencies. It has been merged on more than one occasion with
the Navy, only to be separated again on the grounds that its highly
specialized work required the administration of scientific rather than
military heads. The Navy has, of course, long had its companion
agency, the Hydrographic Office, for the discharge of commitments
in foreign areas and those having special military significance. Dur-
ing long periods Navy officers served Survey duty assignments, often
with great distinction. There still exists a law authorizing such
assignments on the request of the Survey, but it has not been used
since the Spanish-American War. Frequently, in the early days,
Army officers, usually topographic engineers, were also so assigned.
Many of the skills of the Survey—reconnaissance surveying, geo-
detic work, photointerpretation, and chart production, for instance—
have military significance. In every war its officers have served on
direct detail with the military forces, engaging In many campaigns
as surveyors and scouts, map compilers, pilots, and navigators. Its
ships as well have performed many duties with the Navy. In part
because of these military connotations of the work and the nature
of its field operations and customs, the Survey became a commissioned
service during World War I, subject to military duty in wartime. In
World War II six of its ships served with the Navy, and numerous
officers in ranks up to Captain were assigned duty in naval and other
military commands, often in heavy combat.
When President Jefferson found himself charged by Congress
with the duty of starting a national hydrographic survey, he asked
the American Philosophical Society to recommend an expert to take
charge. There were no established procedures, and so the Society
invited proposals from respected engineers, including James Madi-
son, for starting the work. The best plan of those received was from
U. S. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY—ROBERTS 223
a Swiss geodesist seeking a career in America, Ferdinand Hassler.
It offered a brilliant solution and a work of high scientific quality,
with astronomic determinations of “remarkable” points on the coast,
a triangulation survey to establish controlling points for the detail
work, and a nautical survey of the coastal waters, to show the shoals
and the navigable channels. Hassler thus became the first Superin-
tendent and organizer of the new bureau and the author of its creed.
Because of his profound and lasting influence, he deserves much atten-
tion in any historical account of the Survey.
Hassler was ahead of his time. Where Congress meant to provide
for the needs of the moment, he saw a chance to build for the future.
Time and cost were not to be considered in meeting this challenging
problem, which called for well-ordered development from a technically
firm foundation. To fulfill this ideal was his determination. He
was indomitable—also improvident, proud, and intolerant. His be-
ginnings were understandably halting, while Congress cast him aside,
then in despair called him back. Though by his nature he defeated
his own ends, he did finally see his vision come true, after a lifetime of
effort. His greatest gift to America was not the surveys he accom-
plished—it was his reverence for sound thinking, integrity, and ac-
curacy, which have endured as basic elements of Survey philosophy.
Hassler had nothing at the outset. Needing theodolites and other
scientific tools not available in America, he had first to visit Europe
to get them. Copper of suitable quality for the chart engravings
was lacking, as indeed were qualified engravers themselves, who
could not be found nearer than Germany. In London he had a
“oreat” theodolite of 24-inch circle built to his own design by E.
Troughton. He collected reference books, standards of measure-
ment, and other necessities. These dealings took a long time; more-
over political disturbances intervened to lengthen his stay to years.
His impractical zeal resulted in his exceeding his $50,000 authoriza-
tion, and he had to come back at his own expense, under severe
censure.
Many things, including lack of funds, delayed the start of opera-
tions until 1816, when the first work in preparation for the survey of
New York Harbor was undertaken. At the outset, arrangements for
the measurement of a baseline near Long Branch were interrupted by
the first of a long series of controversies—in this case a lawsuit about
some branches of a cedar bush used as a temporary survey signal.
This, however, was less serious than the impatience of Congress, which
expected results practically overnight. Hassler’s determination to
build a strong foundation, with a geodetic survey before ever a sound-
ing was taken, left Congress fuming with impatience and wondering
what he was about. Financial support was withdrawn before the
224 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
submission of the first annual report of progress—thus there began
another long period of inactivity while Congress tried to get along
without Hassler.
His personal means gone, and a sufferer of personal privations,
Hassler clung nevertheless to his dream. Temporary relief came
in 1818 in the form of a commission to mark the New England
Boundary with Canada, as required by the Treaty of Ghent. No
one else could be found to do the job. A quarrel with the British
surveyors developed over certain geodetic problems having to do
with the ellipticity of the earth. Hassler carried his point, obtaining
a favorable demarcation, and he thus became the first of many Coast
Survey engineers to lay down, confirm, or adjust local or national
boundaries—sometimes in the heat of controversy, as in the quarrel
over “54—40 or fight !”
In 1880, because of Hassler’s interest in measurement standards,
he was appointed superintendent of a new office of weights and meas-
ures by Congress. There he achieved success in standardizing meas-
ures in trade and industry. This related activity remained a specialty
of the Survey for many years until the creation, in 1901, of the Na-
tional Bureau of Standards. Hassler’s standards were painstaking
copies of those in England, and it was America’s singular privilege,
upon the burning of Parliament in 1843, to make England a present
of new ones copied from Hassler’s copies!
The survey of the coast was resumed in 1832, after numerous false
starts, with Hassler again in charge. He was the only man with the
technical genius for the job—otherwise Congress would never have
put up with his intolerance and irascibility. When Congressional
committees waited upon him for explanations of his work and its
delays, he dismissed them with scathing denunciation of their stupid-
ity in presuming to question him—rebuffs that created much mirth
in Congress and little in the way of financial support.
Among the points of issue with Congress was an estimated comple-
tion date, which he could not provide. Of course he could not! The
original area of a few thousand square miles grew endlessly toward
a final total of more than 100,000 miles of shorelines and 2,500,000
square miles of coastal lands and waters. Through the years, more-
over, the demands of ever-deeper ships, advancing marine technology
and increasing speeds have had to be met, as well as vexing problems
of instability and change affecting much of the coast. Necessary re-
surveys and growing technological requirements have been encoun-
tered while opening the dangerous waters of Alaska to sea commerce
and giving the 7,000 islands of the Philippines the boon of modern
charts.
By 1835, a substantial foundation of astronomic and geodetic
points having been established and the adjacent shores and landmarks
U. 8. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY—ROBERTS 225
charted, Hassler was ready to sound the waters. The schooner Ha-
periment was the first of a long line of survey ships to sail back and
forth across the sea, sounding by cast of the lead, and fixing position
by three-point fix controlled by sextant cuts on the survey signals
ashore. She did not last long, but she was joined, before her retire-
ment two years later, by the brig Washington, a former revenue cut-
ter and very clumsy vessel which did her work very slowly but well
enough. The Washington displayed her sturdiness by surviving
one of the most dramatic storm disasters in American maritime his-
tory. Contrasted with the efficient hydrographic ships of today,
those labors were primitive indeed! They represented to Hassler,
however, and to an impatient Congress, the first fruits of his work.
Among the first visible benefits was the finding of numerous rocks
and ledges, hitherto unknown, in Long Island Sound. Singu-
larly striking was the discovery by Lt. T. R. Gedney, on assignment
from the Navy, of a deep channel approaching New York from the
southeast, passing near Sandy Hook. This had the utmost naviga-
tional importance. It was realized that, had Gedney Channel been
known in 1778, a surreptitious entry of the friendly French fleet might
have been effected with disastrous results for the British vessels
within. Hassler had the satisfaction, before his death in 1843, of
seeing the first surveys done from Point Judith to Cape Henlopen—
some 9,000 square miles of charted area containing 1,600 miles of
shorelines.
Hassler may have been as consecrated a public servant as ever
lived. No one could doubt it who saw him as he sat night after
night in his office, after midnight at a table lit by candles, checking
computations, verifying map sheets of soundings, or writing his re-
ports. He was doing work for which his meager appropriations did
not provide workers, and he was seeing personally to the attainment
of his own impeccable standards. When he could spare himself from
his office or from the incessant demands of Congress for explanations
and justifications, he endured the hardships of field life. It was on
such an occasion in 1848 that, during a storm, he fell in the dark
trying to protect one of his cherished instruments from the elements,
injuring himself upon a pointed rock and subjecting himself to
exposure. Aged 73 years and weakened by a lifetime of relentless
work, he died in pursuit of his vision, probably little realizing how
enduring his example was to be.
The Bureau grew rapidly in size and in the strength of its or-
ganization under Hassler’s successor, Alexander Dallas Bache, who
served until 1867. One of America’s all-time great educators and
scientists, this great-grandson of Benjamin Franklin had intellectual
curiosity, progressiveness, organizing ability, and personal charm.
226 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Having graduated with high honors from West Point, he was quali-
fied in military science. He found time to design the military defenses
of Philadelphia, while directing the Coast Survey participation in
the campaigns of the Civil War. He was one of the founders and the
first president of the National Academy of Sciences.
Bache fell heir to the entire Atlantic and Gulf coasts, soon to be
augmented by the admission of Texas in 1848, and California soon
after. He divided the area into districts, speeding the work at once
in all parts and presenting a picture of progress favorable for political
appraisal. This required the development of a strong corps of
assistants.
Lt. Cdr. W. P. McArthur began hydrographic surveys in Cali-
fornia with the USS H’wing even before the gold rush. In 1849 he
started work at San Francisco to meet the influx of traffic, only to be
interrupted by a mutiny of the gold-crazed crew—the only mutiny in
Survey history.”
McArthur was responsible for the selection of the Mare Island
site for the famous naval base. His pioneering work in the West,
continued by a line of outstanding descendants, has left his name
permanently known in the Pacific Northwest.
Assistant George Davidson, veritably the father of science in
California, went west in 1850 to start geodetic and topographic work
related to the hydrography of McArthur and others, and he spent
most of the next 50 years in that new land. A tireless worker in
various fields, he surveyed much of the western coast, investigated
tidal and hydraulic problems, operated an astronomic observatory,
wrote geographical notes and compendiums, organized the California
Academy of Sciences, and taught in the university. He induced an
eccentric millionaire, James Lick, to endow one of the world’s great
astronomical observatories. Davidson, and later Assistant W. H.
Dall, made reconnaissance surveys and wrote coast pilot notes neces-
sary to the opening to navigation of the dangerous waters of the
Northwest and Alaska. Davidson’s first pilot notes of the west coast
appeared in California newspapers as early as 1848—far ahead of
the first official Coast Pilots of the Bureau, which began in 1875
with a book on the Gulf of Maine.
Bache had the responsibility of guiding the Civil War operations
of the Bureau. These were of many kinds, confirming earlier ideas
regarding the potential military value of the work, particularly in
coast defense problems. Almost countless campaigns found their
progress dependent on technical services rendered by Coast Sur-
vey men. They worked at New Orleans and Vicksburg, at Lookout
? See The Hwing mutiny, by Thornton Emmons and Homer C. Votaw in U. S.
Naval Institute Proceedings, January 1956.
U. S. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY—ROBERTS 227.
Mountain and Chickamauga, in the Shenandoah Valley and on Sher-
man’s march. The naval victory at Port Royal, possibly of decisive
effect on the course of the war, was partly the result of reconnais-
sance, piloting, and mine laying by Assistant C. O. Boutelle, Lt. Cdr.
C. H. Davis, and others.
In later wars the diverse skills of the Survey contributed to opera-
tions in all theaters. World War II, with its numerous amphibious
operations, presented especially difficult requirements for surrepti-
tious beachhead surveys, often made at night by Survey officers on
military assignment, for the study and prediction of tidal regimes,
and for the emergency charting of perilous waters in the little-known
island groups.
Very early in the time of Bache, the slow speeds and unwieldy
properties of sailing vessels led to the trial of steamers. The first
of these, the Bibb, began work in 1847, after tests by then Lt. C. H.
Davis, who later became a Rear Admiral and Superintendent of the
Naval Observatory. His tests of the Bibd signaled the change from
sail to steam, perhaps the greatest of the early technological advances
in hydrography.
Major ships of the Survey today displace two or three thousand
tons, and they are built to be fairly wide and steady, for much launch
handling is necessary for the survey of inshore areas. Speeds are
moderate, but the complex of electronic instruments devoted to survey
operations is impressive. There are at present four such ships in the
Survey fleet, with two more authorized. In addition, tenders of all
sizes capable of maintaining themselves at sea are used in intermediate
areas too exposed for launches but too close in for major ships. All,
ships and launches alike, work with sonic gear permitting rapid and
comprehensive scanning of the sea-bottom features. All, moreover,
but the launches, are capable of working with radar, shoran, and the
Survey’s electronic position indicator system, known as EPI. It is
hard now to find a quartermaster fully skilled in the ancient art of
heaving the lead!
The growth of hydrographic work during and after the time of
Bache saw continuous improvements and inventions of equipment
and methods. Lt. George Stellwagen, operating on Georges Bank,
invented a bottom sampler, while Louis Agassiz made studies of
Florida coral reef growth especially for the Survey. Lt. Matthew
F. Maury, the great oceanographer of the Navy and long Superin-
tendent of the Depot of Charts and Instruments, though not officially
assigned to the Survey, worked in such close association that he was
naturally identified with it. He originated the use of wire in place
of hemp for deep-sea soundings, vastly improving accuracy and speed.
Registering deep-sea thermometers and water samplers were invented.
228 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Lt. John E. Pillsbury, who became a Rear Admiral after distin-
guished service in the Spanish War, spent many years in the Survey,
advancing the techniques of deep-sea exploration and inventing a
direction-indicating current meter of great value. Surface current
observations carried out by tracking marked bottles led to the in-
tensive study of the Gulf Stream in 1848 and since.
Among the many outstanding later developments in oceanographic
instrumentation were those of Comdr. C. D. Sigsbee, later a Rear
Admiral, whose name is immortal for his contributions to deep-sea
exploration. He commanded the Blake in the Gulf of Mexico in
1875-77, where he adapted Sir William Thomson’s sounding machine
to deep work, in part by the addition of a registering sheave to indi-
cate the length of wire paid out. He also invented a water cup to
bring up samples from several depths at one haul, and a collection
trap for biological samples. In addition to these effective means of
perpetuating his memory, he later commanded the J/aine when she
was lost at Havana.
In the early twentieth century, Nicholas Heck and others developed
the wire drag, following the wrecking of the cruiser Brooklyn on a
pinnacle rock at New Bedford. This method, an improvement on
earlier clumsy pipe sweeping devices, has been widely used to sweep
the passages of rocky coasts to disclose hidden dangers, such as the
famous “Washington Monument Rock” which rises to within a few
feet of the surface from general depths of 650 feet in southeast
Alaska.
A relatively recent development is the fathometer, brought into
useful form by the Submarine Signal Company with the help of the
Survey. Its value is beyond reckoning. Another was the radio-
acoustic ranging system, used for many years as a distance-measure-
ment device until superseded by electronic position-finding methods.
Radio-acoustic ranging used the transmission times of underwater
sound signals. In the course of development work in this field,
Comdr. O. W. Swainson and Dr. Karl Dyk, working off the Cali-
fornia coast on the Pioneer in the early 1930’s, discovered and ex-
plained a striking phenomenon, earlier predicted by A. L. Shalowitz,
which later led to the operational use of SOFAR, a signaling device.
Sound signals travel great distances when directed into certain mini-
mum-velocity layers, constituting effective sound-conducting channels.
Vast areas of offshore hydrography, controlled by the radio-acoustic
ranging method, have benefited by this fortunate circumstance.
Charts in Hassler’s time were laboriously prepared by engraving
myriads of details on stone or copper plates, from which impres-
sions were made by hand. The first one of all, showing Newark Bay,
was printed from the stone, which gave poorer definition than copper.
In 1844 the first copper-plate engraving, of New York Harbor, was
U. S& COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY—ROBERTS 229
prepared. In 1850, processes had been so speeded that the first sheets
from the west coast resulted as published charts within 20 days. The
Bureau gradually assembled a large group of skillful men whose
artistry resulted in some of the most beautiful chart engravings ever
seen. This craft endured until recent years, to be supplanted at last
by newer methods of glass-negative engraving and photolithography,
developed largely in the Survey in the unromantic cause of efficiency.
The first years of chart production saw perhaps 4,000 copies pro-
duced in a year. These were all nautical charts. With the advent
of aviation and the sudden great growth of air navigation, the
bureau had thrust upon it a duty of supplying aeronautical charts
as well, a duty which multiplied the cartographic and printing work
many times. A vast number of general aeronautical charts have been
required—World Aeronautical Charts, regional, sectional, and route
charts—as well as special facility and airport approach and landing
charts. The multicolor presses of today have delivered more than 43
million nautical and aeronautical charts in a year, many of them
printed cooperatively to augment the reproduction facilities of the
Hydrographic Office and other Federal chart agencies. The de-
velopment of the crude chart of olden times into a highly specialized
instrument of navigation has involved a long series of changes, sim-
plification, and adaptation. Chart use is now complicated by the
requirements of high-speed navigation, radio, and radar techniques,
and other new practices not dreamed of in the early nineteenth
century.
Sea-level studies, the handmaiden to hydrographic surveys, have
had to be carried on. Tide gages were widely distributed and the
analysis of tidal regimes begun in 1853, permitting the publication
of tide predictions for use in ship operations. Assistant Joseph
Saxton invented an automatic-recording tide gage. Basic hydro-
dynamic theories of tidal motion were later developed by Assistant
William Ferrell and elaborated by mathematician Rollin Harris.
They brought weird notions of the ocean pulse into systematic order.
Harris and Fischer built a tide-predicting machine capable of in-
tegrating the phases of 37 separate harmonic components into the
complex tidal curve. These activities earned the Survey the primary
responsibility in the United States for tidal investigations, and the
publication of worldwide tide and tidal-current predictions is now
effected by the Survey, in cooperation with the Navy, which has the
basic responsibility for the foreign-area work in this field.
The laborious chaining method of surveying shore areas and land-
marks necessary in coasting and piloting has gradually given way
to the planetable and stadia rod, to photography, and finally to air
photogrammetry, which quickly and accurately provides the infor-
mation needed for the compilation of detailed topographic maps.
230 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Capt. O. S. Reading, a recently retired photogrammetrist of the Sur-
vey, developed a 9-lens mapping camera particularly adapted to the
survey of coastal areas. From a height of 14,000 feet, it can snap
all the details in 121 square miles of land—a tremendous aid in the
incidental problem of shore mapping, notwithstanding the intricate
processes of photointerpretation, rectification, and compilation.
The 1,200 triangulation stations originally laid down by Hassler
were forerunners of a vast structure of geodetic control surveys of
the utmost importance in all areas of engineering and natural-
resource development. Bache started the eastern oblique arc of pri-
mary triangulation destined eventually to reach from the Bay of
Fundy to New Orleans. This, and the later great transcontinental
arc across 2,500 miles of varied terrain from coast to coast, have
figured in scientifically important investigations into the most basic
and fundamental properties of the earth itself.
Widespread improvements in the fieldwork methods of astron-
omy and geodesy have been highlighted by such dramatic innova-
tions as the use of the electric telegraph in 1848 for the determina-
tion of longitude between land stations, and Bache’s apparatus for
measuring a 7-mile baseline with an uncertainty of only one inch.
Baseline work, first done with iced measuring bars placed end to
end, later employed tapes made of metals that do not change length
with varying temperature. Such improvements culminated in the
precision that permitted the triangulation of the distance between
two California mountain peaks used by Michelson in his classic
determination of the speed of light—a distance fixed with a residual
probable error of less than one part in five million. Geodetic sur-
vey work has seen innumerable smaller improvements, including light
and portable theodolites, heliotropes, and electric signal lamps to pin-
point signal points at great distances, and the Bilby steel towers,
portable and far faster to use than wooden ones, for the elevation
of instruments above surrounding objects. New methods of distance
measurement directly by radio or light-beam methods are under test
now and provide possibilities of superseding time-honored methods
of triangulation.
As a necessary corollary to the involved reductions of geodetic
computations, gravity investigations were started in 1875, using
Bessel pendulums, later supplanted by temperature-insensitive invar
pendulums and the present improved apparatus. Such investiga-
tions led to earth-crustal studies by later geodesists John Hayford
and William Bowie, who became authors of the fundamental theory
of isostasy upon which modern notions of mountain building and
other tectonic processes are based. Capt. Bowie, one of the out-
standing modern scientists of the Survey, was a strong advocate of
comprehensive national mapping programs. He had much to do with
PLATE 1
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Roberts
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Roberts PLATE 2.
The Explorer, one of the four modern survey ships now in use, was built in 1940 for Alaskan
Survey work. She displaces 1,900 tons and has a cruising radius of 6,000 miles at 15
knots.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Roberts PLATE 3
1. Solving an Alaskan transportation problem. The helicopter will take off from the base
camp with the small boat for work in obscure waterways.
2. A “‘cat-train’’ bound for survey operations near Point Barrow. Long hitches of sleds
and “‘wanigans” carry the surveyors, their instruments, and their habitation as a relatively
self-sustained unit.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Roberts PLATE 4
1. Baseline measurement for the triangulation network.
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2. A level line party working near Fort Peck, Mont.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Roberts PLATE 5
Ships that have served in the Coast and Geodetic Survey. Upper, the Pathfinder oe
AGS-1) followed by the seh the Surveyor, and, barely discernible at the far right
the tender Derickson. Lower, the Pioneer (ex- Mobjack).
U. S. COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY—ROBERTS O31
the establishment of coordinate systems designed to bring the benefits
of geodetic control to all surveyors. He was also the architect of
the existing 1927 North American geodetic datum, which resulted
from one of the greatest mathematical feats of general adjustment
in the history of geodesy.
Benjamin Peirce, one of the foremost mathematicians of the country
and also a Superintendent of the Survey, employed his son Charles,
who worked several years before going on to become a world-famous
philosopher and author of the theory of pragmatism. Bureau mathe-
maticians, trained to recognize faultless observations, were called
on to examine the questioned North Pole observations of former
Survey draftsman Robert Peary. These, as the world knows, were
found beyond possibility of falsification, closing the controversy
by a simple demonstration of the truth, and paving the way to his
receiving the rank of Rear Admiral from a grateful Congress.
Later officers have served as special experts and adjudicators in
numerous trials over riparian rights, waterfront land grants, and
other beach problems. Some such cases have involved millions of
dollars, and one concerned the actual ownership of parts of the naval
base at Mare Island. Today such special knowledge is in demand
in cases of offshore rights involving the troublesome problems and
definitions of seaward boundaries.
Plans initiated by Hassler and carried forward by Bache and his
successors to investigate the elusive and little-understood magnetic
forces that actuate the compass needle have led the Survey to the
operation of several fixed observatories, where instruments of great
sensitivity make continuous recordings of the fluctuating magnet-
ism. They provide the magnetic information necessary to the use of
magnetic compasses in navigation, thus serving all ships and aircraft.
They help monitor radio communication conditions, use of radio
navigational aids, and the prediction of radio fadeouts. They pro-
vide basic information for the interpretation of magnetic prospecting
surveys made in the search for oi] and minerals, as well as for the
use of military implements.
The first isogonic chart was published in 1855, partly as a result
of the use of a magnetometer of Bache’s design. The Survey has
now been legally designated as the nation’s collection agency and
repository for world magnetic data, and it compiles all American-
issue magnetic charts, including world charts prepared for publica-
tion by the Hydrographic Office.
Experience in the exacting task of operating magnetic observ-
atories led to an assignment of like nature in 1925, when the respon-
sibility for seismological investigations was added. This called for
similar skills and took advantage of the existence of the observa-
451800—58 16
232 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
tories, excellent places to operate seismographs. The Survey there-
fore detects, locates, and studies earthquakes for scientific purposes,
as well as for practical ends having to do with engineering precau-
tions, public safety, and insurance rates.
The interest and observational skill of the Bureau in geodesy, geo-
magnetism, seismology, and some aspects of physical oceanography
have led to its selection as the operating agency for substantial por-
tions of the United States program for the International Geophysical
Year of 1957-58. Field activities of this program will augment those
of many other countries joined together for worldwide cooperation
in this event, as in the previous two International Polar Years of
1882-83 and 1932-33, which provided important scientific advances
in geophysics.
The discovery of gold in Alaska in 1882, and the later Klondike
gold rush of 1897, speeded the northern work and started a long and
still unfinished story of charting in that remote, austere land.
All later Survey officers have had their share of battling what have
often seemed to be hopeless odds of weather and terrain. The waters
of Alaska, infinitely complicated and strewn almost everywhere with
rocks rising out of the depths, have nevertheless great importance in
the development of the territorial resources of fish and minerals. A1-
most unbelievably dismal, and torn by some of the world’s worst
weather, the seas and waterways of the territory are nevertheless
exquisitely beautiful at times. Every man who has put in his time
sounding its channels, surveying its craggy shores, or tracing bound-
aries through the muskeg must count it a highlight of his lite.
The peaks, bays, headlands, and glaciers bear the names of Dall,
Mendenhall, Faris, and many other Survey field men. Literally
hundreds of places have names betraying the visits of the famous
steam launch Cosmos and other survey vessels that spent their years
in those waters.
Much the same can be said of the other great overseas undertaking
of the Survey, involving the provision of modern charts for the
7,000 islands of the Philippines. Beginning in 1901, this became a
routine part of every Survey career—an interlude spent in a tropical
wonderland where the weather was almost always good, the scenery
lush and beautiful, and where experience was gained apace, despite
certain drawbacks of local insurrections, unfriendly natives, tropi-
cal heat with pests and fever, and typhoons. Starting from nothing,
a basic modern survey was made in 40 years, and a skilled hydro-
graphic and geodetic service developed in time to be handed over to
the new government of the Republic after World War IT.
When Hassler died in 1848 it is probable that he little realized
how enduring his example would be. On this 150th anniversary of
his bureau, the realization becomes vivid indeed !
Cosmic Rays from the Sun’
By Tuomas GoLp
Professor of Astronomy
Harvard University
[With one plate]
Cosmic radiation is a phenomenon that has been of the greatest
consequence to the development of modern science. Nature provided
us there with an incessant stream of very fast and very energetic par-
ticles which come into the atmosphere from outer space and which
could be put to excellent use. Many of the important discoveries of
nuclear physics were made with them, and they have given many times
a foretaste of the work that could be done with the great machines
the cyclotrons and synchrotrons for which quite properly many
millions of dollars are now being spent.
This stream, as we know now, consists chiefly of protons, the nuclei
of hydrogen, which arrive with energies as if they had been subjected
to electrical acceleration by a machine giving from 1 billion to 1 bil-
lion billion volts. The lower range of energy can just now be matched
by the synchrotrons, while the upper energies are very far outside
the capabilities of any technical device which we can at present con-
template. Although the universe is large and contains many localities
that we are still quite ignorant of, it is very difficult to suggest where
and how gigantic natural machines of the sort could be at work. This
problem is in fact such a great one that one has from time to time
wondered whether there is some great gap in our basic understanding
of Nature and whether the cosmic rays are perhaps the result of some
fundamental process of which we are quite unaware. The alternative
is to find within the known fabric of astronomy places and situations
where gigantic natural accelerating machines could be at work. The
sun has greatly helped us with this. It has demonstrated beyond any
doubt that it can make a contribution to this stream of high-energy
particles on some occasions. The sun is a steady star, and we are no
* Twenty-fourth James Arthur Lecture on the Sun, given under the auspices of
the Smithsonian Institution on April 10, 1957.
233
234 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
doubt very glad of its steadiness. But in its outer layers there occur
phenomena of very great violence—a kind of meteorology where the
scale and the speeds are enormous compared with those on the earth
and where the forces responsible are evidently of quite a different
nature. One particular phase of this atmospheric violence is called
a flare. It is not known what gives the phenomenon its great sudden-
ness and its terrific power, but it is certain that electric forces play
a very large part. Speeded-up movies of motions in the sun’s atmos-
phere are taken at the high-altitude observations at Climax, Colo.,
and at Sacramento Peak and in those one can see the powerful guid-
ing effects that are undoubtedly magnetic. Basically, though not in
detail, it is understood how magnetic fields would guide the motions of
gases and it is known independently from optical observations that
very strong magnetic fields occur in the vicinity of sunspots which are
also localities of the greatest visible disturbances.
Flares are seen by the great increase of the light in some parts of
the spectrum. In a matter of a few minutes some region in the sun’s
atmosphere lights up in bright emission-line light, and in the case
of the most intense flares a big and interesting chain of events is
then initiated. It is a more or less fortuitous circumstance that we do
not often take notice of the great flares without the use of instru-
mentation. Almost all the great effects of a flare are in forms that
either do not penetrate through the atmosphere of the earth, or that
we cannot perceive by our own sense organs. For this reason it is not
easily appreciated just how terrific an event a great flare is. The first
effects that arrive at the earth are usually intense radio noise that
can readily be received on modern radioastronomical equipment, and
the ultraviolet light that does not penetrate the atmosphere but
results in characteristic effects in the upper layers where it is absorbed.
Sudden interruption of all long-distance radio communication may
set in on the entire day side of the earth. Also the sudden change in
the electrical properties of the upper atmosphere gives rise to slight
but immediate disturbances in the earth’s magnetic field. A day or
two later a great magnetic disturbance may set in, being no doubt
due to some ejected gas having then reached the earth from the sun.
All these effects have been known for a long time, and many parts
of the phenomena have been explained, but the basic effect that hap-
pens so suddenly and with such violence on the sun is still not under-
stood, although of course there are a number of theories.
As a result of the work of Forbush and Ehmert, it has become
known that another type of event is related to flares. The rate of
bombardment of the earth by cosmic rays shows occasionally a sharp
increase clearly related to the very greatest of the solar outbursts.
Since 1942 only five such events have been detected. But strangely
COSMIC RAYS FROM THE SUN—GOLD 235
enough, although the effect is very rare, when it occurs it does not
seem to be of a marginal nature. All five events are easily detectable
and substantially smaller events would have been observed had they
occurred. The rarity of the phenomenon is thus not to be thought
of as due to very few only having reached a detectable level.
These events have made it clear that a particle accelerator can
occur in the atmosphere of the sun and hence presumably also in a
great number of other stars. So one might think that here is the clue
to the entire process. Cosmic rays are perhaps all made in the at-
mospheres of stars. After all, there are many stars on which we
might well suppose that far more violent effects are taking place than
on the sun. Could-they not supply the entire stream? Some people
think so, but there are serious difficulties in this. The sun’s cosmic
rays when they occur are all among the lowest energy particles
that can reach us on the earth’s surface. In the general flux there
is a much greater proportion of high-energy particles. And, after
all, the difference between the low- and the high-energy particles
is really great. Their impacts are about as different as being hit by
a fly or a truck. There are no stars where we could really suppose
the high-energy particles to be accelerated. Presumably then, there
must be mechanisms operating on a larger scale than the stars. The
solar process is the one that we really know something about now,
and we can watch. We hope that it will show us a basic mechanism,
and there is, of course, the hope that a similar mechanism will in
different circumstances be found in other places. Accordingly one
is hard at work trying to understand ways in which these magneti-
cally controlled hurricanes and typhoons on the sun’s surface can
produce the accelerated particles. Perhaps I should mention one
interesting hint that we have.
In Russia, and here too I presume, people have made experiments
with very strong electric sparks in the hope of reaching temperatures
at which the great energy-generating process of nuclear fusion will
set in. One curious and quite unexpected byproduct of these sparks
has been the generation of fast particles accelerated to much higher
energy than could be accounted for by the voltage that had been
applied altogether. So there, in front of our eyes, nature is per-
forming such a trick as using in some way the violence of a spark
to accelerate a very tiny fraction of the gas molecules present to
enormous speeds. It may well be that the same trick is done also on
the sun and perhaps in larger regions still. Experimental research
and the observations of the solar phenomena may together give the
answer.
The best information that we have about the details of the solar
cosmic-ray production comes from the great event of February 22-93,
236 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
1956. There occurred then a very large flare just near the edge of the
sun. It was seen in Japan and India (not here, as it was the middle
of the night) and it was recognized by the Japanese observers as a
most spectacular event before they knew of any of its other effects.
The flare was so bright that it could be seen without the usual spectral
filters, just as a bright spot on the sun’s surface. Beyond the nearby
edge they reported seeing a bright fan-shaped structure and nothing
like this has ever been seen before. The radio-noise observations indi-
cated a major outburst and one that was extraordinary in that the
disturbance seems to have reached a very great height in the solar
corona, ‘There was a complete fadeout of high-frequency radio com-
munication over the sunlit side of the earth and there was the char-
acteristic magnetic effect that indicates when very intense ultraviolet
light has struck the outer atmosphere of the earth. All this was the
common pattern of events, just very intense. But about 15 minutes
after the beginning, the cosmic-ray rate suddenly began the sharpest
increase and then reached the highest level that has ever been known.
This occurred all over the earth, not only on the side facing the sun.
The reason for this is, of course, that cosmic rays are charged particles
and are therefore deflected by the earth’s magnetic field to get right
around to the back. After a further 15 minutes, the peak was reached
and its intensity was such that about two hundred times the usual
number of cosmic-ray particles hit the earth every second. The rate
then decreased, but much more gently than it had risen. After a few
hours it returned nearly to normal.
In a world that is very conscious of radiation disease, one should
explain that this does not constitute a serious attack on us. The total
amount of radiation that every person received in those few hours
was still very much less than we take in during an X-ray examina-
tion. On the other hand, if the sun were ever to decide to continue
this kind of stream on a steady basis, it would undoubtedly be very
harmful tous. But we can take it that this is not very likely, judging
alone from the good continuity of biological development that seems
to have happened in long periods on the earth.
I am reminded just how striking an event this was when I think
of all the trouble to which we went to check the recording equipment
before believing its answers. That morning I came in to work and
my assistant was eagerly awaiting to tell me that during the night
this enormous increase had taken place. He was used to looking for
changes of 14 percent or so, and there was a change of over 100 per-
cent recorded. Everything was tested before we dared to announce
this as real; and then a little later all the other reports of the event
started to come in. In all, some 40 cosmic-ray recording stations all
over the world produced useful records, including, of course, the two
COSMIC RAYS FROM THE SUN—GOLD 937
important chains of stations—one belonging to the Carnegie Institu-
tion and run by Dr. Forbush, and the other by Dr. Simpson of the
University of Chicago. The great number of stations around the
globe is important if one wishes to infer the directions of the particles
before they entered the earth’s deflecting magnetic field.
There occurred another new phenomenon on this occasion. The
cosmic-ray stream was so intense that it changed the electrical prop-
erties of the upper atmosphere in a way that had never happened
before. Even on the night side of the earth low-frequency radio
communication was severely affected, and in high-latitude regions
most or all radio contact ceased. This was presumably the effect which
caused the British Admiralty to announce that it had lost contact
with a submarine in arctic waters, and had ordered a search. The
submarine was in fact quite all right, and was probably baffled also
by the absence of a reply from the Admiralty.
1OC
Tot
eee eae
J
Ficure 1.—Diagram illustrating how particles that embarked on spiral orbits of different
pitch will be delayed differently and why late arrivals will appear to come from a variety
of directions different from the main direction. The size of the earth is small compared
with the radius of the spirals.
This cosmic-ray outburst not only is an interesting event but also
it can be used to tell us something of the condition of the tenuous
gas that fills space between the sun and us. For a number of years
now, physicists and astronomers have been discussing the reasons
why they supposed very extended magnetic fields to be carried by all
the very tenuous gases in the galaxy and of course also by the some-
what denser gases of the solar system. But there has not been any
other observation that was so clear cut in indicating these fields.
Here we saw that particles that had almost certainly started their
238 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
journey at the sun arrived in the vicinity of the earth at first in the
direction from the sun—that is, after one takes into account the
local effects of the earth’s magnetism—but later on during the decline
they arrived quite certainly from other directions. Now there is no
other effect that could have deflected these fast particles from a
straight-line path except suitable’ magnetic fields in the space of the
solar system.
What are the shapes of such magnetic fields? How can one account
for the curious fact that the stream can evidently reach here in the
first place without deflection, but that the latecomers get deflected?
This and a number of other effects are at the present time under dis-
cussion. Naturally one wants to learn as much as possible about
the conditions in the solar system before one can go up and have a
look.
I have been discussing these problems with colleagues at Cornell
University, and with Dr. Hayakawa from Japan, and we conclude
that the effects would be reproduced if we supposed that the outer
corona of the sun extended to the earth, and that it retained the
streamerlike appearance. We therefore considered the propagation
of cosmic-ray particles along very elongated “streamers” of magnetic
field. The particles will then spiral around the direction of the
field, and the ones that were accidentally emitted just in the direction
will be the first to arrive; the ones that started at an angle will take
a longer path and hence arrive later. The last to arrive will then be
those that started in extremely flat spirals, and those will then appear
to arrive at the earth from directions other than that to the sun. Now
this was just what happened. On this basis we then calculate the
way in which the intensity would rise and fall, owing to the delay
effect of the spirals, and the agreement is good. There are still
some points that need further explanation, but I feel sure that we
are here learning something about the conditions in the solar system.
Much of the difficulty of the discussion would be removed if only
the sun were kind enough to give us another event of this sort. I am
certainly hoping for one. But perhaps one day this sort of thing
will be regarded as one of the hazards of space flight, for without
the protection of the thick atmosphere these effects may be quite
unhealthy. Then we shall be glad that they are so rare.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Gold PLATE 1
The sun in Ha light showing the great flare of February 23, 1956. Photograph courtesy of
- y slap )
Kodaikanal Observatory, India.
“i Ls ise | ee Age curt rs st a Ca ee ew)
Meteors’
By Frep L. WHIPPLE
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
and
Harvard College Observatory
[With six plates]
Soup Bopies from space continuously bombard the earth at a rate
of thousands of tons per day. Fortunately for the life forms on
the earth, the earth’s atmosphere serves as an admirable buffer to
protect them from this constant astronomical shellfire.
The slowest meteorites strike at a speed of 7.0 miles per second,
the speed with which the earth attracts particles that fall from rest
at great distances. The speed of faster ones depends upon their
origin and direction of motion. Bodies belonging to the solar system
travel in closed orbits around the sun at velocities up to the par-
abolic limit of 26.3 miles per second at the earth’s distance from the
sun, while the earth itself moves about the sun at a speed of 18.5
miles per second. The highest velocity of impact occurs, of course,
when one of these nearly parabolic particles strikes the earth head-on,
so that the total velocity reaches a maximum of 45 miles per second.
Figure 1 shows how the collisions occur. The fastest meteorites
tend to strike on the morning side of the earth and the slow ones
catch up on the evening side.
These meteoritic projectiles vary in size from minute particles to
very large ones, and are classed as follows: Meteoritic dust, tele-
scopic and radio meteors, photographic and visual meteors, fireballs,
detonating bolides, meteorite falls, and, finally, crater-producing
meteorites.
Meteoritic dust (see Buddhue, 1950) ranges from barely visible
specks down to microscopic objects, limits in size being set by the
sun’s ability to blow away particles about 1 micron (0.00004 inch) in
‘Revision of an article in Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific, vol. 67, pp. 367-386,
1955. Published by permission of the Society.
239
240 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
diameter. Micrometeorites are heated as they strike the earth’s upper
atmosphere, at an altitude from 1380 to 100 km., but because of the
small ratio of their mass to surface area, they can radiate away the
heat of impact fast enough to prevent heating above the melting
point of ordinary materials such as iron or silicates. Thus many
of these particles, as has been shown by Opik (1956) and the writer
(Whipple, 1950, 1951), can reach the surface of the earth without
being greatly damaged. The larger particles in coming through
the atmosphere may be melted and fused into small globules by this
process without losing much of their mass.
EARTH'S a
y;
MORNING
18.5
mi/sec
EVENING
METEOR
Figure 1.—Schematic diagram showing how meteorites collide with the earth.
Larger particles, perhaps the order of a thousandth of a gram or
greater, produce enough light by friction with the earth’s atmos-
phere to be visible as telescopic meteors and produce enough electrons
to give radar echoes as radio meteors. Both the telescopic and radio
techniques can, of course, be used to observe much brighter meteors,
and the lower limit of their sensitivity is well below that of the
naked eye. Meteors visible to the naked eye fall in the category of
visual meteors; today the extremely sensitive Super-Schmidt meteor
cameras in New Mexico can photograph nearly to the limit of naked-
eye visibility.
On certain days of the year meteors occur in showers, when the
earth happens to cross a stream of meteoric particles in space. All
METEORS—WHIPPLE 241
the meteors in a shower strike our atmosphere in parallel paths so
that all their trails, when extended backward on the sky, tend to
meet in a point, or radiant (fig. 2). The shower is then named for the
constellation in which the radiant appears. Some meteor streams are
uniformly dense so that when the earth crosses their orbit we can
always count on a good display—for example, the Perseid meteors
APPARENT
RADIANT
'S_ SURFACE
OBSERVER
Figure 2.—Trails and radiant of a meteor shower. Above the atmosphere the parallel
dashed lines show the real paths of the meteors Ay, Az, and As3; solid lines show their
apparent paths. In the atmosphere the arrows AB show the real meteor paths, and the
arrows AC show the paths as they appear to the observer.
from August 9-14, and many bright Geminid meteors on Decem-
ber 12-13. Occasionally, as on October 9, 1946, meteors seem to
fall almost like rain, occurring as frequently as one a second.
As we consider larger and larger bodies we find that with increasing
size they penetrate more deeply into the earth’s atmosphere and appear
as brighter and brighter meteors. If a meteor is bright enough to
produce a flash of light that illuminates buildings at night or pro-
duces shadows, it is called a fireball. I it is accompanied by a de-
242 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
layed rumbling, caused by its breaking up in the lower atmosphere, it
is called a detonating bolide. For these larger bodies the atmosphere
is less effective as a shield, so that. sizable pieces of these celestial
cannonballs survive the atmospheric friction and fall to the ground.
These fragments we call meteorites, which we collect and preserve
in our museums as our only tangible samples of the great universe
that exists beyond the earth’s atmosphere. Perhaps we are fortunate
that this sampling rate is so low; otherwise more of us would suffer
the rare and undesirable experience of Mrs. Hodges in Alabama,
who, on November 30, 1955, was injured when a meteorite penetrated
her house and struck her on the hip.
The collection of meteorites in the Smithsonian Institution is one
of the largest and most valuable in the world. These rare specimens
are continuously used by scientists in their attempts not only to
discover the origin and history of the meteorites themselves, but also
to understand the general laws of supervelocity ballistics involved
in the meteor’s course through the earth’s atmosphere. (See pl. 1.)
For bodies even larger than the average meteorite, the earth’s
atmosphere finally ceases to be an effective barrier. Thus irons or
stones weighing hundreds of tons or more are affected scarcely at all
in falling through the earth’s atmosphere. They plow into the
ground at supersonic speeds and explode, to produce immense craters.
These explosions are literally like those made by huge bombs because
of the enormous kinetic energy of the meteorite. The extremely
rapid motion endows each pound of the meteorite with much more
energy than that contained in a pound of the most powerful chemical
explosive. This energy is instantly released when the earth’s surface
stops the meteorite. A crater-forming meteorite of atomic-bomb
energy fell in the general region of Vladivostok in 1947 and produced
a great many craters over a large area of ground. In 1908 an even
larger fall, of greater than H-bomb energy, occurred near Pultusk
in Siberia. It leveled the trees radially from the point of impact
for some 50 miles.
No huge craters have been formed by meteorites in historic times,
but the great Barringer meteor crater in Arizona, now some 600 feet
deep and nearly a mile across, represents the greatest of such celes-
tial visitations in the United States (see Nininger, 1952). The
largest meteorite crater in the world is probably the one in the New
Quebec (Ungava) area in Canada and is nearly 3 miles in diameter.
The crater is now an almost perfectly round bowl, partially filled
with water to form a beautiful lake, standing unique in a great
area of granite that was once covered by glaciers.
The geological evidence proves that even more powerful celestial
bombing has been directed toward the earth in past geological periods
METEORS—WHIPPLE 243
than these craters suggest. The Harvard geologist Daly (1947)
gives convincing evidence that the great Vredefort dome in South
Africa was once a meteorite crater some 50 miles in diameter. In
the hundreds of millions of years since it was formed the crater
has been filled by sediments, tilted over at a considerable angle, and
its edge greatly eroded. Many astronomers suspect that such fossil
craters on the earth are “blood relatives” to the great craters that
we see on the moon. Baldwin (1949) has strongly supported this
view in his book, and scientific evidence is accumulating to support
his theory.
The great meteorite craters and the meteorites themselves present
a myriad fascinating problems. Since I cannot do even summary
justice to both meteorites and meteors I must regretfully abandon
the former and discuss meteors alone in the remainder of this ar-
ticle. Before leaving the subject of meteorites, however, I must
mention that the majority of meteoriticists favor the theory that
many or most of the meteorites originated in two or (many?) more
small or minor planets, which have mutually collided and broken
up to form both the asteroids and the meteorites. A cometary origin,
as we shall see, is indicated for most of the smaller bodies that pro-
duce the usual visual and subvisual meteors. Thus the sources of
meteors and meteorites still constitute a major area of research.
For nearly a century, since Schiaparelli (1871) identified the
Perseid meteor shower as being associated with the comet of 1862-ITI,
astronomers have accepted a cometary origin for recurrent meteor
streams. At the same time, most investigators have agreed that
broken fragments of small planets must contribute to the sporadic
meteors, those that do not appear in showers. There have, however,
been great disagreement and much discussion as to whether some
of the meteorites and some of the meteors may not be visitors from
interstellar space rather than from our solar system. To distinguish
interstellar from solar-system meteors we need only measure their
speeds and trajectories through the atmosphere. After correcting
for the resistance of the atmosphere, the rotation and attraction of
the earth, and the earth’s motion about the sun, we can calculate the
meteor’s original speed and its orbit about the sun. If the speed
was less than 26.3 miles per second, the orbit was closed, i. e., ellipti-
cal, and the body belonged to the solar system. If the speed exceeded
26.3 miles per second, the orbit was open or hyperbolic, and the body
came from out among the stars.
The visual methods, unfortunately, have not been adequate to settle
this long-standing controversy over the origin of meteors. Even
though extremely sensitive and quick in detecting faint fast-moving
meteors, the eye is not an accurate measuring device for determining
the precise geometry either of altitudes or of angular velocities across
244 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the sky. Within recent years the photographic method has been
developed to a high level of sensitivity with its natural accompani-
ment of extreme precision in the measurement of heights, trajectories,
and velocities. Even more recently an entirely new technique, the
measurement of radio reflections by radar methods, has become a vital
tool in the study of meteors.
EAK
O FIRST i METEOR
err) aii
—_—
1) AKINUM \ ee
—_—
STATION A STATION B
Ficure 3.—Diagram showing a meteor photographed simultaneously from stations A and
B; the circle represents a common point on both photographs of the trail.
Let us begin with the photographic techniques and follow them
with a résumé of the radio techniques for studying meteors. The
first long and systematic photographic meteor program was con-
ducted by Elkin of Yale Observatory from 1893 to 1909 (see Olivier,
1937). He used two telescopes (fig. 3) and in front of each telescope
he placed a rotating shutter and recorded its speed of rotation by
means of a chronograph. Unfortunately, he used such a short base
line, about 2 miles, that the geometry of most meteor trails was
poorly determined, so that he could not obtain accurate heights,
velocities, and trajectories of meteors. In 1936 the writer initiated
a similar method (Whipple, 1938, 1940), making use of the two sta-
tions operated by the Harvard College Observatory in Cambridge,
Mass., and at Harvard, Mass., about 24 miles apart. The small Har-
vard patrol cameras at these two stations simultaneously photo-
graphed approximately half a dozen bright meteors per year.
After World War II, meteors and related upper-atmospheric
problems and supervelocity ballistics became of such interest that the
United States Naval Bureau of Ordnance supported an extensive
METEORS—WHIPPLE 245
meteor program at the Harvard College Observatory. This support
made possible the design and construction of special cameras. James
G. Baker designed the Super-Schmidt meteor camera (see pl. 2)
and the Perkin Elmer Corporation constructed six of these remark-
able instruments, two for the Naval Bureau of Ordnance, two for
the United States Air Force, and two for the Dominion Observatory
of Canada. Four of these cameras have been operated in New Mexico
for the past several years by the Harvard College Observatory, sup-
ported by the Office of Naval Research and the United States Air
Force, while the work of reducing the data has also been supported
by the United States Army, Office of Ordnance Research.
The Baker Super-Schmidt camera has the unique optical design
shown in figure 4: the aperture is 1214 inches and the focal length
only 8 inches, which gives the amazingly fast focal ratio of F/0.65.
The effective focal ratio, including the obstruction by the photo-
graphic film, is still F/0.85. Along with this remarkable speed the
instrument has a field diameter of some 55° without the rotating
shutter, reduced to 53° by the shutter, which is supported inside the
second glass shell and which revolves only about an eighth of an
inch away from the spherical surface of the film. The film itself con-
stituted a considerable problem because the emulsion has to rest on
a spherical surface with an accuracy of 0.0005 inch and with a radius
of curvature of only 8 inches. A process of molding photographic
film, suggested by the Eastman Kodak Co., has been developed at
Harvard, so that various types of blue-sensitive and panchromatic
emulsions can be satisfactorily heated and molded to this high curva-
ture without serious fogging or appreciable changes in the sensitivity
of the emulsion.
Plate 3 shows an example of a meteor doubly photographed with
the Super-Schmidt meteor cameras at two stations. The breaks
in the trails were introduced by the shutter, which revolves at the
rate of 1,800 r. p. m. and cuts off the light for 34 of each shutter cycle.
During the open part of the cycle, which occurs each Y%q of a second,
a segment of the meteor trail is photographed.
Without the shutter to reduce the over-all exposure time, on a moon-
less night in New Mexico we would be limited to only 2 to 3 minutes
instead of the 8 to 12 minutes which we can now use effectively.
Plate 4 shows a photograph of the Organ Mountains in the neigh-
borhood of Las Cruces, N. Mex., made with a 2-second exposure
at midnight, with full moon. The circle in the center of the photo-
graph is produced by the supporting hole for the rotating shutter
and not by the moon.
Since 1952, some 6,000 meteors have been doubly photographed
by these cameras in New Mexico. The photographs provide a sur-
prisingly large quantity of information about meteoric phenomena
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
246
‘glowed JOs}OUI IpIMysg-1odng Jayeg 243 Jo sado ay Jo usIsaq—
VS3NV9 YOSISN LOINHOS-Y3sdNS 3HL
ZOVSUNS DwBHdSY
p UNI
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Whipple PLATE 1
A stony meteorite from the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, found in Bennet
County, South Dakota, 1934.
PLATE 2
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Whipple
“BIOUIBD 1Od}9U IprurYydg-iadng Jsayxeg ey],
PLATE 3
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Whipple
OSTXoT\V Mo
N Ur suolejs OM} ulOT
Ajsnoourjnuris opru JOMOYS Ploslod & JO SU
{deis0j0yd om 7,
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Whipple PLATE 4
The Organ Mountains near Las Cruces, N. Mex., photographed with a 2-second exposure
at midnight, in full moonlight, by a Super-Schmidt camera. The center circle was
produced by the support from the rotating shutter, not by the moon.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Whipple PLATE 5
1, A persistent meteor train. Multiple photographs at the intervals of 2 seconds show the
fading and distortion. (J. R. Coultis.)
2. Record of radio pulses from a meteor. (J. G. Davies, Jodrell Bank, England.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Whipple PLATE 6
The solar corona photographed by Harvard during the 1937 solar eclipse.
METEORS—WHIPPLE 247
in the atmosphere. We can determine the path of the meteor with
an error of only a few feet, its velocity with an error of less than one
part in a thousand, and measure its deceleration, caused by the re-
sistance of the atmosphere, to a significant accuracy at several points
along the longer trails. Dr. L. G. Jacchia, who has been in charge
of the reduction and analysis of the data, finds that the faster meteors
enter the atmosphere at an altitude of about 75 miles, and generally
die out by an altitude of 50 miles. Some of the slowest meteors are
first photographed well below 50 miles altitude and the largest of
these has been followed down to an altitude of about 25 miles. The
faster meteors are scarcely slowed down at all by the resistance of
the atmosphere, but their surface rapidly disintegrates under the
heat or friction of the atmosphere. When the meteor disappears
practically nothing remains of its original mass, although the final
particle is still moving at only a slightly reduced velocity. Some of
the very slowest meteors move at speeds of only 7 to 8 miles per
second; in one case only could we trace the meteor’s speed down to
about 5 miles per second.
In considering the large amount of light and heat generated by
these small bodies as they pass through the earth’s atmosphere, we
must remember that their original kinetic energy corresponds to many
times that of an equal mass of a high explosive such as TNT.
Hence the energy of friction is adequate to remove and destroy the
body before the remaining nucleus can be much slowed down by
atmospheric resistance.
Among some 500 photographic meteors that have now been analyzed
for velocities and orbits, we find no certain cases of meteors moving
in hyperbolic orbits. That is, there are no meteors that certainly
originated from interstellar space. If they exist, they must constitute
not more than 1 percent of the total number of photographic meteors
observed. Furthermore, the writer has shown that at least 90 per-
cent of the photographic meteors pursue orbits similar to those of
comets of both long and short period. If any average naked-eye
meteors come from a broken planet the number does not exceed 10
percent of the total number observed and probably is less than 1 per-
cent. Figure 5 shows the distribution of comet and meteor orbits ar-
ranged according to an arbitrary criterion, A, introduced by the
writer (Whipple, 1954). The quantity X is defined as follows:
K=logn(;4-)—1 (1)
where q’ is the aphelion distance in astronomical units and eé is the
orbital eccentricity. The logarithmic quantity is the inverse square
of the aphelion velocity.
Out of 1,600 known asteroids only 3 give positive values of the K
criterion while some 13 of the shorter period comets give negative
248 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
values, as seen in figure 5. Approximately 10 percent of the sporadic
and shower meteors have negative values of A, indicating the possi-
bility, but not the certainty, that they may be of asteroidal origin.
Orbital inclination is highly correlated with A in the sense that small
values of HX are associated with orbits of low inclination. Figures 6
and 7 show the orbits of some meteors, both sporadic and in streams,
as determined photographically at Harvard.
Meteors
joo COMES
— — — Asteroids
FREQUENCY OF K CRITERION
Ficure 5.—The frequency of the criterion K among meteors, comets, and asteroids.
Although 21 meteor streams could be recognized from the first 144
photographic meteors, only 15 streams in all are yet certainly identi-
fied with individual comets. Only a few of these identifications have
been made photographically. Twelve streams and their definite iden-
tifications with comets are indicated in table 1. The extensive discus-
sion of comets, orbits, and meteor streams by Porter (1952) is highly
recommended to those who are interested in the details of these
relationships.
Perhaps the most interesting of these associations is that between
the Taurid meteors of October and November and Encke’s comet,
the comet of shortest period, 3.8 years. The individual meteoric
bodies in this stream are so widely distributed about the orbit of
Comet Encke that the meteors can be seen to enter the earth’s at-
mosphere from two moving radiants, one below the plane of the
earth’s orbit and one above it. Gravitational disturbances, or pertur-
bations, by Jupiter have so distributed the orientation of the various
orbits that an extraordinarily large volume of space is filled by par-
ticles that have been ejected from Comet Encke. Figure 8 shows the
orbital shapes for both Encke’s comet and the Taurid meteors.
Whipple and Hamid (1951) have shown that some of these particles
METEORS—WHIPPLE 249
were ejected from the comet approximately 5,000 years ago and
another group more recently, about 1,300 years ago. It is not entirely
clear whether these ejections represent unusually rapid disintegra-
tions of the comet at those times, possibly by asteroidal collisions, or
whether the perturbing action of Jupiter has been such as to make
it possible for us now to observe only those meteors that were ejected
at those two times. The latter hypothesis appears to be the more
likely.
TABLE 1.—Comets and associated meteor streams
Orbital elements
Comet stream q P
(A. U.) | (yrs.)
é ® 2 0 w
JEON Sie: Sy, eee ees 0. 921 415 0. 983 | 213°4 29°9 79°8 | 243°4
Rromids pes oN 2 0.918 | >50 0. 969 | 213.9 31. 8 79.9 | 245. 6
STO S0 40) Gl at, a 0. 587 76.0 | O: 967 | 111. 7 57. 3 | 162)-27 | 169,0
nm Aquarids
Ornionidss22 52222) se 0. 542 21.4 | 0. 930 86. 8 29.8 | 168.2 } 116.5
ODMR Chee pei eS 1. 159 Gal ONG54) | 70) 4 94. 3 Mls ef |) Gx
June Draconids
Isp 49 0 ne 0. 963 1MONGs | ROLOCOR lo 2NSaiealS 7p om ell aiGmle 290) 2
Per serge. sae 0. 951 Mas 1 0S Gyaysy |] ass 2) TSK aL i) TGS 7/1) GO), &
NOGA Gs Vins Mee ce nae 0. 996 6:6 |) OF 72 INL, teh ti TYAS, BY 30. 7 8.1
October Draconids
TOGO ae et 0. 338 3. 30 | 0. 847 | 185.2 | 334.7 12.4 | 159.9
“Wbeivenoks) (GN))o ae oee 0. 320 3.13 | 0. 849 | 298.4 | 221.8 3h 4 |) GO,
eRaTiGse(S) eee 0. 372 3.49 | 0.8385 | 111.9 45. 1 5.4 | 156.9
Arietids (S)__.____-: 0. 296 264 | OU S45 2282 27.2 6.0 | 149.5
B Taurids (Day)
¢ Perseids (Day)
SG Gl Ae ee 0. 977 BB) 0.905 | 171.0 | 231.4 | 162. 7 42. 4
eonidse. esas 0. 985 SD 0.918 | 173. 7 | 235.0 | 162.5 48. 7
NSS 2s es oe os 0. 861 6. 6 0. 756 | 228.3 | 245.9 12.6 | 109.1
Andromedids a4 = oe u as GAGs Aiea Soe Rt | eae yt | Oe a es ell ees el
Meets SANE LIS SEs 2 0.190 | 145.3 0. 993 | 121.3 87. 5 SPA | Pols 33
Monocerotids-____-_-_- OMIUS6) (see ee 1. 002 | 128. 2 81. 6 35.2 | 209.9
GS OP Xee rie Sl ok 1. 022 13. 6 0. 821 | 207.0 | 269.8 54.7 | 116.8
(Ursids2 2h itt Son 0. 915 14. 37 | 0.845 | 212.2 | 264.6 52.5 | 116.8
Orbital elements for the comets: Baldet and de Obaldia (1952).
Orbital elements for the meteor streams: Whipple (1954).
250 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Ficure 6.—The orbits of two sporadic meteors and two streams of the Virginid shower,
with the orbits of the asteroids Icarus and Apollo for comparison.
Figure 7.—The orbits of three 6-Aquarid meteors (¢=0.07 A. U.)
METEORS—WHIPPLE PAS |
Probably a comet ejects meteoric material continuously, at least
every revolution near the time of perihelion passage. It is an inter-
esting commentary on these conclusions that the Taurid meteor stream
had been first identified as'a hyperbolic meteor stream by earlier
investigators.
Our measures of the detailed meteoric photographic processes give
us added information concerning the nature of the bodies that pro-
duce the ordinary visual or photographic meteors. Jacchia (1955)
showed that the irregular bursts in the light curves of some meteors
were accompanied by a shortening of the lifetimes. He concluded
that bursts in these meteors represent a rapid disintegration or frag-
mentation of the meteoric body at irregular intervals along their
trails.
DIRECTION OF
VERNAL EQUINOX
ORBIT OF
THE EARTH
ORBIT OF
JUPITER
ORBIT OF
ENCKE'S COMET
Ficure 8.—The orbits of Encke’s comet, and of three meteors of the associated northern
Taurid shower that struck the earth’s atmosphere on the dates shown,
Measurements of the slowing down of meteors, or atmospheric
resistance, lead to the determination, for each meteor, of the quantity,
surface-frontal-area divided by the mass. A knowledge of the at-
mospheric density, now provided by rocket techniques, enables us
to determine the quantity mp? where m is the mass of the meteoric
body and pm its density. If we knew the amount of light that should
be produced by a given meteoric mass at a given velocity we could
immediately calculate, from the light curve and the velocity meas-
urements, the initial mass of the body. Unfortunately, the theoret-
ical determination of this so-called luminous efficiency is not yet
252 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
possible. Thus, in the meteoric problem, we find relationships that
involve the mass, the density, and the luminous efficiency, but we
cannot determine any one of these quantities separately. Knowledge
of any one, on the other hand, would lead us immediately to accurate
determinations of the other two quantities for observed meteors.
Since there is every reason to believe that the energy available for
light production cannot exceed the original kinetic energy of the
body, an upper limit to the density of the meteoroid and a lower
limit to its mass can be approximated. The writer found (Whipple,
1955a) from such calculations that the densities of meteoric bodies
must be of the order of unity, the density of water, or less.
Recently, Allan F. Cook and the writer have developed a technique
(see Whipple, 1955c) for measuring the masses of meteors. We meas-
ure the motions in persistent meteor trains, the faint light left along
the trails of fast bright meteors after the body has passed. Photo-
graphs of such trains, made by opening and moving the Super-
Schmidt meteor cameras at 2-second intervals after bright meteors
had passed, make it possible to measure winds in the high atmosphere
(see pl. 5, fig. 1). In one case of a multiple-photographed double-
station train, it was possible to measure the forward or coasting
momentum of the meteoric gases and trapped air masses. This first
result indicates that the density of a meteor is as low as 0.05
gm/cm’ or 4p the density of water.
If a body is much less dense than water but is still made of ordinary
earthy materials, one would expect it to be exceedingly porous and,
therefore, exceedingly fragile. McCrosky (1955), who has been study-
ing the fragmentation problem in photographic meteors, finds that
among the faint meteors some 20 percent become luminous almost
instantly instead of increasing their light gradually as the well-
behaved meteor does. He concludes that these bodies must become
visible because of sudden fragmentation of the entire meteoric mass.
He finds indeed that this fragmentation occurs at a nearly constant
pressure introduced by the resistance of the atmosphere, a pressure
of only one-third of a pound per square inch. Many of the meteoric
masses are so fragile that a block a foot or two in height would crush
at the bottom under its own weight, at normal gravity.
Thus we have evidence that meteoric bodies from comets are ex-
tremely fragile, of low density, and, therefore, very porous. This
conclusion is to be expected from the writer’s hypothesis (Whipple,
1953) concerning the nature of the comets from which this debris
has been ejected. According to this theory, the nucleus of a comet
is a conglomerate of interstellar or interplanetary dust formed from
gases at a temperature of only a few degrees absolute, perhaps when
the sun and planets were formed. Cometary activity is then the result
METEORS—WHIPPLE 253
of solar heating that vaporizes ices at the surface of the cometary
nucleus. ‘These ices include ordinary ice from water, solid ammonia,
possibly even solid methane, and other compounds of carbon, nitrogen,
and oxygen with hydrogen.
The remaining meteoritic material, made of the heavier, less volatile
compounds in the original dust, must remain very loosely cemented.
Most of this material is fragmented into extremely fine particles by
the cometary ejection process, but a smal] amount of it holds together
sufficiently well to form the cometary streams of meteors and the
sporadic meteors from comets.
One would expect, on the basis of typical cosmic abundances, that
the initial cometary nucleus might be about the density of water and
that the final density of the meteoritic material might be the order
of one-third the density of water. On the other hand, it is very likely
that the initial dust in space consists of extremely porous masses, com-
parable to low-density smoke particles observed from artificial sources.
Hence the cometary nucleus itself can be of very low mean density,
and the final meteoritic fragments even more porous and rare. It
is not certain whether we shall be able to recover such fragile frag-
ments on the surface of the earth, because of their violent interaction
with the earth’s atmosphere. Tiny ones may come through without
being seriously damaged.
While the photographic method of studying meteors was being
perfected, a radically different and powerful technique came into
use. Chamanlal and Venkataraman (1941), of India, heard whistles
from continuous-wave radio transmitters, audible simultaneously
with the occurrence of bright meteors. Pierce (1938) at Harvard
and Hey (see Hey and Stewart, 1947) at Cambridge, England, work-
ing with a pulse transmitter and receiver on the same frequency,
observed transient echoes from meteors. A number of investigators
rapidly developed methods for detecting the ionization, or electron
columns, produced as meteoric bodies plunge through the earth’s
atmosphere. The methods fundamentally depend upon the fact that
the electromagnetically vibrating waves from radio transmitters set
the individual electrons into synchronous vibration. The electrons,
because of this induced vibration, act as independent transmitters
and send out radio waves of the same frequency. Thus a column
of electrons effectively reflects a radio wave as the electrons along
the column resonate in phase with the initial radiation. The reflec-
tion 1s much like that of light from a shiny cylinder.
Without becoming involved in the complexity of electronic tech-
niques we can understand, qualitatively, one of the most useful meth-
ods of tracking meteors by radio, and of determining meteoric veloci-
ties. In figure 9 we see that as the ionization trail of the meteor
254 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
progresses through the atmosphere, re-radiation (reflection) from the
electrons in the trail occurs along its entire length to the head of the
meteor. A relatively wide antenna beam can cover the entire trail.
At an early part of the trail, say point a in figure 9, the distances from
the radio transmitter to the successive positions along the trail and
back to the receiver will vary rapidly as we move along the trail.
Hence the returning waves will be successively in and out of phase be-
cause the radio wavelength, only a few meters, is very small compared
to the distance, 100 or more kilometers. Little “reflected” radiation,
therefore, will reach the receiver when we add up the contributions
for an appreciable distance along the trail.
“73
By
£0
p
yy
ay
TRANSMITTER
RECEIVER. fF Seehe)
GROUND
Ficure 9.—Schematic diagram showing the geometry of radio echoes reflected from the
ionization trail of a meteor.
As the meteor approaches the so-called reflection point of the trail,
where the line from the radio to the trail meets it at perpendicular
incidence, we see that a considerable length of the trail will be at
almost the same distance from the radio transmitter. Echoes from
this region will return to the receiver in phase and add up to produce
a perceptible signal. The problem of the theoretical signal strength
of the received echo, as the meteoric body moves along the trail, was
in reality solved more than 100 years ago by Fresnel, who calculated
the effect of such phase phenomena for light scattered by a line.
The resulting signal strength as a function of distance along the
trail is shown in plate 5, figure 2. The echo grows in intensity as
the reflection point is reached, then increases beyond this value to a
maximum in a very short time; then as it slowly fades out it oscillates
METEORS—WHIPPLE Zoo
in strength with increasing distance from the reflection point. For
a specified wavelength of the radio waves, such a curve yields the
angular velocity of the meteor at a point where it passes perpendicular
to the line of radio sight.
Ordinary radar techniques with pulses measure the time required
for the radio signal to travel from the transmitter to the trail and
back to the receiver again, and hence the distance to the reflection
point. The angular velocity coupled with the distance then deter-
mines the true spatial velocity of the growing ion column, and there-
fore of the meteoric body in its trajectory. This method and similar
related methods for measuring meteor velocities were developed
chiefly by scientists in England. (See Davies and Ellyett, 1949;
Manning, Villard, and Peterson, 1949; Hey, Parsons, and Stewart,
1947; McKinley, 1951; and Lovell, 1954.)
From more than 10,000 measurements of meteoric velocities, Mc-
Kinley (1951) concludes that the velocities determined even from
very faint radio meteors, somewhat below naked-eye visibility, do
not indicate a statistically significant number of hyperbolic veloci-
ties, beyond the parabolic limit of 72 km./sec. Similarly, Almond,
Davies, and Lovell (1953) at Manchester, England, come to the same
conclusion from a more detailed analysis of fewer meteors, observed
from radiants near the apex of the earth’s motion in the early morning
hours, and from the antapex direction in the early evening hours. At
present, no clear evidence for the existence of any hyperbolic meteors
has been found by radio-meteor astronomers. The general uncer-
tainties in the methods of observation, however, permit the possibility
that as many as one-half of 1 percent of the total might come from
outer space.
The radio technique is capable of detecting meteors whose lumi-
nosity is 100 times fainter than that of meteors we can detect visually.
The radio and photographic results are in full agreement and indicate
that at least 99.5 percent of all the observed meteors are certainly
members of the solar system.
A method of determining the radiant points of meteor streams by
means of radio echoes was developed by Clegg (1948). Later Aspi-
nall, Clegg, and Hawkins (1951) carried out a continuous survey
of stream radiants using twin antenna beams. Radio echoes were
obtained in turn in each antenna, as the earth rotated, and the time
of appearance of long-range echoes gave the time of transit and
declination of the radiant.
An extremly important property of the radio technique was first
demonstrated when Hey and Stewart (1947) discovered extremely
dense meteor streams in the daylight hours, particularly in May,
June, and July. Thus the radio technique has the enormous advan-
256 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
tage over the photographic that it can operate for 24 hours of the
day regardless of sunlight, moonlight, or other sky illuminations. It
is interesting that one of the daylight streams, according to the results
of Clegg, Hughes, and Lovell (1947) turns out to be a recurrence of
the Taurid meteor stream contributed by Encke’s comet. In a sense,
the writer predicted the existence of this stream (Whipple, 1939),
although in 1939 he had no premonition that radio techniques might
eventually be developed to observe it. It seemed quite likely, how-
ever, that bright fireballs from the other intersection of the Taurid
stream with the earth’s orbit might be seen emanating from the
general direction of the sun.
Davies of Manchester has recently developed a most remarkable
method for using radio techniques, to measure not only the velocity
of a meteor, but also its trajectory and spatial orbit. Davies’ method
depends upon simultaneous observations from three stations, and pro-
vides meteor velocities and orbits for particles several times smaller
than those visible to the eye. He finds that these smaller bodies move
in orbits that are smaller and more nearly circular than those of the
larger photographic meteors. The explanation of this observation
will bring us around, full circle, to the problems of the micrometeorites.
Van de Hulst (1947) and Allen (1947) have demonstrated that
micrometeorites are sufficiently numerous near the plane of the earth’s
orbit to scatter most of the sunlight seen in the zodiacal light, the
twilight glow along the zodiac near sunrise or sunset. They find also
that along the line of sight near to the sun these small particles diffract
the sunlight and scatter it sufficiently to form an appreciable fraction
of the solar corona (see pl. 6). The corona, of course, consists also
of sunlight scattered by electrons as well as extremely strong bright
lines from the million-degree gases in the sun’s huge extended atmos-
phere. From his calculation of the scattering and diffracting power
of the micrometeorites near the plane of the earth’s orbit in space,
van de Hulst estimates that some 10,000 tons of this fine dust
should fall on the earth per day. He also concludes that most of the
dust particles are smaller than 0.03 cm. (0.01 inch) in diameter. This
estimate of the total fall on the earth is more than 1,000 times greater
than Watson’s (1941) earlier estimate based upon the infall of larger
pieces of meteoritic material. Some direct substantiation of van de
Hulst’s conclusion, however, is given by the fact that noises of meteoric
impact on high altitude rockets have been recorded by Bohn and
Nadig (1950), of Temple University, and by Berg and Meredith
(1956), of the Naval Research Laboratory.
Pettersson and Rotschi (1950, 1952) find also that deep-sea oozes
contain appreciable quantities of nickel which may possibly derive
from this interplanetary dust.
METEORS—WHIPPLE 257
The writer (Whipple, 1955b, 1955c) has recently shown that a
few tons of cometary dust injected into the solar system each second
would be adequate to maintain the zodiacal light indefinitely. The
particles are continuously lost by collisions among themselves, by the
gravitational effects of the planets, particularly Jupiter, by the inter-
stellar wind produced by the sun’s motion through the interstellar
gas, by the action of sunlight according to the Poynting-Robertson
effect, and by corpuscular radiation from the sun in the form of out-
going hydrogen protons. Opik (1956) has shown that the extended
solar corona also adds drag to these little particles. The three latter
effects cause the particles in the zodiacal cloud to spiral slowly in to-
ward the sun, the rate depending upon the size of the particle. Puio-
trowsky (1953) has also shown that the grinding of the asteroids
may produce sufficient material to maintain the zodiacal cloud. At
the moment it is not possible to distinguish certainly between these
two hypotheses but other evidence suggests that the cometary source
is much the more important. Observational and theoretical advances
should settle the question definitively within the next few years.
Now we can bring together, to complete this discussion, radio me-
teors, photographic meteors, the zodiacal light, micrometeorites,
comets, and corpuscular radiation from the sun. If meteoric densi-
ties are typically as low as our single measure suggests, the discrepancy
van de Hulst (1947) found between the total influx of zodiacal parti-
cles and meteoritic masses disappears. He measured the integrated
dimensions of the interplanetary matter rather than its mass; hence
a low density would reduce his estimate many times. Furthermore,
the low density would increase the older estimate of the total
meteoritic masses, and hence remove the discrepancy entirely.
The continual bombardment of meteoric debris of course constitutes
a real hazard to rockets, artificial satellites, and space vehicles, which
may be subjected to erosion or puncture. Elaborate ballistics ex-
periments and careful calculations have shown, however, that optical
surfaces exposed to space should not be affected functionally in less
than about a year, and that for the presently planned small satellites,
the rate of puncture will be, on the average, only about once
in five days.
Probably about 2,000 tons of meteoritic debris fall on the earth
from interplanetary space each day. This large mass, however, is
still quite negligible compared to that of the earth. In five million
years the total accumulation would add up to only an inch over the
entire surface.
Although some of our discussion has led beyond the borderline of
scientific certainty, I have attempted to distinguish clearly between
258 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
proven fact and hypothesis. By thus stepping over into unexplored
areas, we can see more clearly the exciting possibilities of future re-
search and, at the same time, appreciate some of the great progress
already made in this rapidly growing field of astronomy.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I am particularly grateful to Miss Frances W. Wright for the use
of table 1 and for her assistance in preparing the figures. Dr. Ger-
ald S. Hawkins has been very helpful in assisting in matters per-
taining to radio-meteor astronomy, and Mrs. Lyle Boyd and Dr.
Richard EK. McCrosky have contributed to the final manuscript.
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ALMOND, M.; Daviss, J. G.; and LovgELt, A. C. B.
1953. The velocity distribution of sporadic meteors. IV. Extension to
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ASPINALL, A.; CieacG, J. A.; and Hawkins, G. S.
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1952. Catalogue général des orbites de cométes de l’an —-466 4 1952. Paris
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1949. The face of the moon. University of Chicago Press.
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1956. Meteorite impacts to altitude of 103 kilometers. Journ. Geophys.
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1950. Researches in the physical properties of the upper atmosphere with
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BuppuHugE, J. D.
1950. Meteoritic dust. Univ. New Mexico Publ. Meteoritics, No. 2.
CHAMANLAL, and VENKATARAMAN, K.
1941. Whistling meteors—a Doppler effect produced by meteors entering
the ionosphere. Electrotechnics (Bangalore), No. 14, p. 28.
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1948. Determination of meteor radiants by observation of radio echoes from
meteor trails. Phil. Mag., vol. 39, pp. 577-594.
Ciece, J. A.; Huaues, V. A.; and Lovett, A. C. B.
1947. The daylight meteor streams of 1947 May—August. Month. Not.
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METEORS—WHIPPLE 259
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1947. Radar observations of meteors. Proc. Phys. Soc. London, vol. 59, pp.
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1955. The physical theory of meteors. VIII. Fragmentation as a cause of
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1954. Meteor astronomy. Oxford.
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1955. Some physical and statistical studies of meteor fragmentation.
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1952. Out of the sky. University of Denver Press.
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1987. Results of the Yale photographic meteor work, 1893-1909. Astron.
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Opix, BE. J.
1956. Interplanetary dust and terrestrial accretion of meteoric matter.
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1950. Nickel content of deep-sea deposits. Nature, vol. 166, p. 308.
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PIERCE, J. A.
1938. Abnormal ionization in the E region of the ionosphere. Proc. Inst.
Radio Hng., vol. 26, p. 892.
PrioTrowsky, S. L.
1958. The collisions of asteroids. Acta Astronomica, vol. 5, pp. 115-136.
Porter, J. G.
1952. Comets and meteor streams. New York.
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1871. Entwurf einer Astronomischen Theorie der Sternschnuppen. Stettin.
VAN DE Huzst, H. C.
1947. Zodiacal light in the solar corona. Astrophys. Journ., vol. 105, pp.
471-488.
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1941. Between the planets. Philadelphia.
260 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
WHIPPLE, F. L.
1938. Photographic meteor studies I. Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., vol. 79,
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1939. Upper atmosphere densities and temperatures from meteor observa-
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1940. Photographic meteor studies III. The Taurid meteor shower. Proc.
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1951. The theory of micro-meteorites. II. In heterothermal atmospheres.
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Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D. C.
The Development of the Planetarium
in the United States
By JosEpH Mites CHAMBERLAIN
Chairman, American Museum—Hayden Planetarium
New York City
[With 6 plates]
THe RECORDS of nearly every civilization contain evidence of a
fascination for the beauty of the skies. This fascination has often
led to an attempt to explain what was seen, to somehow render
understandable the complex and often confounding motions of the
stars, planets, comets, and meteors to be observed on a clear night.
The attempts to recreate these motions in a fashion that appeared
simple and immediately comprehensible led to the construction of
the planetarium.
One of the most ancient concepts of the universe that has been
recorded comes from the Egyptians. They pictured the world as
a rectangular box, with Egypt nestled among a ring of mountains
in its bottom. On a river that flowed in the mountains above and
around them was a boat which carried the sun. By night it went
behind the mountains in the west but came again into view in the
morning. The stars hung through ports from the great canopy
above—the sky. Each represented a deity. Special gods were as-
signed to the planets to control them in their complex paths among
the stars. This view of a mechanical universe was in essence a
planetarium, for even though fanciful and erroneous, it portrayed
in an understandable manner the motions of the celestial actors.
The Chaldeans developed a comparable model of the universe.
In it, the earth is something like an overturned boat in appearance,
rising gradually from the extremities to the center, like a great
mountain. At the summit of the mountain, the Euphrates River
had its source. Near the foot of the mountain, the edges of the
boat curved outward to form an impregnable wall. The oceans
formed in the resulting hollow and served as a sort of moat to
separate man from the gods. The heavens rose above the ‘‘mountain
291
262 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
of the world” in a great dome. The sun gained daily access to
the interior of the dome by way of doors in the east and west.
There have been many other attempts to depict and explain the
motions of the celestial objects. Some have been preserved for
their pure artistry, and most are evidence of a rather good com-
prehension of the mechanisms of the planets, sun, and moon. The
Farnese Globe in the National Museum at Naples is a sculpture
in white marble of Atlas supporting the world on his shoulders.
Some of the constellation figures are carved in relief on its surface,
as is the path of the sun. Dating back to 73 B. C., it is still another
early attempt to illustrate and portray the skies. Other globes,
with the Equator and the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn painted
on them, can be found to represent nearly every century of the
Christian Era.
Mechanisms showing the relative motions of the sun, moon, and
planets have been constructed at various times since the day of
Christian Huygens (1629-1695) and Roemer (1644-1710). Huygens
solved many of the mathematical problems involving the relative
motions of the planets, which are essentially the same problems
that must be solved for the gear trains of the most modern instru-
ments. In England, a device of this type was built for Charles
Boyle, the fourth Earl of Orrery (1676-1731), and was named for
him. The name “orrery” is still used to apply to such pieces of
apparatus. These machines usually consisted of a series of globes
to represent the various objects in the solar system. Each globe
was supported by a metal rod, and interrelated by the gearing at
the central pedestal. Some undertook to reproduce the planetary
satellites, properly relating their motions to those of the planets.
Their complexity can be readily appreciated.
One of the most elegant of these orreries was on exhibit for several
years at the Fels Planetarium of the Franklin Institute in Philadel-
phia. Known as the Rittenhouse Orrery, it was built for use at the
College of Philadelphia in the early part of the nineteenth century.
It was a remarkable device because of its accuracy in representing the
Keplerian motion of the planets. Both the Fels Planetarium and the
Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science in Pittsburgh ex-
hibit the modern counterpart of these orreries. It is the planetarium
built by M. Sendtner of Munich, and in addition to the planet repre-
sentation it has the advantage that the observer may look through
one glass surface of an enclosing sphere and look on the opposite sur-
face to see the stars in their natural formations.
Still another variation to the orrery or planetarium was constructed
in 1913 for the Deutsches Museum in Munich. It is a model of the
solar system according to Copernicus. The distinguishing features
are its size and its earth orientation.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 263
Attached to the center of the ceiling of a room almost 40 feet in
diameter is the sun globe. It is about 10 inches in diameter and con-
tains a 300-watt light bulb which is the source of light for the entire
room. The planets Mercury, Venus, the earth, Mars, Jupiter, and
Saturn are represented by balls with diameters of from about 1.6
inches to about 8 inches. They move in orbits around the sun with
speeds proportionate to their natural velocities. The earth com-
pletes a year in about 12 minutes.
The earth orientation derives from the carriage to which the earth
ball is attached, and which moves around with it. An observer rid-
ing in the carriage, seeing the planets through a periscope as lighted
by the “sun” against the constellations painted on the walls of the
room, can readily appreciate the similarity to nature’s planet family.
In effect, he has seen an artificial sky that aims to reproduce the skies
as seen from the earth. Of course, all comparative sizes and dis-
tances are distorted, and only one observer at a time can be carried
on the earth carriage.
Another type of planetarium gives a somewhat superior reproduc-
tion of the skies to a few more viewers. One of the oldest examples is
known as the Gottorp Globe. Finished in the 1660’s, it was a sphere
11 feet in diameter, weighing 314 tons, and so constructed that about
12 persons could enter it, stand on a platform within it, and see the
sky as viewed from the earth rather than from space beyond the
earth. The Gottorp Globe had a typical map of the sky on its inner
surface, and many stars were represented. Originally it was driven
by waterpower to rotate once every 24 hours.
Roger Long, professor of astronomy at Cambridge, constructed an
“Astronomical Machine” in the eighteenth century which was quite
similar in basic design to the Gottorp Globe. Its interior platform
accommodated about 30 people, and the stars were represented by
holes punched into the 18-foot sphere. A light representing the sun
could be moved along the proper path to simulate the sun’s motion.
The twentieth-century version of these globes was constructed in
1911 for the Chicago Academy of Sciences after a design by Dr.
Wallace W. Atwood, president of Clark University. It was 15 feet
in diameter and electrically driven. Motions of both the sun and
moon could be demonstrated.
Before the outbreak of World War I, Dr. Oskar von Miller, cre-
ator and director of the Deutsches Museum, approached the Zeiss firm
regarding the construction of a planetarium that would show the
movements of the heavenly bodies according to the Ptolemaic system
on the interior of a hemispherical dome in the same manner as they
appear to an observer on the earth. The first idea considered was to
represent the stars by small electric bulbs attached to the dome, which
451800—58——_18
264 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
would have to be rotated around an axis parallel to the earth’s axis.
The sun, moon, and planets were to be represented by illuminated
disks driven by a suitable gearing in such a way that the epicycle
orbits of the objects would be truly represented. It soon became evi-
dent that it was impossible to solve the problem in this manner, and
the outbreak of the war put a stop to the work.
Dr. W. Bauersfeld of the Zeiss works in Jena is credited with the
suggestion that the new instrument be a projector:
The great sphere (the planetarium dome) shall be fixed; its inner white
surface shall serve as the projection surface for many small projectors which
shall be placed at the center of the sphere. The reciprocal positions and
motions of the little projectors shall be interconnected by suitable driving
gears in such manner that the little images of the heavenly bodies, thrown
upon the fixed hemispheres, shall represent the stars visible to the naked
eye, in position and motion, just aS we are accustomed to see them in the
natural clear sky.
After hostilities, work was begun once again on a planetarium that
would incorporate all the advantages of the large globes and the
orreries—a device that would reproduce the skies of nature just as
accurately as possible.
In August of 1924, after nearly 5 years of design and construction
in the famous Zeiss plant in Jena, the first modern planetarium instru-
ment was produced. The illusion of reality surpassed the expectations
of von Miller and even the Zeiss people themselves.
The prototype instrument was limited in latitude motion and had
only one spherical star projector, but these faults were corrected.
Soon, the dumbbell-shaped device, which has since become synonymous
with popular astronomy lecturing, was in production. Twenty-five
of these later models were built ; most of them were installed in Europe,
and six have been erected in the United States:
Planetarium Location Date of opening
Adier, Planetarium .h2) S22 eee Bee Chitaros ssi Se May 10, 1930
Fels, Planetarium. 2.22% 2505224628028 Philadelphia=—- 22225 Nov. 1, 19383
Griffith Observatory and Planetarium_. Los Angeles__-------- May 14, 1935
American Museum-—Hayden Planetar- New York----------- Oct. 2, 1935
ium.
Buh] Planetarium and Institute of Popu- Pittsburgh_-_--------- Oct. 24, 1939
lar Science.
Morehead Planetarium_._....-------- Chapel Hill, N. C_---- May 10, 1949
The projection apparatus that resulted is a weird-looking instru-
ment about 12 feet long, with a large globe at each end. These two
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 265
globes contain the projectors of the fixed stars, one globe for the
northern hemisphere of the sky, one for the southern. The lantern
slides, or diapositives, are so shaped that their images fit together
to make a complete picture of the starry heavens.
The main structure, containing all the projectors, is so mounted
that it may turn independently about any one of three axes. First,
it may turn about an axis parallel to the polar axis of the earth.
When this motion is used without other motions, the effect naturally
is to transport the images across the dome sky in exactly the same
way that the daily rotation of the earth on its axis apparently
moves the real bodies across our sky each 24 hours.
Second, the machine may rotate about an axis perpendicular to
the plane in which the earth moves about the sun. Without the
other motions in use, the effect of this is to swing the north pole
of the sky around the circle that it makes each 26,000 years with
the precessional “wobbling” of the earth’s axis. Thus one can go
backward or forward in time. For example, the lecturer can set
the instrument back some 5,000 years to 3,000 B. C. when Alpha
Draconis was our North Star. Or, by putting the instrument ahead
some 12,000 years, we see Vega marking the north pole of the
heavens, and the Southern Cross visible from the latitude of New
York. The axis of this precessional motion of the instrument inter-
sects the daily-motion axis at the center of the room.
Third, through this same intersection runs the axis for the remain-
ing motion of the machine, a horizontal one from the east to the
west point. Rotation about it transports the images on the dome
as if the viewer of the skies were traveling along a meridian of the
earth from pole to pole. This is used to demonstrate the changed
appearance of the skies from different latitudes of the earth, so
that one may go to the Land of the Midnight Sun, or to the North
Pole, and observe the apparent movement of sun, moon, and stars
from there. Or, traveling south, one may see the Magellanic
Clouds, Canopus, and the Southern Cross.
The heavy moving parts of the machine are carried on a
light but carefully built steel latticework.
The whole apparatus has several different speeds, all of which
are many times faster than the real motions. This makes it pos-
sible to condense a very jong astronomical story, so that anyone
can get a clear understanding in a few minutes of the seemingly
intricate, though actually simple, workings of the heavenly bodies.
Nearby objects such as the planets and the sun and moon, which
appear to move against the background of the stars from day to
day, are represented by separate projectors having independent
266 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
motion on the main part of the machine. In nearly all cases the
lamps are tungsten-filament electric, and are part of a projection
system that includes a condensing or light-gathering unit, a diaposi-
tive or its equivalent, and an objective or projection lens system
which focuses on the dome an image of the illuminated diapositive.
The diapositives for the star-field projectors are not photoemulsions
on glass, but pieces of copper foil with small round holes punched
in them for the stars. These punchings are varied in size in accord-
ance with the brightness of the real stars they represent. Holes
for the faintest stars are of the order of one-thousandth of an
inch in diameter. The 16 star-field projectors mounted in each ball
at the ends of the dumbbell are lighted by the one light in the center.
A further point of interest regarding the projectors is the pro-
vision made in all of them to cut off their light when they are
pointed below the horizon, thus keeping their direct light from the
eyes of the audience. In nearly all instances the occulting device
is a cup-shaped, gravity-operated shield that slowly swings into
the projection beam as the projector is tilted downward.
The prime movers for the machine are small 3-phase alternating-
current motors; reversal of phase accomplishes reversal of direction
of rotation. They are all mounted on the main moving part.
Transmission and interconnection are accomplished by gearing.
Motions that are additive are joined through planetary transmissions.
The motions and lamp circuits are all controlled remotely by
the lecturer from a switchboard in a speaker’s stand near the
wall of the room. Here on the horizontal part of the main
board are labeled switches for every motor or lamp, and rheostats
or powerstats for controlling the brightness of the lamps in use.
It might be helpful at this point to differentiate between the
planetarium as a device or training aid, as just described, and the
planetarium as an institution, its more appropriate usage in the con-
text of current-day function. All the planetariums in the United
States are organizations that serve several purposes, though the
popular program of explication in astronomy is usually the primary
mission. No matter whether the projection instrument is used or not,
one refers to the “planetarium” when speaking of the organization.
ADLER PLANETARIUM
Aside from the orreries, globes, and armillary spheres that made
their appearances in many schools and museums, the first planetarium
venture in the United States was brought to reality in Chicago. Max
Adler, a former official of Sears, Roebuck & Co., generously donated
$500,000 to the city of Chicago to purchase a Zeiss planetarium instru-
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 267
ment for that city. The dedication plaque has an inscription that
might have defined the purpose of the new enterprise:
THE ASTRONOMICAL MUBEUM AND PLANETARIUM OF CHICAGO
GIFT OF MAX ADLER
To further the progress of science
To guide an understanding of the majesty of the heavens
To emphasize that under the great celestial firmament there is order, inde-
pendence and unity
1930
Mr. Adler, in his dedication address, further amplified:
Chicago has been striving to create, and in large measure has succeeded in
creating, facilities for its citizens of today to live a life richer and more full
of meaning than was available for the citizens of yesterday...
The popular conception of the universe is too meager; the planets and the
stars are too far removed from general knowledge. In our reflections, we dwell
too little upon the concept that the world and all human endeavor within it are
governed by established order and too infrequently upon the truth that under
the heavens everything is interrelated, even as each of us to the other...
The planetarium has been the subject of praise by scientists and educators.
One of them has characterized it as “a schoolroom under the vault of heaven”
and as “a drama with the celestial bodies as actors.” ...
It is my hope that the youth of our city, and indeed of other cities, may
through this dramatization find new interests and fresh inspiration and also
that with the aid of the Planetarium and Astronomical Museum, science may
be advanced (Fox, 1932).
Thus the stage was set. The planetarium in the United States
was more than just an exhibit; it was to be an institution with several
masters to serve: education, science, pleasure, and the realm of the
spirit.
The building was designed to implement the purposes as outlined
by Mr. Adler. The largest single space is allotted to the planetarium
chamber on the second floor, and surrounding it are exhibit areas,
offices, a library, and an entrance foyer. The lower level contains a
lecture hall, shops and work space, machinery rooms, rest rooms, and
additional exhibit areas.
The attendance during the first year was 731,108—certainly evidence
of the attractiveness of the new institution. During the Chicago
World’s Fair, when the building was within the fair grounds, at-
tendance reached an all-time high of 925,156. Administratively, the
organization has been under the cognizance of the Chicago Park Dis-
trict. In practice, it has been an entity within itself, quite inde-
pendent from the District, especially where educational and scientific
policy areconcerned. It has had the further advantage of advice and
assistance from the Adler Planetarium Trust, a group of interested
laymen headed by Robert 8. Adler, son of the donor.
268 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
FELS PLANETARIUM
Shortly after the Adler Planetarium and Astronomical Museum
was opened, the announcement was made that Philadelphia would
have the privilege of being the second city in the United States to
possess a Zeiss planetarium. Samuel S. Fels, the great philanthropist
of that city, impressed with the educational value of the planetarium,
donated a large sum for the purpose. The new installation was em-
bodied in the new Franklin Memorial and the Franklin Institute
Museum. The city of Philadelphia set aside a whole city block just
a few minutes from the City Hall and adjacent to Logan Circle. The
planetarium has its home in that section of the Museum building
which is devoted to astronomy. It has a separate outside entrance
and can be operated separately from the Museum if desired.
A strong feature is the observatory. In addition to the projection
theater, there is a rooftop dome housing a 250-mm. Zeiss refracting
telescope especially fitted out for lecturing and demonstration. Many
evening performances in the dome are supplemented by a visit to the
observatory for first-hand contact with the real sky.
The Fels Planetarium has established itself through the years as a
leader in the offering of special astronomy lectures for school groups.
The Philadelphia Board of Education has had the foresight to recog-
nize the unequaled educational value of the planetarium, especially if
the lectures offered in it are integrated with the curriculum in the
schools. To facilitate the scheduling of such school groups at a time
most valuable to them with respect to their progress in science, the
Board has placed employees at the Franklin Institute. Most other
planetariums have offered similar programs for the youth of the
area they serve, but none is better planned or organized than in
Philadelphia.
GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY AND PLANETARIUM
Still another planetarium was opened to the public on May 14, 1935,
in Los Angeles, Calif. It was a present to the City of Los Angeles
provided for in the will of Col. Griffith J. Griffith. Like its prede-
cessors in Chicago and Philadelphia, it featured the Zeiss projection
planetarium, and like Chicago it was city owned and operated. Like
Philadelphia, it possessed an observatory. The observatory was al-
lotted architecturally as much prominence as the projection theater,
and the organization became known as the Griffith Observatory.
The principal instrument in the observatory proper is a Zeiss 12-
inch refractor. There is also a coelostat telescope which produces a
large image of the sun on a screen in the Hall of Science. In the
Hall of Science, in addition to the solar image, there are more than
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 269
100 exhibits demonstrating some of the most notable achievements in
modern science. There is a Foucault Pendulum to demonstrate the
rotation of the earth, an excellent model of the moon, and astronomi-
cal paintings and murals in abundance.
Situated on a hill overlooking the Los Angeles area, the Griffith
Observatory and Planetarium has an enviable location.
AMERICAN MUSEUM-HAYDEN PLANETARIUM
The American Museum-Hayden Planetarium in New York is the
Department of Astronomy of the American Museum of Natural His-
tory. It lays claim to the consistently highest attendance of any
planetarium in the United States, and to the most extensive edu-
cational program. When it was opened to the public in October
1935, the program that was offered was a change in direction and
intensity, but was actually an extension of the astronomical functions
of the American Museum, which dated back to the nineteenth cen-
tury. Dr. Clyde Fisher, long-time curator of astronomy, had visions
in the early 1920’s of an “ideal astronomic hall” that he had hoped
would be built in the Museum. The plans, never brought to fruition,
show a building, octagonally shaped, with a diameter of 126 feet and
a height of 5 stories, surmounted by adome. The Zeiss projector was
to have been mounted at the center of the dome as a continuously op-
erating exhibition—not a show or a lecture. There is a complete
description of the plan in Natural History Magazine for July—Au-
gust 1926. One can only regret that the ambitious, $3,000,000 (in
1926!) dream never came into being.
In the spring of 1933, the trustees of the American Museum of
Natural History formed a_ separate corporation, known as The
American Museum of Natural History Planetarium Authority,
thereby becoming eligible to apply to the Reconstruction Finance
Corporation for a loan on a self-liquidating basis to construct and
equip a planetarium. Charles Hayden donated the Zeiss projection
instrument and the Copernican orrery devised for installation on
the first floor.
Satisfied that the Museum’s proposition was financially sound and
that anticipated revenue from admission fees would be sufficient
to offset operating expenses and also amortize the investment, the
RFC granted a $650,000 loan to construct the Planetarium building.
In appreciation for Mr. Hayden’s generous gift, the building was
officially designated by the trustees as the Hayden Planetarium.
The name was changed to American Museum-Hayden Planetarium
in 1952 to more clearly establish the relationship to the parent
organization.
270 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
After World War II, the trustees of the Museum purchased the
outstanding bonds, in part with a donation from the Hayden Foun-
dation. The Planetarium Authority is still responsible for retiring
the remaining substantial debt.
The breadth of the program in New York is of special interest.
The popular demonstration attracted over 600,000 in the fiscal year
ended June 30, 1957. These people witnessed one of seven annual
presentations, such as: “Earth, Air and Space,” “Captives of the
Sun,” “The Christmas Star,” “From Dusk to Dawn,” “Time and
the Stars,” “Easter in the Heavens,” and “A Trip to Palomar.”
A similar pattern of change in the popular offering is also character-
istic of other American planetariums.
The American Museum-Hayden Planetarium offers courses in as-
tronomy, navigation, and meteorology. These range from a Saturday
morning course for young people to graduate courses for credit in
cooperation with local colleges and universities. The series of courses
in navigation (piloting, introduction to celestial navigation, advanced
celestial navigation) has been especially well received.
Special demonstrations are given to about 20 local colleges as a
supplement to their instruction in descriptive astronomy. This may
consist of a single lecture annually or a series each semester. In
every instance, efforts are directed toward satisfying the needs of
the students involved after consultation between a Planetarium staff
member and the college instructor.
Lectures are given weekly to students from the junior high schools
of the City of New York. Other lectures are prepared for special
groups.
To handle this extensive program, there is a staff of two astrono-
mers (one of whom is chairman), two associate astronomers, two
assistant astronomers, five special lecturers, and six instructors (these
last two categories are part-time), and a supporting group of
about 35 full-time employees.
BUHL PLANETARIUM AND INSTITUTE OF POPULAR SCIENCE
In 1939, the Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science
was opened. Dr. Charles F. Lewis, director of the Buhl Foundation,
in his address of presentation stated the reasons for establishing
the new institution in Pittsburgh with great clarity and directness:
Why, it may be asked, should there be a planetarium? I will give you two
reasons, either one of which I believe justifies the expenditure of funds and
effort.
First, I believe that the oldest curiosity of man was about the stars; and I
believe that this curiosity is infinitely worth satisfying. The heavens them-
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 27]
selves were the world’s first motion picture theater. The ancients had no
broad, smooth highways upon which to speed in automobiles. They had no
cinema. They had no brightly lighted concert halls. The heavens, at night,
were their theater. We know that they watched the skies intently and we
know that they peopled them with amazing creatures: the Great Bear and the
Little Bear; the Dragon; the Charioteer; Orion, the great hunter, and his two
dogs; Cygnus, the swan; and many others. And about them they wove legends
and tales which have come down to us today. Sophisticated moderns that we
are, we look at the stars and cannot for the life of us see the Great Bear. We
call it the Big Dipper. We utterly fail to visualize the figures in the sky as
the ancients did. This, we must believe, is because their imaginations were
keener than ours, more naive and childlike, less dulled by artificial stimuli.
Yet I have never known a city-bred person who, transported to the open country
on a vacation, failed to look upon the heavens in wonder and in rapture and to
be filled with a longing to know about them. This longing, this curiosity is
worth satisfying because it has to do with the very stuff of which creation
itself is made.
I like to think that there is another reason why the popular study of as-
tronomy, as made possible by a planetarium, is worthwhile, and that is that it
teaches us that everything in the universe takes place in compliance with eternal
and unchanging laws. These laws are so precise and exacting that we are able
to predict with absolute certainty the position of any planet at any time as seen
from any spot on the earth. We know to the minute the coming of an eclipse
centuries ahead and exactly in what part of the earth its totality will be
present. There is no referendum, no amendment, no repeal. There is only
certainty. Nothing in the laws of men is comparable to this. When a man
has once grasped the import of what this means, it is difficult to see how ever
again he can be other than humble, or can ever again be satisfied with anything
that is half-way, or slipshod, or unworthy ...
It seems to me, moreover, that there is a second—a philosophical—reason
why Pittsburgh should have such an Institution of Popular Science . .
I submit to you that one reason that society has not been able to advance its
social controls as rapidly as Some would wish, to meet the new situations cre-
ated by the forward march of science and invention, is that the people at large
have had an insufficient understanding of scientific progress. For too long new
scientific discoveries were the prized and secret possessions of scientists who re-
garded popularization as vulgarization. There was for years an attitude in
many scientific quarters that seemed to say that the people could not be made
to understand science; and it was a little short of unethical to try to put scien-
tific truths into plain English. Fortunately, that day is passing rapidly. To-
day the scientist of great achievement is sometimes one who can discover new
truths and also state the matter so simply that a high school boy can under-
stand and find challenge and inspiration in the understanding. In a democracy
the source of social action is the people. It seems obvious, therefore, that if
the people are called upon to take social action as a result of advances on the
frontiers of science, they should have every facility to understand what these
advances are, how they have been achieved, and where they may be expected to
lead us.*
The Buh] Planetarium has, during the past 18 years, established
itself as a unique community-service organization. The program
* Dedication of the Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science, a pro-
gram published by the Planetarium, Pittsburgh, Pa., Oct. 24, 1939.
272 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
developed there has been quite different from that of the other plane-
tariums. First, the planetarium sky theater has not dominated the
operation; equal emphasis has been given the exhibits and displays in
the superb popular science museum. Cooperation with the schools
has been carried out most extensively. The theme for a month per-
meates the presentation in the dome, but it also extends to the exhibits
and general motif. For example, during the Latin Festival, the ori-
entation in the planetarium is to the skies of Rome, and the Museum
displays exhibits and projects prepared by Pittsburgh-area students
in conjunction with their studies of the classics. School teachers are
involved in the planning and implementation, and prizes are awarded
to the students. The donors of the prizes include nearly every
Pittsburgh manufacturer interested in science.
Unlike most of the other American planetariums, Buhl has in this
manner extended its interests beyond astronomy and the natural sci-
ences to include social science, language, engineering, etc. Probably
more young people have been reached in so doing. The number of
Institute visitors proportionate to the greater Pittsburgh population
is higher than for the planetariums in other metropolitan centers.
MOREHEAD PLANETARIUM
The Morehead Planetarium is housed in an elegant classical-style
building on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill, N. C. It was the gift of John M. Morehead, former Ambas-
sador to Sweden. The building, in addition to the dome with its
Zeiss projector, which was purchased from Stockholm, has a Coper-
nican planetarium, extensive exhibit spaces, sumptuous meeting rooms,
and a state dining room with all accessories.
The planetarium is used in conjunction with classes at the Uni-
versity, but it also provides a service to the people of North Carolina.
The extent of its efficacy becomes clear in comparing the Chapel Hill
population of about 10,000 to the annual attendance at the institution
of about 80,000. It represents a new type of planetarium environ-
ment—a limited audience potential, a superb physical plant, and a
center of campus and community activity.
During and after the second World War, the famous Zeiss plant in
Jena, in the present East Zone of Germany, was diverted to other
purposes than planetarium construction. For several years, pro-
jectors were not available. This situation has changed now, and both
Carl Zeiss, Oberkochen, and Car] Zeiss, Jena, appear to be ready to
produce planetariums to order. Construction is in progress for new
installations in Sao Paulo, Brazil; Caracas, Venezuela; and London,
England. However, during the several years in which Zeiss was out
of the market, the demand for new installations was great. There
was a resurgence of interest in science, abetted popularly by the
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 273
transition from fantasy to fact in the areas of rocketry and astro-
nautics. In many institutions, money for program expansion was
available, and in numerous cities, committees of interested citizens
sought new public service educational agencies. More widespread
travel and consequent exposure to existing planetariums whetted the
appetite.
MORRISON PLANETARIUM
In San Francisco, during the latter 1940's, the decision was made to
construct a planetarium. Funds were raised by the trustees of the
California Academy of Sciences for the purpose, beginning with a
gift of $200,000 from the estate of Alexander F. Morrison. No
planetarium instrument was available, however, so the Academy
undertook to construct one in the excellent shops that had been used
to repair optical and navigation instruments for the Navy during the
war. Certain basic features of the Zeiss instrument were incorporated
but many improvements were made. As Dr. Robert C. Miller, di-
rector of the Academy, expressed it:
This is the first planetarium that can be operated entirely automatically.
While it is the intention in general to have “live” planetarium demonstrations,
if the lecturer is suddenly called away by some emergency, he can flick a
switch and a tape recording will take over, giving the lecture, dimming the
house lights, turning on the stars, putting the planets through their proper
motions in perfect synchronization with the lecture, finally bringing the
daybreak and sunrise, then turning on the house lights, thanking people
for listening, and inviting them to come again. Actually of course we will
never leave the planetarium unattended while a show is in progress; but if
a lecturer develops a bad throat the tape will come in handy.
The automatic feature is provided by a telephone-type switchboard which
can be plugged in to accomplish, by a stepping relay, 250 operations in
succession on cue from the tape, the cue being provided by bits of foil on
the back of the tape which complete an electric circuit.
The Academy of Sciences projector is quieter in operation than earlier
instruments. The hemispheres containing the star plates have been brought
eloser to the center, giving a better distribution of weight and improving
the appearance. The planet projectors, which are light in construction, have
been put at the two ends of the instrument, instead of at the “waist” as in
the Zeiss design. The “eyelids” which cut off the light of the stars when
they reach the horizon are more positive in operation. The moon is not
just a round white disc but an actual photograph of the moon projected
on the dome. The stars themselves give a greater illusion of reality. (Miller,
1952, p. 17.)
Since its opening in November 1952, the Morrison Planetarium
has taken its place among the institutions of the country seeking to
bring astronomical science to the general public.
SPITZ PLANETARIUM PROJECTORS
Another series of developments in the latter part of the 1940’s
has considerably changed the planetarium picture in the United
274 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
States. Armand N. Spitz is the man responsible. He is a self-taught
astronomer with a background in newspaper work and museum
education—a man with an endless stream of ideas. For years he
had harbored notions of producing a planetarium that was within
the means of many schools, museums, and libraries in even the
small communities. In 1947, his dream became a reality; Spitz
and some business friends actually produced a small functioning
star projector.
The new device was a dodecahedron assembled from 12 pentago-
nally shaped black plastic sheets. At the center, properly gimbaled,
was a small electric light bulb. Rays of light shone from it through
holes machined in the surface of the dodecahedron—large holes
for large stars, small holes for small stars. Diurnal motion was
attained by rotating the machine around an axis parallel to the
earth’s axis. Latitude change was produced by tilting this axis.
Separate projectors were provided to demonstrate the positions of
sun, moon, and planets (which could be set in advance for any given
date), and to show the meridian, celestial coordinates, and the celestial
triangle which is the basic problem in celestial navigation.
The author was partly responsible for the installation of one of
the earliest Spitz planetariums located at the U. S. Merchant Marine
Academy at Kings Point, N. Y. As an assistant professor of
astronomy I was seeking a means of demonstrating the three-
dimensional character of the skies in a simple and meaningful
manner. I was mindful of the elegant but confusing blackboard
drawings of one of my own early astronomy instructors, and was
determined not to duplicate the confusion. Visits to the American
Museum-Hayden Planetarium with the astronomy classes had been
arranged for several years, but the demonstrations there were not
specifically appropriate to the needs of our students. The visits did
prove the potential value of a planetarium for our own use.
A small planetarium dome was constructed in the astronomy class-
room. It was 20 feet in diameter and 13 feet high from floor to
zenith; the height was fixed by the ceiling. Benches were installed
to accommodate up to 30 students—a full class. As soon as the
Spitz projector was supplied, classes were scheduled regularly in
the planetarium—normally, about one-half of a class session each
week for most of the school term, or a total of about 5 hours out
of the 45 allotted for the course in descriptive astronomy. The
planetarium also served as a center of interest for the Academy’s
astronomy club, and as a point of visitation for guests on campus.
The installation at Kings Point is typical of many others made by
the Spitz organization since 1947. To date, more than 180 classroom-
size units have been erected. Some are comfortably housed in separate
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—-CHAMBERLAIN 275
buildings set aside or constructed for the planetarium, and some have
been installed in existing areas in schools, colleges, museums, and
observatories.
The planetarium projectors in the more recent installations are
superior to the earlier models. The plastic of the dodecahedron has
been replaced by aluminum, and special lens-type projectors have been
attached for each of the first-magnitude stars, thereby vastly improv-
ing the appearance of the artificial sky. The control console is far
more comprehensive and versatile. The domes have been improved,
too, and some are large enough to provide seating for more than one
hundred people. Special planetarium benches were designed for the
comfort of the sky-watching audiences.
But Armand Spitz was not satisfied with the smaller planetarium
instruments. During 1952-53, his organization created a new projec-
tor designed to be comparable to the Zeiss. In general appearance it
is similar, but there are several significant design modifications. As
in the Zeiss, the stars are produced in spheres at the two extremes
of the device, but in the Spitz the source of light is a unique high-
intensity pin-point light source cleverly fitted to reflect light rays
through the holes machined to represent the stars. The entire
projector assembly is suspended from unobtrusive cables secured
to the ceiling, leaving the apparently unsupported machine “floating
in space” with no structure between it and the floor.
The first of the Model B projectors, as the new ones were labeled,
was installed at the Centro Municipal de Divulgacién Cientifica in
Montevideo, Uruguay. Reports from that country since the 1954
opening indicate both wide public acceptance and dependable per-
formance of the instrument.
Model B’s are also being installed at the Flint College and Cultural
Development in Flint, Mich., and at the U. S. Air Force Academy
in Colorado Springs, Colo. Both are scheduled to be opened in 1958.
The Flint installation is unique. The planetarium is to be a part of
an extensive college and community service plan that includes two
special-purpose theaters, an art center, a library, a transportation
museum and malls, reflecting pools, and donor memorials—all in-
tegrated in design and utility. The planetarium will be named for
Robert T. Longway, one of the Flint businessmen who have been re-
sponsible for raising the funds for this extensive project.
The planetarium at the Air Force Academy, like the smaller in-
stallations at the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy, the U. S. Naval
Academy, and the U. S. Coast Guard Academy, will be utilized exten-
sively for teaching navigation and descriptive astronomy to the
cadets. It will also be used as a campus attraction for visitors, thus
filling the gap of major planetariums between Chicago in the east and
San Francisco—Los Angeles in the west.
276 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Meanwhile, in Boston, another planetarium has been under con-
struction. It isa part of the Museum of Science in Science Park, and
is named for Charles Hayden, the philanthropist who also donated
the Zeiss projector for the planetarium in New York. The building
was completed early in 1956, but the construction of the complex new
projector has been delayed. It is likely that the new Hayden Plane-
tarium will open its doors along with the ones at Flint and the Air
Force Academy in 1958.
The Boston instrument is being built by Frank Korkosz at his
shop in Springfield, Mass. It is a completely new, if not radical,
design incorporating the advantages of both Zeiss and Spitz. In
particular, the star images as projected on the dome are reported to
produce an illusion much closer to reality than in the earlier instru-
ments, though both Spitz’s Model B and the California Academy of
Sciences have been successful in attaining actual variable intensity in
their star representation, as opposed to the variable-sized disks in the
Zeiss and Spitz classroom units.
While awaiting the delivery of the new projector, the staff in Boston
has been able to create several new and different special effects: A
lighted skyline that drops into the cove below horizon level, remark-
ably realistic lightning, and a sound system sufficiently versatile to re-
produce most any sound effect in whatever location in the dome might
be specified.
Many other planetarium installations are on the drawing boards.
Most of these will be the small classroom-size Spitz; there may be sev-
eral large ones, too. Seattle, Portland, Detroit, St. Louis, Dallas,
Kansas City, Miami, and Washington are among the cities from which
there are indications of interest. The time may not be far distant
when planetariums will be as numerous as museums. In this age of
emphasis on science, such a trend is not only welcome, but almost
mandatory.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Butter, Howard RUSSELL.
1926. An ideal astronomic hall. Nat. Hist., July-August, pp. 393-398.
FAUNCE, WAYNE M.
1935. Problems of construction. Nat. Hist., October, pp. 207-216.
FIsHER, CLYDE.
1926. The new projection planetarium. Nat. Hist., April, pp. 402-416.
Fox, PHILL.
1932. The Adler Planetarium and Astronomical Museum of Chicago. Pop.
Astron., vol. 40, pp. 125-155.
INGALLS, ALBERT G.
1929. Canned astronomy. Sci. Amer., vol. 141, pp. 201-204.
KAEMPFFERT, WALDEMAR.
1928. Now America will have a planetarium. New York Times Mag.,
June 24, pp. 4-5, 21.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLANETARIUM—CHAMBERLAIN 277
LEwIs, CHARLES FE.
1939. Address at dedication of the Buhl Planetarium and Institute of
Popular Science. Program of the Dedication Ceremony, Pitts-
burgh, October 24, pp. 17-19.
MILierR, RoBert CUNNINGHAM.
1952. Galaxy by the Golden Gate. Pacific Discovery, Special Morrison
Planetarium number, December, pp. 11-17.
SPENCER, STEVEN M.
1954. The stars are his playthings. Saturday Eve. Post, vol. 226, pp.
42-43, Apr. 24.
STOKLEY, JAMES.
1937. Planetarium operation. Sci. Month., vol. 45, pp. 307-316.
VILLIGER, Dr. W.
1926. The Zeiss Planetarium. Pp. 14-17, London.
WERNER, HELMUT.
1957. From the Aratus Globe to the Zeiss Planetarium. Pp. 9-26, 49-54.
Stuttgart.
PAMPHLETS
The Hayden Planetarium. American Museum of Natural History, 1937.
A report to members. Museum of Science, Boston, Mass., November 1952.
Catalog of Flint College Junior College, Flint, Mich., June 1957.
Spitz Planetariums. Spitz Laboratories, Inc., Yorklyn, Del., 1957.
The story of the Griffith Observatory and Planetarium. Board of Recreation
and Park Commissioners, City of Los Angeles. (No date.)
Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D. C.
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Chamberlain PLATE 2
The Griffith Observatory and Planetarium in Griffith Park, Los Angeles. ‘The planetarium
dome is the larger one on the left, and the Zeiss telescope is housed in the smaller dome
to the rjght.
15
PLATE 3
Chamberlain
Smithsonian Report, 1957.
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The major Spitz Planetarium, suspended from the domed ceiling, projects Southern Hemisphere
stars as seen from Centro Municipal de la Divulgacién Cientifica in Montevideo, Uruguay
Similar instruments are to be found at the Flint, Mich., Educational and Cultural Cent
and at the new United States Air Force cademy in Colorado.
The Development of Radio Astronomy’
By GeraLp S. HAWKINS
Director, Boston University Observatory
Research Associate
Harvard College Observatory
[With two plates]
It ts Nor OFTEN that we can witness the birth and development of a
new science such as radio astronomy. Most sciences have had
obscure beginnings, and the world has been slow to realize their im-
portance. Astronomy, for example, began with an interest in the
stars and the motion of planets long before the beginning of recorded
history, but this interest could not develop into a science until after
the invention of arabic numerals, which paved the way for the theo-
ries of planetary motion several hundred years later. The telescope
gave a great impetus to research when in 1609 Galileo discovered the
moons of Jupiter and Saturn’s rings, but knowledge spread slowly
in those days and it took more than 200 years to establish the basic
facts of astronomy. We know that the sun is one star among 100
billion in the local galaxy, and in the universe there are probably more
than 100 billion other galaxies. With the additional techniques of
photography and spectroscopy rapid advances are being made in
all fields, so that we can study the atmosphere of the planets, the com-
position of the stars, and can investigate almost any problem we
choose.
On the other hand, the science of radio astronomy has developed at
a time when the world seems to be almost at the peak of its technical
evolution. The radio sky was first glimpsed by Jansky in 1932.
Within 15 years the significance of the new science was realized and
then discovery followed discovery with bewildering speed. Radio
stars were found, some of which are quite invisible to the astronomer,
and others which are coincident with exploding stars and with gal-
axies in collision. Spiral arms have been mapped out in our local
Reprinted by permission from American Scientist, vol. 45, No. 1, January
1957, copyrighted 1956 by the Society of the Sigma Xi.
279
451800—58——_19
280 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
galaxy and radio signals have been detected from the neighboring
galaxies in the universe. Nearer home, the sun, Jupiter, and even
Venus have been found to be powerful radio emitters. The cause of
these signals and the nature of the invisible stars are unknown, and
much research effort is being expended at the present time to solve
these mysteries.
THE EQUIPMENT USED BY RADIO ASTRONOMERS
Almost every observation so far has been made with the equipment
shown schematically in figure 1. Signals are picked up from space
by the radio telescope to be magnified in the receiver and fed to a
suitable display unit.
DISPLAY
UNIT
Ny ae
RADIO:
RECEIVER
RADIO
TELESCOPE
NOISE
CALIBRATION
Ficure 1.—The equipment used by radio astronomers.
Radio telescopes fall into two categories, those with a single direc-
tional beam and those with multiple beams. A single beam is formed
by the parabolic reflector, as shown in plate 1, which acts like an auto
headlight in reverse. Waves from a radio star are focused by the
paraboloid to form a spotlike image which has a diameter inversely
proportional to the aperture of the telescope. Large apertures are
expensive and one of the best images that has so far been obtained is
1 degree, given by the new 60-foot disk at Harvard. This em-
phasizes the main disadvantage of radio telescopes; the definition is
extremely poor, not even as good as that of the human eye, but as we
shall see later there are ways of overcoming this defect. At the
focus of the paraboloid the image is allowed to fall on a dipole element
which is formed from two metal rods similar to one side of an
H-shaped TV antenna. Electric voltages and currents are induced
in the dipole and are fed down a cable into the receiver.
RADIO ASTRONOMY—HAWKINS 281
A single beam may be produced in an endless number of ways
which can become almost as complicated as the character of the de-
signer. If dipoles are connected together to cover a flat area they are
equivalent to a paraboloid telescope of the same area. The array
of dipoles, however, will operate only over a narrow band of wave-
lengths and it is difficult to point the sensitive beam to various parts
of the sky. A dipole may have five or more focusing rods placed
in front of it to form a Yagi-type antenna which is frequently seen
in use with short-wavelength TV receivers. Electrical energy may
also be picked up on a long metal helix. Both the Yagi and helix
are equivalent to paraboloids with apertures of from 1 to 2
wavelengths.
It is possible to increase the quality of the image by means of the
interferometer. Two separate antennas are spaced at either end of a
long baseline and the signals are mixed together in the receiver. A
radio star perpendicular to the baseline produces signals that are in
phase at each antenna. As the earth rotates and the radio star makes
an angle with the baseline the signals will differ in phase and tend to
cancel out. In this way a radio star produces periodic variations as
it rises, passes due south, and sets. Now the effective aperture of the
telescope is equal to the length of the baseline, so that a narrow beam
can be produced with reasonable economy. Unfortunately, not one
but many narrow beams are produced, so that the results become diffi-
cult to interpret. Despite this limitation, however, the interferometer
has done much valuable work in determining the angular diameter
and exact positions of radio stars.
The receiver is similar in many respects to those used in TV, except
that the voltage gain is high (~10 million) so that the radio noise due
to thermal motion of electrons at the input of the receiver is readily
detected. In radio astronomy great care has to be taken to maintain
a constant gain in the receiver because a fluctuation, say in the tem-
perature of the filaments in the tubes, would produce a variation of
noise at the output which would mask the faint signals being detected
from space. A standard source of energy is put in the place of the
telescope to calibrate the receiver as shown in figure 1. This is usu-
ally a diode vacuum tube since the noise power is accurately known in
terms of the current flowing through the tube. To minimize the effect
of variations in the thermal noise of the receiver the calibration is
sometimes carried out automatically at a rate of 25 times per second.
In this way a 25-cycle note is produced at the output and the ampli-
tude of the note is independent of receiver noise, being proportional
to the difference between the cosmic signal and the standard source.
There will always be slight ripples in the output, however, even with
an ideal system, because we are comparing two noise signals which
282 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
are varying in a random manner about a certain mean level. These
ripples can be greatly reduced by integrating the signals over long
periods of time.
One of the most impressive ways of displaying the noise from the
cosmos is to use a loudspeaker system. The sun and local galaxy can
be heard as a gentle hiss; the galactic noise remains steady but the
storms on the sun swell and fade many times during the course of an
hour. Jupiter is the performer that really dominates the air. When
heard over a high-fidelity system, its roars and rumbles almost con-
vince one that the Romans were right in their ideas about the gods.
For quantitative work, however, it is essential to obtain a permanent
record in a form amenable to analysis. If the signal is fed to a
SS a RN MN or
* RADIO
STAR
SIGNAL
WN EER INT raeen © ANY ae
RECEIVER
TIME
Ficure 2.—A radio interferometer and the signal it produces when a radio star passes
through the antenna pattern.
milliammeter with a pen attached to the arm, a mark will be made
which is proportional to the intensity of the signal. If the mark
is made on a roll of paper driven at a constant speed then a precise
intensity-time graph is produced. Radio stars can be observed by
sweeping the telescope slowly across the sky, for when the star is in
the center of the beam the pen gives a maximum deflection. One of
the most convenient scanning arrangements is to clamp the telescope
and utilize the rotation of the earth. This has been the preferred
method with an interferometer because the baseline is long and the
instrument is mechanically unwieldy. The sensitive beams are there-
fore allowed to drift across a star as the earth rotates and the pen
record varies rhythmically as shown in figure 2. A star of small
diameter produces well-defined maxima and minima, but a large
RADIO ASTRONOMY—HAWKINS 283
source forms an indistinct pattern. The depth of the minima gives
a measure of the diameter of the radio object. In specialized work,
following the rapid movements of gas jets across the sun for example,
the interferometer beam has been made to scan at a fast rate but the
method presents practical difficulties and is not often used. The
scanning is performed electrically by introducing a variable phase
lag in the cable from one of the antennas.
SIGNALS FROM THE SUN
There are remarkable differences in the appearance of the sun at
different radio wavelengths. Optically we see down through the solar
atmosphere to the incandescent layer of gas called the photosphere.
This layer is at an average temperature of 6200°C., but occasionally
large areas become cooled to about 5000°C. and a dark sunspot ap-
pears. Sunspot regions are greatly disturbed and have been likened
to storms. Ciné films show that part of the interior of the sun is dis-
gorged to rain down incessantly as streams of white-hot gas. The
whole area is pierced by an intense magnetic field which probably has
its origin in whirlpool motions below the photosphere. Sometimes a
bright flare of light appears near a spot, as shown in figure 3, and this
is thought to mark the ejection of a stream of charged particles which
impinge on the atmosphere of the earth a day or so later, causing
beautiful displays of the Aurora Borealis. Above the photosphere
we find the chromosphere, which is a red-colored layer about 10,000
km. thick, visible during a total eclipse of the sun. During an eclipse
a white halo is also seen extending outward for about a solar radius.
This is the solar corona, an envelope of ionized gas shining with
scattered sunlight. It has recently been shown that the outer edge
corona is at a temperature of a million degrees; this is a helpful
clue in explaining some of the peculiar radio effects that have been
observed at long wavelengths.
At centimetric wavelengths the sun looks very much the same as it
does in the optical band, except that the steady light is now able to
pass freely through heavy cloud, rain, or fog. At wavelengths of 20
cm. the sun ceases to be uniformly bright but develops a ringlike
halo. Viewed with radio eyes it would appear as a brilliant circle
with a dusky center. This is caused by the temperature inversion in
the corona where the temperature increases as we move out from the
sun. Looking at the center we see the cooler layers below, and looking
at the limb we see the hotter layers edge-on. In addition to the limb
brightening, starlike points appear on the disc of the sun and con-
tribute to the general radiation. It has been shown that these points
occur near the visual sunspots, so at 20 cm. the radio astronomer has
a completely reversed image, a dark sun with bright sunspots.
284 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
There were further surprises in store for the radio astronomer when
he looked at the sun at wavelengths of about 1 meter. A steady signal
was observed corresponding to a temperature of a million degrees.
To find the exact location of the noise source on the sun an attempt
was made to observe an eclipse. Providence has so arranged the dis-
tances of the earth, moon, and sun that the circular shape of the moon
exactly covers the photosphere. Without this fortunate coincidence
our knowledge of the sun would for a long while have been quite
Bis FLARE
SIGNAL 200 MC
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Ficure 3.—Radio signals produced by a corpuscular stream as it travels through the
atmosphere of the sun. (Photograph taken at the Astrophysical Observatory, Kodai-
kanal, India.)
sparse. As the moon gradually covered the solar disc it was hoped
that the radio signal would disappear at a certain stage of the eclipse
and thus reveal the radio source. The observations showed little
variation in the signal and even at totality the radio sun was still
shining. It was obvious that the radio sun was much larger than the
optical, and the radiation was coming from the high corona.
Three types of major radio disturbances are recognized as emanat-
ing from the sun. They are noise storms, outbursts, and bursts. A
noise storm originates in a cloud in the corona, vertically above a sun-
RADIO ASTRONOMY—HAWKINS 285
spot. The cloud is invisible optically, but on radio wavelengths it
shows temperatures of billions of degrees. The enhancement of radio
emission may continue for several days, and during periods of sun-
spot activity noise storms occur once every five days on the average.
If the sun were to behave in the visible spectrum as it does at radio
wavelengths the world would have been burnt to a cinder long ago.
One of the most spectacular phenomena is the noise outburst which
occurs after a solar flare. The flare is usually accompanied by an up-
ward surge of hot gas which leaves the chromosphere with a velocity
of about 100 km. per second and then falls back again into the sun.
An intense radio source, associated with the surge, moves outward
with a velocity of the order of 2,000 km. per second. This movement
has been followed in a number of surges with the rapid scanning in-
terferometer and there is evidence that the radio source does not fall
back again but leaves the sun completely as a corpuscular stream of
electrons and positive ions. As the stream forces its way through the
ionized layers in the corona it is able to emit radiation of increasing
wavelength. Three receivers would therefore detect the noise one
after the other as shown in the records of figure 3. After a time lapse
of about 24 hours the corpuscular stream reaches the earth and excites
the atmosphere to make it glow with the beautiful colors and forms of
the aurora. A portion of the sun has been presented with majestic
pomp to the earth.
RADIO STARS
For many years the astronomer, with modest pride, has felt that he
could count with certainty the number of bright stars in the sky.
There are many, however, that he would have overlooked because
they are invisible optically. Provisionally, these objects are called
radio stars but it is certain that most of them are quite different from
the stars of optical astronomy. The brightest radio star is in the con-
stellation of Cassiopeia. It corresponds in position with one of the
faintest nebulae that can be detected with the 200-inch telescope on
Mt. Palomar. The nebula was found only after repeated searching
near the radio position and it would probably have remained unde-
tected if the radio data had not been available. So far the nature of
the object is a mystery. Spectroscopic evidence shows that it is an
irregular cloud of gas with violent internal motions and high excita-
tions. The object is known to be within our local galaxy but opinion
is divided as to whether the gas is dispersing or condensing, possibly to
form a new star.
Cygnus A is the second brightest radio star. It corresponds to an
object at a distance of 2 X 10 km., a distance so great that its light
and radio waves take 200 million years to reach us. Homo sapiens was
286 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
certainly not in existence when the radio waves we receive now started
on their journey. It is fortunate that the object was not at any greater
distance for it would then have been beyond the limits of the visible
universe as seen with the Palomar telescope. By careful photography
the telescope shows that a remarkable catastrophe is taking place out
there. Two galaxies, two huge systems of stars and gas, are involved
in a collision. Plate 2, figure 1, shows the galaxies in contact, but it
is difficult to imagine that the spots and surrounding halo actually
represent a cloud of stars some 3 X 10*7 km. across. Collisions of
this kind are extremely rare and we would probably have to see well
beyond our present range before we found another face-to-face con-
tact like that in Cygnus A. The consequences of galactic collisions
have already been studied. Remarkably enough, the stars in the
system are hardly affected at all; interstellar distances are so great
that the star systems can pass through each other with only minor
perturbations. The gas between the stars, however, meets with great
violence. Part of the kinetic energy of the collision is emitted as
radio waves; indeed, the process is extremely efficient, about 5 percent
of the energy being converted in this way. It seems that collision and
violent motion in gas clouds are an essential requirement for the for-
mation of a radio source. Cassiopeia A contains gaseous filaments
in rapid motion, Cygnus A is formed by gas clouds in collision, and
we shall see that other radio stars are associated with this condition.
It has probably taken a million years or so for the galaxies to pass
through each other. Bearing in mind the fact that light takes 200
million years for the journey, we realize that the actual collision
process must have been completed long ago and there will now be
left two remarkable galaxies in space cleared of dust and gas, while
between them will be a hot gaseous nebula, far larger than any that
we encounter in the local galaxy. But these objects will not be visible
to astronomers until a million years have passed.
There is one radio star that was observed in A. D. 1054, 12 years be-
fore William the Conqueror landed in England. In this year a star
in the constellation of Taurus, the Bull, exploded, leaving an object
which we now call the Crab nebula. The sudden increase in bright-
ness was seen by Chinese astronomers who faithfully noted the event
in their records and stated that the new star was visible by day as
well as by night. According to modern terminology this was a
supernova. Research shows that about once every 500 years in our
galaxy a star reaches an unstable point in its evolution, whereupon
the whole star explodes like a giant atomic bomb. The disintegration
is complete and all that remains is an expanding ball of gas. Astrono-
mers have checked the rate of expansion spectroscopically and also
by taking photographs spaced many years apart. On extrapolating
PLATE 1
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—-Hawkins
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PLATE 2
~Hawkins
Smithsonian Report, 1957.
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RADIO ASTRONOMY—HAWKINS 287
back, they find that the ball was a single point in the year 1054, thus
confirming the identification. When the Crab nebula is photographed
in the red light of hydrogen, as in plate 2, figure 2, we notice a fila-
mentary structure and it is clear that the nebula is in a violent state
of motion. The expansion of gas again acts as an eflicient generator
of radio waves, although the exact process is still obscure. Inter-
ferometer measurements show that the whole of the visible nebula
is transmitting, and the radio image fits almost exactly over the pho-
tographic image. Another supernova was observed by the famous
astronomer Tycho Brahé in 1572, and this too has been identified as
a radio star. The last supernova was recorded by Kepler in 1604, so
that if the estimated mean rate of one supernova every 500 years
or so is correct, there is a high probability that a supernova will
occur in our time. This would present a unique opportunity for
studying the entire process with all the superb equipment available
to the modern scientist.
These three sources in Cassiopeia, Cygnus, and Taurus are among
the few radio stars to have been positively identified. Recently a
catalog of over 1,900 radio stars was made and the astronomical
nature of most of them is still unknown. Much research will obvi-
ously be required before this mounting list of mysteries can be solved.
THE MILKY WAY
The original observations of Jansky in 1932 were made on the Milky
Way, our local galaxy. Radio interference was found which seemed
to be coming from the galactic center. Surveys of the sky have since
been made in great detail with wavelengths ranging from a few
centimeters up to many meters. The radiation comes from a large
elliptical area which is aligned with the general direction of the Milky
Way. Optically there are dark obscuring clouds or lanes of dust, but
these do not appear on the radio maps because the radio waves pass
through them. Dark clouds obscure the center of the galaxy, which
is probably the most interesting part, but this region is easily visible
to the radio astronomer. So far very little research has been done
on the galactic center and this remains an exciting field for the
future.
It is not known yet whether the general galactic noise is the com-
bined signal from millions of radio stars or whether it originates
in the matter between the stars. In a few years time, when large radio
telescopes are available, it may be possible to see if myriads of faint
stars are producing the noise. Meanwhile much speculation goes
on as to the exact origin of the signals.
There is one component in the radio spectrum, however, that is well
understood. Radiation has been detected over a small waveband at 21
288 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
em. This emission line is produced by the neutral hydrogen atom.
If the spins of the proton and electron are aligned in the same direc-
tion there is a tendency for one of the spins to change. The proba-
bility of the change is very low so that a hydrogen atom waits several
million years before changing. At this time it emits 9.410%
joules at a frequency of 1,420 mc. Although this seems an insignifi-
cant power output, the number of atoms in the direction of the an-
tenna beam is usually sufficient to give a detectable signal. The signal
strength gives a measure of the temperature and space density of
the hydrogen, but, what is more important, the exact frequency of
the emission gives the velocity in the line of sight. As in the case of
sound waves and light waves, the observed frequency of a source is
higher when it is approaching and lower when it is receding so that
the velocity of the source can be found. By measuring the velocity
of the hydrogen with respect to the sun the astronomer is able to go
one step farther. The galaxy is rotating about its center and each
star follows an orbit which is nearly circular. Stars on the edge of
the galaxy travel more slowly than stars near the center. Hence a
measure of velocity gives a measure of the distance of a hydrogen
cloud from the galactic center and the position of hydrogen in space
can be deduced.
Extensive surveys at 1,420 mc. have been made. It is found that the
neutral hydrogen is concentrated within the spiral arms of our galaxy.
By means of the hydrogen emission these arms may be traced out far
beyond the optical limit which is set by interstellar absorption. For
the first time we can picture the sun as it is set in one arm of a great
spiral system as shown in figure 4.
The hydrogen line has been detected in other galaxies besides our
own. Recently emission was received from the great cluster of galax-
ies in Coma Berenices at a frequency of 1,387 mc. Thus the radio
signal is at a lower frequency, or reddened, by the velocity of re-
cession of the cluster in the same way that the visible spectrum is
shifted. Absorption by hydrogen has also been noted in the noise
from the colliding galaxies in Cygnus. Again there is a shift of
the radio line which corresponds to the red shift observed optically.
JUPITER
It is scarcely a year since the radio signals from Jupiter were dis-
covered. Many tape recordings have already been made which illus-
trate the effects that this planet can produce. There are components
of the hissing sound which are usually associated with the random
motion of thermal electrons. It is unlikely that the noise is really
thermal in origin because it is difficult to visualize how high tem-
peratures could be produced on Jupiter. The atmosphere is com-
RADIO ASTRONOMY—-HAWKINS 289
posed of methane and ammonia and contains clouds at a temperature
of —140° C., while the planet itself is presumed to be formed of solid
ices, again at a low temperature. Other noises that have been
recognized are grinding sounds and rumbles. When analyzed in de-
tail these sounds are apparently composed of a series of two or three
pulses following one another in rapid succession.
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GALACTIG CENTER -++
THIS REGION NOT
YET MAPPED
0 30,000
LIGHT YEARS
Ficure 4,—Spiral structure of the local galaxy. (Reproduced by permission of G. Wester-
hout and M. Schmidt, Leiden, Holland.)
By an ingenious method it has been found possible to locate the
area which is generating the noise. The transmission is spasmodic,
some days it 1s present, other days it is absent, but by observing over
long periods of time the noise has been found to vary in synchronism
with the rotation of the planet. This defines a north-south line, or
line of Jovian longitude on which the source lies. The planet’s speed
of rotation, as given by observations of clouds in the atmosphere,
290 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
varies between the Equator and the Poles. The Equator rotates
once in 9 hours 50 minutes 26 seconds, and the corresponding figure
at the Pole is 9 hours 55 minutes 24 seconds. By timing the variation
of the signals the latitude of the source can be obtained. This is, of
course, not a very exact determination, and the method is further
complicated by the presence of more than one transmitting area.
Despite these difficulties the main noise area has already been located.
It is close to the famous red spot which has been observed in Jupi-
ter’s atmosphere since 1664. Surprisingly little is known about the
spot from the optical observations. One hypothesis suggests that
it is an island of solid ammonia or methane floating in the dense at-
mosphere, while at the other extreme it is considered to be the product
of an active volcano. Perhaps the radio observations will help us to
determine the true nature of this disturbance.
Radio observations have given indications that Jupiter may be
surrounded by an ionosphere. The red-spot region does not produce
signals at every position as it rotates. There appears to be an attenua-
tion of the noise as the spot approaches the east or west limb and this
has been explained by reflection effects in the ionosphere. The double
and triple pulses forming the rumble are also explained in terms of
the ionosphere. A signal from some disturbance in the atmosphere
is received by direct transmission to produce the first pulse, while the
second pulse is the echo produced by the surface of Jupiter. The
third component is reflected from the ionosphere back to the surface
before reaching the receiver on the earth.
RADAR ASTRONOMY
We are not limited to passive reception of signals. Great advances
were made during the Second World War in the detection of aircraft
by means of radio echoes. In the same way a high-power transmitter
can be made to send out a series of pulses which will be reflected off
celestial objects.
Meteors are the nearest bodies of interest in astronomy, for although
they spend many years circulating between the planets, they spend the
last second of their life in the atmosphere of the earth about 60 miles
up. The meteor particle collides with the atmosphere at such a high
velocity that it completely evaporates, producing heat, light, and
ionization. By studying the echoes from the column of ionization it
is possible to measure the velocity of the meteor with fair precision.
With three or more radar stations one can determine the direction of
motion of the meteor. Velocity and direction together define its orbit,
or life history, and we can then trace back its path among the planets.
Radar observations have shown that meteors are members of the solar
system and do not come from the space between the stars. We now
RADIO ASTRONOMY—HAWKINS 291
believe that meteor fragments are shed by a comet as the icy nucleus
of the comet evaporates in the heat from the sun.
Farther out from the earth we come to the moon, and radio echoes
have been obtained from the moon by many experimenters. At a dis-
tance of 200,000 miles, radar astronomers have to wait for a period of
about 2 seconds before the echo returns. The echo is subjected to
many effects on its journey to and from the moon and from the way it
has changed we can learn many interesting things about the atmos-
phere of the earth and the surface of the moon. The radio wave form-
ing the echo is formed, of course, from oscillatory electric and mag-
netic fields which are at right angles to each other. When the electric
field is parallel to the receiving dipole a maximum signal is produced.
In this way the direction of the field can be determined. It is found
that the field is rotated many times as the echo pulse travels to the
moon and back. Most of the rotation occurs in the ionosphere of the
earth, as it is proporticnal to the electron density of the transmitting
medium and the strength of the magnetic field of the earth. This ro-
tation gives us information about the ionosphere at great heights above
the earth’s surface.
As the radio pulse is reflected from the surface of the moon the
mountain ranges and craters cause interference so that the echo power
fluctuates. This effect is not unlike the glitter that is seen when light
falls on a rough, shiny object. There are other things that cause the
signal to fiuctuate more rapidly than the interference from a rough
surface, but the origin of these rapid variations is at present unknown.
Radar astronomy will probably never become as spectacular as
radio astronomy. With pulse techniques we certainly are making our
first venture out into space, and the radio pulse can certainly visit and
explore the moon even if mankind at present is limited to the earth.
But we will require tremendously powerful transmitters if we are to
bounce an echo off our neighboring planets such as Venus and Mars.
To reach the nearest star is impossible: even if we did have sufficient
transmitter power we would have to wait eight whole years for the
echo to return. The output of the natural transmitters of the cosmos
is far greater than any we can make on the earth. Cygnus A, for
example, on the edge of the visible universe, puts out a power which
is more than a billion times greater than our man-made signals. Such
considerations help us to realize our insignificant position as earth-
bound mortals, and impress upon us the grandeur of the natural
universe.
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Jet Streams’
By R. Lee
Meteorological Service of Canada
Department of Transport
[With one plate]
INTRODUCTION
On April 1, 1954, three United States Navy F-9F fighters streaked
across the United States on a cross-country flight. The lead plane
of the trio unoflicially broke the speed record with a flight time of 3
hours and 45 minutes, assisted by tailwinds as high as 170 m. p. h.
Spectacular as the flight was, an even more remarkable aspect of it
remained unpublicized for, before the flight took off, Lieutenant
Dickson, Navy meteorologist, estimated the flight time to be 3 hours
and 41 minutes! The takeoff time and route were deliberately
planned to take advantage of the jet stream high in the upper tropo-
sphere. About 15 years ago, the possibility of such a flight would
have belonged to the realm of fancy, yet today such feats of planning
and flying are accepted as commonplace by the men who fly our
modern jet aircraft.
Let us look for a moment at the phenomenon which made this flight
possible—the jet stream. In a sense, the accumulation of knowledge
leading up to this successful forecast began as early as 1933, when
V. Bjerknes, J. Bjerknes, H. Salberg, and T. Bergeron first gave
evidence for the existence of jet streams in their classic textbook,
“Physikalische Hydrodynamik.” Eleven years later, in 1944, Pro-
fessor Willett of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology published
a paper showing a jet stream, but it was not until the closing phases
of World War II in the Pacific that its practical importance be-
came widely recognized. As the scene of operations in the Pacific
Theater shifted northward in 1944 and 1945, United States high-
altitude bombers began to report westerly winds of up to 250 knots
*Reprinted by permission from The Roundel, Royal Canadian Air Force,
Victoria Island, Ottawa, Canada.
293
294 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
over Japan. The air speeds at that time were such that a high-level
bombing run from east to west under such conditions meant that
an aircraft would present a stationary target for the antiaircraft
batteries below. Here, then, was a meteorological phenomenon whose
military significance could not be ignored.
The impact of this discovery on the meteorological world left little
time for serious reflection on the nature of these strong, high-level
air currents, which were later to be named “Jet streams.” Many
questions remained unanswered. For instance, where are jet streams
found? What is their structure? How do they behave? To an-
swer these and other questions, the Office of Naval Research of the
United States Navy sponsored a general atmospheric circulation
project at the University of Chicago in 1946. Dr. C.-G. Rossby, one
of the world’s leading meteorologists, was called upon to direct the
project. His colleagues were Palmén, Riehl, and many other out-
standing meteorologists. Since then, research activities related to
jet streams have spread to all parts of the world.
For a period of time, attention was focused on meteorological
analyses of upper winds and temperatures obtained by radiosondes,
which consist of meteorological instruments coupled with a small
transmitter carried aloft by hydrogen- or helium-filled balloons.
Winds were obtained by tracking the balloons with radar equipment.
Out of these studies emerged a fairly complete large-scale picture of
jet streams which has remained substantially unchanged in the light of
subsequent research. In more recent years, research has been directed
to the finer details of the wind field. A large part of jet-stream re-
search is still being conducted by the United States Navy, Bureau
of Aeronautics Project AROWA (Applied Research Operational
Weather Analysis), at various locations in the United States and
other regions of the world. Also actively engaged in this field is the
Geophysics Research Directorate, Air Force Cambridge Research Cen-
ter, which is sponsoring Project Jet Stream. The main task is to
determine precisely the horizontal and vertical distribution of wind in
jet streams in a large number of cases. For this purpose, specially
instrumented aircraft are flown through jet streams, taking contin-
uous observations whose analyses will yield details unobtainable in
any other way.
STRUCTURE OF THE JET STREAM
As a result of the intensive preliminary studies at the University
of Chicago and other institutions throughout the world, a relatively
clear picture of the jet stream began to emerge. It was found that
jet streams are worldwide features of the atmosphere. That is, they
are essentially high-speed rivers of air that encircle the earth in the
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Lee PLATE 1
Typical jet-stream clouds as viewed from the ground. (Photographs courtesy of Dr. Vincent
J. Schaefer, of the Munitalp Foundation, Inc.)
1
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JET STREAMS—LEE 295
middle latitudes of each hemisphere. Air motion is generally from
west to east; however, on any individual day, a jet stream may follow
a meandering course that dips in some regions into the Tropics and
extends north of the Arctic Circle in others. A schematic diagram
showing a single jet stream is presented in figure 1. The heavy con-
tinuous line defines the axis of the jet stream along which the wind
speed attains its maximum values in the horizontal. One can usually
find the axis of a jet stream encircling the globe on any given occasion.
Figure 2 shows a view of a jet stream as seen by an observer look-
ing downstream from a point along the axis. The numbers along the
bottom of the diagram are the International Station Numbers which
identify five stations in Alaska and one in the Yukon, lying approxi-
mately in a line oriented from northwest to southeast. From right
to left, they are named, respectively, Kotzebu (133), McGrath (231),
Fairbanks (261), Big Delta (263), Northway (291), and Whitehorse
(964). The distance between Kotzebu and Whitehorse is 735 nau-
tical miles. The ordinate is pressure in millibars (mb.) plotted on
a logarithmic scale; 500 mb. corresponds very nearly to 18,000 feet,
200 mb. to 39,000 feet, and 100 mb. to 53,000 feet. Lines of equal
wind speed in knots, called isotachs, are used to portray the wind field.
Thus, within the central closed isotach around the main jet axis,
labeled J, above 400 mb., the wind speed is in excess of 90 knots.
If we consider the horizontal width of that band of winds in ex-
cess of a given value, say 80 knots, we would find it to be surprisingly
narrow—of the order of 100 miles in this example, but generally about
300 nautical miles. The vertical depth of the winds greater than 80
knots in figure 2 is less than 2 miles. A comparison of the horizontal
width of this jet core with the depth would lead us to the conclusion
that the jet stream can be represented fairly accurately in shape by
a flat ribbon parallel to the earth’s surface. Other features on the
cross section are the tropopause, indicated by the discontinuous heavy
line around the 300-400-mb. levels, and the continental arctic frontal
surface separating the relatively warm maritime arctic air mass on the
right of the diagram from the cold continental arctic air to its left.
The broken lines are isotherms labeled in degrees Centigrade.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN JET STREAMS AND FRONTS
This particular cross section is typical of the northernmost jet
stream which has been encountered by R. C. A. F. flights many times
in the past. Further studies of jet streams have revealed that, on the
average, four main tropospheric jet streams are present over North
America during the winter months. Except for the southernmost
subtropical jet stream which usually appears in the vicinity of Florida
and Cuba, each of the other three is closely associated with one of
451800—58——20
296
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
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1.—Typical path of the polar jet stre
FIGURE
JET STREAMS—LEE 297
PRESSURE (MB)
li
hil
Aen
2
Ficure 2.—View of continental-arctic jet stream seen looking downwind (after McIntyre
and Lee, 1954). Lower numbers identify Alaskan and Yukon stations. Ordinate is
pressure in mb. Solid lines are isotachs in knots. Broken lines are isotherms in °C.
Heavy solid lines show frontal surface and tropopause.
298 |= ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the three main frontal surfaces over North America in winter. These
three frontal surfaces are respectively called the polar front, the mari-
time arctic front, and the continental arctic front, found in this order
from south to north. The polar and maritime arctic jet streams have
structures very similar to the continental arctic jet stream in figure 2.
There is one fundamental difference between them, namely, the
height of maximum wind speed is found at higher altitudes as one
proceeds southward. For instance, the axis of the continental arctic
jet stream is normally found between 25 and 30 thousand feet, the
maritime arctic jet stream between 32 and 36 thousand feet, and the
polar front jet stream between 35 and 40 thousand feet. These jet
streams are also found over Japan in winter. Thus we can see why
the strong winds were not encountered by the high-altitude bombers
of the Second World War until the scene of operations moved suffi-
ciently far north in the western Pacific.
Another notable fact about the three northernmost jet streams is
that the axis of each jet stream is always found in the warm air above
its respective frontal surface and most often above the 500-mb. (18,000
feet, very nearly) position of the front. This relationship has imme-
diate value to the meteorologist, for, by means of it, he is able to
estimate the location of a high-level jet stream from temperature data
at the relatively low level of 500 mb., even in the absence of high-level
wind observations. Furthermore, knowing which front he is dealing
with, he can provide a reasonable estimate of the height of the axis.
One other feature brought out by extensive cross-section studies is
that the strongest winds at any level below the axis are invariably
found in the warmer air.
JET STREAM WINDS
The wind speeds in the jet-stream cross section shown in figure 2
are not particularly high compared with those found at lower lati-
tudes. Both the maritime arctic and polar jet streams consistently
exhibit stronger winds on any given occasion. In fact, the strongest
winds are found where two or more jet streams move closely to one
another. Although this can occur anywhere, the preferred locations
for such intense jet streams are the eastern coastlines of the Asian
and North American Continents.
What are the highest wind speeds likely to be found in jet streams?
In the past, wind-speed measurements as high as 400 knots have fre-
quently been reported in weather messages. However, when the orig-
inal observations, which are obtained by balloon-tracking methods,
are carefully checked, they are invariably found to be in error. For
example, a reported 400-knot wind over Philadelphia late in January
1955 was checked and found to be incorrect on account of instrumental
JET STREAMS—LEE 299
difficulties. The revised estimate of the maximum wind was around
270 knots. Recently a number of accurate wind measurements have
been made by aircraft flying across selected jet streams. The highest
reliable measurement made by this method up to November 1955 is
290 knots. However, it must be stressed that this figure does not
necessarily belie the accuracy of winds reported by other aircraft
not similarly equipped. A case in point is the encounter by a Comet
of a 350-knot wind over Tokyo.
Another significant feature of jet streams is brought out by the ver-
tical cross section in figure 2—the asymmetry of the wind distribu-
tion about the axis. The speeds decrease more slowly with distance
on the right side of the axis than on the left side, facing downstream.
Thus, a pilot wishing to maintain strong tailwinds would find it
advantageous to stay to the right of the jet-stream axis, where a
slight shift in location relative to it will produce little change in the
tailwind component. A corresponding shift on the left side of the
axis will result in a considerably larger decrease in the tailwind.
Now, on the right side of the jet stream, the wind can drop off at a
rate as high as 35 knots per hundred nautical miles. On the left
side, however, there can be a much greater rate of decrease in wind
speed with distance; actual measurements have shown rates as high
as 100 knots per hundred nautical miles.
It is also important to know the wind-speed variations in the ver-
tical, or vertical wind shear. Above and below the jet axis, the wind
speed decreases at an average rate of 10 to 15 knots per 1,000 feet.
Extreme values of the vertical wind shear have been found to be as
high as 30 to 35 knots per 1,000 feet by B-47 flights. Generally
speaking, it is only necessary to fly at right angles to the wind for
a short distance at the same height, simultaneously taking frequent
observations of air temperature, to find whether one is above or below
the axis. If the temperature changes very little, one will know the
flight level is near the level of maximum wind speed. If the temper-
ature increases while flying to the left of the wind, one can conclude
that the flight level is above the level of maximum wind. Finally, if
the temperature decreases while flying to the left, the flight level will
be below the level of maximum wind. This association of the vertical
wind shear with the horizontal temperature field is known to meteor-
ologists as the “thermal-wind relationship.” It has been exploited
by many commercial airline pilots to locate high winds on long
flights across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. By way of example,
Capt. Bernard C. Frost of B. O. A. C., in flying the North Atlantic
routes between 15,000 and 25,000 feet, found that the outside air
thermometer was a very valuable guide to the location of jet-stream
winds. Once in a strong wind at a certain altitude, he found that the
300 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
strong wind could be maintained by flying along the same isotherm.
He further states:
An amazingly accurate guide for calculation of wind strength on either side
of the jet stream (within altitude limits normally flown; viz, 15,000—-25,000 ft.)
was that the wind decreased some 8 knots for every degree Centigrade drop in
temperature on the polar (or cold) side; and it decreased some 16 knots for
every degree Centigrade rise on the equatorial (or warm) side.
N. E. Davis, writing in the September 1954 issue of the Meteorolog-
ical Magazine, described a successful trans-Atlantic crossing in a
jet stream by a B. O. A. C. Stratocruiser, under Capt. L. V. Messen-
ger and Navigating Officer M. H. Sutcliff, on August 2-3, 1953. By
the judicious use of their outside air thermometer, they were able to
locate and fly for three hours (about 1,000 miles) in the strong winds
below a jet stream. The penetration of the jet stream from the cold
side was indicated by a sudden rise in air temperature.
Therefore, to maintain strong tailwinds when flying below the jet
axis, one should endeavor to stay in the warm air. Above the jet
stream, one should try to stay in the colder air to the right of the
jet axis. In a similar manner, the temperature field can be used to
detect and maintain a track along which the headwinds will be more
favorable, if one is flying into the wind.
Research flights across jet streams have revealed some interesting
details of the wind field in the vicinity of their axes. The results of
several such flights under project AROWA have recently been pub-
lished. They have shown that the wind speed is rather variable with-
in a jet-stream core. Winds have also been found to vary consider-
ably with time at a fixed point. For instance, Lt. Col. R. C. Bund-
gaard, U. S. A. F., reported that the wind speed changed from 120
knots to 60 knots, and again to 120 knots, within 4 hours at 34,000
feet over Dayton, Ohio, on March 5, 1954. On another occasion, five
B-47’s observed a wind change from 200 to 72 knots at 40,000 feet
over Alabama during a 3-hour period on April 14, 1953. Such varia-
tions are impossible to forecast at the present state of knowledge. It
is hoped that further research into the mechanics of air motion will
provide answers in the future.
CLOUD FORMS OF THE JET STREAM
Through the work of Dr. Vincent J. Schaefer, of the Munitalp
Foundation, Inc., and many military as well as commercial pilots,
there has now been gathered considerable information on cloud forms
associated with jet streams. This knowledge can be used as an auxili-
ary tool to locate jet streams.
Dr. Schaefer has found four main cloud types associated with jet
streams. They are cirrus, cirrocumulus, lenticular altocumulus, and
JET STREAMS—LEE 301
altocumulus, extending from horizon to horizon, and having waves
at right angles to the air flow. From the ground, these clouds can
be observed to move at great speeds, often resulting in rapid local
changes in cloud cover during short intervals of time. Plate 1 shows
three of Dr. Schaefer’s remarkable photographs of typical jet-stream
clouds as observed from the ground.’
Aloft, cloud formations at various levels can often give indications
of the wind direction. Under conditions of high winds, an upper
cloud surface will show streaks in the direction of the wind and a
billow structure at right angles to these streaks, in a manner analogous
to wind lanes on a sea surface with a superimposed transverse wave
pattern.
CLEAR-AIR TURBULENCE
It was once thought that aviation hazards, such as icing and tur-
bulence, were confined to the lower troposphere, and that, once aircraft
could fly “above the weather,” all problems of flight comfort would be
solved. This myth exploded when high-altitude aircraft encountered
turbulence as violent as that encountered at low levels. The bumpi-
ness, or turbulence, is described by those who have experienced it to be
like the pounding of a fast speedboat racing across a very choppy
sea surface. Since there is no visual warning, it has been called
clear-air turbulence.
In order to ascertain the nature of this phenomenon, many special
research flights have been carried out over the British Isles, Europe,
and the United States. Through the kind cooperation of R. C. A. F.
personnel, the Meteorological Service of Canada has also acquired and
studied numerous turbulence reports. The conclusions reached by
various investigators are largely in agreement, but there are also
contradictions which will only be resolved by further research.
Clear-air turbulence can occur at any level of the atmosphere flown
thus far. It is generally found in isolated patches 50 to 100 miles in
length and width. These patches consist of one or more layers, the
vertical thicknesses of which are generally not great, being of the order
of 500 to 3,000 feet. On occasion, thicknesses of 6,000 feet or more
have been reported. Because clear-air turbulence occurs in layers, a
satisfactory method of moving out of turbulent air is to change alti-
tude by 1,500 to 2,000 feet.
Clear-air turbulence has been found to occur in the vicinity of jet
streams where the wind speed varies greatly with distance in the
horizontal or vertical. Thus, the regions above, below, and to the left
of the jet axis, facing downstream, are the preferred locations of tur-
*The writer wishes to express his gratitude to Dr. Schaefer for permission to
publish these photographs here.
302 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
bulence. The air in the core of the jet stream and to its right is smooth
by comparison. If an aircraft is flying parallel to a jet stream, an
attempt should be made to fly on the right side of the jet axis, because
not only would there be a smaller chance of encountering turbulence,
but also there would be the added advantage of maintaining strong
tailwinds.
The frequency of various intensities of turbulence has been studied
by J. Clodman, of the Meteorological Division. Analysis of more
than 500 reports of aircraft turbulence over a height range of 18,000
to 45,000 feet revealed the following results. For three stations where
reports of nonoccurrences were also made, about a quarter of all flights
encountered turbulence. Fifty-two percent of these occurrences were
classed as light, 25 percent as moderate, 5 percent as heavy, and 8 per-
cent as severe. The remainder were classified as light to moderate or
moderate to heavy. Hence the majority of these occurrences were in
the light or moderate range. The few cases of moderate and heavy
turbulence occurred in layers not greater than 3,500 feet in depth, in
agreement with the results obtained in Britain.
A comparison of the frequency of turbulence reports at each level
with the frequency of time flown at each level showed that they were
almost identical, from which it is inferred that the probability of en-
countering turbulence at any level from 18,000 to 45,000 feet is
approximately the same.
A study of turbulence reports collected on Canberra test flights over
Britain was described by Eric Hyde, test pilot of Short Bros. and
Harland Ltd., of Belfast, in the April 1954 issue of “Flight.” The
general conclusions are similar to those reached elsewhere. However,
they do report that the intensity of turbulence decreased with increas-
ing height. For example, all cases of severe and violent turbulence
were encountered below 30,000 feet, the area most affected being around
25,000 to 29,000 feet. The highest recorded altitude of turbulence was
49,000 feet, where only light turbulence was felt. Only rarely was
turbulence encountered above the tropopause, and it was never greater
than moderate. In contrast to experience elsewhere, there were many
flights through well-documented jet streams which yielded no trace
of turbulence at all.
Pollen and Spores and Their Use
in Geology’
By Estetta B, LEopotp and Ricuarp A. Scott
United States Geological Survey, Denver, Colo.
INTRODUCTION
THE WIDESPREAD aerial distribution of plant spores and pollen is
made obvious each year by the symptoms of the many hay fever suf-
ferers—the pollen count has become as familiar a daily statistic as
the relative humidity. Less obvious is the fact that the circulating
spores and pollen inevitably must settle out of the air, thus be-
coming a part of the continuing accumulation of sediments at the
earth’s surface. This incorporation of the rain of pollen and/or spores
apparently has gone on throughout geologic time since the evolution
of spore-bearing plants, although appreciation and utilization of
this fact are relatively recent developments in paleontology.
In the past 25 years there has been increasing use of these plant mi-
crofossils in solving scientific problems ranging from the recon-
struction of the forest environment of prehistoric man to the correla-
tion of Paleozoic coal seams. They are especially valuable in de-
termining the changes in climate associated with advances and re-
treats of the Pleistocene ice. The study of pollen and spores, formally
called palynology, is yielding information increasingly useful in
dating sequences of sedimentary rocks and in interpreting past en-
vironmental conditions and climatic successions.
Pollen grains are small (5-200 microns in diameter) reproductive
structures representing the male gametophyte in the seed plants.
Their transfer to the female reproductive apparatus, a necessary
preliminary to fertilization, is effected primarily by wind, water, or
by insects. Pollination by wind is necessarily an inefficient process
involving a vast supply of pollen grains; some wind-pollinated plants
have as many as 10,000 grains per stamen in flowers with many
stamens, and more than 10 million grains may be produced by a
* Publication authorized by the Director, U. S. Geological Survey.
303
304 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
single catkin (e. g., birch; Erdtman, 1954). Only minute proportions
of this quantity of pollen grains complete their role in the repro-
ductive cycle of the plant, the excess being the primary source of the
pollen rain incorporated into the sedimentary record. Most plants
adapted to pollination by insects produce fewer pollen grains per
flower, although some insect-pollinated plants produce enough pollen
to be represented regularly in the pollen rain.
Spores, produced by so-called lower plants ranging from the fungi
through the ferns, lycopsids (club mosses), and sphenopsids (horse-
tails), may represent different aspects of the life cycle in different
groups but have in common their function as a means of dispersal.
Some species among the ferns, lycopsids, and sphenopsids are hetero-
sporous, producing two kinds of spores differing in function, struc-
ture, and usually in size. The female or megaspores are typically
large, ranging from about 150 to several hundred microns in max-
imum dimension; the male or microspores are usually smaller, from
about 25 to 100 microns in their maximum dimension, and are
produced in far greater numbers than megaspores. However,
sex, not size, is the fundamental difference between megaspores and
microspores.
Megaspores are usually less abundant and less widely disseminated
than microspores. Although they have been described from younger
beds (Dijkstra, 1951), megaspores are most important as micro-
fossils in the Paleozoic. They were produced in numbers by arbores-
cent lycopsid and sphenopsid plants that were important components
in the vegetation forming the Carboniferous coals.
The persistence of pollen and spores in numbers in sedimentary
rocks of diverse geological ages is due to the remarkable resistance
of their walls to most degradative processes. The walls of pollen
grains and spores are composed of a waxlike compound, a chemically
undefined polymer of stable, long-chain molecules. This compound,
one of the most enduring organic substances found in nature, is
resistant to acidic or basic solutions. It is, however, susceptible to
oxidation resulting from prolonged exposure to air; consequently,
pollen and spores are best preserved when deposited in relatively
anaerobic environments.
The wall of a modern pollen grain is complex structurally, usually
consisting of an outer, 2-layered eame and an inner intine. Post-
mortem changes result in the degradation of both the contents of the
pollen grain and its intine, so that only the exine remains in fossil
material. Modern pollen grains can be treated chemically to leave
only the exine for comparison with fossil pollen.
A great diversity of shapes and morphological features is found
among the pollen and spores produced by the many kinds of plants.
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 305
Although the grains of certain unrelated plants are similar enough to
be virtually indistinguishable, this situation is not common enough
to be a major problem. Pollen grains of the flowering plants are in
general radially or bilaterally symmetrical, although a few asymmetri-
cal forms are known. Many pollen grains are basically spheroidal,
but modification into various other geometric shapes is common, and
flattening as a result of compression is usual in fossil material. The
appearance of a single pollen grain may vary depending upon whether
it is seen in polar or in equatorial view. The appearance of many
pollen grains reflects the presence of pores and/or furrows (colpz),
which may function as exits for the pollen tube at germination of the
grain. Various combinations of these apertures occur; three to many
furrows and/or pores are common in pollen of dicotyledonous plants,
and one-furrowed grains occur frequently in monocotyledonous and
gymnospermous plants. Pollen grains of other gymnospermous (co-
niferous) plants have elaborate bladders or wings. Some basic
structural features of typical pollen grains are illustrated in figure 1.
Spores of mosses and ferns commonly bear a triradiate tetrad scar,
representing the lines of contact of the four spores produced as a
result of the two successive divisions of the spore mother cell. Most
pollen grains are also produced in tetrads, but with the exception of
a few extinct gymnosperms, do not retain the triradiate scar. Spores
with a single scar (monolete) and without a scar (alete) also occur.
Some examples of the basic shapes of modern spores are shown at the
top of figure 1. .
The tremendous variety in wall texture, shape, and configuration
provides a reliable basis for the categorization of many isolated spores
and pollen grains, either in terms of their natural affinities or into
morphological types. Both approaches are utilized by palynologists.
Natural affinities must be determined for the interpretation of pa-
leoecological and floristic information, though stratigraphic correla-
tions can be carried out by the matching of morphological types with
little regard for their relationships to the parent plants.
DISPERSAL OF POLLEN AND SPORES
Basic to interpretation of a fossil pollen assemblage is an under-
standing of the factors affecting the original representation of spores
and pollen at the locality. This representation is determined by a
complex of factors, including the proportion of wind- and insect-
pollinated plants in the contributing vegetation, the total pollen
production of individual plants and their relative abundance in the
contributing vegetation, and the meteorological and other conditions
affecting distance of transport.
Spores of ferns and mosses are disseminated by wind or water,
but pollen is distributed either by the wind, water, insects, or oc-
306 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
triradiate ferns
| or and
ris Paci sin anne |
monolete scar fern allies
wings
agymnosper—
furrows
-mous plants
no aperture
no aperture
monocotyledo -
-nous plants
l pore
| furrow
no aperture
3 tO many pores dicotyledonous
plants
3 to many
furrows
3to many
furrows
HOOO HOOs
Pesce
and pores
Ficure 1.—Some common pollen and spore forms.
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 307
casionally by birds or other agents. The mechanisms of dispersal
have been important in the evolution of the number and type of pollen
grains produced by each plant species. Because wind is a random
agent in comparison with insects, whose travels about the plant
usually are motivated, production of enormous numbers of pollen
grains has definite survival value among wind-pollinated plants. In
addition to being produced in greater numbers per flower, pollen
POLLEN PRODUCTION SPEED OF FALL
LOG GRAINS PER FLOWER CM/SEC
° 10 100 1900 10.000 100,000 Imillion ° 20 40 60
CONIFERS
Sa eee nee ey oe
POLLINATED
BIRCH
OAK CERTAIN DICOTS
BEECH
MAPLE
LINDEN
HEATH a ay INSECT
FLAX POLLINATED
LOBELIA ee =
MILKWEED | —>
ORCHID
SELF
GENTIAN IN A RR Ach cee ee 8 Oe ean RNR RS i oS
OLLINATED j ay
OENOTHERA NONE RELEASED
P
(DATA FROM DYAKOWSKA, 1937; KNOLL, 1932, ETC.)
Ficure 2.—The approximate numbers of pollen grains produced per flower, and the buoy-
ancy of single grains (measured by rate of fall in air) for some common plants.
adapted for wind dispersal is usually lighter and less sticky than
that adapted for transport by insects. A quantitative comparison
of pollen production for some common wind- and insect-pollinated
plants, and specific gravity of grains as measured by rates of fall in
air, is shown in figure 2. Some insect-pollinated plants do produce
a large amount of pollen (e. g., willow), and some pollen adapted for
transport by insects is carried by air currents and deposited in en-
vironments favorable for its preservation. Nevertheless, the differ-
308 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
ences in number and buoyancy usually result in an exaggerated rep-
resentation of the wind-pollinated types in the pollen rain in relation
to the numerical importance of the parent plants in the source vege-
tation. Conversely, insect- and bird-pollinated species, which are
particularly important in the arboreal vegetation of tropical regions,
may not be well represented in the sedimentary record.
The distances to which pollen grains may travel vary widely with
the nature of the grains, location of the source plants, and weather
conditions. For example, light grains tend to travel farther than
heavier ones, and pollen produced by plants forming the forest canopy
is more favorably situated for long-distance dispersal than pollen
originating in the undercover. Anthers typically open during dry,
sunny weather when thermal updrafts may be present to raise the
pollen to altitudes favoring extended transport. Mixing of pollen
grains in the air produces a more or less representative sample of
the regional vegetation. The fall of pollen from the air is hastened
by such factors as rain, increase in the relative humidity, and decrease
in wind velocity. By far the major amount of pollen is deposited
in the immediate area of the producing plants, and most pollen is
removed from the air within a distance of 50 to 100 kilometers (Faegri
and Iversen, 1950). Long-distance transport of single grains for
distances of as much as 1,000 kilometers is on record (Erdtman,
1954), but these rare occurrences do not appreciably affect the re-
liability of a mass sample of pollen. In general, however, the oc-
currence of fossil pollen is a less reliable indication that a particular
plant grew in the immediate vicinity than is the presence of leaves or
other detached parts.
Within the temperate zone it has been shown that the density of
pollen in the air is greatest over the continents and falls off rapidly
as one travels out to sea. Erdtman (1954) cites an example in which
the pollen content of the air over the coastal plain of eastern Sweden
was several thousand times greater than the amount present in the
air 200 miles west of the European coast at the same latitude. The
density of pollen in the air in an inland mountainous area in Norway
has been investigated by Faegri (Faegri and Iversen, 1950), who
reports that the tree pollen fallout at collecting stations in the
montane forest belt was 13 times greater than the fallout received
by stations at and above timberline (fig. 3).
Factors affecting the relationship of the pollen rain to the source
vegetation have been listed by Kuyl et al. (1955). These authors
point out in part that pollen may be retransported after its original
deposition but before it is incorporated into sediments. This second-
ary transport may be by wind, or if the pollen falls into running
water, it may be carried long distances in the stream before final
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 309
deposition. Transportation by rivers, as well as by wind, may be re-
sponsible for the intermingling of pollen derived from entirely dis-
tinct ecological assemblages.
The interplay of these factors has been illustrated by a study of
the modern pollen fallout at Eagle Lake in northern Maine (Hyland
et al., 1953). The aerial pollen fallout in 1950 was measured by
counting the numbers of different pollen and spore types falling on
a “sticky slide” exposed for daily intervals during the growing season
(fig. 4).
172
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Ficure 3.—Pine pollen fallout (number of grains per square centimeter) at mountain sta-
tions in Norway during the growing season of 1942. Stations within the forest area
accumulate much more pollen than those near timberline. (From Faegri and Iversen,
1950.)
The results show first that pollen rain is actually a series of fall-
outs that occur during the blooming periods of different local plant
types; the trees release pollen in the spring, and grass pollen, weed
pollen, and fungal spores appear during middle and late summer.
Coniferous trees numerous in the local forests (pine, spruce, and
cedar) contribute heavily to the total yearly average, but oak and
elm, rare types in the local stands, are poorly represented in the
pollen rain at this site.
All the spore and pollen types shown in figure 4 are wind trans-
ported except maple and willow, which grow in profusion on nearby
ridges. These are rather meagerly represented in the yearly average
pollen rain in comparison with their density in the vegetation at the
immediate site. Insect-pollinated plants including maple and willow
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
310
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POLLEN AND SPORES—-LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 311
and those in the unknown category (not shown) represent a total
of only 10 percent of the 1950 pollen rain.
From studies of this type it can be seen that the pollen rain of an
area reflects the local vegetation only in a general way, and that the
representation of wind-pollinated species is better than that of in-
sect-pollinated species. The amount of total pollen rain may vary
from year to year depending on fluctuations in weather affecting
blooming and pollen dispersal, but during a 10-year period the per-
cent composition of the total sample remains somewhat similar for
a given station.
FACTORS IN DEPOSITION
Although the aerial pollen rain settles out at random as a fine
dust on land and water, pollen does not persist in numbers at or near
the soil surface owing to prolonged exposure to oxygen and to alter-
nate wet and dry conditions. Water-laid sediments that remain wet
for long periods of time and that are relatively deficient in oxygen
provide the conditions under which pollen is best preserved. Many
lakes and quiet lagoons have a low dissolved-oxygen content in their
deep-water layers and particularly at and below the mud-water inter-
face (Vallentyne, 1957); consequently, these environments, along
with acid peat bogs, furnish extensive areas for the accumulation of
pollen.
Because the pollen rain is progressively less in the seaward direc-
tion, sedimentary environments in which pollen concentrations can
be found are limited to near-shore sites in marine and lacustrine
waters. Pollen and spores from modern marine sediments are often
associated with microalgae, diatoms, and other forms of oceanic
plankton; conversely, assemblages from fresh-water sediments often
include typically fresh-water microorganisms. Evidence of this sort
provides the paleontologist with a way to recognize the environment
of deposition of a fossil sample.
Pollen and spores are of silt size and are readily eroded with the
sediment in which they are imbedded. Modern fluvial erosion of
Tertiary pollen-bearing rocks, followed by transport and deposition
of the Tertiary pollen in a modern stream terrace, is not uncommon.
The situation can be recognized from the resulting mixture of extinct
or ecologically displaced pollen types with a modern assemblage.
Redeposition of pollen has been observed in sediments originating
during periods of rapid erosion by glacial meltwater streams drain-
ing ice masses that eroded older, pollen-bearing beds (Iversen, 1936).
Redeposited pollen does not seem to be important in most highly
organic sediments such as peats, coals, and black muds, but the paly-
nologist must be constantly on the alert for it.
451800—58——21
312 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
The quantity of pollen and spores in a sediment sample is deter-
mined by the relationship between the density of the pollen rain and
the rate of accumulation of the sediment. Maximum concentrations
of pollen are produced by dense pollen rains in combination with
slow deposition of sediment. Original low density of pollen in a
deposit can result from either a light pollen rain or from dilution of
a heavy pollen rain by rapidly accumulating sediments. Examples
of these relations are shown diagrammatically in figure 5. Bars in
the lower part of the figure show the probable rate of annual sedi-
ment accumulation; those in the upper part form a record on a loga-
rithmic scale of the number of pollen grains per gram (dry weight)
of sediment.
Rich in pollen are samples of lake peat and Jake clay from Durham,
Conn. (on right, fig. 5). It has been determined by carbon-14 dating
that these sediments were deposited very slowly, perhaps at the rate
of only one millimeter per year. The rich pollen flora contained in
these sediments indicates that at the time of deposition well-developed
coniferous forests grew near the lake. In all probability the annual
pollen rain was like that of coniferous forests now growing in central
New England, perhaps 70,000 grains per square centimeter per year.
A sample of varved (laminated) glacial clay from Hartford, Conn.,
poor in pollen (fig. 4), is laminated in a manner that indicates rapid
sedimentation. The varves, which are 10 millimeters apart, may mark
increments of sediment that accumulated annually or oftener. Al-
though the pollen rain may have been less than the present fallout at
that site, the low pollen content in this sediment seems to have been
due primarily to dilution of the pollen by rapid sedimentation.
The most sterile sediment among these examples is a modern la-
goonal mud from Kapingamarangi Atoll in the South Pacific. This
sample, along with 10 others from different depths, contains 25 or
fewer pollen grains per gram of sediment (McKee et al., MS.). The
total land area of the atoll islands that surround this lagoon is less
than one square mile, and does not support sufficient vegetation to
furnish large quantities of pollen locally. In spite of the slow rate
of sediment accumulation at these sampling stations (McKee et al.,
MS.), the pollen density remains low owing to the limited numbers
of source plants.
POLLEN- AND SPORE-BEARING ROCKS AND THEIR LABORATORY
TREATMENT
Unweathered sediments originating in reducing environments are
most apt to contain pollen; these include marine and fresh-water
shales, limestones, siltstones, coals, peats, and lignites. High organic
content, usually manifested by dark color, is often an indication of
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 313
the presence of pollen and spores. Sandstones are usually barren, but
the absence of pollen from many coarse, aquatic sediments is thought
to be a derived condition. Modern lake sands that have been con-
tinuously wet since deposition often contain an abundance of well-
preserved pollen and spores, but lacustrine sandstones that have been
elevated and partially eroded usually contain none. Sediments having
POLLEN
DENSITY
10.000/gm
LOG GRAINS 7,000/gm
PER
GRAM DRY
SEDIMENT l000-
50/gm 1l00-
25/gm
| lo-
oe a a o- be
KAPINGAMARANGI VARVED LAKE CLAY LAKE PEAT
LAGOON CLAY (CONN) (CONN,)
SILTS (CONN) SPRUCE ZONE A PINE ZONE B
lOmm/varve
|
v
PROBABLY
SLOW
Imm/year Imm/yeor
RATE OF SEDIMENT ACCUMULATION
Ficure 5.—Pollen density in sediments compared with the rate of sediment accumulation.
Kapingamarangi lagoon sediments (left) are low in pollen, owing to poorly developed
local vegetation; the varved clay (second from left) is low in pollen because of dilution
of pollen rain by rapid sedimentation; the sediments in the two remaining examples (right)
are rich in pollen because of dense contributing vegetation combined with a slow sedi-
mentation rate.
314 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
a grain size coarser than that of fine sand facilitate the penetration of
oxygen and percolation of ground water to an extent destructive to
spores and pollen.
Sedimentary rocks altered by the heat and pressure of metamorphism
or by extensive weathering and exposure are usually sterile, although
they may once have contained pollen. Original sterility may be the
case in deep-water deposits which were laid down too far from land to
receive an appreciable pollen rain.
The preparation of fossil pollen requires the facilities of a chemical
laboratory equipped with a fume hood, centrifuge, miscellaneous
glassware, and a microscope providing magnifications between 100
and 1,200. Care must be taken to prevent the introduction into the
sample of stray pollen from dirty glassware or the air.
Pollen and spores imbedded in a sediment must be separated from
the mineral matrix in order to observe them. Detailed explanations
of the treatments used are given by Faegri and Iversen (1950). Two
common procedures employed to accomplish the separation entail
either dissolving the mineral fraction by reagents that will not destroy
pollen, or differential flotation of the sediment using heavy liquids
in which the organic residues float while the mineral fraction sinks.
Common reagents for the first procedure are HC] for dissolution of
carbonates, followed by HF to eliminate silicates. The second (flota-
tion) technique may be accomplished, after physical maceration of
the rock, by the use of a bromoform-acetone mixture adjusted to a
specific gravity of 2.38 (Frey, 1954). Coals may be broken down by
oxidation with Schulze’s solution. The high concentration of dark
humic substances in coal, lignite, and peat often requires the use of
decolorizing agents, bleaches or strong bases, to clarify the otherwise
opaque organic material. Acetylation is often used to remove cellu-
lose. Variations of these procedures have been developed in each
pollen laboratory to deal with the matrix at hand.
After the pollen is isolated from the sedimentary matrix, it is washed
free of the reagents used in preparation and mounted on slides in
glycerine jelly, balsam, or a synthetic mounting medium.
INTERPRETATION OF THE FOSSIL SAMPLE
Because of the similarity of Pleistocene plants to modern ones,
identification of their pollen with modern genera or (in part) species
is theoretically possible for such relatively young material. Much
pollen of Tertiary age can safely be attributed to living genera too,
but in Cretaceous assemblages the detection of modern genera is usually
difficult and often questionable because of the great amount of evolu-
tion and extinction that has since occurred. Older fossil material, e. g.,
pre-Cretaceous spores and conifer pollen, is usually placed in extinct
451800 O -58 (Face p. 314)
SPRUCE
ZONE
13,500.
+460 yrs
OURHA ‘|
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246 NAP TOTAL =
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451800 © -58 (Face p. 314)
TOTOKET BOG—NORTHFORD, CONN.— CORE TOT B— Percent per lOO tree grains
POLLEN SEDIMENT DEPTH
ZONES TYPE METERS
PEAT
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5X=DOTTED LINE SCALE: 4 5 4
0246 NAP TOTAL =
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TREES SHRUBS HERBS FERN ALLIES & WATER PLANTS
Ficure 6.—Pollen diagram of Totoket Bog, Northford, Conn.
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POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 315
genera because, though one might be sure to what major taxonomic
group the plant belongs, it is usually considered inappropriate to
apply the names of living genera to such old material.
Identification of fossil forms in terms of modern species and genera
requires careful comparison with a large-as-possible collection of
modern pollen, prepared by acetylation from authentic herbarium
collections (Traverse, 1955).
With proper preparation a fossil pollen sample may contain up to
1,000 grains per slide. If the assemblage represented is rich in types,
it may consist of 60 to 100 forms, though usually it contains less. An
estimate by eye of the relative proportions of all these types is usually
not accurate, especially for the rarer forms, and instead it has become
accepted practice to count 200 to 1,000 grains in order to compute the
percent composition of a sample. Because the slide assemblage is
mixed, systematic traverses of the preparation by means of a mechani-
cal stage permit the observer to encounter a random sample. By
performing counts in a consistent manner for each of several samples
in a sedimentary sequence, and by converting the tallies to percent
composition of the observed sample, quantitative data can be obtained.
By plotting the data in graph form with the values for each sample
arranged in a vertical series according to its placement in a section,
the relative numerical importance of each pollen type at different levels
in the section can easily be seen. Such a plot is termed a pollen dia-
gram, an example of which is included as figure 6.
When the sample count includes 1,000 grains, percent composition
data are statistically very reliable for both rare and common pollen
grains. If the count includes 200 or fewer grains, the calculated per-
cent composition involves a sampling error that becomes increasingly
serious for progressively smaller counts, and is more serious for com-
mon pollen types in the sample than it is for rare ones. When two
or more pollen diagrams from a deposit are essentially the same,
reliability of the data is increased (Faegri and Iversen, 1950).
The pollen diagram shown in figure 6 represents an analysis of a
4-meter core in a late-glacial bog near Totoket Mountain, Northford,
Conn. As a help in visualizing the sequence, a diagrammatic section
of the core sediments from which the pollen samples were taken is
shown at the left of this figure along with a scale to show depth below
the surface of the bog. Plant genera observed in the samples are ar-
ranged from left to right starting with trees, followed by shrubs, —
herbs, and water plants. The relative amounts of different pollen
types are shown as deviations to the right from the vertical axes.
The advantage of presenting data in a diagram is that at a glance
one can easily see major trends, dominant types, and relations of
sediment type to the pollen phases, and also observe the components
316 = ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
of a single sample by following one depth level horizontally across
the graph. Interpretation of a complex pollen or spore diagram is
facilitated by dividing the sequence into phases or zones, in order to
outline further the major features of the sequence. Definition of
zones. can be based on any feature that seems pertinent, such as a
numerically dominant genus, or presence or absence of critical though
less abundant microspores. In our example, the zones entered on
the extreme left of figure 6 are labeled for convenience by alphabetical
symbols and are based on the dominant plant type or genus: T zones
for predominance of shrubs and herbs, A zones for spruce (Picea), B
for pine (Pinus), and C for hardwoods (here Quercus, oak).
From one or preferably more than one such fossil samples or se-
quences, inferences can be drawn about the type of plants represented,
the general climate at the time of deposition, the environment of
deposition, and the approximate age of the sample. Examples of
such conclusions are discussed later in relation to paleoecological in-
terpretation and correlation by pollen and spores. It might be said
again, however, that the interpretation must recognize that the pollen
and/or spore rain represented in the sample does not define the exact
composition of the vegetation adjacent to the site of deposition.
Qualitative changes with time shown in pollen or spore sequences are
more meaningful than the composition of individual samples.
RECONSTRUCTION OF PAST ENVIRONMENTS
For paleoecological purposes, fossil pollen serves as a means of
determining the botanical relations of the plants in the assemblage.
Having identified the fossil pollen, the pollen analyst, under the as-
sumption that plants have not significantly changed their environ-
mental tolerances in time, can deduce that an environment like that
now required by these plants once existed in the vicinity of the fossil
locality. If a modern species is now limited in its distribution by
specific factors such as temperature or rainfall, then from a Pleisto-
cene occurrence of the plant one can infer rather precisely the cli-
mate at the time the plant grew. The validity of such conclusions
increases with the number of different plants on which they are based.
They are most exact for the Pleistocene and decrease in accuracy
with increasing age of the sample.
Such precise climatic inferences cannot be made from plant as-
semblages of Tertiary age, but, because most modern genera (but not
species) have existed throughout the Cenozoic along with gradually
decreasing numbers of extinct forms, somewhat more general inter-
pretations are possible.
Most of the plant genera of the older Mesozoic and Paleozoic are
now extinct. Hence ecological evaluation of these old assemblages is
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 317
especially dependent upon correlative evidence from associated fos-
sils and from the physical character of the deposit.
An example of the use of fossil pollen in reconstruction of a pre-
historic human environment is the sequence described by Godwin
(1948) for Shapwick Heath (bog), Somerset, England, where inter-
esting Iron and Bronze Age artifacts have been discovered. The
pollen, from a series of sediment samples taken at close intervals be-
low, at, and above the levels where artifacts were found, documented
a series of changes in the vegetation that revealed the nature of the
human cultures. Interpretation of the resultant pollen diagram was
based upon changes in the kinds and numbers of weed, forb, and
agricultural plant pollen present in the section.
Less than half a meter below the bog surface were discovered the
well-preserved remains of a log trackway (Westhay trackway) con-
structed of longitudinally laid birch timbers and small, more or less
vertical stakes pinning these in place; the birch timbers showed clear
ax cuts that by their nature could not have been made by a modern
ax, but were characteristic of the marks left by certain ax types used
in the late Bronze Age. Associated with the trackway timbers was
a spearhead that was of late Bronze Age.
At other locations in Shapwick Heath, commercial peat-mining
operations revealed no less than five food caches buried below the
modern surface of the bog, and these are datable to the Romano-
British culture by the coins contained in them. At other localities,
a scabbard (a Téne scabbard), of late Iron Age, and also a primitive
boat, 18 feet long, were discovered under several feet of peat. The
archeological age of the boat is not certain, but the plant species pres-
ent indicate that open water has been scarce or absent on Shapwick
Heath since the time of the Westhay trackway.
In sediments just below the oldest of these artifacts (the timbers
of the Westhay trackway), weed, cereal, and forb pollen types are
present, and in sediments above the trackway believed to be con-
temporaneous with the late Iron Age, these same pollen types are
especially numerous.
Pollen representing weeds and forbs in Shapwick Heath sediments
include Rumex, Artemisia (sage), members of the daisy and lamb’s-
quarters families, and plantains. The most significant plantain
species is Plantago lanceolata which elsewhere in European post-
glacial sequences has been found only in sediments younger than
Neolithic Age. It is a well-established fact that this plantain species
has proliferated in Europe only in the last few thousand years, and
that it is probably a weed associated with human disturbance of the
vegetation. The cereals present include grasses and members of the
barley group, which are difficult to identify to genus by their pollen.
318 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Allowing for the possibility of burial of artifacts below sediments
with which they were contemporary, the evidence from the Shapwick
Heath pollen sequence indicates that clearing of the local forest was
begun toward the end of the Bronze Age and just before the construc-
tion of the Westhay trackway. A later and more pronounced maxi-
mum of weed and cereal pollen in sediments of late Iron Age suggests
that clearing and agriculture probably reached a peak of activity at
that time. The occurrence of barley grain in the ruins of a local
village of late Iron Age confirms the fact that agriculture was prac-
ticed during that era.
The archeological record of Shapwick Heath history ends with
the Romano-British artifacts which are datable to the time of the
dissolution of Roman power in Britain at the close of the fourth
century A. D.
Pollen data from a peat bog near Northford, Conn., illustrate
how fossil tree pollen can be useful in inferring the nature of pre-
historic climate. In the pollen diagram (fig. 6), from this bog, tree-
pollen curves plotted on the left include data for spruce (Picea), a
genus that no longer grows in appreciable numbers in the State.
During the deposition of zone A, which began some 13,000 years ago,
spruce was the dominant pollen type, and therefore was probably
the dominant tree in the local forests at that time. By comparison of
the amount of spruce in zone A sediments with its density in pollen
rain of areas to the north, one finds that the nearest comparable mod-
ern concentration of spruce lies in the Maritime Provinces of southern
Canada. Because spruce distribution and abundance are controlled
by growing-season temperatures, one can make the definite conclusion
that July temperatures of southern Connecticut during the deposition
of zone A were at least as low as those now found in the Maritime
Provinces. These temperatures average 16-18°C. in July and are
3 to 4 degrees cooler than those now typical of southern Connecticut
in the month of July (Leopold, 1957).
If their present ecology is well understood, microalgae or marginal
water plants in the fossil assemblages are sometimes helpful in re-
vealing the original hardness or salinity of the water. In the Totoket
diagram of figure 6, water plants and algae, shown on the far right,
include: chara and A/yriophyllum (water milfoil), now characteristic
of mineral-rich lakes; Pediastrum, a small floating alga that now
prefers open water; and the marginal water plants 7'ypha (cattail)
and Vymphaea (yellow water lily). Remains of all these are espe-
cially prevalent in sediments of zone A. One can therefore infer
that during deposition of zone A when the forests of southern Con-
necticut were predominantly spruce, this basin was a lake with waters
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 319
somewhat rich in calcium. The basin is no longer a lake, for peat has
filled the depression to create a bog in which the peaty muck at the
surface is rich in humic acids and low in minerals. Hardwoods rather
than spruce now grow around Totoket bog. Hence it is clear that
the old muds underlying the peaty surface of the bog contain a record
of a climatic and aquatic environment strikingly different from mod-
ern conditions in the Totoket basin.
An outstanding example of the use of fossil pollen, along with
fruits, seeds, and wood, in a broad approach to the reconstruction of
a Tertiary (upper Oligocene) environment is the investigation of the
Brandon lignite. This unusual deposit of brown coal, near Brandon,
Vt., was first discovered about 100 years ago and served as the fuel
source for an iron industry once the largest in the United States.
Recent rediscovery and study of the lignite (macrofossils: Barghoorn,
1950; microfossils: Traverse, 1955) has resulted in the identification of
more than 50 genera of flowering plants; about 60 percent of these
are represented by pollen alone.
The affinities of the plants from the Brandon lignite reveal that
ecologically they form a subtropical assemblage which probably grew
under conditions much like those in the river swamps of the Atlantic—
Gulf Coastal Plain. Such significant genera as Liqguidambar (sweet
gum), Vyssa (tupelo), Cyrilla, Gordonia, and Engelhardtia, now
found only in much milder climate than that prevailing in Vermont,
are represented by fossil pollen. In addition, presence in the flora of
some genera now growing under warm conditions but only in south-
east Asia, e. g., Glyptostrobus and Alangium, is proved by the occur-
rence of their pollen. The present ecology of these and the other
Brandon genera is compelling evidence for the existence in Vermont
in the early Tertiary of climatic conditions similar to those now typi-
cal for coastal Florida or South Carolina.
Pollen from the Tertiary brown coals in Europe has been inten-
sively investigated (Thomson, 1953), but the known Tertiary vege-
tational history of the United States is as yet based primarily upon
leaves and other macrofossils. From studies such as that of the Bran-
don lignite, it is clear that palynology can contribute to a fuller under-
standing of the evolutionary and migrational history of past and
present vegetation by adding another category to the list of detached
fragments from which the geologic record of plants must be deduced.
The potential of pollen and spores in this respect arises not only from
their occurrence in rocks that do not contain other plant parts, but
also from the fact that a single slide may contain the pollen of 20
or more genera; a sample of this size is amassed much more tediously
when dealing with plant macrofossils.
320 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
CORRELATION
The practice of dating rocks by the fossils they contain is based
upon the fact that during geologic time the complex of factors affect-
ing organisms has resulted in their evolution, migration, and extinc-
tion. Establishing the sequence of changes in individual categories
and assemblages of organisms provides a basis for a relative chronol-
ogy. The stratigraphic paleontologist can make correlations and age
determinations by comparison of fossils from beds of unknown age
with those from beds where the age is established.
The suitability of pollen and spores for geologic dating arises
from several of the factors already discussed, namely, their small
size, taxonomic individuality, resistance to degradation, and wide-
spread distribution. They may be used in correlation either as a
means for identifying botanically the plants they represent or as
arbitrarily designated forms. In practice, a combination of the
two is often employed. The botanical approach takes advantage
of the fact that the times of appearance and disappearance of most
of the major plant groups are known. Thus Carboniferous plant
microfossils reflect the dominance of extinct arborescent lycopods and
horsetail relatives along with many ferns and seed ferns. Within
the Carboniferous, changes in generic and specific composition and
relative abundance with time are sufficient to make the numerous
plant microfossils in coal useful for correlating coal seams within a
basin (Kosanke, 1950).
Permian and older Mesozoic rocks are characterized by the ab-
sence of many of the Carboniferous types and the increasing propor-
tion of winged gymnospermous grains and cycadophyte pollen. An-
giosperm pollen is not certainly present until early Cretaceous time
and is not abundant until late Cretaceous time. Pollen from Upper
Cretaceous rocks is predominantly that of extinct angiosperm genera ;
the floras assume an increasingly modern and more provincial aspect
in the Tertiary.
Such floral changes are revealed, for example, within the Tertiary
sediments of the Great Basin, where fossil pollen assemblages record
major changes in the composition of the woody flora due to migra-
tion and to evolution. These changes are of the same nature and on
the same order as the regional floristic changes already outlined from
study of fossil leaves and fruits. As do the leaf floras, the Cretaceous
and early Tertiary pollen assemblages contain many strange uniden-
tifiable types, a few recognizable subtropical families or genera, coni-
fers, some of which are now extinct, and a few warm-temperate trees
that still grow on the North American continent but are no longer
present in the local flora. Middle Tertiary sediments show several
POLLEN AND SPORES—LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 321
broad-leafed genera that now grow exclusively in Asia and also
woody types that are now temperate in their distribution. Late
Tertiary pollen assemblages show progressively more modern tem-
perate floras in successively younger sediments. Pleistocene sedi-
ments in the west contain an essentially modern flora that underwent
north-south or altitudinal migrations during the several climatic
changes of that interval.
Generalized floristic trends, such as those outlined above, can be
safely used within a limited region, like the Great Basin, as a broad
standard with which to evaluate assemblages of completely unknown
age from the same area. This type of dating requires identification
to modern family or genus, where possible, of the dominant fossil
pollen forms.
A striking example of applied palynology has been described by
pollen workers employed in petroleum geology studies in the Mari-
caibo Basin, Venezuela (Kuy] et al., 1955). By extraction of organic
residues from cores as long as 3,000 feet that included sediments of
Cretaceous and Paleocene (early Tertiary) age, these workers ob-
tained characteristic fossil pollen assemblages that could be traced
laterally from well to well for total distances of as much as 100 miles.
Pollen zones marked by changes in relative numbers or qualitative
composition of the assemblages in the long vertical sections were the
basis for a subdivision of underground sediments that could not be
successfully delimited by other means. By means of identical floral
successions revealed by pollen, four facies provinces in the Tertiary
of western Venezuela were correlated.
The lower parts of these cores are composed of shales deposited
in a marine environment, as indicated by remains of marine algae
and Foraminifera. The sediments that unconformably overlie these
obviously marine (Cretaceous) beds are mostly nonmarine coal beds,
sandstones, and fresh-water shales. A pollen zone boundary that
was fundamental in the oil-geologic interpretation of the basin struc-
ture forms a nearly horizontal stratigraphic line that transects both
the rough plane of contact between the marine and nonmarine beds
and the irregularities of the textural sediment zones. The most
reliable pollen zone boundaries were based on fossil pollen and spore
types that showed a similar vertical succession over a very wide area;
these types were assumed to reflect the regional vegetation changes.
Because of the apparent usefulness of stratigraphic correlation
by means of fossil pollen and spores, many of the large oil companies
throughout the world now have installed research laboratories
equipped for the study of these microfossils in sediments pertinent to
petroleum-geologic problems.
322 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
SUMMARY
Pollen and spores have the singular advantage of being the smallest
plant components that can be linked taxonomically with the parent
plants. Their production in large numbers, together with their
buoyancy, has insured their representation in aerially deposited dust
over wide areas. Resistance of pollen and spore walls to most deg-
radative processes has resulted in their preservation in varied kinds
of sedimentary deposits from diverse environments, often from
deposits otherwise without fossils.
Rapidly expanding appreciation of the presence of these micro-
fossils in geologic sediments, together with development of methods
for their recovery and criteria for their utilization, have led to appli-
cations in archeology, paleoecology, and paleobotany, and in stratig-
raphy. The developing usefulness of pollen and spores in such
fields as petroleum geology promises that in the future these small
fossils will be even more widely employed in these and other areas
of research.
REFERENCES
BaRcHoorn, Hb. 8S.
1950. Geological and botanical study of the Brandon lignite and its signifi-
cance in coal petrology. Econ. Geol., vol. 45, pp. 344-357.
DisKstTRA, S. J.
1951. Wealden megaspores and their stratigraphical value. Meded. Geol.
Sticht., S’Gravenhage, n. s., vol. 5, pp. 7-21.
DYAKOWSKEA, J.
1936. Researches on the rapidity of the falling down of pollen of some trees.
Bull. Intern. Acad. Polon. Sci. et Lett., Cl. Sci. Math. et Nat., ser.
B (1), pp. 155-168.
ERDTMAN, G.
1952. Pollen morphology and plant taxonomy. Angiosperms. (An intro-
duction to Palynology, I). 539 pp. Stockholm.
1954. Introduction to pollen analysis. 239 pp. Chronica Botanica,
Waltham, Mass.
Farcri, KNutT, and IVERSEN, JOHS.
1950. Textbook of pollen analysis. 168 pp. Copenhagen.
Frey, Davin G.
1954. A differential flotation technique for recovering microfossils from
inorganie sediments. New Phytol., vol. 54, No. 2, pp. 257-258.
GopwIn, H.
1948. Studies of the postglacial history of British vegetation, part 10.
Philos. Trans. Roy. Soc. London, ser. B, No. 600, vol. 2338, pp.
275-286.
Hyanp, F.; GRAHAM, B. F.; STEINMETZ, F’. H.; and VIcKERS, M. A.
1953. Maine air-borne pollen and fungus spore survey. 97 pp. University
of Maine, Orono.
IVERSEN, JOHS.
1936. Sekundires Pollen als Fehlerquelle. Danmarks Geol. Undersggelse,
IV Raekke, Bd. 2, No. 15.
POLLEN AND SPORES—-LEOPOLD AND SCOTT 323
KosANnKE, Rosert M.
1950. Pennsylvania spores of Illinois and their use in correlation. Illinois
State Geol. Surv. Bull. No. 74, 128 pp.
Kuyt, O. S.; MuLter, J.; and WATERBOLK, H. TH.
1955. The application of palynology to oil geology with reference to western
Venezuela. Geologie en Mijnbouw, n. s., vol. 17, pp. 49-76.
LEopo.p, E. B.
1957. Comparisons by pollen chronology of late-glacial climate in eastern
USA with that of the Alleréd in northern Europe. INQUA, V Con-
grés International; Résumés des communications, pp. 105-106.
McKeEz, BE. ; Curonic, J.; and LEoPotp, E. B.
Sedimentary belts in lagoon, Kapingamarangi Atoll. (MS.)
Prue, H.
1953. Zur Entstehung und Entwicklung des Angiospermiden Pollens in der
Erdgeschichte. Palaeontographica, vol. 95 (B), pp. 60-171.
THIERGART, I’,
1949. Die stratigraphische Wert mesozoischer Pollen und Sporen. Palae-
ontographica, vol. 89 (B), pp. 1-34.
TuHomMSON, P. W.
1953. Pollen und Sporen des mitteleuropiischen Tertiars. Palaeonto-
graphica, vol. 94 (B), pp. 1-138.
TRAVERSE, A.
1955. Pollen analysis of the Brandon lignite of Vermont. U.S. Bureau of
Mines, Rep. Invest. No. 5151. 107 pp.
VALLENTYNE, J. R.
1957. The principles of modern limnology. Amer. Sci., vol. 45, No. 3,
pp. 218-244.
Wiison, L. R.
1944. Spores and pollen as microfossils. Bot. Rev., vol. 10, pp. 499-523.
WODEHOUSE, R. P.
1935. Pollengrains. 574pp. New York.
Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D. C.
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The Influence of Man on Soil Fertility’
By G. V. Jacks
Director, Commonwealth Bureau of Soils
Rothamsted Experimental Station
Harpenden, Herts., England
By Man, spelled with a capital M, I mean human societies, includ-
ing men and women, cows, crops, microbes, cars, steelworks, and stock
exchanges. By soil fertility I mean the capacity of a soil to produce
living material, regardless of how the soil acquired that capacity.
Tf one man treats a spoil heap with fertilizers he may produce a fertile
soil within a year, but the fertility will be evanescent, and he will not
find it worth his while to maintain it. But Man—human society—
may judge it worth while to reclaim the spoil heap for permanent
agriculture, in which case he sets in motion some long-term processes
largely governed by such things as the output of cars, activity in the
steel industry, and level of the bank rate. These are among the
major factors which determine the influence of Man on the present-day
evolution of our soil.
When a soil scientist studies the influence of a forest on soil forma-
tion he pays most attention to the influence of the tree canopy, which
is the dominant living influence on the soil because it conditions the
existence and activities of all the lesser living factors such as the
ground flora, the fauna, and the soil micro-organisms. But when a
soil scientist studies the influence of Man on the soil he gives all his
attention to the direct operations of the farmer and cultivator, the
downtrodden ground flora of the human forest, and ignores the domi-
nant influence exerted on the farmer’s daily and secular activities by
social and economic emanations from the canopy of the towns. My
theme will be mainly the influence of towns on the secular evolution
of the soil.
In embryonic societies, before towns exist, nearly everybody is en-
gaged in food production, agriculture is of the self-sufficient type, and
1 Address delivered at the Sheffield Meeting of the British Association for the
Advancement of Science on Thursday, August 30, 1956. Reprinted by permission
from The Advancement of Science, No. 50, September 1956.
325
326 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957 ,
there is no incentive to increase soil fertility, though there is a need
for the whole community to organize itself so that a minimum level of
soil fertility is maintained. This need is the basis of the tribal organi-
zation of many primitive societies living by nomadic, shifting culti-
vation which allows the soil to rest and recuperate between short
periods of cultivation. It was also the basis of the three-field system
of communal agriculture which maintained soil fertility in feudal
England or, rather, slowed down the inevitable soil exhaustion that
had to accompany social evolution. In these predominantly agricul-
tural stages of human societies Man is a consumer of soil fertility.
He cannot help it, any more than a young forest can help taking more
out of the soil than it gives back; he cannot help it even when he is
armed with all the wisdom which past experience and twentieth-
century science can give him—because it is part of the nature of
economic Man.
It seems also to be the nature of part of economic Man to congregate
in towns at a certain stage of his social development, and to abandon
agriculture for more profitable pursuits. The growth of towns has
a powerful effect on soil evolution. 'Towns create far more, and more
concentrated, wealth than agriculture can create, a rising standard of
living, and a greater demand for the produce of the soil. A small, but
very significant, fraction of this town-made wealth flows back into the
country, and the towns’ demands for food, clothing, and, nowadays,
the agricultural raw materials of industry make it profitable for
farmers to produce as much as they can from their land. To begin
with, this results in an accelerated exhaustion of the soil, but if the
towns continue to grow in size and prosperity a stage is reached—
and has been reached in every successful civilization—when it pays
the farmers to intensify production, to increase output per acre and,
therefore, to raise soil fertility. If it pays Man to increase soil
fertility, he does it. That, I think, is the basic natural law governing
the growth and survival of civilization.
A good example of the initial fertility-destroying and subsequent
fertility-making influence of towns is afforded by the recent history
of the United States. The drain on soil fertility to satisfy the
demands of British towns for cheap food in the last century was one
cause of the terrifying soil erosion which has afflicted the United
States. But very recently a small part of the immense wealth pro-
duced by American industry has begun to flow back into the soil.
Farmers are finding that it pays to conserve their soil and to raise
its fertility. Soil fertility, measured by crop yields, is rising more
rapidly in the United States than in any other part of the world.
Towns increase a country’s soil fertility by enabling farmers to
afford to put more into the soil than they take out of it. Fertility
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON SOIL FERTILITY—JACKS Bh
cannot be increased merely by getting the soil to take in its own
washing, that is, by self-contained or self-sufficient farming which,
at best, returns to the soil only a part of what is removed from it.
The fertility-producing farmer must be able to buy, or otherwise
procure, fertility from outside and he must have a continuing economic
incentive to do so. There are various ways in which farmers can
acquire money and various forms in which they can buy soil fertility
(by which I mean anything or any measure that will increase yields) ;
but, in general, farming Man can earn enough not only to pay for his
necessities and luxuries, but also to improve his land in the hope of
further gain, only by selling to a stable and wealthy market—a town
which produces many times more real wealth per acre than the best
soil can. In this industrial age enough wealth is being produced in
the towns and cities of the world to fertilize very large areas of food-
producing land. Most of the people in the cities have enough to eat;
most of the 60 percent of the world’s population that are underfed
are producers of food.
I have so far distinguished three stages in the evolution of soil
under Man. First, there is the shifting-cultivation stage when human
activity has only an ephemeral effect on the soil. This stage is as-
sociated with a low density of population, and may not occur in
societies living in places, like Egypt, irrigated by fertility-producing
water. Secondly, as and when population increases, permanent settle-
ment occurs and soil-exhausting agriculture is practiced because society
has few other sources of wealth than the soil to draw on. Society tends
to develop a structure which prevents too rapid an exhaustion of the
soil. This we may call the soil-exhausting stage. Thirdly, as the
population increases further it congregates in towns, reducing the
pressure on overworked, unimproved land, but gradually increasing
the demand for its produce. Towns produce wealth from other sources
than the soil, which enables them to pay for their demands and makes
it profitable for farmers to satisfy them by investing money in soil
fertility. We may call this the soil-conserving or fertility-producing
stage. Society becomes urbanized and largely loses interest in agri-
culture, but wealth continues to flow from the towns into the soil.
A state of equilibrium may be reached when the input of soil fertility
by the towns is balanced by the output in rich harvests.
What happens subsequently is not clear. We have examples of all
these three stages of social and soil evolution in the world at the
present time, and we may have examples of a later stage of soil evolu-
tion under Man in the overpopulated, because underurbanized, re-
gions of southeast Asia where nearly half the people in the world live.
We do not know whether yields in India and China were once higher
than they are today when they are much too low to support, except
451800—58—_22
328 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
in dire poverty, the mainly agricultural populations; but whereas
yields in all industrialized countries have increased markedly within
the last 50 years and are still increasing, they have not increased in
India and China. In both countries, however, the present govern-
ments are aware of the importance of industrialization and getting
people off the land as a means of raising the standard of living, which
would lead to some improvement in soil fertility.
The different stages of soil evolution under Man are not, of course,
distinct. They merge into one another, as do the corresponding stages
of social evolution, and it is quite possible for all three (or more)
stages to be apparent in one country at the same time—as, for exam-
ple, in modern Ceylon, where shifting cultivation, soil-exhausting
subsistence agriculture, and soil-conserving commercial agriculture
are operating simultaneously. Western Europe is the only large
area of the world that is at the climax of soil evolution; much of the
rest is so young in human history that it is still in the soil-exhausting
stage, a fact which affords an adequate ecological reason for the pres-
ent worldwide prevalence of soil erosion. The soil-exhausting stage
will pass, and one factor which is accelerating its passing is the widely
felt fear that it may not pass.
A glance at the past and present histories of Man in different
parts of the world will show that they all conform to the same general
pattern in relation to the soil.
ENGLAND
The history of England affords an excellent illustration of the way
in which soils have evolved under human society from their original
forest-made condition of quite low fertility to their present man-
made condition of very high fertility. Parallel with this soil evolu-
tion occurred a social evolution from a tribal to a feudal to a highly
industrialized capitalistic society. In these parallel evolutions the
outstanding influence on soil fertility was the growth of towns.
The first people to clear the English primeval forest were probably
shifting cultivators. Then, gradually, an invariable system of settled
agriculture developed, of which the most essential feature was the
resting fallow. This “three-field system” was a characteristic of the
feudal age. The land was worked according to a fixed set of rules,
to prevent the otherwise rapid exhaustion of the land and the break-
down of the community. The rules not only checked soil exhaustion,
but also prevented soil improvement.
The fallow, however, did not completely prevent soil exhaustion,
and by the time the feudal period was coming to an end many of the
open fields were getting into a bad state with increasing weediness
and falling yields. As is well known, the early commerce of this
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON SOIL FERTILITY—JACKS 329
country was based on wool, and the rise of the wool trade gave a great
impetus to the enclosure of common land which, after enclosure,
was almost invariably put into pasture for sheep. Grass is the best
soil improver known; indeed, it is noteworthy today that wherever
soil improvement is being planned, from the Poles to the Equator,
first reliance is placed on grass. At the time of the Tudor enclosures,
at the end of the exhaustive stage of soil evolution, it was pressure
from commercial interests, and against the will of the great majority
of farmers, that gave the soil its first dose of fertility-producing
medicine. Later, great improvements, which would have been im-
possible on unenclosed land, were effected in pastoral and arable
farming, mainly with capital earned in the towns. Investment in
soil fertility was profitable because the towns provided a market
for all that the soil could be made to produce.
Large-scale investment in soil fertility of money earned in com-
merce and industry continued until about 90 years ago with immense
benefits to both farmers and land. Then the opening up of the
New World brought near disaster to British agriculture, and offered
greater attractions than did British land for the surplus wealth of
the towns.
However, the subsequent neglect of British agriculture, which
lasted until 1940, had little effect on the inherent fertility of the soils
because so much land went back to grass, which gave the soil a rest.
If arable farming had been maintained at the 1870 level with insuflfi-
cient capital investment, the loss of inherent soil fertility might have
had serious consequences in the two world wars. At the present time
the crying need of the soil is for capital which can only be provided
in sufficient quantity by the products of industry. It is becoming
evident that, in future, Britain will be unable to rely to the same
extent as formerly on buying unlimited food from abroad, so more
of the wealth of the towns may again be diverted into the soil. A1-
ready the state pours money into the land on a vast scale; the level of
soil fertility—crop yields—would fall immediately if the state ceased
to do so.
NORTH AMERICA
In North America the soil is going through a similar sequence of
evolutionary stages under the influence of Man. Social development
has been telescoped into a much shorter space of time than was the
case in Europe. Most people would say that industrial progress has
advanced further in America than in Europe, but it is of very recent
date and the beneficent effects of American industrialism on the soil
are only now beginning to be discernible.
At first there was a period of “shifting cultivation” as the frontier
was pushed westward. The land was skimmed of its fertility and then
330 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
abandoned or passed on to another who continued the skimming
process. The greater part of the habitable land was occupied within
a century. Then followed a period of soil-exhausting agriculture
when the unimproved soils were bled not only to keep their owners
alive, but also to feed the teeming urban populations of Europe and
thereby to provide some capital for founding American industry. The
land got back little for what it gave, but in the mushrooming cities
seeds were being sown which would bring forth a rich harvest of
soil fertility.
The disastrous effects on unfertilized American soil of huge exports
of food, mainly to Europe, are very evident at the present time in the
widespread occurrence of soil erosion, a disease from which many
other parts of the world are also suffering. Food exports, of course,
were only one of many causes of the rapid exhaustion of American
soils that in its turn was the immediate cause of soil erosion by the
physical breakdown of soil structure. That all this erosion should
have happened is usually regarded as unfortunate, sometimes as
tragic, and occasionally as sinful. Taking a global view of agricul-
ture, soil erosion is certainly a phenomenon of tremendous signifi-
cance today. It has been described as a symptom of maladjustment
between society and the soil, but I regard it, rather, as a symptom of
a normal stage of the evolution of soil under Man’s control. Human
society destroys soil fertility before it begins to create it, and there is
nothing society can do about it until it has created a great surplus of
wealth, over and above what the land can produce, with which to
fertilize the soil.
Unlike Europe, North America has not evolved a cast-iron social
system to check the outflow of fertility from the soil. Events have
moved too quickly. But in the 1930’s the soil-conservation-district
movement was started in the United States, by which the farmers of
a district voluntarily organized themselves, with Federal and State
backing, to farm according to established soil-conservation practices.
The movement spread with astonishing rapidity, and today most of
the farmland is included in soil-conservation districts. In many dis-
tricts good intentions are more evident than soil conservation, but
that the movement should have swept the whole country in less than
20 years is most significant. The much greater effect on soil fertility
of a phenomenal increase in industrial production has to some extent
masked the direct effects of soil-conservation measures.
Although the event is still too recent for us to be certain about its
significance, the economic depression of the 1930’s may have been
the turning point in the evolution of American agriculture from soil
exhausting to soil conserving. During the depression millions of
acres of overworked land got a rest, and the virtues of grass as a
protector of the soil from erosion and as renovator of soil fertility
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON SOIL FERTILITY—JACKS 331
became clear to all. As in our first agricultural revolution, the
farmers did not like having to change their traditionai ways, but they
could not stand up to the harsh economics of the time, any more than
our open-field farmers could resist the powers of enclosure. When
the second World War came, food production was enormously in-
creased, as it had been in the first war, but this time fairly adequate
precautions were taken to protect the land from erosion, and soil
fertility was not used up—indeed, it was increased by the greatly
expanded use of fertilizers and other applications of science and
technology. Since the war, crop yields have continued to rise, and
now average about 35 percent above prewar. Farmers have had
money to spend and to spare, and some of it has found profitable in-
vestment in soil fertility. Boom conditions, however, do not last for-
ever. America is now producing more from its land than it can dis-
pose of. What that portends for the future I do not know, but it
suggests that American economy and soil are still far from a bal-
anced equilibrium. The soil-conservation stage has a long way to go.
USSR
Data on the progress of agriculture in the Soviet Union are un-
reliable, but there is no evidence whatever of such great advances
in yields and intensity of production as have recently occurred in
North America. In Russia the towns do not provide surplus capital
to fertilize the land; on the contrary, the land is starved of capital
to feed the expansion of industry, as happened in the United States
until a few decades ago. Russia is still in the soil-exhausting phase
of economic development—indeed, in some respects it is still in the
shifting-cultivation phase. If the industrial revolution is carried
through successfully in Russia, however, the land should ultimately
get some of the surplus wealth of industry in the form of capital
investment and applied science, and the normal effects of industrial-
ization on soil fertility should then appear. Russian soil science is
remarkable in two ways. It is 25 years ahead of the rest of the world
in its conceptions and 25 years behind in its application. The limit-
ing factor to greater productivity is not lack of knowledge of the
soil, but lack of capital as a fertilizer. To this might be added the
apparent absence of all incentive to the collective farmer to improve
the land. The present trend in Russia is toward the supersession
of the collective farm by the state-owned, factory-operated farm.
Collective land ownership, during the short time it has operated, has
failed to increase soil fertility. It is quite possible that state owner-
ship, which is in some ways analogous to the large-scale individual
ownership which played such an important part in promotang soil
fertility in England, may have similar effects in Russia. To the
332 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
western mind the much advertised project to reclaim 70 million acres
of semiarid virgin land in central Asia for grain production seems a
colossal waste of effort when so much more could be done by intensi-
fying production on the naturally fertile and more accessible black
earths of the Ukraine, but it must be remembered that so far the
influence of Man on the soils of the Soviet Union as a whole has been
very small, and parts of that vast country are still in the shifting-
cultivation stage. There is still the urge to people the empty spaces,
which appears again and again, and not only in Russia, in schemes
to reclaim deserts or to settle the Arctic, and reflects the inborn long-
ing of Man to be master of all he surveys.
One must recognize, too, that the Chinese Communist revolution,
with its emphasis on industrialization, may bring new life to China’s
wornout soils, many of which seem to be in the last stages of decline
after some thousands of years under Man’s control. But the revolu-
tion has scarcely started yet.
SOUTH AFRICA AND AUSTRALIA
These two large countries are taken together not because of any
similarity in their agriculture or soils, but because both are at the
same critical stage of soil evolution. In both, soil exhaustion and
erosion have been very severe and have caused the utmost alarm to
farmers, financiers, and politicians. Indeed, the late General Smuts
once said that soil erosion was bigger than politics—which meant
something in South Africa!
Since the last war, however, a remarkable change in outlook has
come over both countries. Immense progress, for so short a time,
has been made in the reorganization of agriculture on a soil-conserva-
tion basis, particularly by the establishment of soil-conservation dis-
tricts based on the American model, and by the intensification of
agriculture and the introduction of ley farming. In both countries,
too, agriculture has ceased to be the main occupation of the inhabi-
tants. In Australia three-quarters of the whole population is now
urban. In South Africa heavy industry produces more wealth than
either mining or agriculture. Both countries have just reached the
stage where the wealth of the towns can begin to fertilize the soil.
The voluntary communal control of soil erosion by means of soil-
conservation districts, which has taken such firm root in America,
Australia, South Africa, and also on European land in Rhodesia,
seems to be the modern equivalent of the communal farming rules
enforced to check soil exhaustion throughout feudal Europe. Land-
use regulations, made to ensure the maintenance of soil fertility, are
enforcible by a district’s own laws, as the fallow was enforcible by
manorial law. The old three-field system, however, merely prevented
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON: SOIL FERTILITY—JACKS 333
soil exhaustion from going too fast. The soil-conservation district
aims not only to prevent soil erosion, but also to build up fertility—
which was impossible under the three-field system. The soil-con-
servation district may well turn out to be the characteristic not only
of the final stage of the soil-exhausting phase in these rapidly grow-
ing nations, but also of the emerging fertility-producing phase. It
was originally devised to check the precipitate exhaustion of the soil
that, in the previous absence of any social control, was getting out
of hand, but it is now being used everywhere to build up soil fertility.
The soil-exhausting phase is merging into the fertility-producing
phase.
In South Africa, in particular, the soil-conservation-district move-
ment has swept through the country within the last few years only.
A sudden impetus has been given to soil conservation, the results of
which have not had time to appear, but there can be no doubt about
the impetus which, again, may not last. It does seem, however,
that the great progress and prosperity of South African industry are
convincing farmers that it will pay them to invest in soil fertility,
for example, by adoption of ley farming, by applying sulfate of
ammonia to grassland in order to build up the soil’s humus content,
and other measures whose lasting efficacy cannot be known for many
years. The significant fact is that the spirit of soil conservation is
abroad, inspired by the money flowing from South Africa’s young
industries.
Australian pastoral and arable farming is also tending to become
fertility-producing, though, as in South Africa, the revolution, if it
is one, has scarcely begun.
The creation of more fertility than was present originally in Aus-
tralia’s soils has been made possible by using superphosphate to grow
wheat and clover. Australian soils are among the oldest in the world,
and were poor in the two essential plant nutrients, phosphorus and
nitrogen, even before soil-exhausting farming began with the arrival
of the white man. Wheat and wool have since removed much of the
remaining nutrients. Deficiency of phosphate is widespread in both
agricultural and pastoral land, and trace-element deficiencies are
common. A general advance in Australian soil fertility can only be
achieved by overcoming these deficiencies. There is also a deficiency
of water that is more difficult to overcome, but Australia has a long
way to go before water becomes the final limiting factor.
By applying superphosphate to the—to European eyes—miserable
Australian pastures which, nevertheless, produce the finest wool in the
world, dense crops of subterranean clover can be grown that enrich
the soil with nitrogen, double or treble its carrying capacity, and pro-
vide humus for more intensive arable farming. By such simple
334 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
means, reminiscent of the introduction of clover into English farming,
there are almost limitless possibilities for increasing the fertility of
Australian soils.
Superphosphate, subterranean clover, and a few trace elements have
the power to make at least much of southern Australia fertility-
producing. But the existence of the means is not enough to effect
the revolution. The high price of wool that resulted from the Korean
war gave a great fillip to soil improvement, but will not last forever.
The Australian people, however, are already three-quarters urban and
are developing secondary industries which should produce a surplus
of wealth with which to fertilize the soil. Australians occupy a huge
continent and are concentrated mainly in five large cities. Jt remains
to be seen how far the fertilizing influence of these five widely sep-
arated cities will spread into the outback, most of which is still in
the shifting-cultivation stage.
TROPICAL LANDS
In the mostly thinly populated areas within tropical latitudes, Man
has seldom succeeded in ousting the plant world from its dominant
position in the soil’s economy. The Indian subcontinent is the best
existing example of permanent tropical agriculture that has continued
for centuries. It is also one of the most densely populated of tropical
countries. As elsewhere in the Tropics, the basis of this permanent
agriculture has been paddy cultivation in which flooding suffices to
maintain plant nutrients in the soil at a level adequate for at least sub-
sistence production of rice. The example of other countries, like
Japan and Australia, shows that rice yields could be greatly increased
in India by fertilizers, mechanization, use of high-yielding varieties,
etc., and there should be no difficulty in providing all the people of
India with adequate food from her soil, if the wealth to fertilize the
soil were there—which, of course, it is not. There is far too high a
proportion of the people on the Jand for its efficient utilization, and
they are too poor to fertilize it. The rapid increase in India’s rural
population within the last century seems to have accelerated soil ex-
haustion, at least as far as soil erosion is symptomatic of it. There
has been no increase in average crop yields during this century. This
may indicate the normal exhaustion phase of soil evolution under Man,
to be followed by a conservation phase when the country has been
urbanized and enriched by industry, or it may represent a later phase
in which society is too old to adapt itself to the creation of soil fertility.
The Indian Government is exerting every effort toward industrializa-
tion, wherein undoubtedly lies the main hope for the future fertility
of Indian soil.
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON SOIL FERTILITY—-JACKS 335
No other well-tried system of settled agriculture except paddy-rice
growing is known that will at least maintain, if not increase, the fer-
tility of tropical soil. Rice is the almost universal basis of settled
tropical agriculture, as wheat is of temperate agriculture. The min-
erals in the floodwaters together, perhaps, with nitrogen fixed by algae
often found on paddy fields usually suffice to maintain soil fertility
under continuous cultivation for hundreds or even thousands of years
without needing a very complex social organization to operate the
system. Rice growing, with a little pasturage and livestock, can pro-
vide the minimum necessities of a settled tropical society. Otherwise,
tropical agriculture is mainly of the shifting-cultivation type which
precludes permanent settlement. A patch of land will be cleared and
cultivated for two or three years, after which the available plant nu-
trients in the soil will have been used up, and crops will fail. The
land is then abandoned for, say, 10 to 20 years, during which a secon-
dary growth of vegetation will invade the soil, restore its fertility
and make possible another short period of cultivation. Shifting agri-
culture is essentially exhaustive, the purpose of the abandonment of
cultivation being to rest the soil and restore its fertility. Such a
system can only work with a very low population density.
The impact of European civilization on the Tropics has greatly
accelerated, but does not seem to have altered, the normal course of
soil evolution under Man. European colonists cannot live by shift-
ing cultivation, and they have tried with some success to introduce
peace and better health into their colonies. Consequently, colonial
populations have recently tended to exceed the limits at which the
land can be rested long enough to restore its fertility. In every
tropical colony (using the term in its widest sense) shifting cultiva-
tion is breaking down, and invariably and inevitably soil-exhausting
settled agriculture is taking its place. Social and soil evolution is
going through the normal stage of soil-exhausting agriculture, often
accompanied by catastrophic soil erosion. The wealth required to
create soil fertility and, still more, the demand for a high standard of
nutrition from a large, well-to-do urban proletariat are absent. Until
this demand appears there will be no incentive to bury money in the
soil. To the few Europeans who operate highly capitalized plan-
tations in the Tropics, however, the incentive of supplying their own
urban markets, at home and abroad, is making itself felt.
We already have examples of intensive, fertility-producing agri-
culture in the Tropics that is basically similar to intensive European
agriculture. In Southern Rhodesia a system of ley farming with
large applications of nitrogen has given consistently high yields of
maize, meat, and milk, and has improved the condition of the soil.
But it has not been operated long enough to merit the term “per-
336 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
manent agriculture.” The system is worked by a few progressive
Europeans whose extra output is not sufficient to depress the price
of maize. If every farmer followed suit there would be such a glut
that all would be ruined—or at least would be unable to buy the
necessary fertilizers. Under present conditions there would be insufli-
cient demand for the produce. On the other hand, if all the people
in the towns could afford to live well, their demands would tend to
raise the price of maize, and some of the money they spent would
flow back into the soil. All—and it is a big all—that Rhodesian soil
needs to make it fertile is more and richer townspeople. Until it
gets them it will have to put up with a good second best—the mag-
nificent work of its agricultural officers. I should like to pay a tribute
to this handful of key men who, throughout our tropical Empire,
are smoothing out the agonies of the violent agricultural revolution
which has followed the breakup of shifting cultivation, and are
preparing the ground for the next, more prosperous stage.
Most colonial countries are now in the early soil-exhausting stage
of evolution, and are developing social and agricultural systems
which will slow down the loss of soil fertility that is bound to occur
before the peoples are numerous and wealthy enough to enrich the
land. Today, in most colonies, agricultural society is being reorgan-
ized, largely by agricultural officers, on a basis of soil conservation
with laws, ordinances, sanctions, and subsidies to ensure at least the
safety of the remaining soil. One can see social systems evolving in
which it may be as difficult to mishandle the soil as it was in feudal
England. In a recent flight over Africa what impressed me most was
the quite frequent appearance of that most characteristic feature of
soil conservation—terraced, strip-cropped fields. It was also the
most beautiful feature of the generally dismal view one gets of Africa
from the air. The open fields of England might have given a balloon-
ist a similar impression 500 years ago.
These emerging social and agricultural systems, designed to con-
serve tropical soils, tend to be less flexible and more compulsive than
those which are evolving in temperate regions whose inhabitants are
politically and socially more advanced. They may become as un-
adaptable to purposes of soil improvement, as distinct from soil con-
servation, as was the rigid three-field system of England. We are
acquiring the knowledge to make tropical soils fertile, but there are
still lacking millions of people in towns producing nonagricultural
wealth, the best fertilizer soils can have.
CONCLUSION
Throughout history the picture of Man in his relation to the soil
has had certain common features: his first struggle to adjust himself to
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON SOIL FERTILITY—JACKS 300
the existing balance of Nature either by adopting shifting cultivation
in forest lands or by nomadism in grasslands; then, with increasing
population, upsetting the balance of Nature by the practice of settled,
subsistence agriculture with social checks on the unavoidable exhaus-
tion of the soil; then the concentration of the growing population
into towns, the creation of new wealth in manufacturing, commerce,
and the arts, a rise in the urban standard of living, a demand for more
of the necessities of life, an overfiow of wealth into the soil, and the
creation of new fertility to satisfy the towns’ demands; finally, the
reestablishment of a biotic balance when the inflow of soil fertility is
balanced by the outflow. As long as most of the population is urban
there is no apparent upper limit to the number of people who can live
in a region or country without exhausting its soil; but the present-day
condition of southeast Asia suggests that a relatively low total popu-
lation density can be a heavy burden on the soil when most of the
people live on the land. By contrast, the countries showing the highest
average soil fertility are the most densely populated and highly in-
dustrialized—Britain, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Japan—and agri-
cultural Denmark, the exception to prove the rule.
Today, as a result of the rapid opening-up and development of a
large part of the habitable land within the past century, most of the
world is in the soil-exhausting phase, a fact which, unless viewed in
ecological perspective, may lead to a certain loss of faith in the future
of mankind. But it is a passing phase, which seems alarming only
because it is happening over such large areas at thesametime. Already
we can see signs in some rich new countries that the soil-conserving
phase is approaching. Will the world of a hundred years hence be
able to feed the 6,000 million people who will then be in it? The
answer is yes, provided most of them live in towns and produce enough
wealth to pay for the food they need. If they offer enough money for
their food, the food will be produced. As every farmer knows, it pays
to fertilize when the market is good. That may, perhaps, be regarded
as an oversimplification of the phenomena of civilization; nevertheless
it explains quite a lot of them.
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The Land and People of the
Guajira Peninsula’
By Raymonp E. Crist
Research Professor of Geography
University of Florida, Gainesville
[With 10 plates]
Paracuaipoa, market town of the Venezuelan Guajira, only 90
kilometers from the bustling, modern, oil-rich metropolis of Mara-
caibo, is in time and historical evolution several thousand years away.
Beyond Paraguaipoa one enters a veritable cultural island, where
the mode of life today is in many respects similar to that depicted in
the Old Testament in the days of Abraham in the Old World desert
of Arabia. It is a land of marked contrasts and violent extremes,
where months-long droughts are followed by disastrous inundations;
a land of shy but friendly people among whom the most violent
blood feuds still flare up, where the biblical injunction of an eye for
an eye and a tooth for a tooth is followed to the letter, unless retribu-
tion be made by the offender in the wealth of the land, namely live-
stock. Here also young women are frankly and openly acquired by
purchase, in accordance with Guajiran law, and a man may have
as many wives as his purse, his years, and his fancy will allow.
What are the factors, physical and cultural, that have made pos-
sible the formation and the preservation of a distinct society and
culture in this little-known corner of South America? Already the
Spaniards found a vigorous culture flourishing there, with its own
language, institutions, and pattern of occupancy (though it was they
who introduced the domestic animals on which most of the present-
*The field and library work on which this paper is based was made possible
by a grant of the Creole Petroleum Corp. Various departments of the or-
ganization cooperated in every way to further the undertaking. Thanks are
due the ministries of the Venezuelan and Colombian Governments that helped
to facilitate fieldwork involving movement back and forth across the frontier;
also to Professor Lorenzo Monroy and Mr. ©. J. Lamb, who were of assistance
at every step throughout the author’s stay in Venezuela. To Drs. Woodfin L.
Butte and Guillermo Zuloaga, directors of the Creole Corp., the writer is espe-
cially grateful.
339
340 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
day wealth of the Guajiros is based). In this harsh and hostile desert
environment a nomadic or seminomadic people, widely disseminated,
has evolved and maintained a society with a highly developed group
consciousness, though lacking, to be sure, many of the features
characteristic of modern life. Although this land and this people
have had an international boundary superimposed upon them, the
people nevertheless continue to be Guajiros, speaking their own
language, wearing their own dress, thinking of themselves, noé as
Venezuelans or Colombians, but as Guajiros. The Venezuelan and
Colombian Governments, despite the political boundary line, have
been forced to recognize local laws and customs and to grant a high
degree of local cultural autonomy. The observer cannot but wonder
how such tenacity of cultural traits has been possible. A succinct dis-
cussion of the physical and historical background, supplemented by
observations in the field, may provide a basis for understanding
some of the cultural forces that have been operative in the evolution
and the cohesion of Guajira society, in spite of—or perhaps because
of—extremely unfavorable physical factors.
Not so long ago, geologically speaking, the northeastern part of the
Guajira Peninsula, La Alta Guajira, was probably an island, cut off
from the mainland by a downfaulted block or graben, one side of
which ran from the Cabo de la Vela south past Cerro La Teta and
into the Gulf of Venezuela. Gradually, during Quaternary times,
the shallow water covering this graben has been filled in with sedi-
ments deposited largely by the Rio Rancheria and the Rio Paragua-
chon as they eroded the Sierra Nevada and the Montes de Oca. Large
sectors of the peninsula north and east of Paraguaipoa and Maicao
and almost as far north as Cerro La Teta, are inundated even today
during the wet season; the mountains from which most of the waters
come can sometimes be seen as dark spots on the distant southern
horizon. Most of this area is a vast plain of recent alluvium, covered
with fine, fertile silt, and during pronounced droughts almost devoid
of vegetation of any kind. It would be a garden spot if it could be
irrigated rationally. A small amount of filling in has been carried
on by the flash floods from the Serrania de Cocinas, at the base of
which alluvial fans of coarse, unconsolidated debris have been formed.
The coastline along this area of alluvial fill, from Rio Hacha to
Cabo de la Vela in Colombia, and from Cojoro to Sinamaica in
Venezuela, consists for the most part of sandbars flanked either by a
fringe of sand dunes or by lagoons into which sea water is allowed
to enter in order to be evaporated for salt. Dune formation is ex-
tremely active on the windward Venezuelan coast, from slightly west
of Castilletes to Paraguaipoa. The dunes are moving inland at vary-
ing rates, depending on the strength of the wind locally. Scenes remi-
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 341
niscent of the sand wastes of the Sahara are encountered. In the
shelter of the first line of dunes, in certain sectors, coconut groves
have been planted, which anchor a considerable population. Slightly
farther inland fields of millets can survive on the thin deposits of
sand. Between Paraguaipoa and Sinamaica the sandbar borders long
stretches of salt flats, which are exploited by the federal government.
The rugged part of the peninsula lies northeast of the well-defined
fault lines, where mountains up to 900 meters in elevation are found.
The cores of the Serranias de Cocina, de Jarara, and de Macuira are
formed largely of igneous intrusives, and deposits of recent alluvium
in the form of coarse rubble are found at the base of these low moun-
tains. Extensive alluvial fans and terraces on the windward sides
of these igneous formations seem to be at two levels, the first and
higher level probably having been deposited when the mountains were
higher and were therefore able to wring more moisture out of the
winds. At the base of the leeward slopes, over the area surrounding
the shallow, bottle-necked embayment known as El Portete, thick de-
posits of unconsolidated sands and silts have been laid down.
Just to the south of the Serrania de Cocina, striking almost east-
west, is an especially good section of the Cretaceous, with the caves
and sinkholes typical of Karst topography. The whole complex of
igneous cores and of indurated sedimentary deposits is in places cut
by dikes of igneous intrusives.
Roads and trails in this rugged, mountainous part of the Guajira
traverse bare windswept terraces of recent alluvium, mesalike plat-
forms of sedimentary deposits and of igneous extrusives, and canyons
deeply incised into formations of limestones and shales, slightly dip-
ping to vertical.
The Guajira Peninsula is a dry land, where evaporation far ex-
ceeds precipitation, as in so many parts of the globe at 10° to 15°
north or south of the Equator. For where winds blow most of the
time equatorward they are increasing in temperature, and as their
temperature increases their capacity to absorb moisture increases.
Hence they are drying winds and, when persistent, they create a
situation in which evaporation is steadily greater than precipitation,
with the result that desert or semidesert conditions prevail. This
is true wherever such winds, the trade winds, blow for most of the
year over a stretch of land of low elevation, whether it be in Africa
or in America, whether at 10°-15° north or south of the Equator.
It is true of the small, low-lying islands of the Caribbean, such as
Curacao and Margarita, as it is of most of Falcén, on the mainland
of northern Venezuela, and as it is of the Guajira Peninsula. And
the winds in the Guajira are vigorous enough to dry out and pick
up sand from the beach for many miles and blow the particles in-
342 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
land, where they collect a few hundred meters from the shore in the
form of dunes that gradually migrate farther landward.
It is during the months when the low-pressure belt is over the
area—usually from October to December—that the Guajira gets its
scant precipitation from convectional rains. It seems to be generally
true that the less rainfall a region has the more irregular and un-
predictable it is, and the Guajira Peninsula is no exception to this
rule. When it does rain, however, the aspect of the landscape changes
almost overnight. The seemingly dry and dead roots, plants, and
shrubs at once begin to absorb the life-giving water and to send out
shoots; seeds of grasses and forage plants, long dormant, begin to
sprout, and many trees, long bare of leaves, are quickly covered with
a canopy of foliage. And many are the Guajiros who hurriedly re-
turn to the land of their birth, to plant their patches of millets and
corn, beans and melons. Then they enjoy a few months of compara-
tive plenty, before the lean months, or years, again force them to
migrate to Maracaibo, to the Perija foothills, or even farther from
their beloved homeland.
To be sure, here, too, as in many parts of the world, is heard the
familiar lament for “the good old days”—in the land of the Guajira
it is for the good old days when the rain was more abundant than
now and people could grow more crops. One is told of certain areas
in which crops that were grown 20 years ago can no longer be grown,
because the climate has become drier during the past generation.
Perhaps the true reason is that the population, whose members are less
inclined than formerly to cultivate marginal crops on marginal lands,
is being siphoned off into other areas where economic opportunities
are greater or more attractive. Some lands have become economically
submarginal in an expanding national economy. Furthermore, the
intensive health campaigns which have provided pure drinking water
and diminished disease-bearing vectors, have resulted in a lowering
of the death rate, especially the rate of infant mortality, with a con-
sequent increase in population, which in turn increases the pressure
on the food supply. At the same time more attractive economic op-
portunities elsewhere in the Republic, and the improvement of roads,
coupled with the availability of motor vehicles, have helped to bring
about a strong current of migration away from the Guajira. The
net result is the same as if there had been an actual change in the
physical climate.
Rights to real property, both surface and subsurface, are at the
present time vested in the nation. Title to land, on which to build
a house, in the vicinity of an urban agglomeration such as Para-
guaipoa, can be granted by the Concejo Municipal. Over most of
the Peninsula, however, land that can be used for agriculture is simply
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 1
et ERG ee No. 4
2. The casimba at Cuitza, with a woman on the crude platform in the act of dipping up
water to fill her jar.
PLATE 2
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist
aovy AvWO}sNS YIM ‘eslensy
‘uns
ayi Jo sAvi SuoMs oy} Jsulese uoljo9}01d e—sunuied
oy} JO uvUIOM BUNOX °*7
‘ouroy si fo
Smithsonian Report, 1957. —Crist PLATE 3
2. Watering goats by hand.
PLATE 4
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist
*pua oy} 28 soul} 2014} YUM ajod Zuo]
B Jo asn ay} Aq payonjd si snqjovd UvsIO [][v1 ay} FO WNIf aq], *Z
*soov|d suliojeM Jur ioOdul
a1OU 9Y} JO auIOs }¥ s][fupuIM Aq posJamod sduind payjeis
-UI DARBY SJUSWIUIIAOD UIqUIO[OD, pu URJaNzoUZA YT, "T
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 5
2. Spinning thread by hand from the raw cotton.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 6
-
2. Large jars, or tinajas, are fashioned without the use of the potter’s wheel.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 7
1. Children help with the family food supply by gathering the fruits of the low, broad-
leaved cactus.
fe Am = : : re a
2. Guajiros settled for the weekend in the enramada of a tiny store. Goat meat is drying
on the roof at the right.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 8
cs, “2
Pee ee *
-* *
1. Drummer at a chichamaya dance, with a black-faced dancer
in the background. The monotony of life on the desert
is relieved by the gaiety and social enjoyment of the dance.
2. An aspect of the chichamaya dance. The man backs away from his partner, who tries
to trip him up; when this happens he is out of the dance, and another takes his place.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 9
1. Another aspect of the chichamaya dance. Observers may at any time become partici-
pants, and thus the fast tempo is kept up hour after hour.
2. The Guajiros resemble Bedouins as they ride across their trade-wind-swept peninsula.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Crist PLATE 10
2. When he dies, the Guajiro is buried in the floor of his house where food and kitchen
utensils are left for his use. The survivors abandon the house for good.
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 343
fenced in and cultivated. As long as the fence of organ cactus or
thorn brush is kept intact and the land is actually cultivated, the
usufruct thereof belongs to the cultivator. When the land is no longer
cultivated and fences fall into disrepair, it reverts to the community,
or goes to someone else who wants to work it. When the land is un-
fenced or unworked, the surface rights are assumed to belong to the
collectivity, for animals graze over long distances. The interna-
tional boundary is meaningless to the Guajiro; it is crossed by him
and his flocks at will in the never-ending search for pasture and
water. Indeed he takes no account of it in any of the phases of his
seminomadic life. It is, in short, as if it did not exist.
Here, as in most arid regions, rights to water are more important
than rights to land. Those who have become wealthy, those who
own the largest flocks and herds, are those who have managed to get
control of a permanent supply of water. They have either enlarged
an old jagitiey, or pond, or they have dug or drilled a well on which
a windmill is installed to lift the water, or they have appropriated,
and perhaps deepened, a caszmba, or open, dug well.
The federal governments are cognizant of the importance of pure
drinking water for people and for their animals, and the work
being done by the Venezuelan Ministry of Agriculture and Hus-
bandry—drilling wells, installing windmills, digging large jagieys
and cas¢mbas—is carried on with the idea that the water will be avail-
able at all times to the collectivity, on equal terms to all. (PI. 4, fig.
1.) In the Colombian Guajira, the federal government is making
extensive use of modern heavy equipment to build reservoirs—an im-
provement over the old-fashioned jagwey—which are filled when it
rains, and some of the old casizmbas are being deepened and lined with
cement walls. Whether the water is lifted by wind power or by hu-
man brawn, these watering places are still among the most important
and the most colorful of the foci or community centers where Guajiros
congregate.
In all probability the cultural factor of greatest significance in the
life of the Venezuelan Guajira of recent date has been the construc-
tion of the good, all-weather highway from Maracaibo to Paraguai-
poa. In many parts of the world, when highways have been built
into fertile, sparsely inhabited regions, settlement immediately
follows.
One of the most notable examples of this phenomenon is to be found
along many kilometers of the newly constructed Carretera Pan-
americana south of Lake Maracaibo, where what was only a few years
ago dense tropical rainforest has already over vast stretches been
converted into cattle ranches. But a highway is for two-way trafic.
If it extends from a highly developed area to one which is poor, in
451800—-58—-—23
344 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
which it is difficult to make a living, or in which the political climate
is unfavorable, then there tends to be a flow of population away from
the poorer area toward the more highly developed one. This trend
has been marked in the Guajira, which has been a kind of human
reservoir in which the pressure of population upon the physical
resources has been greater than it has been elsewhere in the nation.
When such a region is tapped by a road, pressure is released by the
migration over it of a part of its population. Witness the great
exodus of Guajiros to Maracaibo, to the cattle ranches of the foothills
of the Sierra de Perija, and toward other parts of the republic. The
French in North Africa constructed magnificent highways into the
great desert of the Sahara, thus facilitating the migration of hun-
dreds of thousands of Bedouins into the Atlas Mountains and even
into the cities of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. Be it noted that
these liberty-loving nomads have proved to be some of the most vig-
orous fighters against French colonialism.
The Guajiro equivalent of the old saying that “all roads lead to
Rome” would be that “all trails lead to Paraguaipoa.” Over the
entire peninsula there is a ceaseless coming and going, both diurnally
and seasonally, on the part of shepherds in search of water and pasture
for their flocks of sheep and goats, but when animals are ready for
sale, they move gradually toward the brisk market in Paraguaipoa,
as inevitably as water runs down hill, in response to the pull of the
high prices obtaining there. Flocks vary widely in size from those
of two, three, or five animals to flocks containing scores. Animals
are sometimes taken “in trade” by the owners of the little stores scat-
tered around the peninsula and are by them driven or shipped by
truck to Paraguaipoa. At other times the owners themselves drive
their flocks to market. Setting out with their entire families, on foot,
on horseback, on burros, they may take days or even weeks to arrive,
camping each night on the way where darkness overtakes them, for
they allow the animals to browse leisurely as they move along. On
the outskirts of Paraguaipoa, all through Saturday afternoon and
Sunday, flocks continue to arrive, and the picturesque shepherds and
their families establish themselves on the windswept plain in prepara-
tion for the big Monday market day. At night for a radius of several
kilometers west of Paraguaipoa the sand is dotted with campfires,
around which families and friends gather to eat and drink and gossip.
Early Monday morning merchants from Maracaibo come in by truck,
buy up animals in lots, and return with them to the city the same
afternoon. After selling their flocks, the Guajiros wander around
in little groups; they buy yard goods and foodstuffs—panela,
crude sugar, cooking oil, and other necessities—and by late afternoon
they are ready to begin the long trek back to their homes in the bush.
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 345
The feeling that comes over the traveler as he leaves Paraguaipoa
to enter the desert of the Guajira is in many respects comparable to
that experienced by one boarding a ship. As the ship puts out to sea
the traveler is effectively cut off from all that goes with his modern
world; he will receive no letters, friends cannot drop in on hin,
and he cannot be reached by telephone. Similarly, as he moves out
into the desert beyond Paraguaipoa, he realizes that he is, as it were,
isolated and on his own for as long as he stays away from that narrow
black strip of asphalt that ties him to Maracaibo and to all that is
associated with modern urban life: juke boxes and traffic jams, cock-
tail parties, and a kind of breathless living full of forced and synthetic
enthusiasms. In the desert one must be self-sufficient, one must live
on his own inner spiritual resources and not be dependent on his fel-
lows for companionship or excitement. And as night overtakes him,
and the sun goes down behind the giant organ cactus, and the stars
come out so bright and seemingly close enough to touch, and the songs
of the birds are stilled, then the traveler feels that he is indeed alone.
(Pl. 1, fig. 1.) Only the persistent trade winds continue to hasten
on about their business, blowing through the scantly leaved trees and
bushes. What a haven then the solitary thatched hut, from which
the friendly and hospitable Guajiro host greets the traveler with the
words anshi pid—“You have arrived”—the simple statement that
serves aS an invitation to stop in his humble home! And indeed the
house is usually equipped to take care of friends and strangers,
nomads or seminomads like himself, for the enramada, or framework
of upright posts covered over with thatch of palm or slats of the
organ cactus, is placed just outside most Guajiro dwellings, and it is
here that the traveler swings his hammock, whether he be a traveler
who rests there a few hours in the afternoon, the late-comer who
stays all night, or the relative or friend who may tarry for days
or weeks.
More important than the market, as centers of daily intercourse,
are the widely scattered waterholes. In fact, a large part of the life
in any desert area is carried on around springs and wells, natural
or manmade, be it in the Guajira or in the Sahara or in Arabia
Deserta. Since time immemorial the Guajiros have dug wells during
the long dry months in dry river beds, or in alluvium or in sand
dunes, in order to reach the life-giving water. As the water table
goes down, the well is simply dug deeper. These waterholes are
known as casimbas. People come to them in a constant stream from
many kilometers in all directions. If the casimba is deep, a crude
scaffolding is built out over it so that the continuous procession of
men and women can walk out over the water and lower their jars,
buckets, or cans to fill them. (PI. 1, fig. 2.) At a little distance
346 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
from the casimba itself troughs are set up from which goats, sheep,
donkeys, and cattle drink, and bateas, or wooden basins, are filled
with water in which clothes are washed and small children are bathed.
(Pl. 8, figs. 1 and 2.) After the people have slaked their thirst and
that of their animals, and have bathed and washed their clothes,
they load their donkeys with great jars of water to be used at home,
often many kilometers away. The places of those who leave are
taken by those newly arriving, and the lively pageant continues
throughout the day. Similar scenes are enacted around the springs
or oases of the Sahara and Arabia.
The grim struggle for the barest existence—for mere survival—is
to be observed in the life of plants and animals as well as in the life
of man. Many trees and shrubs are thorned, or of bitter taste or
pungent smell, as a protection against enemies, and most of them are
scantly leaved and of thick bark, in order to conserve all the moisture
possible. The struggle of man with his environment is no less grim.
When the drought is sore upon the land, and food supplies dwindle
rapidly with no possibility of immediate replenishment, small children
rove the sectors of flat-leaved cactus, the fruits of which they knock
off into gourd bowls with sticks. When the bowls are filled they
empty them on the ground and roll them about with twigs and thus
remove the protecting tufts of tiny fine spines. All day long the
children gorge themselves on the luscious fruit and in the evening they
take their sacks and containers to their homes, where the parents
eke out their frugal meal with these fruits. The fruits not eaten raw
are peeled and cooked and placed in large earthen jars to ferment
and form chicha, a drink highly prized by the Guajiros.
Over the centuries poor children have often been bribed or forcibly
caught by so-called civilized people to be sold into slavery. Hence
their parents warn them to be wary of strangers, and fill their tender
minds with horror tales about kidnapings, actual or invented; the
vivid imaginations of the children invest these accounts with all sorts
of fiendish overtones. The result is that when a stranger comes upon
these children in the bush, they frequently take to their heels and
flee like wild animals. This happened on one occasion when at our
approach four children were surprised gathering cactus fruits. ‘Two
of them took off through the scrub like rabbits and were not seen
again. The two others had left their fiber bags and gourd shells
of fruit near the road, and, fearful of losing their prizes, they stopped
a few hundred yards away and looked back. The kindly, tactful
interpreter was gradually able to convince them that we meant no
harm. Little by little these two urchins, burnt black by the broiling
sun of this part of the world, and ready to fly at the slightest false
move on our part, edged back to their belongings and talked to the in-
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 347
terpreter, who manifested great interest in the fruits and in how they
were gathered. By his gentle demeanor and the distribution of candy
at a propitious moment, he gradually got the elder of the two—a
charming little girl, at first scared half to death—to pose in the act
of knocking the little fruits into the gourd, and to explain the whole
process of gathering them and of making chicha out of those not
consumed raw. (Pl. 7, fig. 1.) One’s faith in humanity and its
future is immeasurably strengthened by observing these children,
conditioned from their tenderest years to assist uncomplainingly
in the ceaseless struggle for survival where nature is so barren
and niggardly.
The harshness of the physical environment predisposes the sparse
population to a nomadic existence (pl. 10, fig. 1), but cultural factors
as well are operative. One wonders why, for instance, with so much
space available, the Guajiros live in tiny cramped huts, all packed
tightly together. To this question my interpreter answered with two
words: poverty and custom. The Guajiro is so poor that he cannot
afford to construct a roomy, solidly built house. And why should
he? For whenever a death occurs in a house the family abandons it,
and no good Guajiro would run the risk of living in the house again.
(Pl. 10, fig. 2.) After a death the various parts of the dwelling,
with the enramada, are used for a while as a place in which to re-
ceive relatives and friends from a distance, but after three or four
days or at most a week, when the velorio, or lloro, the wake and re-
ception, are over, the family moves away, at least 2 or 3 kilometers,
and builds another house. Near Cojoro, a new house, substantially
constructed, with cement floor and walls and a tin roof, was abandoned
by the owner, after the death of a son, and left to fall into ruin. The
Indians who have migrated to Maracaibo, or who have absorbed
Spanish culture, do not, to be sure, move from their house when a
death has occurred. My interpreter told me that he would not leave
his house because of a death, but his father-in-law, a wealthy Guajiro,
moved from Jepi to Cojoro, 30 kilometers away, when his eldest
daughter died in childbirth, and when his second daughter died of
galloping pneumonia he moved another 30 kilometers to La Gloria
near Paraguaipoa. Thus a basic cultural factor orients the people
toward nomadism or seminomadism, rather than in the direction of
a sedentary life. Such a factor will remain potent long after heroic
attempts have been made to make the people sedentary by digging
new wells, teaching new techniques of dry farming, and so on.
Another factor that has favored a certain amount of migration or
seminomadism is the pito or vinchuca, a kind of outsized winged bed-
bug, found in many sectors. Its normal habitat is the thatch roofs
or the cracks in the daub-and-wattle walls. From their hiding places
348 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
these vermin come out at night, descending the ropes that sustain the
hammocks or crawling out to the sleeping mats on the floor, and feed
on their sleeping hosts. It is said that the kings of France moved
from palace to palace as the bedbugs along with other vermin became
so numerous as to make sleep impossible. By the same token the
Guajiros are not averse to migrating in order to flee from the ravages
of these revolting pests, which in Brazil and in the western Ilanos of
Venezuela have been found to be the vectors of the Chagas disease, a
close relative of African sleeping sickness. Fortunately the construc-
tion of houses with cement floors and walls and tin roofs, and the
widespread use of DDT, are gradually diminishing this dread pest.
The Guajira is a land of hammocks, in which people sleep, sit, and
spend their leisure hours, in which children are conceived, and in
which old people breathe their last and are buried. As soon as a baby
is born in a Guajiro household, it is put into its own diminutive
hammock; when visitors arrive at a Guajiro home, hammocks are
immediately hung for their comfort. Chairs are rarely seen and even
more rarely used. The making of hammocks in the home is a craft
learned early by the womenfolk and practiced all their lives. They
are of two types, the closely woven hamaca, and the looser-meshed
chinchorro, both worked with elaborate designs and gay color combi-
nations as well as of solid white. Some of the handsomest hammocks
made anywhere in the Americas are turned out on primitive hand
looms by these master craftswomen. The making of a fine hammock,
a cooperative family enterprise, requires from one to several months,
depending on the number of women or girls who work on it. (PI. 6,
fig. 1.) As they find some spare time between their other household
chores, the womenfolk sit down on the floor in front of the loom, one
working at it now alone, now accompanied by her mother, her sisters,
or other female relatives. There is no deadline or fixed date on
which the work must be finished, and much friendly gossip is ex-
changed as the chore progresses and as deft fingers move so rapidly
at their task that their manipulations are hardly visible to the
naked eye.
Guajiro women wear the manta, a kind of loose, flowing, long-
sleeved Mother Hubbard, formerly of coarse, homespun cotton cloth
and simpler cut, now usually of imported yard goods of bright hues
and lively patterns. Under this garment it is customary to wear only
a sort of bikini, a wide band of cloth held by a cirapo, a belt made of
many strings of beads. In former days the principal female garment
was a homespun cotton tunic, slipped over the head, or merely an
ampler breechcloth (the latter garb appearing in pictures of only a
quarter of a century ago). This has given way in large part to the
more elaborate manta, an adjustment to the climate in many ways
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 349
similar to the loose-flowing robes of the Bedouins. Indeed when
traveling on their donkeys, with a billowing cape or pafuelo over
their large straw hats flapping in the vigorous trade winds, they re-
semble the Old World Bedouin women. (PI. 9, fig. 2.) The manta
and its forerunner, the tunic, betray the “civilizing” influence of the
missionaries.
The men wear a very brief guayuco, or breechclout, so curtailed as
to make a bikini bathing short seem like a full-dress uniform. The
guayuco is secured, front and back, by a broad, bright-colored, finely
crocheted belt, which is wrapped around the waist and from which
the gaily tasseled, crocheted money bag hangs down at the side. (PI.
2, fig. 1.) Bag and belt, worked in intricate patterns and vivid color
combinations, are made by each Guajiro woman for her husband. At
the present time, especially for wear in town, most of the men have
adopted the shirt, and they often cover their legs with a short draped
skirt of yard goods or with trousers, but at home or traveling across
the desert many still wear only the guayuco. Men, as well as women,
are bedecked with beads and jewelry.
The most humble hut may be the center of a household industry,
or craft, or of many industries. There is, to be sure, a certain amount
of specialization in each home; frequently, however, a number of
activities are engaged in simultaneously in the same house. One person
will be laboriously seeding by hand cotton bolls picked from bushes
in a tiny plot nearby (pl. 5, fig. 1) ; another will be spinning thread
with a primitive hand whorl or spindle (pl. 5, fig. 2), or weaving a
hammock on a hand loom from spools of thread already spun, while
still another may be making or polishing clay pots before firing them.
In the kitchen, at the same time, bitter yuca may be in process of
being ground for the manufacture of food or starch. Bitter yuca
is used for food here as it is in so many parts of tropical America,
and the juice, which is poisonous unless processed, is made into a
pleasant, refreshing beverage which is drunk like chicha, the fer-
mented liquor made from corn.
Water containers, one of the basic necessities, particularly in a
desert area, are of several kinds, natural and manmade. The hard-
shelled fruits of the totwmo tree furnish small containers of varying
sizes and shapes; coconut shells are fashioned into simple spoons and
cups, and a vine similar to a squash or pumpkin vine produces the
amuro, a huge green pear-shaped fruit with a hard shell, which, when
cleaned of its pith and seeds, will hold a gallon and a half to 2 gallons
of water. In shape it is very much like the jars of clay, which are
made here and there as a household industry. The process of making
these earthen jars is complicated and time consuming and it is carried
on under extremely primitive conditions. (Pl. 6, fig. 2.) Clay is
350 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
brought in on donkeyback from some distant deposit of clay or bed
of indurated, clayey shale; it is ground into a powder in a hand
mortar, mixed with water to achieve the right consistency, and la-
boriously, but most dexterously, built up by hand, without the use
of the potter’s wheel. Once properly fashioned, the jar is dried in
the sun for a day or two before it is carefully polished by scraping
and sanding, and then crudely painted with 62ja, a natural-colored
red or brown clay. After this it is ready for firing over a slow fire
of dried cow dung, the pieces of which are still a little green inside
in order to make a slow, hot fire. It is difficult to conceive the mis-
erably puny output of a few jars a week that results from this toil-
some labor. A large jar holding about 3 gallons sells for a dollar
to a dollar and a half, depending on whether the area is under the
influence of the Colombian peso or the Venezuelan bolivar. These
jars may be fitted into openwork fiber bags which can be hung onto
the pack saddles of donkeys for transport over long distances.
One potterymaker complained that the light had gone out of her life
and that she worked on in darkness because her two daughters had
left, together with a cousin, in a truck for Ziruma (the Guajiro
slum section of Maracaibo), and had not been heard of since. They
seemed to have been swallowed up, and try as she might she could
find no trace of them. She said that she had cried till the fountain of
her tears had dried up, and that life held little attraction for her if
she could not find her daughters. Sad and pinched were her features
as she tried to force a smile of gratitude when she was offered a little
candy and tobacco. She was somewhat vainly hoping to be able to
make a better living so that her one remaining daughter, now 10
years old and soon to change into a woman, would want to stay on
with her and would not turn her thoughts to leaving. She fervently
yearned to keep some blood relation with her, to share her life and
her work, for at best she could look forward only to a penniless and
friendless old age, living alone in the vast, immutable desert, unfeeling
and inscrutable, with the trade winds soughing through the spiny
branches of the giant organ cactus. She was the epitome of tragedy,
of the grief of a mother at the loss of the children of her womb, of
sadness as immemorial as man on this earth, and as poignant as the
immortal themes rehearsed on the Greek stage during its Golden Age.
One of the most interesting of the Guajiro customs is that of the
encierro or blanqueo, the period of sequestration or confinement of
several months, or even years, for the girl during puberty, commencing
when, as they say, she begins to “formarse”—to acquire a woman’s
figure—and lasting from one month to two years, the length depend-
ing somewhat on her social position. During that time she is kept
indoors and is not allowed to see men or to be seen by them. She
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST BT
learns and practices, in what is a period of intensive domestic train-
ing, the arts of cooking, making chicha, and weaving hammocks.
The first hammock she completes is her own, to be put by for use in
her future home. Kept out of the strong wind and the blistering
sun, her skin becomes pale, soft, and velvety, and when she comes
out of the dlanqueo she is ready for sale (somewhat as in our so-
ciety a girl is ready for the marriage market after her “coming
out” party).
A man buys a bride for a specified number of sheep, goats, cattle,
and donkeys, or their cash equivalent. His friends help him in the
task of arriving at the bride price, one giving a sheep, another two
donkeys, another ten goats, and so on. In our society at the time
of marriage, wedding invitations are sent out, resulting in presents
from friends for the future household, whereas the prospective Guajiro
groom receives actual, timely assistance from his friends in something
that counts in acquiring a wife—livestock. If the bride is the eldest
daughter, her price goes to her father and it cannot be less than the
price he had to pay for her mother. The price of the other daughters
belongs to the mother or to a maternal uncle. The bride price varies
from a few goats to as high as 15,000 bolivars (about $5,000), de-
pending mainly upon the wealth and standing of the bride’s family.
Polygamy is an established practice among the men, some of whom
are known to possess as many as 20 wives. Even to poor men plural
wives are an asset, for women not only perform the laborious house-
hold chores but work the fields as well. A few Guajiros are famous
for maintaining 10 or more wives in one household; husbands in gen-
eral, however, take the precaution of keeping Pine wives in widely
separated establishments.
The diet of the vast majority of the Guajiros is Fraited. Malnutri-
tion and actual hunger are not uncommon during dry seasons, when
the meal may consist of water sweetened with crude brown sugar,
and perhaps wild fruits in season. In periods of prolonged drought
many are the days when whole families must subsist on the fleshy
pulp of the organ cactus, which is cooked to make it edible—a filling,
however bitter and unpalatable, dish. When the rains come, food
crops such as corn, beans, pumpkins, and millets thrive; corn and
millets are used also in the making of the refreshing chicha, and it is
said that millets produce a drink even more pleasant than corn.
Bitter yuca (Manihot esculenta) is able to survive the drought in
certain plots of alluvial soil. The small fruits of the round-leaved
cactus, as has already been related, are used both for eating and for
making chicha. When the datos, or fruit, of the high organ cactus
are in season, they are eagerly sought for by all, and many go
equipped with a long stick with prongs on the end with which to
gather the fruits as they come upon them. (PI. 4, fig.2.) Along the
352 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
sectors of the coast where coconut palms thrive, these trees provide
one of the principal crops, but only one with some financial backing
can undertake to plant a grove, because his family must somehow
live while waiting the 3 or 4 years until the trees begin to bear. In
these groves hogs are fattened on the residue of coconut meats after
the oil has been extracted; they are kept in pens off the ground so
that they cannot run off the fat they accumulate.
In recent years there has been a steady rise in the high rates of
natural increase among this population, inured as it is to extremely
unfavorable living conditions, in spite of dire predictions to the
contrary.2, Those who live through infancy are tough—they prove
it by their survival. Moreover, interest in improving general health
conditions, particularly in the field of infant care, has been aroused on
a national scale, with the result that in the Guajira, too, the rate of
infant mortality, though still high, has been greatly decreased. Gov-
ernment-sponsored public-health measures are being pushed. Even
in remote corners of Venezuela houses are regularly sprayed with
DDT to eradicate malarial mosquitoes, as well as other household
vermin. The drilling of wells and the installation of windmills,
in many sectors of the Guajira on both sides of the border, to provide
an adequate supply of uncontaminated water for human and animal
consumption, has gone a long way toward decreasing the incidence
of gastroenteritis, dysentery, typhoid, and other water-borne diseases,
which are still among the leading causes of death.
The per capita consumption of alcohol in the Guajira appears to
be exceedingly high. Each little store lost in the immensity of the
bush, even when its entire stock is not worth more than a few dollars,
has on hand a barrel of firewater. The tired wayfarer or visitor often is
proffered an alcoholic drink, or a dozen drinks, rather than food.
Tremendous quantities of beer and hard liquors are drunk with no
thought of eating anything at all. On one occasion, my chauffeur and
his host (the husband of his cousin), while waiting for breakfast,
tossed off six cold beers, presumably by way of recovering from the
long bout of the night before. As a binge continues on into its sec-
ond or third day, or longer, less and less thought will be given to the
consumption of solid food. After an Indian has performed a piece of
hard manual labor—changing and repairing the tire of a truck, for
example—it is customary to give him a shot or more of powerful fire-
water, rather than a substantial meal, by way of compensation. To
_ be sure, the reward of a drink has become so common and accepted
that it would perhaps come as an unwelcome innovation if food were
offered instead. One cannot but feel, however, that a half-and-half
* Weston, Julian A., The cactus eaters, p. 130. London, 1937.
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 353
arrangement might well be substituted, for a gradual shift from
strong drink to wholesome food would certainly be a step in the di-
rection of increased hours of productiveness—one might even add, of
consciousness, in view of the long hours and days that are passed by
all too many, and too often, in a sodden stupor. Nor is it a happy
sight to see a group of Guajiro men, just returned from Maracaibo
with a neat sum of hard-earned bolivars, spending their savings of 6
months or a year in a week’s carousal, on their way home, in some
tiny country store.
These thatch-roofed, or at present more often tin-roofed, little
stores, seemingly lost in the vast expanse of scattered bush, act as
community centers; along with the waterholes and the large markets
of Paraguaipoa and Maicao, they are the economic and social foci of
the population of seminomadic herdsmen and of more or less sedentary
people anchored to their small garden plots and their looms. The
forlorn, lackluster look of these little centers during the week has
nothing in common with their appearance on holidays or weekends.
As early as Friday families of Indians from outlying areas begin
to arrive, silently stretching their hammocks, spreading their pro-
visions of dried goat meat on the roof of the enramada or on the
branches of a convenient thorn bush, stacking the fiber bags of their
few belongings in piles nearby, and otherwise making ready to spend
several days. (PI. 7, fig. 2.) So much of their lives is nomadic that
it is easy for them to make themselves at home wherever they are.
They bring to the little store the goats, sheep, or lambs, the calves,
chickens, or eggs they are planning to turn into cash. All too often
they take their pay in hard liquor or in flashy trade goods they may
want but do not particularly need. As the day wears on, little clus-
ters of people form around a rickety table in the lean-to of the
store itself, around hammocks in the enramada close by, or in silent
circles under the branches of the scant-leaved trees. The menfolk
tend to hang around the store where they drink a lot, talk a lot, and
forget their everyday tasks; the women form litile groups, silent for
the most part, now looking fondly, with soft, black, liquid eyes, at
the baby at the breast or asleep in its tiny hammock, now glancing,
perhaps with a trace of apprehension, across the narrow strip of
space in the full glare of oppressive sunlight, at the menfolk around
the store getting louder and drunker, or more often gazing fixedly
at the outline of cactus-studded hills in the distance, bathed in the
blue-gray haze.
With regard to money prices for goods exchanged, an interesting
phenomenon has arisen as a result of the international boundary
which runs through the Guajira: the influence of the stronger
economy, or at least the stronger currency, that does not respect
354 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
frontiers. For many kilometers into the Colombian Guajira all prices
are quoted in Venezuelan currency, which is the only medium of
exchange. Even a poor herdsman with his goat or sheep to sell, or
the housewife with her chickens and eggs, quotes prices in bolivars.
Against this type of subtle, intangible economic penetration govern-
ments are virtually powerless to act. Boundary dines automatically
broaden into frontier zones. It would be a fascinating study to trace
along the various routes from Venezuela into Colombia the depth of
the area under the influence of the bolivar. The storekeeper not in-
frequently makes a huge profit on goods that he buys in Colombian
pesos and sells for the same number of bolivars, although the bolivar
is worth twice as much as the peso. His percentage of profit under
such favorable circumstances is at least 100 percent. Sometimes he
charges even more. There seems to be a kind of Guajira wireless
system that enables the mest distant storekeeper to know the rate of
exchange, for the bolivar rate for the peso closely follows the rate
of the dollar against the peso in the free market, as quoted in Bogota.
Since the Spaniards found no gold in the Guajira Peninsula and
no large body of industrious agricultural Indians to subject, they
largely bypassed it and paid scant attention to its people. Their
example has been rather generally followed by the national govern-
ments, with the result that a high degree of cultural and political
autonomy has been preserved. The Spaniards were responsible,
however, for introducing horned cattle and donkeys, sheep, goats,
chickens, and hogs. When one realizes that practically everything
that today represents wealth for the Guajiro was introduced in the
Colonial period, one cannot but wonder what the basis of the pre-
Colombian economy was. The Guajiros must have lived on deer and
rabbits and shellfish (and the presence of kitchen middens of large
extent would support this view) along with primitive agriculture on
small plots. Perhaps they carried on a certain amount of trade along
the north coast of Colombia and into the Lake Maracaibo Basin.
But the carrying capacity of the land of the peninsula without
the domestic animals that were introduced from the Old World must
have been much less than it is at the present time; in other words,
the Guajiros must have been many fewer in number than they are
today. To be sure, the Dutch Boers in South Africa originally
settled as intensive agriculturalists around Capetown and became
nomadic herdsmen as they migrated inland, but they had vast acre-
ages of good land available and a large native population to exploit.
Even now, in spite of recent increases, the Guajiros are few in
number. (No systematic census has been taken. Estimates vary
widely from 80,000 to 130,000, including both sides of the Peninsula.)
The Guajiros wrest their living from a harsh and hostile environ-
GUAJIRA PENINSULA—CRIST 355
ment. Most of the basic items of their material culture have been
introduced. Yet over the centuries the elements of their nonmaterial
culture seem to have suffered almost no change. We must look to
cultural factors for an explanation.
Whereas in Western society a patriarchal and patrilinear system
prevails, the family consisting of father, mother, and children, with
the father acting as head of the household, Guajira society is matri-
linear, the family consisting of the mother and her children and the
blood relations on the mother’s side of the house, the father being
but loosely attached to the group, and a maternal uncle serving as
head. The husband controls his wife, but not the disposition of her
children, except that the bride price of the first daughter belongs
tohim. Children have relatively few obligations toward their fathers,
but they are an integral part of the closely knit, nuclear, and extensive
family of their mother, and they take their mother’s name. They
live the most impressionable years of their lives in a cultural climate
that is strictly Guajiro, they become imbued with the culture of their
mothers—Guajiro culture. The children of Guajiro mothers, whether
their fathers are Indian, Negro, zambo, white, or mestizo—and a
considerable amount of intermarriage occurs—for the most part
grow up Guajiros. Some Guajiros, mestizos as well as purebloods,
that have been educated in Maracaibo or Barranquilla, Caracas or
Bogota, are happy to return to the land of their childhood, put on
Guajiro dress, and assume the way of life they lived as children.
Guajiro society has thus been able to absorb new racial strains, and
new elements of material culture, such as domestic animals, without
the loss of any of the essential characteristics of Guajiro culture. It
is not a question of whether “blood will tell,” but rather of whether
culture will tell, and in the case of the Guajiros we have a textbook
example of a societal organization in which the cultural factor has
outweighed by far the racial and economic factors. Perhaps with-
out the matrilinear family and the solidarity of that culture-conscious
unit no society capable of putting down roots in the refractory
Guajiro soil would have evolved, much less survived to achieve a
sociohistorical continuum. No such tenacious and long-lived in-
digenous culture grew up among the Indians on the Paraguana
Peninsula, for instance, or in what is now Falcén.
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The Nature of Viruses, Cancer, Genes, and
Life—A Declaration of Dependence’
By WENDELL M. STANLEY
Professor of Biochemistry and Director of the Virus Laboratory
University of California
Eacu of the four topics mentioned in the title of this lecture is sub-
stantial enough to warrant having an entire lecture devoted to it
alone. Actually a proper and full discussion of viruses, of cancer,
of genes, or of life would require many hours. It may, therefore,
appear quite presumptuous to have included all four in the title of
a single lecture. But let me hasten to indicate that I do not pro-
pose to attempt to develop these topics as such, but that I do propose
to sketch in certain basic information and then to devote most of my
time to a discussion of new relationships between these four subjects,
relationships which I believe to be of the utmost importance.
Recent scientific discoveries, especially in the virus field, are throw-
ing new light on the basic nature of viruses and on the possible nature
of cancer, genes, and even life itself. These discoveries are providing
evidence for relationships between these four subjects which indicate
that one may be dependent upon another to an extent not fully ap-
preciated heretofore, and hence the time is appropriate for a declara-
tion of the nature of the dependence that may be involved. Too often
one works and thinks within too narrow a range and hence fails to
recognize the significance of certain facts for other areas. Some-
times the important new ideas and subsequent fundamental discover-
ies come from the borderline areas between two well-established fields
of investigation. I trust, therefore, that this declaration of depend-
ence will result in the synthesis of new ideas regarding viruses, can-
cer, genes, and life, and that these ideas in turn will result in the
doing of new experiments which may provide the basis for funda-
mental discoveries in these fields which are so important to every one
of us.
= Sian}
Soo
1Penrose Memorial Lecture, April 25, 1957. Reprinted by permission from
Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 101, No. 4, August 1957.
357
358 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Now I suppose there is no doubt that, of the four topics, life is the
one most people would consider to be of the greatest importance.
One would think that the nature of life would be easy to define since
we are all experiencing it. However, just as life means different
things to different people, we find that in reality it is extremely diffi-
cult to define just what we mean by life or by a living agent in its
most simple form. There is no difficulty in recognizing an agent as
living or nonliving so long as we contemplate structures such as man,
cats, and dogs, or even small organisms such as the bacteria, or, at the
other extreme, structures such as a piece of iron or glass, an atom of
hydrogen, or even a molecule of water, sugar, or of our blood pigment,
hemoglobin. The former are examples of animate or living agents
whereas the latter are examples of inanimate or nonliving things.
But what is the true nature of the difference between a man and a
piece of iron, or between a bacterial organism and a molecule of hemo-
globin? The ability to grow or reproduce and to change or mutate
has long been regarded as a special property characteristic of living
agents. Certainly mankind and bacteria have the ability to assimilate
and metabolize food, respond to external stimuli, and to reproduce
their kind—properties not shared by bits of iron or by molecules of
hemoglobin. Now if viruses had not been discovered, all would have
been well. The organisms of the biologist would have ranged from the
largest of animals, whales and elephants and the like, all the way
down to the smallest of the bacteria which are about 200 my or a few
millionths of an inch in diameter. There would have been a definite
break with respect to size since the largest molecules known to the
chemist were less than 20 mp in size. Life and living agents would
have been represented solely by those structures which possessed the
ability to reproduce themselves and to change or mutate, and all of
these were about 200 mp or larger in size, thus more than ten times
jarger than the largest known molecule. This would have provided a
comfortable area of separation or discontinuity between living and
nonliving things and would have provided ample justification for con-
sidering life as something set distinctly apart and perhaps unap-
proachable and unexplainable by science.
Then around 1900 came the discovery of the viruses—first the plant
virus of tobacco mosaic, then foot-and-mouth disease virus of cattle,
and then the first virus affecting man, namely, yellow fever virus.
These infectious, disease-producing agents are characterized by their
small size, by their ability to grow or reproduce within specific living
cells, and by their ability to change or mutate during reproduction.
Their inability to grow or reproduce on artificial or nonliving media
did not cause too much concern and their reproductive and mutative
powers were enough to convince most people that viruses were merely
VIRUSES, CANCER, GENES, AND LIFE—STANLEY 309
still smaller ordinary living organisms. However, around 1930 the
sizes of different viruses were determined with some precision, and
it was found that some viruses were indeed quite small, actually
smaller than certain protein molecules. Then in 1935 the first dis-
covered virus, tobacco mosaic, which is a middle-sized virus, was
isolated in the form of a crystallizable material which was found to
be a nucleoprotein, that is, a substance composed of nucleic acid and
protein. This nucleoprotein molecule was found to be 15 mp in cross
section and 300 my in length and to possess the unusually high molec-
ular weight of about 50 million. It was, therefore, larger than any
molecule previously described, yet it was found to possess all the
usual properties associated with larger protein molecules. The same
material could be obtained from different kinds of mosaic-diseased
plants such as tomato, phlox, and spinach plants, whereas plants
diseased with different strains of tobacco mosaic virus yielded slightly
different nucleoproteins. Many tests indicated that the new high
molecular weight nucleoprotein was actually tobacco mosaic virus and
it was concluded that this virus could, in fact, be a nucleoprotein
molecule. Here, therefore, was a molecule that possessed the ability
to reproduce itself and to mutate; hence, the distinction between
living and nonliving things which had existed up to that time seemed
to be tottering and soon a full-scale intellectual revolution was in
progress.
Today the revolution is past and we know that the gap between 20
and 200 mp has been filled in completely by the viruses—so much so
that there is actually an overlapping with respect to size at both ends.
Some larger viruses are larger than certain well-accepted living or-
ganisms whereas some small viruses are actually smaller than certain
protein molecules. We have, therefore, a continuity with respect to
size as we go from the electrons, mesons, atoms, and molecules of the
physicist and the chemist, to the organisms of the biologist and on,
if you please, to the stars and galaxies. Nowhere is it possible to
draw a line in this continuity of structures and say that all above
this size are living and all below are nonliving. There appears to
be a gradual transition with respect to size and complexity of struc-
ture as one goes from things that are normally considered to be alive
to things that are generally considered to be nonliving. One is re-
minded of the quotation attributed to Aristotle over 2,000 years ago
to the effect that Nature makes so gradual a transition from the
animate to the inanimate that the boundary line between the two is
doubtful and perhaps nonexistent. Much scientific knowledge has
been accumulated since Aristotle’s time but the essence of his statement
is as true today as it was when he made it. But does this mean there
is really no difference between the animate and the inanimate? I do
451800—58——24
360 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
not believe that it does. However, we must be willing to define what
we mean by life and then we must be willing to accept as living any
structure possessing properties fulfilling such a definition.
The essence of life is the ability to reproduce. This is accomplished
by the utilization of energy to create order out of disorder, to bring
together into a specific predetermined pattern from semiorder or
even from chaos all the component parts of that pattern with the
perpetuation of that pattern with time. This is life. Now there is
another very basic property which seems to be characteristic of living
things and that is the ability to mutate, to change or to respond to
a stimulus. I do not believe this property is absolutely necessary
for life, but it certainly lends grandeur to life, for not only is it re-
sponsible for the whole evolutionary process and thus for the myriads
of kinds of life we have on earth but, most importantly for mankind,
it permits one to dare to aspire. It is presumably responsible for
man, his conscience and his faith. It is obvious that I believe that
mutation merits much, much study.
The discovery of viruses has permitted us to contemplate the nature
of life with a new understanding. It has enabled us to appreciate
in a new light the inherent potentialities of chemical structure,
whether that of a single molecule or that produced by the interaction
of two or more molecules. Viruses were discovered by virtue of their
ability to replicate and in the last analysis this ability to reproduce
remains today as the only definitive way in which they can be recog-
nized. We may purify and isolate preparations from virus-diseased
tissues but it is only when a reasonably pure material is obtained and
units of this are found to possess the ability to reproduce themselves
that we are privileged to refer to the material as virus. Since the
isolation of tobacco mosaic virus in the form of a crystallizable nu-
cleoprotein 15 by 300 mp in size, many other viruses have been ob-
tained in pure form and characterized in part by their chemical and
physical properties. My colleagues, Arthur Knight, Robley Wil-
liams, and Howard Schachman, have made major contributions to
the biochemical, electron microscopical, and biophysical knowledge of
viruses. Until two years ago all viruses studied had been found to
be at least as complex as a nucleoprotein. However, some appear to
have lipid, carbohydrate, and in some cases a limiting membrane in
addition to nucleic acid and protein. Whereas some viruses, like
tobacco mosaic, are crystallizable nucleoproteins which have the usual
molecular properties, other viruses, such as vaccinia, have a degree of
morphological differentiation which can hardly be called molecular in
nature and which is rather more organismal or cell-like in nature.
Some of the bacterial viruses have a very complex morphology, with
a head and a tail somewhat similar to the sperm of higher organisms.
VIRUSES, CANCER, GENES, AND LIFE—STANLEY 361
For a long time many investigators thought that the plant viruses
differed basically from viruses affecting animals and man. This idea
stemmed mainly from the fact that for 20 years all the crystallizable
viruses were plant viruses. This idea had to be relinquished two
years ago when my colleagues, Carlton Schwerdt and Frederick
Schaffer, obtained poliomyelitis virus, which is a typical animal or
human virus, in crystalline form. Since then at least one other ani-
mal or human virus has been crystallized and this is crystalline Cox-
sackie virus obtained by Doctor Mattern of the National Institutes of
Health. Hundreds of viruses are known and more are being dis-
covered every month; yet only a dozen or so have been obtained in
purified form. In view of the possibility that these may represent
the more stable and more readily purified viruses, one cannot be cer-
tain that a true picture of the chemical and physical properties of
viruses as a whole has been obtained as yet. However, I believe that we
have sufficient sampling to be significant for the purposes of the pres-
ent discussion for we already know that viruses may range from small
erystallizable animal, human, or plant viruses which are nucleoprotein
molecules, through intermediate structures consisting of nucleoprotein,
lipid, and carbohydrate, to large structures possessing a morphology
and composition similar to that of accepted cellular organisms. All
these diverse structures are bound together by one all-important prop-
erty, that of being able to reproduce their own characteristic struc-
ture when placed within certain living cells. They are all, in short,
by definition, alive.
Now I am only too fully aware of objections that some may have
to considering a crystallizable nucleoprotein molecule as a living
agent. Some may feel that life is a mystery which is and must re-
main beyond the comprehension of the human mind. With these
I must disagree. Some may believe that a living molecule is contrary
to religion. Here again I must disagree for I see no conflict what-
soever between science and religion and I see no wrong in accepting
a molecule as a living structure. To many scientists the diverse ex-
pressions of chemical structure represent miracles, and our expanding
knowledge of the wonders of nature provides ample opportunities to
express our faith and only serves to make us full of humility. Some
may prefer to regard a virus molecule in a crystal in a test tube as a
potentially living structure and to restrict the term “living” to a virus
during the time that it is actually reproducing. I would have no
serious objection to this for I am reminded of the facts that certain
tapeworms a foot or so in length can live and reproduce only in cer-
tain hosts and that even man himself can be regarded as requiring
rather special conditions for life, yet no one objects to accepting man
and tapeworms as examples of life. I am also reminded that we are
362 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
taught that the essence of a thing is not what it is, but what it does,
and the doing of something involves time; hence there may be good
reason always to consider the virus with time. Regardless of certain
mental restrictions that may differ from person to person, I think
there is no escape from the acceptance ultimately of viruses, including
the crystallizable viral nucleoprotein molecules, as living agents.
This must be done because of their ability to reproduce or to bring
about their own replication. Certainly the essence of life is the
ability to reproduce, to create a specific order out of disorder by the
repetitive formation with time of a specific predetermined pattern
and this the viral nucleoprotein molecules can do.
Of course, it would have been dull indeed if the first formed living
agent had been restricted to exact duplicates of itself. The logical
reasoning provided in schemes such as those outlined by Calvin,
Haldane, Horowitz, Oparin, and Urey by means of which relatively
complex organic substances could have arisen from inorganic matter
provides justification for assuming that a chemical structure, per-
haps something like nucleic acid, which possessed the ability to repli-
cate, did come into being once upon atime. It need to have happened
only once, and thereafter without the great phenomenon of mutation
it merely would have kept going until it had filled the world with
replicates of this precise structure or until it had exhausted the start-
ing materials. However, Nature has provided a built-in error so
that the replication process is not perfect and about one in every mil-
lion or so replicates is slightly different. ‘This change, which has been
of tremendous fundamental importance, we now recognize as muta-
tion, and as these errors or differences were accumulated by replicat-
ing structures it became necessary to make formal recognition of them.
These differences or markers we now call genes. We do not recognize
genes directly but only by differences. Needless to say, some physical
structure had to be responsible for the accumulation, preservation,
and potential exhibition of these differences and this assembly of genes
we call a chromosome. The incorporation of one or more assemblies
of genes into a structure possessing a limiting membrane, which we
now call a cell, then made possible gene interchanges between these
cellular assemblies. This genetic interchange by the fusion of two
cells, a sexual process, also represents a phenomenon of the greatest
fundamental importance for this permitted genetic recombination,
a factor that has served to speed up the evolutionary process im-
measurably. Therefore, life as we know it today is dependent not
only upon reproduction but also upon mutation and _ genetic
recombination.
Now let us consider for a moment the relationships between genes
and viruses since we see that both are related to life. Muller’s esti-
VIRUSES, CANCER, GENES, AND LIFE—STANLEY 363
mate of the maximum size of a gene would place it just below tobacco
mosaic virus, near the middle of the viruses. Both genes and viruses
seem to be nucleoproteins and both reproduce only within specific liv-
ing cells. Both possess the ability to mutate. Although viruses gen-
erally reproduce many times within a given cell, some situations are
known in which they appear to reproduce only once with each cell
division. Genes usually reproduce once with each cell division, but
here also the rate can be changed, as, for example, in the case of
polyploidy resulting from treatment with colchicine. Actually the
similarities between genes and viruses are so remarkable that viruses
very early were referred to as “naked genes” or “genes on the loose.”
Two great discoveries, one which began in 1928 and the other which
occurred in 1952, have provided experimental evidence for an exceed-
ingly intimate relationship between viruses and genes. In 1928
Griffith found that he could transform one specific S type of pneu-
mococcus into another specific S type by injecting mice with non-
virulent R forms together with large amounts of heat-killed S pneu-
mococci of a type other than that of the organisms from which the
R cells were derived. Living virulent S organisms of the same type
as the heat-killed S forms were then recovered from the animals.
Later Dawson and Sia as well as Alloway found that the addition of
an extract of one type of capsulated pneumococcus to a culture of a
noncapsulated rough form would convert the latter into the same type
of capsulated pneumococcus which provided the extract. It was ob-
vious that something was being transferred and in 1938 I discussed
the possibility that this “something” might be a virus. In 1944 Avery
and his colleagues at the Rockefeller Institute proved that this some-
thing was a transforming principle consisting of deoxyribonucleic
acid (DNA). Muller in 1947 discussed the possibility that the DNA
might correspond to still viable parts of bacterial chromosomes loose
in solution which, after entering the capsuleless bacteria, undergo
a kind of crossing over with the chromosomes of the host, but this
suggestion was not widely accepted. That the phenomenon was not
an isolated one was demonstrated in 1953 by Leidy and Alexander
who obtained similar results with an influenza bacteria system. The
close relationship to genetics was further emphasized by work of
Hotchkiss and by Ephrussi-Taylor who, as well as Leidy and Alexan-
der, showed that drug resistance and other genetic factors could be so
transferred. This work provided evidence that genetic factors or
genes, if one prefers such a designation, can be represented by DNA
and can be obtained in chemically pure solution.
This information, as well as our knowledge of viruses, was soon
fortified by the very important discovery by Zinder and Lederberg
in 1952 of transduction in Salmonella by means of a bacterial virus.
364 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
It was found that genetic factors could be carried from one type of
Salmonella cells to another type by means of a bacterial virus. In
this type of transformation the genetic fragment is not free but is
carried within the structure of the bacterial virus. It is, for example,
not affected by the enzyme deoxyribonuclease, and in this respect is
unlike the DNA pneumococcus transforming principle. However, it
is not necessary for the virus actually to possess virus activity, for
killing of the virus by ultraviolet hght does not prevent the transduc-
tion of other traits. The closeness of the relationship between the
virus and the genes of the host is emphasized by the fact that the
transducing ability of any bacterial virus is determined strictly by the
character of the cells on which the virus was most recently grown.
Virus grown on Serotype E, Salmonella cells will, when added to
Serotype E, cells, convert a fraction of these cells into Serotype E,
cells. It is of interest to note that the virus in filtrates of toxin-form-
ing bacterial strains will convert nontoxin-forming cells into toxin-
forming cells. In transduction, a fragment of a chromosome which
might be regarded as a gene or a collection of a few or even many genes
can be transferred from one kind of donor cell to another kind of
receiver cell and be incorporated into the genetic apparatus of the
receiver cell. In the pneumococcus or influenza bacterium this can be
caused by a DNA preparation which can be separated and isolated as
such and in Salmonella this gene or gene collection rides within the
bacterial virus, presumably with the viral DNA, which is added to the
cell to be transduced. Here one hardly knows what to call a virus and
what to call a gene for it is obvious that at times the two merge
completely.
The persistence of a bacterial virus in an apparently concealed
form of prophage in lysogenic strains of bacteria, extensively investi-
gated by Lwoff, provides further evidence in this direction. Lyso-
genic bacteria perpetuate in what may be considered a hereditary
manner the property of being able to produce a bacterial virus. The
term “prophage” is used to describe the form in which the potentiality
to produce a bacterial virus is perpetuated in lysogenic bacteria.
Prophage is nonpathogenic and noninfectious in the usual sense, but,
since it is multiplied at least once with each cell division, it may be
regarded as infectious in the sense that genes or chromosomes are in-
fectious. In other words, the prophage might be considered as a
temporary part of the genetic apparatus of the cell, the genetic element
that differentiates a lysogenic from a sensitive cell, and at the same
time as the noninfectious form of a bacterial virus. There are times,
therefore, when a virus may not exhibit its normally infectious nature
but have its potentially unlimited reproductive capacity under genetic
control so that it replicates only once with each cell division. There
VIRUSES, CANCER, GENES, AND LIFE—STANLEY 365
are times when a specific genetic element of a cell can be freed of the
normal controlling mechanism of the cell and go forth in viable form
in solution or associated with a virus, enter a different cell, replace
a homologous chromosomal segment, and resume its original specific
function in the new cell. It is obvious that the latter phenomenon
could readily be considered an infectious process, and that viruses
can act as genes and genes as viruses under certain circumstances.
I should now like to discuss the relationships which involve cancer.
You probably know that cancer or abnormal, uncontrolled cellular
growth may occur in all kinds of organisms and that cancer is second
only to heart disease as a killer of mankind; hence I need say no more
about the relationship between cancer and life. Cancer originates
when a normal cell for reasons, some known and some unknown, sud-
denly becomes a cancer cell which then multiplies widely and with-
out apparent restraint. Cancer may originate in many different kinds
of cells, but the cancer cell usually continues to carry certain traits of
the cell of origin. The transformation of a normal cell into a cancer
cell may have more than one kind of a cause, but there is good reason
to consider the relationships that exist between viruses and cancer.
Viruses have been implicated in animal cancers ever since Peyton
Rous, in 1911, transmitted a chicken sarcoma from animal to animal
by means of a cell-free filtrate. Despite the fact that today viruses
are known to cause cancer or tumors in chickens, pheasants, ducks,
mice, frogs, rabbits, deer, and other animals, and even in certain
plants, there exists a great reluctance to accept viruses as being of
etiological importance in human cancer. However, basic biological
phenomena generally do not differ strikingly as one goes from one
species to another, and I must say that I regard the fact, now proved
beyond contention, that viruses can cause cancer in animals to be
directly pertinent to the human cancer problem. It should be recog-
nized that cancer is a biological problem and not a problem that is
unique for man.
Since there is no evidence that human cancer as generally experi-
enced is infectious, many persons believe that because viruses are in-
fectious agents they cannot possibly be of etiological importance in
human cancer. However, this is not a valid conclusion for several
reasons. It is well known from the work of Bryan and of Beard that
animal cancer viruses may alternately be filterable and hence infec-
tious and then nonfilterable and hence appear noninfectious, appar-
ently owing to great variations in the actual amount of virus present
in the cancer. It is also well known that viruses may be highly spe-
cific, so specific in fact that a given virus may infect and cause disease
only in one kind of cell in one kind of animal and hence, under all
other conditions, appear noninfectious. For example, the kidney
366 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
carcinoma virus of the leopard frog studied by Lucké would appear
to be such a virus. Then there is the possibility that many may
be carrying viruses of etiological importance for cancer which for
one reason or another have not yet been discovered. The possibility
of mutation of latent viruses into a new strain of etiological impor-
tance must also be kept in mind. Pertinent to both of these possi-
bilities is the discovery during the past few years of dozens upon
dozens of hitherto unknown viruses in human beings. These con-
sist of the ECHO viruses isolated from the human intestinal tract,
the adenoviruses isolated from the upper respiratory tract and eyes
of man, and a group of viruses isolated from human sera. New
viruses of man are discovered almost every week. Thus we now have
many more human viruses than we know what to do with and there is
no reason to shy away from giving consideration to viruses as causa-
tive agents in human cancer for lack of the viruses.
During the past few years there has been an almost unbelievably
rapid development of techniques by means of which it is now possible
to grow almost all kinds of human and animal cells in the test tube
and, as a consequence, vast new opportunities for experimentation
on human cells without danger to man have opened to us. These cells
are also providing a means for the isolation of new viruses, since many
kinds of cells are very susceptible to many viruses. The human
amnion cell, which my colleagues Elsa Zitcer, Jérgen Fogh, and
Thelma Dunnebacke first obtained from the full-term amnion in cell
culture, is proving of great use in this connection as well as in studies
on the transition from a normal to a potentially malignant cell. For
example, we are finding interesting changes in chromosome number
and in ability to grow in cortisone or X-ray treated animals as these
human amnion cells are passed in culture. It is also of interest that
one of the adenoviruses has been found to destroy human cancer cells
both in the human being and in the test tube. Thus a virus may cause
a cancer and a virus may destroy a cancer. Unfortunately in the case
of Huebner’s studies on carcinoma of the human cervix not all of the
cancer cells were destroyed and the cancer eventually progressed.
However, Huebner, as well as others, is attempting to train a series
of viruses to grow on cancer celis, so this approach may not be too
hopeless. In the same way it is possible to train cells to respond to
viruses and this may provide even better test systems for human
viruses as yet undiscovered. Kven if eventually one should find no
cancer virus among the large number of human viruses, the fact that
man carries so many viruses within his cells and that these are con-
tinually passing from person to person means that we should be ever
alert to the possibility of transduction by these viruses. Of course,
there is no confirmed case of transduction in higher organisms as yet.
VIRUSES, CANCER, GENES, AND LIFE—STANLEY 367
However, human cancer is a fact and there is certainly something
within every human cancer cell that insures its reproduction whether
we call it a gene or a chromosomal fragment, and so long as human
viruses are so abundant we certainly have the possibility of trans-
duction.
There are many examples of latent viruses that may remain hidden
for a lifetime or even for generations only to come to light as a result
of some treatment or change. Most human beings acquire the virus
of herpes simplex quite early in life and in many persons the evidence
for the persistence of this virus throughout their lifetime is quite
good. Traub has found that infection of a mouse colony with the
virus of lymphocytic choriomeningitis can result, with time, in an
inapparent infection of all animals. The virus is apparently trans-
mitted in utero and remains with the animal throughout its life; hence
this virus persists throughout generation after generation of mice. In-
jection of such mice with sterile broth can revive the pathogenicity
of the virus and bring it into light. Certain potato viruses such as
potato X virus, also known as the healthy potato virus or the latent
mosaic of potato virus, can be passed from generation to generation
without causing an apparent disease. This virus is not present in
several varieties of potato grown in Europe, but it is thought to be
present in all, or almost all, potato plants grown in the United States.
Needless to say, it was only by virtue of the fact that potato plants
without this virus are known to exist and the fact that this virus
causes obvious disease symptoms when inoculated to certain other
plants that it was possible to establish the actual existence of this
virus. In the absence of this information this latent mosaic virus
would have to be regarded as a normal constituent of the potato plant.
Since viruses can mutate and examples are known in which a virus
that never kills its host can mutate to form a new strain of virus that
always kills its host, it does not seem unreasonable to assume that an
innocuous latent virus might mutate to form a strain that causes
cancer. The great wealth of newly discovered viruses of man plus
our knowledge of the latent virus phenomenon provides ample justi-
fication to reexamine quite carefully the relationships between viruses
and human cancer.
Another fact which may prove of the greatest importance in this
connection is that treatment of certain lysogenic strains of bacteria
with physical and chemical agents, such as X-rays, ultraviolet light,
nitrogen mustard, certain chemical-reducing agents or iron-chelating
agents, results, after a latent period, in the lysis of the bacterial cells
and the release of large amounts of bacterial virus particles. These
agents are called “inducers” and you may recognize some as carcino-
genic agents for man and animals. Nonlysogenic bacteria are un-
368 | ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
affected by these “inducers” in so far as the production of a bacterial
virus is concerned. Is it possible that this activation of a prophage by
certain chemical or physical agents with development into a fully
infectious bacterial virus and the consequent destruction of the bac-
terial cells provides a biological example of a process which occurs in
man? I believe that this activation of prophage as well as the phe-
nomenon of transduction by free deoxyribonucleic acid in the pneu-
mococcus and by bacterial viruses in Salmonella is pertinent to the
human cancer problem, especially so in view of the recent discovery of
dozens upon dozens of new viruses of man. Certainly the experi-
mental evidence now available is consistent with the idea that viruses,
as we know them today, could be the etiological agents of most, if not
all cancer, including cancer in man. I have been urging the accept-
ance of this idea as a working hypothesis because it will result in the
doing of experiments that might otherwise be left undone, experi-
ments that could result in the solving of the cancer problem. Needless
to say, what we do in the way of experimentation depends in large
measure upon what we think and I am sure the time has come when
we should change our thinking with respect to the nature of cancer.
I hope that by this time it is obvious that viruses, cancer, genes, and
life are tied together by a whole series of relationships, that viruses
can act as genes and genes as viruses under certain circumstances, that
viruses can cause cancer and that viruses are structures at the twilight
zone of life partaking both of living and of molecular properties. Let
us now see whether there is a common thread of understanding per-
meating all these relationships. We know that viruses have been
thought to be at least as complex as a nucleoprotein, but we also know
that the transforming agent of the pneumococcus has been found to
be a deoxyribonucleic acid and there is presumptive evidence that the
genetic stuff of the bacterial viruses is also deoxyribonucleic acid.
However, until recently no gene or chromosome or any of the ordinary
viruses had been isolated as such in the form of nucleic acid; hence the
“stuff of life,” as well as the viruses, has been considered to be nucleo-
protein in nature with considerable doubt as to whether the protein
or the nucleic acid or the combination of the two was really the bio-
logically active structure.
A recent very important discovery made in our laboratory by
Doctor Fraenkel-Conrat has changed the situation considerably and
now makes it seem certain that nucleic acid is the all-important
structure. It was reported by Fraenkel-Conrat and also shortly there-
after by Gierer and Schramm in Germany that special treatment
of tobacco mosaic virus yielded a nucleic acid preparation possessing
virus activity. It would now appear necessary to recognize that a
nucleic acid structure of around 300,000 molecular weight can
VIRUSES, CANCER, GENES, AND LIFE—STANLEY 369
possess, coded within its 1,000 or so nucleotides, not only all the
information that is necessary to bring about in the host cell the
production of more of this same nucleic acid, but also apparently
the de novo synthesis of its own characteristic and highly specific
protein with which it eventually coats itself. This work provides
wonderful evidence for a direct relationship between specific nucleic
acid and specific protein synthesis and makes it possible to consider
virus and gene action, including their relationships to cancer and to the
nature of life, in terms, not of nucleoprotein structure, but of nucleic
acid structure. We see, most importantly, that viruses, cancer, genes,
and life are all directly dependent upon the structure of nucleic acid.
It may be calculated that a thousand-unit polynucleotide linear
chain consisting of a coded repeat of only four different components,
adenine, guanine, cytosine, and uracil, in the same ratio as exists
in tobacco mosaic virus nucleic acid, could form about 105°° different
arrangements. This number is so large that it is incomprehensible.
Even a hundred-unit polynucleotide chain of this composition could
exist in about 10°’ different arrangements and this number is vastly
larger than the total of all living things on earth and in the oceans.
We have, therefore, in this structure consisting of the four chemicals,
adenine, guanine, cytosine, and uracil (thymine in the case of de-
oxyribonucleic acid), repeated many times over in unique fashion,
the code for every bit of life on earth and in the sea. When a normal
cell becomes a cancer cell there is undoubtedly a change in this
structure within the cell. It is of interest to note that many anti-
cancer compounds are antimetabolites for these chemical components
of nucleic acids. And in our laboratory Litman and Pardee made
the very important observation that the incorporation of 5-bromouracil
into a bacterial virus in place of thymine resulted in the production
of the highest percentage of mutants ever recorded. Certainly all
this information plus the discovery that virus activity can be a
property of nucleic acid and our knowledge of relationships between
viruses, cancer, genes, and life now make it obvious that the common
thread upon which all of these depend is specific nucleic acid structure.
Therefore, this declaration of dependence revolves around nucleic acid.
I believe that the elucidation of the structure of nucleic acid in all its
aspects is the most important scientific problem we face today. It
is vastly more important than any of the problems associated with
the structure of the atom, for in nucleic acid structure we are dealing
with life itself and with a unique approach for bettering the lot
of mankind on earth. It is possible that the solution of this scientific
problem could lead eventually to the solution of major political and
economic problems. Never before has it been possible to realize
so fully our utter dependence upon the structure of nucleic acid.
370 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Eventually chemists should be able to synthesize a small polynucleo-
tide specifically arranged; hence one may now dare to think of syn-
thesizing in the laboratory a structure possessing genetic continuity
and of all the tremendous implications of such an accomplishment.
SELECTED REFERENCES
Avery, O. T.; MacLeop, C. M.; and McCarry, M.
1944. Studies on the chemical nature of the substance inducing transforma-
tion of pneumococcal types. Induction of transformation by a
deoxyribonucleic acid fraction isolated from pneumococeus type
Ill. Journ. Exp. Med., vol. 79, pp. 187-158.
CALVIN, MELVIN.
1956. Chemical evolution and the origin of life. Amer. Sci., vol. 44, pp.
248-263. 7
Fiupes, Sir Paut, and VAN Hrynincen, W. E. (Eprrors).
19538. The nature of virus multiplication. Cambridge University Press.
FRAENKEL-CONRAT, H.
1956. The role of the nucleic acid in the reconstitution of active tobacco
mosaic virus. Journ. Amer. Chem. Soc., vol. 78, p. 882.
FRAENKEL-ConratT, H., and WiILLIAMs, Ros.ry, C.
1955. Reconstitution of active tobacco mosaic virus from its inactive pro-
tein and nucleic acid components. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci., vol. 41,
pp. 690-698.
GIERER, ALFRED, and SCHRAMM, GERHARD.
1956. Die Infektiositiit der Nucleinsiiure aus Tabakmosaikvirus. Zeitschr.
Naturforsch., Bd. 11b, pp. 138-142.
GRIFFITH, F.
1928. The significance of pneumococcal types. Journ. Hyg., vol. 27, p. 113.
LEDERBERG, JOSHUA.
1956. Genetic transduction. Amer. Sci., vol. 44, pp. 264-280.
Oparin, A. I.
1938. The origin of life. Trans. by 8S. Margulis. New York.
Rivers, THomaAs M.
1941. Theinfinitely smallin biology. Science, vol. 93, pp. 143-145.
Rous, P.
1946. Concerning the cancer problem. Amer. Sci., vol. 34, pp. 329-358.
ScHarrer, F. L., and ScHwerpt, C. B.
1955. Crystallization of purified MEF -1 poliomyelitis virus particles. Proc.
Nat. Acad. Sci., vol. 41, pp. 1020-1023.
STANLEY, W. M.
1939. 'The architecture of viruses. Physiol. Rev., vol. 19, pp. 524-556.
1941. Some chemical, medical and philosophical aspects of viruses. Science,
vol. 93, pp. 145-151.
1949. The isolation and properties of crystalline tobacco mosaic virus. Les
Prix Nobel en 1947. Stockholm.
ZINDER, N. D., and Leprersera, J.
1952. Genetic exchangein Salmonella. Journ. Bact., vol. 64, p. 679.
ZITcER, Eisa M.; Foau, Jgrcen; and DUNNEBACKE, THELMA H.
1955. Human amnion cells for large-scale production of polio virus. Science,
vol. 122, p. 30,
Mystery of the Red Tide’
By F. G. Watton SMiTu
Vice President, The International Oceanographic Foundation
Coral Gables, Fla.
{With four plates]
One of the commonest and yet most bafiling problems of marine
science underlies the red tide which has killed millions of fishes off
the west coast of Florida in past years. ‘Temporarily, it caused physi-
cians’ offices to be swamped with patients suffering from the accom-
panying windborne irritant gas. Mounds of dead fish covered the
beaches for miles and had to be bulldozed and buried in order to re-
move theirstench. The effect on the tourist industry alone was serious
enough to awaken both State and Federal governments to its economic
importance and eventually to set teams of scientists to work in a con-
centrated effort to solve the problem. What caused the sea to change
color, fish to die, and visitors to develop sore throats? Marine biolo-
gists and oceanographers are following up all possible clues in an
attempt to unravel the mystery and to control its devastating effects.
MANY COLORS
From the earliest days man has viewed with surprise and, at times,
with awe the sudden appearance of a vivid discoloration in the natural
waters of lakes and the sea.
Nearly always the cause turns out to be a rapid growth or “bloom”
of microscopic water life, normally present in comparatively small
numbers, but under certain circumstances growing and reproducing
at an excessive rate until it is presently in very heavy concentrations—
sufficient to affect the color, feel, taste, and smell of the water and
sometimes, though not always, to render it poisonous to the fish in-
habiting it.
A WORLD-WIDE PLAGUE
In the early fall, along the western coast of Japan, patches of water
frequently become brown in color and oily in appearance, owing to
Reprinted by permission from Sea Frontiers, Bulletin of the International
Oceanographic Foundation, vol. 3, No. 1, March 1957. Unless otherwise credited,
photographs by courtesy of Sea Frontiers.
371
372 | ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the blooming of one of the diatoms, a form of microscopic plant life
of the sea known as Rhizosolenia. The abundance of another micro-
scopic plant, the alga Z'richodesmium, is responsible for the color
which gives its name to the Red Sea, and to the Vermillion Sea in
the Gulf of California. Blue-green algae in the Baltic Sea and Sea
of Azov are often so numerous that the sea surface has been compared
in color to a green meadow. In other places and times bacteria cause
the Sicilian “Lake of Blood,” and some of the shallow European seas,
too, become discolored.
The most striking of all these plankton blooms are the red waters,
known as red tides. Some were reported off the coast of Chile as long
ago as 1832 by Charles Darwin on the voyage of HMS Beagle, and
from such widely scattered places as British Columbia, the Gulf of
Mexico, South Africa, Japan, and Australia.
Not all red tides are accompanied by the death of fishes, nor are
they all caused by the same organism. During the past year a red
tide off the coast of Chile was investigated by an expedition of the
University of Miami and found to be due to a bloom of a diatom
called Prorocentrum micans. In other places bacteria, algae, and
another microscopic form of sea life, dinoflagellates, have been found
responsible. In some cases jellyfishes and small crustaceans such as
copepods and euphausids, the krill or food of whales, have caused the
discoloration.
CAUGHT BY SURPRISE
Few people in Florida, other than fishermen, had ever heard of red
tides before the latter part of 1946, when the poisonous red water began
its disastrous work. Nevertheless, the records show that the discolor-
ation of water and death of fishes were seen off the coast of Florida as
early as 1844 and on several occasions since then. But the west coast
of Florida was not then the popular area for anglers, tourists, and
those who wish to retire in the sun.
In November 1946 patches of brownish water containing dead or
dying fishes were seen by fishermen about 14 miles off the coast of
Naples. The pestilence began to spread northward, and during the
following three or four months it appeared at Sanibel and Captiva
Islands just off the coast. From Cape Romano in the south to Engle-
wood Beach in the north dead fishes were found floating in the water.
Huge quantities of the dead carcasses were washed ashore, in places
as much as 100 pounds to the front foot. Dr. Gordon Gunter and
fellow scientists from Miami found dead turtles, shrimps, crabs,
and oysters as well as an impressive list of the various species of
commercial and noncommercial fishes before the first series of outbreaks
died down in March 1947.
THE RED TIDE—SMITH aha
NEW OUTBREAKS AND EMPTY HOTELS
The scourge reappeared later as far north as St. Petersburg and by
the time it finally died out in August 1947, more fish had been killed
than in the earlier outbreak.
Faced with a disastrous repetition of beaches littered with dying
fish, residents and visitors complaining of irritant gases, and the hotels,
motels, and beach resorts changing in a few weeks from prosperous
enterprises to almost deserted buildings, there was a great public
outcry for action. But the inflexible system of legislation and gov-
ernment makes it almost impossible to authorize the moving in of
a team of qualified scientists at a moment’s notice or even to pro-
vide the funds for doing so.
Fortunately, however, J. N. Darling, a winter resident of Captiva
Island and a well-known naturalist, was present at the first outbreak.
He not only made his own observations but also with his own funds
helped defray the expenses of biologists who set out to investigate the
problem during January 1947.
THE COUNTERATTACK BEGINS
The appearance of the water immediately suggested the presence of
plankton bloom. By examining samples under a microscope it was
soon found that a prodigious growth of microscopic organisms had
indeed taken place and that one in particular seemed to be more
characteristic than others. The credit for first noticing this goes,
however, to Mr. Darling, whose curiosity had been aroused by strange
little moving blobs of protoplasm which he noticed under a borrowed
microscope. Miami scientists recognized this as a type of organism
already notorious as a killer of fish when present in plankton blooms.
This kind of microscopic sea life passes under the cumbersome general
name of “dinoflagellates.”
One of the dinoflagellates, Gonyaulax catenella, was found to be the
cause of mussel poisoning along the coast of California during the
summer months. Large numbers of this organism in the plankton,
when taken in as food by mussels, rendered these shellfish dangerous for
human consumption. Others have been found in poison water else-
where. One in particular bears the general name of Gymnodinium,
and it was this kind which the marine biologists found in Florida
red tide. During the investigations as many as 60,000,000 individual
cells to the pint of water were found in the affected waters.
MEET “JIM BREVIS”
Examination of the Gymnodinium present in the Florida outbreaks
showed that it is a 4-lobed blob of almost naked protoplasm, with a
whiplike flagellum trailing from one end. Although practically
374 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
transparent, the organism carries oval-shaped objects which give it
color. It secretes a slimy substance from its surface in huge con-
centrations and this in turn gives the water the consistency of thin
syrup.
The first step was to determine exactly which species of Gymnodin-
tum was causing the damage. Careful study disclosed it to be different
from any previously known to science. Accordingly, Dr. Charles
Davis, of the Miami staff, wrote a careful description and officially
Ficure 1.—The cause of the red tide, Gymnodinium brevis, magnified 3,000 times. First
found in the 1947 outbreak. (Diagram courtesy of Sea Frontiers.)
named it a new species, Gymnodinium brevis. It was not long before
the press and the general public nicknamed it “Jim Brevis.” It is
still known by this to the residents of Florida’s west coast.
GAS WARFARE OR FOREIGN AGENTS?
While this was happening there were many other theories advanced,
both by the general public and by armchair scientists. Some said that
nonpoisonous plankton clogged the gills of fishes and asphyxiated
them. Others held that wartime poison gases had been dumped into
the ocean and that the release of these was responsible both for dead
vU
r
>
ea
m
Smithsonian Report, 1957,—Smith
Fla., during the red tide attack off the coast in October 1957.
2. Heavy concentration in one of the inlets near St. Petersburg,
(Photograph courtesy of St. Petersburg Times.)
September—October 1957, along the Gulf of Mexico at Johns Pass,
1. Windrows of dead fish at low tide, casualties of the red tide attack of
north of St. Petersburg Beach.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Smith PLATE?
1. Dead fish, killed by the red tide, drifting in through the inlet near St. Petersburg, Fla.,
October 1957. (Photograph courtesy of St. Petersburg Times.)
Heavy accumulations of dead fish marking the edge of oily red water near ‘Tampa Bay
(Photograph courtesy of Ecological Monographs and Associated Press.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Smith PLATE 3
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1. Beaches littered with dead fish, a common sight and smell during red tide outbreaks.
oon
2. Cleanup equipment used at City of St. Petersburg Beach. Blade piles decaying fish
and seaweed, and pitchforks are used to load beach debris into trailers. (Photograph
courtesy of St. Petersburg Times.)
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.-
THE RED TIDE—SMITH 375
fish and the sore throats, quite forgetting that red tide, dead fish, and
sore throats had appeared off the Florida coast long before any war
gas was available for dumping. Some theories were even more fan-
tastic, involving the deadly and secret activities of foreign agents.
But the investigators by now were satisfied as to the immediate
cause of the trouble. Small fishes were placed in samples of water
containing “Jim Brevis.” The fishes died in less than 24 hours. In
similar tanks of water with no “Jim Brevis” the fishes lived. Samples
of sea water from a red-tide outbreak were heated nearly to boiling
point and the vapor given off was found to cause coughing and sneezing.
Unfavorable publicity in the wake of the red-tide troubles led to a
vigorous effort to combat them, and the scientists from Miami who
conducted the original investigation were now reinforced by investi-
gators from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Dr. Paul S. Galtsoff con-
firmed the original findings of the poisonous nature of “Jim Brevis”
by carefully conducted tests. Irritant gas, first earlier obtained by
boiling red-tide water, was traced by Alfred Woodcock to small par-
ticles of water thrown into the air by breaking waves, and remaining
in suspension for a considerable time. In this way the red-tide poison
became airborne. Injection of a small amount of red-tide water by
spray into the nose caused the familiar sneezing and sore throat, thus
confirming Woodcock’s theory.
THE CAUSE OF A CAUSE
The direct cause of red tide and its attendant evils was clear enough.
The recognition of “Jim Brevis” did not help very greatly in prevent-
ing it though. It is true that copper sulfate and other chemicals have
long been known as potential killers of plankton blooms if sprayed
on the sea, but, by the time a red-tide outbreak is noticed, the fishes
are dead and drifting onto the beaches and the tourists and residents
are coughing and sneezing. It is then too late. Like an explosion, the
red tide must be stopped before it breaks out. It is necessary to predict
the time and place of an outbreak. The $64 question was what are the
events or causes which antedate the sudden catastrophic blooming of
“Jim Brevis” ?
An obvious thing to look for is the source of food to support the
rapid growth of plankton characteristic of plankton blooms. In
Florida there seemed to be a ready answer in the existence of phos-
phate mining operations. Land plants need fertilizer—phosphorus,
nitrogen, potassium—for food, and also certain other substances in
very small quantities to promote and sustain growth. This is equally
true even of small plantlike cells in the sea, including “Jim Brevis.”
Moreover it frequently happens that the phosphorus compounds are
451800—58——25
376 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the least plentiful, so that any sudden increase in their quantity in
the sea may lead to a great growth of plankton.
RAINFALL AND RED TIDE
The Miami scientists, together with others from the University of
Florida and the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, followed up these
speculations. The probability in mind was that excessive rainfall of
an equivalent type of mechanism might wash down into the sea un-
usual quantities of phosphorus dissolved out of the phosphate rocks
inland, or from the mining refuse by way of rivers. Unfortunately
the final analysis seemed to show that even in years of no red tide
there is sufficient phosphorus in west coast Florida waters to support
a red-tide outbreak. Why then is red tide not always present? A
possible clue comes from a study of rainfall and river discharge.
There seemed to be some connection between red-tide outbreaks and
a higher than average river discharge. But red tide had not developed
in all of the past years when rainfall or river discharge was high.
So something else must be involved.
There were indications that in the shallow creeks and bays, separated
from Gulf of Mexico waters by a chain of islands, materials important
to the growth of “Jim Brevis” occurred and that the mixture of this
water with the sea water outside might provide exactly the right
conditions for red-tide development.
RESEARCH ALMOST ABANDONED
Careful detective work was almost brought to a stop at this stage.
Since 1947 red tide seemed to have disappeared and there was no way
of telling whether it might return in 1 year or 10 years. Consequently
public interest disappeared and with it also the funds necessary to
continue research. The problem now facing the scientist was not
red tide, but the difficulty of being able to continue investigations
without interruption. It is unhappily true that legislatures and gov-
ernments, being in the public service and sensitive to public opinion,
are apt to finance research only when an emergency such as the red
tide actually occurs, at which time, paradoxically, the necessary de-
lays in legislative machinery render it too late to be of service. As
soon as the emergency is over, all the painstaking groundwork which
could lead to the final answer is likely to be discarded.
NEW OUTBREAKS REOPEN RESEARCH
Although marine biologists from Miami were unable to follow up
their earlier discoveries in full measure and although the Fish and
Wildlife Service Laboratory at Sarasota was closed, scientific interest
continued since it was to be expected that at some undetermined
THE RED TIDE—SMITH Sat
future time the plague of dead fish would return and with it a public
clamor for a solution.
These expectations were partly realized in 1952 when a fresh but
minor outbreak occurred. About the middle of September 1953
further red tide was reported and this continued at intervals through-
out the winter and in the spring and summer of 1954. The new
alarms brought special funds to aid research at Miami and increased
federal activity. The State of Florida made a wise move by setting
up a Red-Tide Committee in order to coordinate research activities.
This might also serve to keep legislature advised of the need for
continuing research between red-tide years.
RED TIDE IN TEST TUBES
Materials are needed for the growth of “Jim Brevis” and the sus-
picion that the brackish bay waters contained some essential part of
these materials received new attention as the result of work carried
out by the Haskins Laboratory in New York. For the first time the
red-tide type of organism was kept alive in the laboratory in a pure
culture, uncontaminated by bacteria or other organisms. The Fish
and Wildlife Service followed this up and is now seeking more de-
tailed information about the food requirements and behavior of “Jim
Brevis” in the laboratory.
Part of this is being done at Galveston, Tex., part in Florida in a
laboratory in Naples where a converted cabin cruiser is stationed.
Many of the questions of the likes and dislikes of “Jim Brevis” may
thus be answered by the Service, which now has a team of 20 people
engaged in the investigation. Not only is “Jim Brevis” being kept
alive for studies of his daily needs, but experiments are being con-
ducted to determine the best way of killing him.
PREDICTIONS AND PATTERNS
As the Fish and Wildlife Service attacks one side of the problem, a
four-man team from Miami advanced from another direction. In
order to kill “Jim Brevis” and to prevent the red tide spreading, even
if a suitable poison were available, it would still be necessary to know
in advance when and where an outbreak was likely to take place and
how it was likely to spread.
Red tide first appears as a patch of discolored water, with dead
and dying fishes, particularly along its edge. Within a few days the
enormous concentration of microscopic dinoflagellates brings about
their own death by overcrowding, the red color vanishes, and after the
dead fish have been drifted ashore, all the typical signs begin to
disappear. Several days or even weeks later, however, a similar out-
break may take place at another part of the coast. In a typical red-
378 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
tide year a succession of such outbreaks at different parts of the
coast may occur with varying intervals of time.
What was the connection between successive outbreaks? In order to
prevent the death of fish by poisoning “Jim Brevis” before it could
bloom, it now seemed clear that not only must the first outbreak be
predicted but it must also be possible to predict the pattern of future
successive outbreaks. These were the tasks undertaken by the Miami
oceanographers.
A NEW LINE OF ATTACK
First, records of all past outbreaks were examined in great detail.
They suggested that when one or perhaps several patches of water be-
come suitable for a red-tide outbreak they might be carried by the
system of water currents to other parts of the coast. This new way of
attacking the problem has finally given a clue to the prediction of
red tides.
The fully equipped seagoing research vessel Gerda (see article in
vol. 2, No. 2, of Sea Frontiers), with all the latest types of apparatus
for studying conditions at sea, left Miami for the west coast of
Florida. Under the direction of oceanographers Imo Hela and
Frank Chew, there began a long and exacting study of the water
currents and tides in every detail. By working night and day while
out at sea they accumulated a prodigious amount of data. Back at
the laboratory, samples of sea water were examined chemically and
the long task of mathematical analysis began.
A SCIENTIFIC FLEET
Results were checked and analyzed by the use of free drifting
buoys and floating cards, whose travel between the time of dropping
in the water and the time and place where found gave further evi-
dence of water movement. On occasions a large fleet of yachtsmen,
fishermen, and power-squadron members cooperated by dropping
cards, identified by numbers, in the waters at numerous places simul-
taneously. Several days later they returned to locate the cards, floating
in their sealed plastic covers.
The complicated pattern of currents changes somewhat with the
season of the year, so that it was necessary to repeat the work at sea
on anumber of occasions. But the interlocking system of currents that
gradually unfolded showed how red tide could, apparently haphaz-
ardly, jump from place to place, as the affected water was carried
along. This led to the next stage in the attempt to predict red tides.
WHAT MAKES WATER MIX
Water flowing in tides and currents and acted upon by wind and
wave tends to mix and this would tend to disperse red-tide water. If
THE RED TIDE—SMITH 379
a water mass were to remain red-tide active while moving along the
coast, it must not mix too quickly with surrounding harmless water
and so be dissipated. Therefore, said the oceanographers as they
reviewed the results of the Gerda cruises, we must next find out just
what the conditions are that prevent mixing. These will be the con-
ditions which allow a series of red-tide outbreaks to occur and they
may well lead us to a method of prediction.
Chew and his group from Miami worked out a mathematical for-
mula. In simple language it said that “sea water becomes heavier
or denser as it becomes cooler or more salt, but less dense as it warms
up or becomes fresher. The mixed bay and Gulf water which supports
red tides is lighter than Gulf of Mexico sea water. The red-tide water
therefore tends to float above the rest. If it is very much lighter,
though, it spreads out like an oil film and so begins to disappear.
If it is only slightly lighter than the Gulf water it will mix more
easily.” So, for red tide to progress into a major series of outbreaks
the difference in density must be neither too much nor too little.
But how could this density be predicted? Clearly it was related
to the amount of brackish water entering the ocean and so to the
fresh water entering the bays and this in turn to river drainage and
rainfall during the previous months. It was also related to the dif-
ference in temperature between Gulf water and bay water and con-
sequently to the air temperature of winds which influence them.
SUCCESS
It seemed a long shot, but after taking meteorological figures for
26 past years and performing numerous calculations with different
combinations of the data, a formula emerged which worked. The
weather information for any year was placed into the formula. When
the numerical result fell within a certain narrow range, then a red-
tide outbreak happened during the next 12 months. If outside the
range, there was no red tide.
But this was only a start. The test ould come when predictions
for future years could be checked. Time was of the essence, since
a red-tide outbreak is a serious matter to the west-coast residents,
and might well cause millions of dollars of lost business if not con-
trolled. So, though a scientist does not like to take chances, it was
decided, even before the theory had been fully worked out, to risk a
forecast. In November 1955 the State Board of Conservation in
Florida was notified that there was little likelihood of major red-tide
outbreaks in the year 1956. It turned out that there wasnone. A simi-
lar prediction was made for 1957. The west-coast waters of Florida
will be watched with interest to see if it holds good.
380 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
WHAT OF THE FUTURE?
There have been no serious outbreaks since 1954. If history were
repeated, then public interest would die and research would be
dropped. But this time there is a committee watchful of the citizens’
interests to guard the future. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
may continue to probe the needs of “Jim Brevis,” and the cooperating
group from Miami may be able to extend its method of prediction
so as to forecast the time and place of the next outbreak in order to
stop it before it starts.
Already there are indications that a knowledge of tidal movements
will play a part in this. Information from the Miami field station
at Boca Grande and from the hard-working research ship Gerda,
combined with the facts growing from the Fish and Wildlife Service
studies, may in.the not too distant future bring about a sure control
of the plague of Florida’s west coast, the red tide.
Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D, C.
The Return of the Vanishing Musk Oxen’
By Hartitey H. T. Jackson ?
[With two plates]
THE MUSK Ox, one of those species which had dwindled in numbers
so as to be in danger of extinction, at present lives in the wild only
on the northeast coast of Greenland and in arctic barrens directly north
and northwest of Hudson Bay as far as about latitude 83°, or within
400 or 500 miles of the North Pole. Even within this range musk
oxen live only in certain areas, there being large expanses where none
occurs. Although today there are no native wild musk oxen west
of the Mackenzie River, there is sufficient evidence, from parts of
skeletons that have been found, and from stories of the Eskimos, that
a few of the animals inhabited Alaska as late as about 1850. At that
time the species undoubtedly lived over most of arctic North America
and northeastern Greenland. Whereas in those days the number of
musk oxen in existence probably numbered in the hundreds of thou-
sands, now a high estimate would be 20,000 individuals, most of
which live on the arctic islands.
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE
The musk ox is an odd-looking, hoofed mammal that resembles a
small, shaggy-haired, miniature buffalo. It combines certain features
of cattle with those of the sheep, but is in no sense a connecting link
between them. Stocky in build and short legged, a large male measures
about 7 feet long, stands a little over 4 feet high at the shoulders,
and weighs about 550 pounds. The female is smaller. A hump on the
shoulders of the animal reminds one of the bison. Its tail is only
three or four inches long, its ears are small, and its eyes rather
prominent. Its head is broad and heavy; its face wide and short. The
male carries thick down-curved horns, the broad flat bases of which
nearly meet over the forehead to form a frontal shield. The horns of
the female are smaller.
*Reprinted by permission from the Audubon Magazine, November-December
1956 and January-February 1957.
? Formerly biologist with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
381
382 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
HOW IT GOT ITS NAME
Although it is not a true ox, the peculiar buffalo-like appearance
of the musk ox prompted the name “ox,” and the prefix “musk” had
its origin in the characteristic musky odor of this animal. The
Eskimos call it the o0-ming-mack; the Chipewyan Indians, e¢-jer-ray.
Most species of mammals are known by various names, but “musk
ox” is its universal name known to white men, though in olden times
it was sometimes called the musk bison or musk buffalo. Even in
other languages than our own the term musk ox can be literally
translated. For example, in French, the name is le boeuf musque.
One might well surmise that any animal adapted to such uninhabited
regions as the arctic barrens would be safe from human molestation.
To enter the domain of the musk ox, one must take a journey by plane,
or by ship amidst arctic ice fields, or else travel by canoe and foot
through many miles of Canadian wilderness. Parching winds, cold,
and possibly hunger may greet the hunter. Often, miles of search
are necessary to locate a herd of musk oxen, for even in an area known
to be inhabited by them they live in small scattered groups that shift
their range in following the changing food supply. This gregarious
habit, this tendency to gather in herds, is a marked instinct in the
musk ox, though the groups are usually small ones of from 10 to 380
or 40 individuals, quite in contrast to the huge herds of bison that
formerly contained thousands in a gathering. Search for food may
induce musk oxen to wander many miles, but there is no regular sea-
sonal movement, or migration, such as is likely to occur in a species
that congregates in immense herds or flocks.
FOOD HABITS
Grass is the principal food of the musk ox, though it frequently
eats willow browse, small flowering plants, and particularly in summer,
the tender shoots of the dwarfed shrubs of its homeland. It is sup-
posed not to like lichens or mosses, but a Mr. Hoare, in an old report
for the Canadian Government, says:
The plain on which these musk oxen had been feeding was windswept and only
about two inches of snow lay on it so the top of the vegetation was plainly visible.
It was evident that the musk oxen had been feeding on several varieties of moss
and lichens which the barren land caribou commonly use as winter food. ... On
one side of the moss-covered plain was a gentle slope on which bunch grass
could be seen sticking up through the snow. Up this slope the musk oxen had
evidently passed, without cropping any of the grass, to the mossy ground above.
There was also a thick growth of coarse hay a short distance away on the
opposite bank of the river. Grass, willow tips, and flowering plants were quite
accessible in the district had the musk oxen preferred these sorts of fodder.
In the winter, herbs and all vegetation of the Barren Grounds are
often covered with snow. It is then that the powerful hoofs of the
RETURN OF THE MUSK OXEN—JACKSON 383
musk ox come into play as it paws away the snow to obtain its food.
At this season it quenches its thirst by eating snow, since all fresh water
is frozen over.
AGGRESSIVENESS OF BULLS IN SUMMER
The bulls become rather pugnacious during the summer, and fre-
quent battles ensue between them. Hoare describes a combat which
he watched:
About 9 o’clock on the night of June 26, I was resting my pack on a big rock
about 3 miles up Hansbury River when I saw 3 large musk oxen feeding on a hay
meadow across the river from where I was. They had not seen me so I quickly
got behind the rock and went into camp by getting into my sleeping sack. From
there I could watch them comfortably without being seen. After some little time
two of the three animals stopped feeding, walked out of the wet meadow to
some higher dry ground and began circling one another with lowered heads, as
if for battle. Hach then placed its heavy, horn-protected head against that of
its opponent and tried to force it back by main strength. After a short while
of this, with little success to either side, each animal backed away a few paces,
and ran with lowered head at the other. They came together with considerable
shock. Three times they met, with little advantage to either. Then each
backed away until they were about 25 paces apart. In their new positions they
stood glaring at each other for a few moments, then, as if at a given signal, each
bounded at the other on the same instant, gathering speed at they went, and
met with such impact that both were knocked back some distance, one on his
haunches. The victor stood in fighting attitude for a short while, then, receiving
no further opposition from the vanquished, went and lay down. The other soon
followed suit. The third musk ox which seemed to be larger than either of the
other two, seemed to pay not the slightest attention to the battle but went on
feeding in the meadow.
During the breeding season in August the males are particularly
combative, and fight each other for control of the females. They do
not breed until 4 years old. As with some of the other herding mam-
mals, polygamy is the rule, and each successful bull has a harem of
about 10 cows. Sometimes 2 or 3 bulls with their harems gather to-
gether into one herd of 30 animals.
BIRTH AND GROWTH OF YOUNG
The baby musk ox is born in May or early in June, and lies for a
while hidden in moss or snow. One calf to a mother every other year
seems to be the rule. Blackish brown except for a white patch on its
forehead and white feet, it is a curious little fellow covered with
fuzzy hair or wool. At birth it weighs only about 16 pounds, but at
that it is well developed and within a few hours follows its mother.
When the calf is 6 months old, little knobs that form on the fore-
head indicate the beginning of the horns. By the time a male is 15
months old these knobs have grown into straight horns about 6 inches
long that protrude parallel with the ground. As the horns continue
384 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
to grow they broaden at the base and bend down and forward in a
graceful curve, the ivorylike tips pointing upward.
DEFENSE AGAINST WOLVES AND MAN
Except for man, and occasionally a bear, the wolf is the only real
threat to the musk ox. The herding instinct, however, is a great
protection to the musk ox, and even the wolf is not often successful
in its attack on a group. Several wolves in a pack may at times best
a single animal that wanders from the gang. An attack on a herd is
a different matter, for the musk ox has a method of defense that defies
its enemy. At the least suspicion of approaching danger the bulls
surround the calves and cows, and, with heads out and lowered, face
the wolves in regular battle array. The cows later may join the battle
front, and what a front it is! Each head has a heavy bony shield
flanked by two sharp horns that with a single upward thrust might
disembowel an unwary wolf and leave it prostrate. No wise wolf
would approach such a fortress.
Thus, the musk ox is well adapted to fight its natural enemies of the
Barren Grounds. From outside, however, came white men, entirely
foreign to the musk ox and its country. Armed with rifles, they had
no need to fear that threatening battle formation of horns and shields,
for they could kill from a safe distance. Herds of musk oxen were
slaughtered without mercy. Now that the species is almost gone,
laws and regulations have been passed and reservations set aside for
its protection. We hope that it is not too late.
Although robust and clumsy in appearance, the musk ox is not
slow on foot, and it can run swiftly. It is able to run up steep hills
with surprising ease and speed, and could well escape many of the
attacks of man if it chose to run away rather than to stand its ground.
Eskimos have long hunted musk oxen for food and clothing, but until
the use of the rifle against musk oxen, the killing among the herds
had never endangered the existence of the species.
FIRST CAPTIVE MUSK OXEN
The meat of the musk ox is nourishing and tastes like tough beef,
but some white men who have eaten it say that it has a peculiar musky
taste that they do not relish. The pelt of the musk ox is of very little
value to white man, because it is too coarse in hide and hair for
him to wear. Eskimos find it valuable for clothing because of its
ereat warmth.
In all the recent attempts to domesticate the musk ox no reference is
made to studies on the subject by others; no apparent effort is made
to profit by the experience of others in attempting to raise the musk ox,
no balance is taken of all known factors, bad as well as good, in meas-
RETURN OF THE MUSK OXEN—JACKSON 385
uring procedure. Musk oxen may be seen in a few of the larger
American zoological parks, where, once they become acclimated, they
may thrive moderately well. The first captive musk ox in America
was exhibited in the New York Zoological Park, where it arrived
from arctic America on March 12, 1902. In this same zoological
garden the first baby musk ox ever born in captivity arrived Septem-
ber 7, 1925. Others have been kept captive in northern European
countries, and the governments of Norway and Iceland have experi-
mented in rearing them, but without success. The Dominion of Can-
ada, through protection of the musk ox in its native environment, has
increased its population on the Thelon Game Sanctuary, northeast of
Great Slave Lake, Northwest Territory, since the establishment of
this range in 1927. The only comprehensive study on the musk ox
in captivity is that made by the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service in Alaska.
In April 1927, the Legislature of the Territory of Alaska sent a
memorial to the United States Senate and House of Representatives
urging favorable action in appropriating funds to reestablish musk
oxen in the range formerly occupied by them in Alaska. During
May 1930, under the active leadership of Senator Peter Norbeck of
South Dakota and Representative C. C. Dickinson of Iowa, an appro-
priation of $40,000 was granted for the project. Administration of
it was assigned to the Bureau of Biological Survey, United States De-
partment of Agriculture, now the Fish and Wildlife Service, United
States Department of the Interior. It was impossible at that time to
obtain live specimens of any of the races of musk oxen that lived in
North America. It was necessary to buy stock of the Ward’s musk
ox, which inhabits northeast Greenland. An order was placed with
Johs. Lund, Aalesund, Norway, and late in August 1930 word was
received that 34 animals, including 19 females and 15 males, had been
captured. All were under 2 years of age and about half of them were
calves of the year.
CAPTURING MUSK OXEN IN GREENLAND TO SEND TO ALASKA
The leader of the Norwegian expedition that captured these musk
oxen in Greenland, reported on his observations and procedure, as
follows:
The animals nearly always appear in flocks but are only seldom met. The
older ones range by themselves while the young ones keep together. They are
generally guided by a leader. There is much violence in a flock of musk oxen.
Once we saw a flock of 18 grazing in a plain. Two of the animals wandered
away from each other to a distance of some 50 metres, then took a run and flew
against each other. The loser left the battlefield. The animals pasture like
cows. Sometimes they will set out at high speed for a distance of 100 to 1,000
metres when they stop short. When attacked they draw up into a flock with
386 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the leader at the head and then make a sally unflinchingly. The animals are
swift, and keen of scent, so extreme care must be taken in undertaking to
capture them and such hunting is as much as one’s life is worth. When the
older animals have been disposed of the young are captured alive by use of a
lasso made of particularly strong rope. The legs of the young animals are
bound together and they are carried aside. The whole affair is a matter of
seconds and you must be quick, for the remaining animals might attack you,
and even the young ones are not to be trifled with. It is no easy thing to transfer
the animals to the vessel. There is likely to be some trouble. The year-old
calves are easily caught and managed. It is a great advantage that they have
no horns. About two or three men are able to manage such a calf with their
bare hands. By means of a muzzle or halter we contrived to get them on board
the boat. Many are rather refractory but we leave them as much as possible
to themselves during the transporting. Then we get them into the whaling
boat and upon reaching the ship’s side we heave the whole boat on deck with
the animals in it. We then put them in spacious and solid cases made of two-
inch boards. At first the animals try their strength against the side of the cases,
but when after a while they understand that the cases are stronger than them-
selves they give in. After a day or two they begin to feed. It is no use to give
them hay or grass grown in contaminated fields as the animals fall ill with such
grass and hay, and die. They are very particular although hardy; for instance,
they never taste water that is not entirely fresh. They soon get used to man.
Having been in the crates on deck for about a week they easily understand that
there will be a dainty tidbit when members of the crew approach with grass or
moss. The young ones are the most easily naturalized. Therefore, we catch
young animals by preference.
HOW THE MUSK OXEN WERE SHIPPED TO ALASKA
Transported in crates to Bergen, Norway, the 34 musk oxen on
September 6, 1930, were shipped from there on the Norwegian-Ameri-
can liner Bergensfjord to New York, where they landed September
17. The newcomers were received at the port by the late L. J. Palmer,
then in charge of the United States Biological Survey experiment
station at College, Alaska, the late E. A. Preble and the late W. B.
Bell, both at that time of the Washington office of the United States
Biological Survey. In order to insure against the introduction of
some of the many diseases of hoofed animals, such as foot-and-mouth
disease, rinderpest, and surra, the animals were held in quarantine
for 33 days at the Bureau of Animal Industry Quarantine Station,
Clifton, N. J. Two 72-foot steel express cars then carried the animals
to Seattle, where they were transferred to the steamship Yukon of
the Alaska Steamship Line and reached Seward, Alaska, 7 days
later. Four ordinary freight cars with a temperature of 20° to 40°
carried them over the Alaska Railroad to College, Alaska, where
they arrived the night of November 4, and the next day, with the
temperature at 16°, were unloaded and released in a 40-acre en-
closure on the College of Alaska campus. During their American
journey the animals were in roomy, individual crates, and were fed
alfalfa hay and given an abundance of water. They all reached their
RETURN OF THE MUSK OXEN—JACKSON 387
destination in excellent condition. Most of the animals were not
wild and were easily driven. One or two of the smallest ones even
yielded to petting and handling. Food for their first Alaskan winter
was varied for tests, but they were successfully fed on a number
of grasses, including alfalfa hay, oat hay, brome hay, and native hay
(sedge and redtop). Each animal ate about 5 pounds of food daily.
A SIX-YEAR STUDY OF CAPTIVE MUSK OXEN
And so began the unique 6-year study of confined musk oxen.
Charles H. Rouse and the late Lawrence J. Palmer, two outstanding
authorities on range management and animal husbandry, conducted
the research. Each had had practical experience with range cattle,
sheep, and horses; each, a thorough university education in range
mangement; each, long, close contact with big game in the wild.
Early in the spring of 1931 the animals were released in a 4,000-acre
fenced enclosure of the 7,559-acre pasture included in the experiment
station grounds. Soon it was noticed that the 4,000-acre pasture was
too large and the herd was then confined to a pasture of 1,077 acres
of which 600 acres were summer pasture, 325 acres spring pasture,
82 acres fall pasture, and 70 acres winter and hay meadow. Smaller
pastures were fenced for isolating a few musk oxen for observation
or study. Corrals were constructed and a loading chute built for
easier handling of the animals.
Three years later, June 30, 1934, of the original 34 animals, 24 had
survived—12 breeding-age cows and 12 bulls. Ten deaths in the
herd had occurred—five animals were killed by black bears, one cow
had a broken leg, one died from meningitis, one from actinomycosis,
and two from some unknown sickness. Between April 29 and June
24, seven calves were born of which five lived. One had been still-
born and another died from injuries received from a bull musk ox.
The spring of 1935 was a rewarding one, for each adult cow gave
birth to a calf, though in one case of a stillborn calf, the cow also
died. The herd then comprised 12 adult bulls, 11 adult cows, and
15 immature, or young ones; a total of 38 musk oxen, the highest
number reached at the experiment station. No calves were born in
1986, and through the deaths of seven animals and the transfer of
four to Nunivak Island for adaptation studies, the herd was reduced
in June to 27 animals. It is believed that the cows that gave birth to
calves, both in 1934 and in 1985, did so because their previous year’s
calves were separated from the cows in the fall of 1934. The following
year of 1936, the calves were not isolated from their mothers, there-
fore were not weaned, and the cows did not breed. In the wild, natural
condition on its native range, the musk ox does not wean its calf until
the second summer and so breeds every other year.
388 | ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
CAN THE MUSK OX BE DOMESTICATED?
Hope for domestication of musk oxen was high in the early stages
of the study at the Alaska Experiment Station. It was first believed
musk oxen were less difficult to drive and corral than reindeer. As
the animals aged they became untractable and hard to handle. They
broke down strong fences. They were belligerent. Familiarity with
humans had made the musk oxen fearless of their captors. Even
though they were given excellent care and attention, they nevertheless
were susceptible to diseases and infections, such as meningitis, acti-
nomycosis, lip-and-leg ulceration, stillbirth, and pneumonia. Black
bears were destructive to them. Mosquitoes bit the eyes of the musk
oxen. Some animals were so badly bitten by mosquitoes that they were
temporarily blinded and in running through the brush seriously dam-
aged their eyeballs.
Alaskan experiments were made on the possible commercial use of
the musk ox. Valuable wool constitutes about 60 to 80 percent of the
hair, the remaining 40 to 20 percent is coarse guard hairs. The wool
is one of the finest known, comparing favorably with that of cashmere
or even vicuna. The difficulty would be to obtain pure wool in
quantities. Clipping the animal may result in its death. Moreover,
clipping produces a mixture of wool and guard hairs, and no process,
mechanical or manual, is known by which the wool can be separated
economically from this mixture. The musk ox sheds its wool be-
ginning about the middle of May and up to the middle of June. It
can, at that time, be combed from the oxen, which, again, endangers
their lives either through shock or pneumonia. Wool can be collected
from objects on which it has attached itself as the animal passed, but
this would be too slow and tedious a way to get quantities of wool for
commercial use. Nevertheless, close to 100 pounds were thus gotten at
the Experiment Station, and much of it used in experimental textile
work at the University of Alaska in making scarves, stockings, and
mittens. The flesh of the musk ox is edible, but most people would
prefer beef, mutton, or pork. Moreover, the quantity of better meat
cuts from musk oxen is meager, because of their heavy necks and
foreparts, which produces a relatively small meat salvage in butcher-
ing. The milk of the cow musk ox is as good as cow’s milk accord-
ing to some who had nothing but “tinned” cow’s milk for compari-
son. But the cow musk ox produces no milk until it is 5 years old,
and then the quantities are small.
CONCLUSIONS ABOUT THE COMMERCIAL USE OF MUSK OXEN
The experiments conducted by the United States Fish and Wildlife
Service near Fairbanks, Alaska, clearly indicated that it is entirely
impracticable to raise musk oxen as a farming or commercial enter-
RETURN OF THE MUSK OXEN—JACKSON 389
prise, and any attempt to do so should be regarded only as an ex-
pensive experiment almost certain to fail. The primary purpose
of the studies in Alaska, which were to learn how best to adapt the
introduced Greenland animals to Alaskan conditions with a view to
establishing the species there, bids fair to be successful. The 4
animals transferred to Nunivak Island Wildlife Refuge in 1935 had
done well; however, the herd at the Alaska Experiment State had
become such a problem that the 27 musk oxen remaining there were
transferred to Nunivak Island and all were released on the refuge on
July 17,1936. These 31 animals were all that remained of the original
34 and their offspring. Nunivak Island was selected for this intro-
duction after careful consideration of all factors—there were no
predators there, few disease hazards, and a favorable environment.
The island is 70 miles long by 40 miles wide, and is in the Bering
Sea, some 25 miles from the Alaskan mainland, directly west of the
mouth of the Kuskokwim River. Here the musk ox herd has done
well. In the autumn of 1951 an accurate count by airplane showed
76 musk oxen on the island, 7 of which were calves. A stock of musk
oxen when left alone in the wild in Greenland tends to double its
number in about 11 years. The Nunivak herd has maintained this rate
of increase.
I do not discredit the effort to raise musk oxen as experimental
research. I cannot, however, condone the high-pressure sales propa-
ganda that has developed about raising musk oxen commercially.
Says the advertising, “This will be the first new animal to be domesti-
cated since the Copper Age.” ‘This is pure bunk! Many animals,
both birds and mammals, have been domesticated since the Copper
Age—among mammals, the silver fox, mink, chinchilla, golden
hamster, Chinese hamster, and cotton rat. High-pressure advertis-
ing has developed false hopes about raising musk oxen. Already it
has influenced people to risk their money in raising the musk ox as a
commercial venture, an investment which is more “wildcat” than
“musk ox.” My advice is “Do not gamble on musk ox farming.”
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PLATE 1
Smithsonian Report, 1957,—Jackson
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“BXSELV £93 9|[0D “UOl} "1G quowliodxy ADAING [eosojoig Sd1BIS pour) oY} 1B WoxO YSNAy
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.--Jackson PLATE 2
Sei een it
1. Something is wrong. An enemy is suspected near, and the small group faces it, as in
battle formation, with shoulder humps raised in a demonstration of anger.
2. The musk ox, somewhat resembling a small shaggy buffalo, is an odd-looking animal.
Note the broad frontal shield formed by the wide bases of the horns, the long hairs hanging
in fringes, the hump on the shoulders and the pale saddle just back of it.
Bamboo in the Economy of Oriental Peoples’
By F. A. McCiure’
Plant Introduction Section
Agricultural Research Service
United States Department of Agriculture
[With 10 plates]
Bameoo is fascinating alike to the artist, the poet, the craftsman,
and the scientist. The Western traveler in the Far East has never
failed to be intrigued by the ubiquity of bamboo and by the number
of ways in which it enters into diverse phases of the life of the people.
He has been struck by its beauty as an ornamental and by its aston-
ishingly varied role in the arts and industries. He has listed its mul-
titudinous uses, praised its virtues, and advocated its incorporation
into Western agricultural and industrial economy.
BAMBOO AS A GARDEN ORNAMENTAL
Bamboo is an essential feature of many planned landscapes in the
Orient: the elaborate and extensive gardens characteristic of the
Golden Era of China, the more restricted type peculiar to Japan to-
day, the relatively tiny secluded inner court of inn, teahouse, or pri-
vate dwelling where there may be room for little more than a bamboo
screen (pl. 1, fig. 1). In Oriental gardens we find living bamboos
used as hedges, borders, and screens, in mass plantings, in groves, and
in isolated clumps. Dwarf forms are often used, in Japan at least,
as ground cover for open parklike areas, and especially under pine
trees.
Some bamboos are suited to a great variety of treatment, while
others are less responsive to the skill of the gardener. The most
tractable are the ones commonly employed in pot culture. Several
types of manipulation are practiced to produce either dwarfed speci-
*Reprinted by permission from Hconomic Botany, vol. 10, No. 4, October-—
December 1956.
?Present address: Research Associate, Smithsonian Institution, Washington
25, D. C., care of Department of Botany.
451800—58——26 391
392 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
mens or bizarre topiary effects. The dwarf habit is sought especially
in connection with the production of miniature gardens, though many
dwarfed specimens are cultivated individually in pots or trays
solely for exhibition.
Dwarfness may be a natural state related to genic constitution,
or it may be the result of cultural treatments involving controlled
watering and restricted nutrition. Certain devices are employed for
simulating the dwarf habit by more direct methods to avoid spending
the time required for bona fide dwarfing. Sometimes a bamboo culm
of large dimensions is separated from its mother clump, cut down to
a short stump, and transferred to a suitable pot just before new
growth starts. The ensuing growth is greatly reduced from the
normal size, and the presence of the stump itself is considered, by a
certain school of gardeners and plant fanciers, to enhance the artistic
merit of the general effect. This treatment is usually practiced with
bamboos of the clump type of growth, where the new shoots originate
from the base of the mother culm.
Another method is used with bamboos of the running type, in
which the new culms normally arise from lateral buds of the slender
horizontal underground rhizome. A young section of the rhizome
with dormant buds is dug up and set upright or at a slight inclination
from the vertical, in a suitable receptacle, with the basal 8 or 4 inches
covered with soil. The exposed portion soon turns green in response
to light. The buds that develop under the soil produce greatly re-
duced culms, while those that develop above the soil send out short
leafy branches. The net effect of the small stature of the slender
culmlike rhizome with its short internodes is a deceptive appearance
of dwarfness that is often very pleasing to the uninitiated. To the
expert, be he professional or amateur, this device is but an obvious
humbug.
In another procedure, the culm sheaths, which normally protect the
tender growing part of the young culm, are removed prematurely.
As a result, elongation of the culm is stopped. Plants of a naturally
small stature, and of either type of growth, may be used for this
treatment.
Where the climate is sufficiently warm, young plants started from
depauperate offshoots of a dwarf form of Bambusa multiplen make
most satisfactory subjects for tray gardens and miniature mountain
landscapes. Bamboos having naturally some bizarre character, such
as the shortening of the internodes that occurs in Phyllostachys aurea,
Bambusa ventricosa, and B. vulgaris, for example, or the square form
of internodes and prominent spiny nodes in Chimonobambusa quad-
rangularis, or the green-striped golden culms characteristic of certain
horticultural forms of Bambusa vulgaris, B. multiplex, and Phyllo-
stachys bambusoides, are given special attention in gardens.
BAMBOO—-McCLURE 393
Many species and varieties of bamboo are highly esteemed as orna-
mentals. Plants of various species of Sasa and Phyllostachys are
perhaps most numerous among the bamboos in Oriental gardens,
partly because of their ease of culture and their natural decorative
value, and partly because, in the Orient, gardening reaches its highest
state of development in the warm-temperature climate preferred by
these genera. Three tropical species deserve special mention because
of their striking appearance and popular appeal. These are the white
powdery bamboo (Lingnania chungit) of southern China, the mon-
astery bamboo (Z’hyrsostachys siamensis) of Thailand, and the giant
bamboo (Dendrocalamus giganteus) of India. The first, as yet un-
known in the West, has been highly esteemed and even memorialized
by Chinese poets and artists since very early times. The last is widely
known and greatly admired in the West as well as the East, for the
unique size of its culms which attain truly gigantic proportions.
In Japan various parts of bamboo are regularly used for their
decorative effect. The full-grown leafy culms are often massed to-
gether for temporary background purposes. After the leaves have
fallen, the dried culms, with their branches bedecked with colored
paper streamers or gleaming lanterns, are set up for all manner of
festive occasions. Large bouquetlike arrangements, in which three
culm sections of unequal length form the central element, with ever-
green branches massed about the base, constitute a more formal type
of ornament. In all objects made of bamboo, whether flower vases,
ornamental baskets, figurines, children’s toys, or any of the thousand
and one objects of everyday use, the natural decorative value of the
culms or other parts of the plant is always presented to advantage.
BAMBOO IN PAPERMAKING
Bamboo occupies a very important place in the ancient handcraft of
papermaking in the Orient. Not only is the greater part of the paper
used in the Far East composed of bamboo pulp, but until recently
practically all of it was made on molds, the essential part of which is
fashioned from slender strips of bamboo wood.
Establishment of a paper mill is conditioned upon the availability
of a sufficient supply of pulp material within easy reach. The in-
dustry depends also upon a steady supply of clear water and a cheap
source of the digesting materials, such as quick lime, soda ash, or
potash. The methods employed in the old mills where paper is made
entirely by hand are of a very primitive nature and are, for that
reason, not adequate for refining the highly lignified tissues of ma-
ture bamboo culms. Therefore, the better grades of paper are made
from young culms only—those that have not yet put forth their
leaves. For cheap papers the requirements are less exacting, and a
394 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
wider range of bamboo species is employed as a source of pulp. In
fact, it is probable that any local species in sufficient abundance and
available at a reasonable price may be used. For making some of the
very coarse dark papers of common use for filters, wrappings, etc.,
mature stems are acceptable. The tips of the mature clums, a by-
product of the split-bamboo industry, are so employed in southeastern
Asia. The time allowed for digestion is very long, often a full year,
and the pulping methods are not highly refined.
In the construction of the common type of mold, on which the finest
paper is still made by hand in the Orient, bamboo is always used.
The essential part of the mold is a flexible screen of slender wirelike
units fastened together in parallel array by means of hair, silk, or
ramie. The best screens are made from the peripheral wood of large
culms of Phyllostachys pubescens or P. bambusoides. Aiter pre-
liminary splitting, the strips are reduced to the desired size and to a
cylindrical form by being pulled through a hole in a piece of steel,
after the manner of wire drawing. In this way wirelike strips of
marvelous uniformity and fineness may be produced. Some screens
have as many as 82 strips to the inch. The finished screens, after
having been treated with lacquer, are objects of great beauty and
unbelievable durability. The binding fibers, which correspond to the
warp in weaving, are the first part of the screen to wear out. When a
screen has been in use many years and can no longer be repaired, the
bamboo strips are salvaged and reworked into a new screen.
Bamboo finds numerous other more or less incidental uses in the
average Oriental mill where paper is made by hand. The half-stuff
is carried from the digesting vat to the bamboo treading trough in
bamboo baskets suspended from a bamboo pole. The finished pulp is
“combed” by means of a bamboo loop to remove coarse fibers (“shives”)
which have escaped reduction by digesting and treading. Upon
addition of water, after it has reached the dipping vat, the pulp is
agitated by means of a bamboo stirring rod to effect an even dis-
persal of the fibers. The vatman and the drier work by the light of
a bamboo lamp at night. Bamboo rope is used on the windlass for
applying force to the press. Bamboo forceps are used to pick up the
corners of the wet sheets from the block as it comes from the press.
Old bamboo culms that are too highly lignified to make pulp by hand
methods are commonly used as fuel for drying the paper. The bales
of finished paper are often covered with bamboo culm sheaths and
bound with bamboo bands. A bamboo tool, combining the functions
of a gauge and an awl, is used to space the bands upon the bales and
tuck in the twisted ends.
The principal technical problems arising in connection with the
use of bamboo for paper pulp in modern mills have been solved, and
BAMBOO—McCLURE 395
many variants of the process have been patented in those countries
where paper is made on a large scale. At least one of the several
modern paper mills established in China under an earlier regime
used bamboo exclusively as a source of pulp, and it is claimed that
90 types and grades of paper were made, ranging all the way from
wrapping paper and tissues to bond and ledger.
As a result of long and careful pioneering experiments by William
Raitt, and more recent studies by Indian technicians working at
Dehra Dun, India leads the Oriental countries in the volume of
bamboo pulp produced. Indian mills are now turning out bamboo
pulp at a rate approaching 250,000 tons per year, principally from
the culms of Dendrocalamus strictus. The major portion of this is
used for blending, to upgrade inferior pulp made from herbaceous
grasses and short-fibered hardwoods. In Thailand a modern mill
makes paper entirely from bamboo, but the total amount and the
identity of the species used have not been reported. Indonesia and
Burma both have plans on foot for building modern mills to convert
a part of their vast bamboo resources into paper. Pakistan has just
completed an ultramodern mill designed for an initial production
of 30,000 tons of bamboo pulp per year, principally from the culms of
Melocanna baccifera (pl. 2, fig. 1). Japan is producing paper by
modern methods on an experimental scale and plans for expanded
facilities are under way. The species of principal interest there is
Phyllostachys bambusoides.
BAMBOO AS A TEXTILE
A great many objects of common domestic and industrial use are
fashioned entirely or in part from woven bamboo. These have the
qualities of lightness and flexibility, and there is about them an artistic
appeal not to be found in any other equally cheap material.
Bamboo has numerous characteristics that fit it especially for weav-
ing purposes: straight grain, ease of splitting, flexibility, toughness,
natural gloss, and lightness in proportion to volume, to mention the
more obvious ones. The individual textile units are long, thin, tan-
gential segments of the outer layer of the culm, with the epidermis
occupying the greatest possible dimension. As prepared for most pur-
poses, these units vary up to about 8 feet in length, from one-fourth
to three-eighths of an inch in width, and from one-sixteenth to three-
sixteenths of an inch in thickness. For certain types of basketry and
matting these may be much narrower or much wider. For very fine
matting the outermost layer is removed to make the strips perfectly
flat and to eliminate the unevenness occasioned by the nodal rings,
and the finished strips may be but one-sixteenth of an inch or less in
width, and exceedingly thin. For certain kinds of sawale (a type
396 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
of matting common in the Philippine Islands, whence comes the name,
and in southeastern Asia generally), the culms are first cracked at
several points around each node, then opened by a single longitudinal
slit. When the diaphragms have been removed, the culms are spread
out flat.
BAMBOO IN BASKETRY
In the Orient bamboo baskets and trays enjoy a usage more varied,
perhaps, than that accorded any other bamboo article. This is true
in the outer world of industry and transportation as well as in domestic
circles where there is still much fetching and carrying to be done and
where drying is the prevailing method of preserving foods. The
Orient possesses no material, other than bamboo, that is available
in such abundance or is so well suited to the construction of light, con-
venient, attractive, and inexpensive baskets and trays.
Baskets of a design peculiar to the individual need are used by
money changers, carriers of sand and earth, tenders of newly hatched
chicks, wholesale food merchants, dealers in crude drugs, and peddlers
of fish, fruits, and vegetables. Baskets in an infinite variety of shapes
and weaves are available, particularly in Japan, for the decorative
arrangement of flowers and fruits. For the farmer’s wife, the herb-
alist, and the maker of candied fruits, bamboo trays provide a cheap,
light, and convenient means of exposing things to the sun and of
gathering them up again quickly when rain threatens. Bamboo
baskets and trays constitute an important item of equipment required
for many large-scale industrial and commercial pursuits in the Orient.
In the silk industry the mulberry leaves are brought from the field in
bamboo hampers, while the silkworms are hatched, and spend the
whole of the caterpillar stage, on bamboo feeding trays. As a fitting
finale they are placed, when mature, upon racks fashioned from bam-
boo in a form suggesting treetops where, in the wild free state, their
ancestors spun their cocoons. The shape of these spinning racks is
cleverly designed, however, in deference to the requirements of space
economy.
In southeastern China, pig crates, chicken baskets, and tree pro-
tectors (pl. 1, fig. 2, and pl. 5, fig. 1) are made from heavy strips of the
culms of Bambusa tuldoides and related species. In this same region
trays and baskets are woven principally from thongs of Bambusa
teatilis, while certain heavier parts, such as the stays and rims, are
usually made from Bambusa tuldoides and similar kinds. In more
temperature regions, including Japan, various species of Phyllo-
stachys are used for all parts of these containers (pl. 7, fig. 1). In
more tropical regions a wide array of species, chiefly of the genera
Bambusa, Dendrocalamus, Melocanna, Gigantochloa, and Schizo-
stachyum, yield basket-making materials.
BAMBOO—McCLURE 397
Stones used in the construction of dams and in the repair of dykes
are held in place by being confined in cylindrical baskets of bamboo
(pl. 2, fig. 2) of the same general pattern as the pig crates and tree
protectors mentioned previously.
BAMBOO MATTING
Bamboo matting is woven in a great variety of shapes and patterns
and is employed in many ways in the Orient. One sort, of incredible
fineness and flexibility, is used in China as the equivalent of bed
sheets and pillow cases during summer weather. Long narrow strips
of a sturdy tight-woven form are used by itinerant duckherds for
corralling the fowls at night, and by farmers for making demountable
grain bins. Fruits and other products which would be spoiled by
contact with the soil are spread out to dry on squares or rectangular
pieces of coarse bamboo matting. Similar mats are used as overnight
covers or during showers to protect farm produce being cured or
dried in the sun. Bamboo mats are made in various sizes and weaves
for use as a covering for the walls and partitions of bamboo dwellings
(pl. 3, fig. 1) and more temporary structures. Matting of open weave
serves to reduce the light to an intensity suitable for orchid culture,
while sunshades and windbreaks of close-woven bamboo mats are
often erected for the protection of other delicate horticultural crops.
On certain types of water craft, bamboo mats serve as shelters against
the elements and on occasion as emergency sails. The “sea anchors”
employed to harness the current for steadying boats engaged in fish-
ing or dredging are made of bamboo matting. Fences made of coarse
bamboo matting may also serve as windbreaks or screens for privacy.
Most matting is uncolored and depends for its ornamental appeal
upon the weave pattern. Sometimes, however, interesting color pat-
terns are produced by using dyed strips of various hues. Stage set-
tings are sometimes composed of scenes painted on bamboo matting.
Plain bamboo matting is effectively used as a background for the
display of paintings and objects of art.
The Institute of Science and Technology, at Manila, has recently
conducted successful experiments in the use of fine bamboo matting
as a stress skin for airplane fuselages. The bamboos used are re-
ported as Bambusa spinosa and B. vulgaris.
In Japan and the temperate parts of China various species of
Phyllostachys yield the strips used for matting. In southern China,
Bambusa textilis is the matting bamboo par excellence. In the Phil-
lippine Islands matting is made principally from the culms of
Schizostachyum spp., while in the more southerly parts of Asia and
in Indonesia and adjacent islands those from Bambusa, Dendroca-
lamus, Gigantochloa, Melocanna, and Schizostachyum are used.
398 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
We usually think of matting as a woven product, but there is a
kind called “smooth matting” made in China by another method.
These mats are constructed by stringing together, edge-to-edge, par-
tially split sections of the culms of Phyllostachys pubescens. Flaw-
less sections are selected from the lower middle portion of large culms
where there is the least taper and no branches. These are cut to a
length precisely equal to the width of the finished mat. The external
nodal projections are planed or scraped down to the level of the rest
of the culm surfaces. Each section is then split into strips about an
inch in width, and these are kept in their original order. ‘The frag-
ments of the diaphragms are now removed and the strips are again
split at intervals of perhaps an eighth of an inch this time through
only about two-thirds of their length and alternately from the two
ends. These inch-wide strips may now be flattened out. They are
laid, one by one, outer side down, on a flat surface and drilled tan-
gentially with three pairs of holes (one pair at the middle and one
near each end) always precisely located. The different sets of strips
from the several culm sections are now matched, planed on the edges
where necessary, and then strung together on heavy cotton cord.
Such mats are used chiefly for covering beds and cots for summer
use in warm climates. The upper side, which is formed by the outer
waxy surface of the bamboo, takes on a pleasing natural polish with
use and provides incredibly cool and comfortable sleeping conditions
in the hottest weather.
BAMBOO ROPE
Ropes made from bamboo are used more extensively in China, per-
haps, than in any other Oriental country. They have several points
of distinct superiority over ropes made from other fibers. This is
especially true where the rope is frequently wetted or subjected to an
unusual amount of abrasion, as in the drilling of wells, the pumping
of salt brine, and the towing of boats.
Two general methods of manufacture are used. The easier and
more common method is essentially like that by which rope is made
in the West by hand, the same twisting devices and “rope walk” being
employed. It consists simply of the operations involved in twisting
the individual strips together. The primary units may be further
united, by twisting, into successively larger units until cables of pro-
digious size, up to 2 feet in circumference, may be made. Such great
ropes are employed only in constructing mighty cable bridges or in
the repairing of important dikes during a flood.
A much more durable type of rope is plaited or braided in a tubular
form, but this can be made only in rather slender sizes. The work is
performed in a tower, and the rope is lowered to the ground as it is
finished. It is much more tedious to make this kind, but it has a con-
BAMBOO—McCLURE 399
siderably greater tensile strength per unit of weight than the twisted
sort. For tracking purposes (towing river boats by manpower), the
superiority of the braided rope is outstanding. Being of open con-
struction and consisting of coarse units, it holds less water and dries
more quickly after having been submerged. Again, in places where
the towpath swings around the convex side of a rock cliff, the rope
often rubs against the rough surface under considerable tension. When
the plaited type of rope becomes damaged by this hard usage, individ-
ual strips may be replaced, thus restoring it more or less completely
to its original condition. When this rope becomes so aged or worn
that it must be discarded, it is cut into convenient lengths, dried, and
used for torches.
Small bamboo ropes of the twisted type are commonly employed for
such temporary functions as binding together the units of rafts made
up of lumber, fuel wood, or bundles of bamboo, for transportation by
water. When these rafts are moved by means of the stream current or
the tide instead of being towed, guiding, braking, and anchorage are
miraculously accomplished by means of stone-weighted wooden an-
chors attached to the stern by means of bamboo rope, and floated inter-
mittently upon smaller, trailing bamboo pilot rafts. The passage
boats operated on the inland watercourses are towed by means of large
twisted bamboo ropes or cables. Bamboo ropes are used in western
China for drilling salt wells and for hoisting brine.
BAMBOO AS A BUILDING MATERIAL
In vast areas, bamboo is the one material that is sufficiently cheap
and plentiful to fill the tremendous need for economical housing (pl. 8,
fig. 1). Bamboo is employed in many ways, often as much for its
ornamental value as for its superior fitness in homes built primarily
of more substantial and more costly materials. It is eminently suited
and economically desirable for the construction of all parts of a house.
It serves admirably for the builder’s scaffolding as well. The natural
units, or culms, are of a size and shape that make handling, storing,
and processing both convenient and inexpensive. The characteristic
physical structure of the culms gives them a high strength-weight
ratio. They are round or nearly so in cross section and usually hollow,
with rigid crosswalls strategically placed to prevent collapse on bend-
ing. The strong, hard tissues of great tensile strength are most highly
concentrated near the surface of the culm walls. In this position they
can function most effectively, both in giving mechanical strength and
in forming a firm resistant shell. Because of the nature of their sub-
stance and grain, bamboo culms are easily divided by hand into shorter
pieces by sawing or chopping, or into narrow strips by splitting. No
costly machines are required; simple tools suffice (pl. 4, fig. 1). The
400 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
natural surface of most bamboos is clean, hard, and smooth, with an
attractive color when the culms are properly matured and seasoned.
Bamboos have little waste and no bark to remove.
The construction of bamboo walls is subject to infinite variation, de-
pending on the strength required for resistance to natural forces, such
as earthquakes and hurricanes, and protection from rain and ordinary
winds. Either whole culms or longitudinal halves may be used.
They are arranged either horizontally or vertically. In the vertical
position they function more effectively and are more durable because
they dry more quickly after a rain.
For practical reasons window and outside door openings are kept to
a minimum, though they must be sufficient to supply the needed light
and ventilation. They may be framed with wood or bamboo. The
doors themselves may be wood, or they may be woven bamboo matting
stretched on a bamboo frame. <A panel of bamboo boards is some-
times set in a hardwood frame. <A sturdy gatelike barrier may be
constructed of whole bamboo culms. Bamboo window bars often take
the place of iron or steel ones, and bamboo window shades are
common.
Serviceable and attractive floors may be made entirely of bamboo.
The principal features are the supporting beams, which are part of
the basic frame of the house, and a floor covering. The floor covering
may be of small whole culms, strips, or bamboo boards made by open-
ing and flattening out whole culms. In this last case the floor is gen-
erally fastened down by thin strips of bamboo laid transversely and
secured to the supporting members by thongs, wire lashings, or small
nails, according to local preference and the materials available.
Bamboos are utilized to excellent advantage in roof construction be-
cause of their high strength-weight ratio.
It is common practice in the Orient to complete scaffolding to its
full ultimate height before a building is started. In the more tropical
regions this is topped off by a thatched roof as a protection against
sun and rain during building operations.
Bamboo scaffolding is very often erected against apartments and
private dwellings to support bamboo matting for shedding sun and
rain during summer. Bamboo screens give privacy in crowded
communities.
BAMBOO SHELTERS AND OTHER MORE OR LESS TEMPORARY
STRUCTURES
One of the simplest examples of a temporary bamboo structure is
the roadside shelter erected by the impecunious dispenser of cheap
refreshments who expects to carry on his business at a particular spot
only during the course of a local fair or the run of an itinerant the-
BAMBOO—McCLURE 401
atrical troupe. Such a shelter may consist of little more than four
bamboo posts set in the ground and surmounted by a rough lattice of
bamboo culms to support a thatch of grass or palm leaves. If the
proprietor spends the night there, three sides may be covered with
bamboo matting supported by a few extra bamboo crossbeams and
braces. Shelters for an agricultural or industrial fair or flower show
are put up by a commercial mat-shed builder on a larger scale and
more securely. Itinerant theatrical troupes employ bamboo struc-
tures of a distinctive architecture, tall and narrow, with the walls of-
ten covered with gaudily decorated mats, and surmounted by orna-
mental devices of traditional rococo design. The floor, which is
elevated several feet above the ground, is made of thin wooden planks
laid on bamboo beams and held in place by thin strips of bamboo
bound down by bamboo thongs. The top-heavy structure is held erect
by means of long bamboo braces, to which is often added the security
of bamboo guy ropes.
Mention of these theaters, built for short gala festivals, calls to
mind the much more highly ornamented and even more transient “tri-
umphal arches” or gateways erected over the road to be traveled by an
honored guest or a conquering hero. In these triumphal arches the
versatility of bamboo as a building material and a decorating medium
is exhibited to fine advantage.
BAMBOO IN ORIENTAL FURNITURE MAKING, COOPERY, AND JOINERY
The furnishings of a house may be more or less predominantly of
bamboo construction, depending upon the pecuniary circumstances
or the artistic tastes of the family. The kitchen stools, the baby’s
play chair, the sofa used for the afternoon siesta in torrid weather,
and the settee on the veranda or in the garden pergola are all articles
of furniture commonly made of bamboo. The species used for this
purpose vary locally, but in the more temperate parts of the Orient
most of them belong to the genus Phyllostachys. Now and then one
will see a treasured settee or a tea table fashioned from the brilliant
purplish-black culms of Phyllostachys nigra. In more tropical areas
various species of Bambusa enter into furniture making. Bamboo
dowel pins are commonly employed by carpenters for joining boards
edge-to-edge in the making of certain articles of furniture such as
beds and wardrobes. The best dowel pins are made from the rind
wood of Arundinaria amabilis. Phyllostachys pubescens is also used.
Bamboo enjoys enormous usage in the Orient in the form of hoops.
The large wooden tubs used in the pickling and food-processing in-
dustries are commonly bound with bamboo hoops (pl. 5, fig.2). These
are more resistant than iron hoops to the action of salt and vinegar.
While wooden water buckets and wash basins are almost always first
402 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
bound with iron hoops, when at length these give out the itinerant
repairman replaces them with bamboo.
Bamboo hoops are always made up of a number of slender strips
(pl. 5, fig.2). These are fabricated into a circular unit of the desired
dimensions either by twisting or by plaiting. The plaited form is
more durable and probably has a greater tensile strength per strip
unit. The twisted form is easier to make and is, therefore, cheaper.
An important feature of the technique of making both sorts is keep-
ing rind or outer surface of the strips always on the convex side of a
bend or curve.
Bamboo hoops of the plaited type are indispensable in the oil-
pressing industry, being employed to form, along with rice straw,
the outer shell of the cylinder which confines the oil-bearing meal
while it is under pressure. The meal is wrapped in straw in the
form of disk-shaped packages, each supported on its periphery by
several bamboo hoops. The units are placed side by side in the
primitive wooden press which is operated by hand on the percussion
principle.
We do not ordinarily think of bamboo as a wood appropriate to
the joiner’s art. However, the making of the bamboo buckets and
tubs used as containers for cooked rice is a trade in itself. Some
30-odd tools, each with a special function, compose the kit of the
maker of these bamboo vessels!
BAMBOO BRIDGES
A very ingenious device is often erected for transporting persons,
goods, and animals across deep swift streams, particularly in the
mountainous borderlands between China and Tibet, where few bridges
are available. This device consists of a strong cable fashioned of
split bamboo and having a diameter commensurate with its length
and the weight of the load it is likely to bear. The following de-
scription is taken from E. H. Wilson, “A Naturalist in Western
China,” vol. 1, p. 164, 1913:
These simple but extremely useful structures consist of a bamboo hawser
stretched across the stream usually from a higher to a lower point; if the
stream is moderately narrow the question of incline is of less importance. The
hawser may be anything from 8 inches to a foot thick, and being heavy sags
considerably in the middle. To cross one of these cable bridges a person is
supplied with a length of strong hempen rope hanging free from a saddle-
shaped runner of oak or some other tough wood. The runner clips the cable,
and the hempen rope is fastened under and around the legs and waist to form
a cradle. When all is properly secured the person throws one arm over the
top of the runner, gives a slight spring, and glides down the inclined cable at
an increasing speed. The impetus obtained in the downward rush carries the
passenger over the central dip and more or less up the lesser incline on the
opposite side. If the momentum is insufficient to land the person, the remain-
BAMBOO—McCLURE 403
ing distance has to be traversed by taking hold of the hawser and hauling
hand over hand. Crossing by these bridges is fearsome work until one is ac-
eustomed to it. It is speedily accomplished, and there is practically no danger
so long as one keeps a cool head and the ropes do not break. It is a common
sight to see men with loads and women with children on their backs cross
these bridges. But heavy loads are usually fixed to the runners and hauled
across by a rope attached to them.
These cables are used in another very interesting manner to ex-
pedite and make safer the crossing of some of the streams which are
too swift for ordinary navigation. Here the cable is suspended at a
height of a few feet above the surface of the water, and instead of the
“saddle,” a boat is attached to the wooden “runner.” Then the force
of the current, which would otherwise carry the boat downstream in
spite of all human efforts, is transformed by means of an oar or
rudder set at the proper angle into lateral thrust which carries the
boat quickly from one bank to the other (pl. 6, fig. 1).
The next natural step in the evolution of these structures is as a
suspension bridge which may well be considered the prototype of our
modern ones, of which the Brooklyn Bridge is a well-known example.
Thinly populated mountainous western China boasts the most mag-
nificent of these, and for the following description we are likewise
indebted to EK. H. Wilson (op. cit., p. 171):
This remarkable structure is about 250 yards long, nine feet wide, built en-
tirely of bamboo cables resting on seven supports fixed equidistant in the bed
of the stream, the central one only being of stone. The floor of the bridge rests
across 10 bamboo cables, each 21 inches in circumference, made of bamboo
culms, split and twisted together; five similar cables on each side form the
rails. The cables are all fastened to huge capstans, embedded in masonry,
which are revolved by means of spars and keep the cables taut. The floor of
the bridge is of planking held down by a bamboo rope on either side. Lateral
strands of bamboo keep the various cables in place, and wooden pegs driven
through poles of hard wood assist in keeping the floor of the bridge in position.
Not a single nail or piece of iron is used in the whole structure. Every year
the cables supporting the floor are replaced by new ones, they themselves
replacing the rails. This bridge is very picturesque in appearance, and a most
ingenious engineering feat.
BAMBOO IN THE FISHING INDUSTRY OF THE ORIENT
To most Americans “bamboo” and “fishing” are ideas almost as
intimately associated as are the words “bread” and “butter.” Indeed,
for many the term “fishing pole” is synonymous with the word
“bamboo.” In the Orient, however, this association is very much
more profound and intimate, as well as more ancient. This fact
may be verified by anyone, even though he may not be privileged to
see the varied bamboo gear that is an essential part of the Oriental
fisherman’s paraphernalia. It is sufficient to look up the names of
these objects in a Chinese dictionary, for it will be found that a great
404 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
many of these complex terms (ideographs and pictographs) contain
the symbol for bamboo. This fact signifies that even before their
names were first reduced to writing, bamboo was employed in the
making of the devices themselves. It is perhaps sufficient for our
purpose to mention a few of them: Traps, weirs, sluices, barriers,
poles for hook-and-line fishing, spears, sea anchors, floats, trays and
poles for drying fish and baskets for transporting them, netting
needles, poles for drying nets, punting poles, and scaff or dip nets,
including karojals and salambas. The dredges, punting poles, sieves,
and sea anchors of Oriental clam-dredging equipment are all made of
bamboo.
BAMBOO IN THE EXPORT TRADE OF ORIENTAL COUNTRIES
Bamboos and bamboo products are exported from China, Japan,
and Burma in important quantities. Today, much of the bamboo
trade of China is carried on with neighboring countries.
Western countries draw upon the Orient chiefly for ordinary bam-
boo poles, Tonkin cane, split bamboo, and bamboo shoots. In the
exportation of bamboo poles for use in their natural state as fishing
rods, etc., Japan leads by a wide margin. All or nearly all of these
poles come from species of Phyllostachys.
Tsinglee cane, also called Tonkin cane (Arundinaria amabilis),
falls in a distinct category. As far as our present knowledge goes,
it is produced exclusively in a small area in the hinterland of Can-
ton, in southeastern China, and under the earlier regime practically
the entire production was shipped abroad, principally to England,
Germany, and the United States. Several special processes are in-
volved in the preparation of the culms for export. The culms of
this bamboo have so many splendid qualities and meet such impor-
tant technical specifications that they are greatly in demand. The
larger canes are extensively used, particularly in Great Britain and
the United States, in the making of various articles for sports, for
example, split-bamboo fishing rods, and vaulting poles. Medium-
sized canes, under an inch in diameter, are used for making skiing
staffs, garden stakes, handles for collecting nets, etc., while the smaller
sizes go into flower stakes, pennant sticks, etc.
India formerly exported, principally to England, considerable
quantities of Calcutta cane (?Dendrocalamus strictus), from which
split-bamboo fishing rods were made originally. Since the discovery
of the superiority of Tonkin cane for this purpose, however, the
exportation of Calcutta cane has dwindled to almost nothing. Burma
exports important quantities of the culms of a bamboo of undeter-
mined botanical identity, known in the trade as Burma Cane. They
are much used in this country, in the natural state, for surf rods.
BAMBOO—McCLURE 405
Southeastern China is the chief source of split bamboo, the prin-
cipal use of which in Western countries is the making of coarse
brooms for street cleaners. It is also used to a limited extent in
handcraft classes as a material for weaving. This product comes
principally from Bambusa textilis.
Edible bamboo shoots are exported from China and Japan chiefly
to adjacent countries. While the exportation of this commodity to
Western countries has been small in total volume, it reaches a wide
geographical area, and the growing taste of Western peoples for
Oriental food is increasing the demand. This augmented demand is
being met, at least in part, by the canned product. It is probable
that the raw shoots exported have consisted almost exclusively of the
dormant winter shoots of Phyllostachys pubescens. The canned
shoots from Japan and central China also come from this species,
while those from southeastern China are supplied by Sinocalamus
beecheyanus and S. latifiorus. It appears that small quantities of
dried shoots of Bambusa sinospinosa and the Henon bamboo, a form
of Phyllostachys nigra, are exported from southeastern China to
nearby countries. It is estimated by Chinese restaurateurs in the
United States that the annual importation of bamboo shoots in cans
or tubs currently amounts to about one million dollars. They come
principally from Japan, Hong Kong, and Formosa.
BAMBOO IN TRANSPORTATION
Some idea of the importance and the extent of the use of bamboo
in Oriental transportation may be conveyed by the following random
list of adjuncts and appurtenances: Rafts, punting poles, tug and
tracking cables, stay ropes, anchor ropes, sail covers, hoists, landing
stages (both floating and fixed), fathoming poles, bilge pumps, carry-
ing poles, baskets of various design, tung-oil buckets, pig and chicken
crates, tally sticks, matting, yokes and beds for oxcarts (pl. 6, fig. 2).
Calking material is commonly made of shredded bamboo (prepared
by scraping the culms) imbedded in a putty composed of lime and
tung oil.
BAMBOO ON THE ORIENTAL FARM
The Oriental farmer may or may not have his own grove of bam-
boos for the production of shoots to be eaten or culms to be fashioned
according to his various needs. In any case, whether he grows his
own materials or buys them elsewhere, bamboo is an important factor
in his daily life.
Perhaps in no other Oriental industry does bamboo play a more
varied role of usefulness than it does in agriculture. In fact, so
many bamboo tools and devices are used on the farm and in the
406 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
garden, as well as in the household itself, that it is not feasible to
discuss them all in the present paper.
Certain bamboo articles are indispensable to almost every kind of
farm work. There is hardly a single activity which does not involve,
sooner or later, directly or indirectly, the use of baskets or trays. In
many areas bamboo carrying poles are an inseparable adjunct to the use
of baskets, whenever there is something to be moved from place to
place. In the culture and harvesting of field crops the following bam-
boo devices and appurtenances come into play at one time or another:
Fences, irrigation wheels and irrigation pipe, well sweeps, handles
for hoes, rice-cultivating rakes and other tools, flails (pl. 7, fig. 2) and
threshing boards, and demountable grain bins made of narrow strips
of bamboo matting erected ina spiral.
The hill tribes of Hainan, the Philippine Islands, and the adjacent
mainland of Asia harvest their rice in short “hands” made up of the
heads plus a 6- or 8-inch portion of the stalk. These “hands” are
cured on a long narrow rack consisting of a row of posts set firmly
in the ground with slender bamboo culms bound to them in a hori-
zontal position at close intervals, and to a height of about 6 feet. The
“hands” of rice are thrust between these bars in close order and al-
lowed to remain there until they are thoroughly cured before being
removed to the granaries. A narrow thatched roof protects them
from rain. In the threshing, winnowing, and transportation of the
grain, bamboo baskets, trays, and scoops are all-important.
Wherever the crops are of such a nature as to require protection
from the depredations of wild creatures, not to mention domesticated
carabao, pigs, and chickens, bamboo fencing comes into play. As for
the birds, against which fences are of no avail, scarecrows of infinite
variety are fashioned more or less exclusively out of bamboo.
Against insect enemies fruit growers bring bamboo spray guns
into play. In the citrus groves of southern China where a certain
species of predaceous red ant is colonized on the trees to keep down
parasitic scales and other insects, bamboo poles serve as a means of
intertree transit for the ants. As the harvest begins to mature, bam-
boo poles serve as supports for overladen branches. And when the
fruit is ripe, it may be removed from the tree by means of bamboo
poles equipped in various ways. When twigs of choice trees are in-
arched, small potted stock plants are held in place within the tree
by long bamboo stakes.
The care, protection, and control of livestock utilizes bamboo fences
and shelters, feeding troughs and rearing crates, and leading staffs for
vicious bulls. The duckherd always carries a long-handled, soft-
lashed, bamboo whip with which he gently chastizes the laggards.
In Oriental vegetable and flower gardens we find bamboo poles for
supporting the vines of beans and melons, and smaller stakes for other
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure PLATE 1
:
<3 =
3 at
1. Garden fence at Shibuyii, Japan. As a graceful living plant, or as a screen, lattice, or
archway, bamboo enhances the beauty of any scene.
>
. ROS pe F ant
ae aoe rah
2. Stoutly built of resilient bamboo, these poultry crates are light, airy, and durable. Easily
handled by porters, they may be stacked sky-high without danger of shifting or toppling.
Peking, China. (Photographs by P. H. Dorsett, from the U. S. Department of Agricul-
ture.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure PLATE 2
—-
1. At the recently completed Karnaphuli Paper Mill, East Pakistan, bamboo will be used
to produce 100 tons of pulp per day. Equipment shown was specially designed to lift
rafted bundles of bamboo from the river to the flume, by way of which they will reach
the mill.
2. Although the bamboo withes from which they are made appear frail and inconsequential,
these baskets effectively stabilize a footbridge of field stones near Kao-dien, Hupeh
Province, China. (Photograph by F. N. Meyer, from the U. S. Department of Agri-
culture.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure PLATE 3
1. Hardwood-framed house with walls of bamboo matting and roof of bamboo shingles
(Bambusa polymorpha). A modern adaptation developed in Burma.
2. The muli bamboo (Melocanna baccifera) is the principal material used for housing and
industrial purposes in East Pakistan. Millions of culms of this bamboo come into
Chittagong each year by raft.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure PLATE 4
1. As demonstrated by this bamboo worker at Chittagong, East Pakistan, who is making
lashings to take the place of nails, no complicated or costly machinery is required to process
bamboo for building purposes.
2. Aged cooper making bamboo hoopstock at Oimachi, Japan. The versatility of bamboo
is explored by the skill and ingenuity of the craftsman in adapting his simple tools to the
processing the culms. (Photograph by P. H. Dorsett, from the U. $8. Department
PLATE 5
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure PLATE 6
1. Where traffic is light, a costly bridge would be no great improvement over this simple
bamboo cable. With the aid of a sturdy hardwood clip, it uses the force of the current
to propel the heavily laden ferryboat to and fro across the Siku River on the border of
Tibet. (Photograph by F. N. Meyer, from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.)
2. Bamboo provides the yoke and the ‘‘bed”’ for oxcarts, the principal means of transporting
building materials in India, Pakistan, and many other parts of the Far East.
PLATE 7
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure
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MeClure
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ian Report, 19
sonian
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure PLATE 9
Bet
The garden of Sankichi Ishida, near Tokyo, Japan. Japanese bamboo gardens are ad-
mirably managed. The exacting procedures for spacing the culms and harvesting the
edible shoots require care, skill, and experience. (Photograph by P. H. Dorsett, from the
U. S. Department of Agriculture.)
PLATE 10
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—McClure
acquires a special attractiveness from the crisp texture
x
and harmonious beige and russet-brown coloring of the bamboo culm sheath wrapping.
This Japanese lunch, “‘ready to go,
S. Department of Agriculture.)
(Photograph by P. H. Dorsett, from the U.
BAMBOO—McCLURE 407
weak-stemmed plants. The sprinkling buckets are equipped with
bamboo spouts. Windbreaks are often used as a protection against
unseasonable blasts from the north, and, for certain delicate plants,
bamboo sun screens are sometimes erected.
Within the household are found, in addition to the various articles
of furniture, bamboo brooms, rakes for gathering fuel, fire-blowing
tubes, laundry poles, chopsticks, serving trays, colanders, sieves, grat-
ers,etc. It isa common practice among the more primitive peoples of
the Orient to use sections of large bamboo culms as water buckets
and for storing oil and other liquids or for conveying them from place
to place.
BAMBOO AS A FARM CROP IN THE ORIENT
The rural culture of bamboo in the Far East varies in its nature all
the way from the intensive and detailed husbandry (pl. 9) charac-
teristic of Oriental agriculture and horticulture, in general, to a casual
treatment in which the plants are practically allowed to shift for
themselves after they have been set out. The bamboos grown as a
farm crop may be classified, roughly, into three groups: those grown |
for their edible shoots alone, those grown for both shoots and mature
culms, and those grown for the mature culms only.
There are two general types of cultural practice, corresponding to
the two types of rhizome growth. Bamboos of the clump type (those
that have sympodial or determinate rhizomes), such as species of
Bambusa, Dendrocalamus, Schizostachyum, and Lingnania, are cul-
tivated by preference on level land, since the shallow rhizomes of this
type of bamboo sometimes are at a certain disadvantage in hillside
culture. Even when grown on level land, many of these bamboos
thrive best when some fresh earth is thrown over the rhizomes each
year. In the culture of this type bamboo for shoots (Sinocalamus
beecheyanus and S. latiflorus), as carried on in southeastern China,
the earth is pulled away from the base of each clump every year in
December or January and the dead wood of old rhizomes is removed.
The earth is then heaped up afresh and the systematic application
of fertilizer, usually diluted urine, is begun (pl. 8). In addition to
protecting the rhizomes and roots from undue exposure and drying,
these heaps of earth serve to protect the young shoots from the light
until they are large enough to be harvested. This is important, for
the action of sunlight spoils their flavor.
Bamboos of the spreading type (pl. 9) with slender, indeterminate
rhizomes, such as species of Arwndinaria and Phyllostachys, are grown
on both level land and hillsides. Aside from the question of fertility,
which is usually higher in level land, hill land seems to be preferred
by bamboos of this type. This may be due in part to their abhorrence
of poor drainage. It may be, also, that the slope of the land affords
451800—58——27
408 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
a certain stimulus which would explain the use by the rhizomes of a
greater vertical range of the soil strata, a condition evident in hillside
cultures. This postpones the competition between rhizomes which
soon becomes apparent in plants grown on level land.
Culture of bamboo exhibits a great range of care. One extreme
is represented by complete neglect of the grove other than harvesting
the shoots at the appropriate time or cutting the culms when they
are mature. One degree of improvement comes with selection of those
shoots that are to be allowed to reach maturity, and the intelligent
choice of culms to remove, looking to the maintenance or increase of
the productivity of the grove. A further improvement is represented
by removal of weeds and bush from the grove once a year. When the
careful farmer sees that the soil has become choked with an accumula-
tion of old rhizomes, he renovates the grove or shifts its location.
In addition to being grown as a farm crop, bamboo is extensively
used throughout the Orient to form living hedges, barriers, and wind-
breaks. While these are usually informal, they are sometimes trimmed
and restricted rather systematically. Bamboos of the clump type are
preferred for these purposes in areas where they are sufficiently
hardy. Unlike bamboos of the running type, they form rather com-
pact tufts, spread slowly, and do not encroach upon adjacent land.
For small, formal or informal, ornamental hedges in tropical and sub-
tropical areas, varieties of Bambusa multiplex are generally used. In
more temperate regions dwarf species of Phyllostachys, Sasa, or some
of the other related genera are employed. For the protective barriers
about villages so commonly seen in the more tropical parts of the
Orient, large spiny-branched bamboos of the genus Bambusa are
employed. The shoots of Bambusa sinospinosa and B. blumeana are
edible after parboiling. In China the former are usually dried for
consumption during the winter season. The latter are used to a very
great extent as an esculent in the Philippine Islands.
BAMBOO IN THE PREVENTION OF EROSION
Although the potentialities of bamboo as a means of preventing
erosion on steep slopes have never been fully exploited in the Orient,
the plant has been consciously used to excellent advantage for this
purpose on levees and dikes. Bamboo groves of the spreading type on
mountain sides incidentally serve this very important function to a
much greater extent than is generally realized.
USES OF BAMBOO CULM SHEATHS
Bamboo culm sheaths are husklike structures which completely
clothe and protect the young culm or shoot. The base of each sheath
is attached to the culm at a node. In most bamboos the sheath falls
BAMBOO—McCLURE 409
away from each successive node, beginning at the basal ones, as soon
as the internode stops its growth in length; in some the sheaths persist
and gradually disintegrate in place.
The culm sheaths of certain species of bamboo, particularly of the
genera Bambusa, Dendrocalamus, and Phyllostachys, have special
characteristics in respect to size, texture, toughness, and flexibility,
which suit them for various purposes. The flexible sheaths of several
of the larger species of Phyllostachys, for example, are commonly
employed, in both China and Japan, as covers for earthenware jars
in which certain food products are stored. Other foods are regularly
wrapped in these flexible sheaths for display and retail disposal
(pl. 10). In Japan, slender strips of this same type of sheath are
widely used in place of twine and in nurseries as a substitute for
raffia. They are moistened to increase their toughness while being tied.
In southern China the sheaths of a large thorny species (Bambusa
sinospinosa) are torn into narrow strips to serve as the weft of
coarse sandals. Here also woven-bamboo casks lined with the broad,
stiff sheaths of Stnocalamus latiflorus are commonly employed for
transporting incense powder. In central China the sheaths of the
larger species of Phyllostachys are used to line these incense casks
and to serve as a protecting cover for bales of the cheaper grades
of paper. In various localities in the Orient, bamboo culm sheaths
are employed as a waterproof and sunproof lining for inexpensive hats.
In Oriental hand printing and block-print making, the paper is
laid upon the inked block. <A clear and uniform impression is then
insured by rubbing the paper with a pad known as the “baren,” a
term borrowed from the Japanese. The baren has a firmness suited
to the peculiar needs of the work to be done. It is basically a thin
disk of wood padded with several layers of tough paper. The outer
covering is always a smooth, tough, flexible bamboo sheath. In both
China and Japan the baren used by printer and blockmaker is covered
with a culm sheath from a large species of Phyllostachys, usually P.
pubescens or P. bambusoides.
One often sees, in the more tropical parts of the Orient, scarecrows
made from large stiff culm sheaths. The sheaths are either suspended
by a short cord from the tip of a bamboo pole thrust into the ground
at an oblique angle, or simply impaled upon a short stick set upright.
As the sheath swings about in the breeze, the pale, polished, inner sur-
face and the dull outer one reflect the light differentially, exaggerating
the effect of its motion.
CONCLUSION
This account only begins to cover the phases of the utilization of
bamboo. The conscious aim has been to present an intimate view of
selected aspects in those areas of the Far East where its perfection
410 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
is most remarkable. The motive has not been to suggest that we should
try to imitate the ways of the East, but rather that we should ap-
preciate anew the genius that has given us such a rich heritage, and
that we should recognize and ponder again the remarkable versatility
of this group of plants.
Numerous introductions of living bamboos have been brought into
the United States by private individuals and through governmental
agencies. Europe has no indigenous bamboos, but introduced species
are found in gardens and parks wherever the climate is sufficiently
mild. We have growing in the United States more than 100 species
and varieties, representing nearly every part of the globe where bam-
boo is found. And yet, though the first introductions probably were
made nearly a century ago, and though bamboos are highly esteemed
and cherished in many individual collections, no species has yet
established itself securely and indispensably in a single major phase
of our economy.
When we know more about the technical characteristics of the dif-
ferent kinds of bamboo and their peculiar adaptabilities to specific
industrial purposes, we shall be in a position to avail ourselves more
fully of the immense potentialities of this group of plants. Since we
live in the age of machines and of large-scale production, we shall
need to adapt modern techniques developed in the West and mechanize
old ones long employed in the handcrafts of the Orient, before we can
succeed in introducing bamboo into our industrial economy to any
important extent. Meanwhile we should continue to search for and
introduce outstanding bamboos for trial and study.
REFERENCES
BHARGAVA, M. P.
1946. Bamboo for pulp and paper manufacture. Indian Forest Bull. 129,
25 pp.
Brown, W. H., and Fiscuemr, A. F.
1920. In Brown, W. H. (ed.), Minor products of Philippine forests. Philip-
pine Islands Dept. Agr. and Nat. Res., Bur. For. Bull. 22, vol. 1,
pp. 249-310, illustr.
BurKi11, I. H.
1935. Dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. 2 vols.
CouHEN, W. HE.
1947. Utilization of bamboo in Japan. Australian Commonwealth Sci. and
Ind. Res. Organ., Div. For. Prod., 8 pp. (Mimeographed.)
Deoaun, P. N.
1937. Silviculture and management of the bamboo Dendrocalamus strictus
Nees. Indian For. Rec., n. s., Silviculture, vol. 2, pp. 75-173, illustr.
Hspinoza, J.C.
1930. Testing, bending and compressive strength of the common Philippine
bamboo (Bambusa spinosa Roxb.). Philippine Journ. Sci., vol. 41,
pp. 121-135, illustr.
BAMBOO—McCLURE 41]
FAIRCHILD, D. G.
1930. Exploring for plants. Illustr.
19388. The world was my garden. Iilustr.
1948. The garden islands of the Great Hast. Illustr.
1947. The world grows round my door. Illustr.
GAMBLE, J. S.
1922. Manual of Indian timbers, 2d ed.
GOUROU, PIERRE.
.1936. Les paysans du Delta Tonkinois. Ecole Franc. Extréme-Orient Publ.
27, 640 pp. illustr.
HEYNE, K.
1950. De nuttige planten van Indonesie. 3d ed., vol. 1, pp. 285-293.
Kurz, 8.
1876. Bamboo and its uses. Indian Forester, vol. 1, pp. 219-269, 335-362,
illustr.
Leon, A. J. DE.
1956. Studies on the use of interwoven thin bamboo strips as stress-skin
covering for aircraft. Philippine Journ. Sci., vol. 85, pp. 329-341,
pls. 1, 2.
LIMAYE, V. D.
1948. Bamboo nails. Their manufacture and holding power. Indian For.
Ree., n. s., Utilization, vol 3, No. 3, pp. 1-12, illustr.
1952. Strength of bamboo (Dendrocalamus strictus). Indian Yorester,
vol. 78, pp. 558-565, illustr.
McCrvrg, F. A.
1927. The native paper industry in Kwangtung. Lingnan Sci. Journ., vol.
5, pp. 255-264, illustr.
1930. Tung oil in the Yangtze Valley. Lingnan Sci. Journ., vol. 9, pp. 233-
250, illustr.
1931. Studies of Chinese bamboos. I. A new species of Arundinaria from
southern China. Pt. 2. Lingnan Sci. Journ., vol. 10, pp. 295-305,
illustr. ;
1935. Bamboo—a taxonomic problem and an economic opportunity. Sci.
Month., vol. 41, pp. 1938-204, illustr.
1938. Some preliminary tests on the longitudinal crushing strength of
hua-mei chu, a variety of Bambusa tuldoides. Lingnan Sci. Journ.,
vol. 17, pp. 9-15, illustr. (This bamboo was later described as
Bambusa pervariabilis McClure. )
1954. Bamboo utilization in eastern Pakistan. U. S. For. Oper. Admin.
Mission to Pakistan. 14 pp. Karachi. (Mimeographed.)
1956. Bamboo culture in the South Pacific. South Pacific Comm. Quart.,
Bull. 6, pp. 88-40.
Meyer, H. F., and Exiunp, B.
1928. Tests of the mechanical properties of bamboo. Hng. Soc. China,
vol. 22, pp. 3-31.
Morsk, Epwarp S.
1886. Japanese homes and their surroundings. Illustr.
PORTERFIELD, W. M.
1933. Bamboo the universal provider. Sci. Month., vol. 36, pp. 176-183.
412 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
RaitT, WILLIAM.
1925. Summary of investigations on bamboos and grasses for paper pulp.
Indian For. Ree., vol. 11, pp. 271-281.
1950. The digestion of grasses and bamboo for paper-making. (Reprint
of 1931 ed.)
WAtTT, GEORGE.
1908. Commercial products of India. 1,189 pp.
Younes, R. A.
1954. Flavor qualities of some edible oriental bamboos. Econ. Bot., vol.
8, pp. 377-386, illustr.
Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D. C.
Mechanizing the Cotton Harvest’
By James H. STREET
Associate Professor of Economics
University College, Rutgers University
[With two plates]
During the 1935 crop season nearly 314 million bales of cotton, or
about one-fourth of the American crop, were harvested by machine.
In California, where mechanization is farthest advanced, machines
gathered two-thirds of the crop. Yet ascant decade before, the amount
of cotton that was mechanically harvested was negligible.
Behind this revolutionary change, which is still proceeding, lies a
century of intermittent efforts to mechanize the crop, most of them
doomed to failure. Cotton has long been one of our most labor-
requiring farm enterprises, and the annual gathering of the crop
has been an extremely burdensome and underpaid form of human
drudgery. The need to preserve a large low-wage labor force for this
purpose has been one of the roots of social difficulty in the South.
Why did it take so long to apply the familiar technique of labor-saving
invention to this vast regional enterprise ?
The question involves many considerations, but it is the purpose of
this paper to review only the technological aspect of the problem.
The history of inventions designed to mechanize the cotton harvest
is a peculiarly fascinating one because of the great variety of ap-
proaches tried out at one time or another, and the truly formidable
technical, economic, and social obstacles which had to be overcome
in order to find solutions.
THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM
Cotton, unlike the small grains whose simple characteristics per-
mitted mechanization much earlier, is a distressingly difficult crop to
harvest by a uniform mechanical method. The crop is grown under
a considerable diversity of soil and climatic conditions, and the result-
ant plant varies from a scrubby knee-high bush to a rank, wide-
4Reprinted by permission from Agricultural History, vol. 31, No. 1, 1957.
413
414 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
branching plant taller than a man’s head. As many as 500 varieties
of American upland cotton have been grown in this country simul-
taneously, with great variation in plant conformation, hairiness of
leaf, tightness of boll, and other characteristics which seriously affect
the ease of harvesting.
Much of the value of the fiber depends on its freedom from leaf
trash, staining by foliage sap, and tangling with weeds. This factor,
together with the waste entailed when the fully exposed fleece is readily
knocked to the ground, makes picking a delicate operation. Perhaps
the most troublesome aspect of the plant is that its bolls do not ripen
uniformly and the crop therefore cannot be gathered at once. Unripe
bolls are likely to be injured by any crude mechanical device used to
harvest the early crop. These were some of the technical factors with
which would-be inventors of successful cotton harvesters had to
contend.
INVENTIONS TO HARVEST THE CROP
Even under the conditions of slavery some efforts were made to
reduce the amount of hand labor in cotton production. As early as
1820 an imaginative Louisiana planter imported a cargo of Brazilian
monkeys with the hope of training them to pick cotton. Had they
proved sufficiently adaptable it is conceivable that monkey breeding
might have replaced the slave trade and thus averted critical events
leading to the Civil War.
The first recorded invention of a machine to harvest cotton was a
mule-drawn picker patented by Samuel S. Rembert and Jedediah
Prescott, of Memphis, in 1850.2. This machine embraced two sets of
rotating cylinders and disks studded with teeth to comb the cotton
off the plants. Although it may be considered a simple prototype of
the modern spindle picker, it was too crude to do an effective job.
By 1864 there were 12 patents in effect on a variety of manual or
mechanical picking aids, and in nearly every succeeding year at least
one patent has been granted for some type of harvesting device.*
Over 1,800 patents had been granted on new or improved models by the
end of World War II, when a commercial market for these machines
first began to develop. Broadly grouped, these inventions have in-
*Page, Arthur W., A cotton harvester at last, World’s Work, vol. 21, pp. 13,
748-760, December 1910. This article is chiefly devoted to a description of Angus
Campbell’s spindle picker, discussed below.
* Arts and manufactures, Rep. U. 8S. Commissioner of Patents for 1850, Pt. 1,
pp. 233-234.
“See Watkins, J. L., King Cotton: A historical and statistical review, 1790-
1908, pp. 149, 175, 259, 1908, for descriptions of some of the earliest inventions.
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 415
cluded pneumatic extractors, electrical devices, threshers, chemical
processes, strippers, and spindle pickers.®
UNSUCCESSFUL FORERUNNERS
Beginning with a patent issued in 1859, some of the most persistent
efforts were directed toward the perfection of various types of pneu-
matic extractors intended to remove the lint from the boll either by
suction or by a blast of air. The machines usually consisted of a
vacuum tank mounted on a cart, with flexible hoses applied to the
individual bolls by a crew of operators.® The chief technical problem
was to design a nozzle that would suck (or blow) the tight-fitting
locks of cotton from the burr and convey it to a bag. A small amount
of cotton was actually picked with a machine of this type in the
Imperial Valley of California during a labor crisis in 1918.
During the twenties the International Harvester Co. made an ex-
tensive investigation of both the suction and airblast methods of
extraction. Company engineers concluded that a crew of skilled hand
pickers could easily outdistance a similar crew working with suction
tubes because the unaided human hand is more dextrous than any
extractive device which must be applied separately to each boll.
They thereafter directed their efforts toward the complete elimination
of the manual element from the picking process.
Efforts by others to devise a successful pneumatic picker continued
well into the thirties.” W. C. Durant, the automobile manufacturer,
produced a light gasoline-powered machine weighing only three
hundred pounds which employed a set of rotary blades, as well as suc-
tion, in the picker-heads. His firm in St. Louis built some 500 of these
machines, but was unable to dispose of them in this country and in
time sold most of them to the Soviet Government, which during the
thirties displayed an active interest in mechanical cotton harvesting.
Some experimenters sought an electrical solution. As early as 1868
a Brooklyn inventor patented a device to detach the fiber from the boll
by electrical attraction and to convey it, by means of a statically
* Smith, H. P., et al., The mechanical harvesting of cotton, Texas Agr. Exp.
Stat. Bull. 452, August 1932, contains illustrations of many of the early devices
and a list of patents granted on all types of cotton-harvesting equipment from
1850 to 1932.
*An improved cotton picker, Sci. Amer., vol. 67, p. 291, November 5, 1892;
Dale, William, A machine for picking cotton, Sci. Amer., vol. 94, pp. 371-372,
May 5, 1906; Cotton picking by suction, Lit. Dig., vol. 78, p. 29, August 4, 1923.
“New mechanical cotton picker, Lit. Dig., vol. 103, p. 32, November 16, 1929;
Straus, Robert K., Enter the cotton picker, Harper’s, vol. 173, p. 389, September
1936 ; McHugh, F. D., Machines pick cotton, but—, Sci. Amer., vol. 159, pp. 242-
245, November 1938.
416 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
charged belt, to a receiving box. Others later tried to apply the same
principle, all without success, since an electrical charge proved
insufficient to pull the cotton from the boll.
A different application of electricity was that of L. C. Stuckenborg
of Memphis, a diligent investigator who announced in 1922 that after
14 years of work he had successfully combined a vacuum machine with
a set of electrically operated brushes revolving inwardly at the end of
each suction tube. The operation of the brushes was said to have
suggested itself to Stuckenborg one day when he observed a cow that
had broken into a cotton field adroitly extract the fiber with her horny
tongue in order to obtain the tasty oil seeds. His picking apparatus
was mounted on a gasoline tractor that provided power for eight
electric motors required to drive four sets of picking brushes and four
suction and cleaning fans. This rather elaborate machine was also
doomed to failure, since the electrically operated brushes added little
to its performance, and more especially because the machine had the
same disadvantage as other pneumatic machines—it did not result in
a suflicient saving of hand labor. Stuckenborg spent a good many
more years trying to simplify and improve his machine, to no avail.
The idea occurred to a number of inventors, possibly suggested by
the successful harvester-thresher combines used in other crops, to
construct a machine that would cut the entire cotton stalk and separate
the lint from the rest of the plant by threshing action. Such a
machine would necessarily have to be rather large and complicated
in order to handle the massive bulk of the cotton plant along with the
lint. A machine of this type was patented in 1886, but its performance
was evidently not remarkable enough to record. In 1925 the Inter-
national Harvester Co. experimented with a machine patterned after
a grain separator. It was designed to pull the entire boll off the plant
and separate out the cotton. It was soon abandoned because it took
the mature and immature bolls indiscriminately and did not separate
the lint effectively.
Proposals to utilize the entire cotton plant by some process of chem-
ical digestion, thus obviating the need to extract the lint from the boll,
were made recurrently. Robert R. Roberts, of Washington, D. C.,
who pioneered in the development of delinted seed, in 1906 announced
that the cotton stalk could be pulped and made into paper. Since this
would have greatly reduced the value of the product, there was little
interest in the suggestion.®
Probably the most extensive experiments along this line were made
by Dr. Frank K. Cameron, of the University of North Carolina, who
®* The successful cotton picker, Sci. Amer., vol. 126, p. 179, March 1922.
° Utilization of the entire cotton plant, Sci. Amer., vol. 95, p. 843, November 10,
1906.
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 417
sought to substitute the entire cotton plant for wood pulp as a basic
source of cellulose in the manufacture of rayon.*° He recommended
that the cotton plants be thickly sown, mown, and baled by machine
like hay, and then dried and powdered. The oil contained in the seeds
was to be removed by the use of a solvent, and the remainder of the
plant chemically digested into alpha cellulose. After a number of
years of experimentation Dr. Cameron claimed that his process was a
laboratory success. Coming during the depression years, the an-
nouncement caused alarm among farmers who feared a radical change
in methods of production. The need for a substitute for wood pulp
was evidently not pressing enough, however, to insure funds for
development and the method thus did not become commercially
practicable.
STRIPPING MACHINES
Cotton strippers, also known in some of their early forms as cotton
sleds or “sledders,” remove the cotton, burr and all, from the stalk by
combing the plant either with extended teeth or by drawing it between
stationary slots, revolving rolls, or brushes. A patent for a rather
simple invention of this kind was granted to John Hughes of New
Bern, N. C., in 1871. The following year Z. B. Sims of Bonham, Tex.,
patented a sled with projecting fingers for the same purpose.
A somewhat more complicated and skillfully constructed model
appeared in 1874, when W. H. Pedrick, of Richmond, Ind., patented
a stripper which employed two revolving rolls studded with teeth to
pull the ripe cotton from the plants. Despite the fact that these
machines closely resembled in principle some that later came into use,
they were long neglected because it was felt that they wasted too much
cotton and lowered its grade excessively.
The idea of mechanically stripping cotton was reintroduced into
the Texas Panhandle in 1914, when a bumper crop coincided with
prices so low that the cost of hand picking could not be covered.
Several farmers in desperation harvested their cotton by dragging
it with a section of ordinary picket fence tied to a team. This make-
shift method resulted in cotton so full of trash and unopened bolls that
it was refused at the gin. Thereupon these farmers, undaunted, took
their cotton to a grain thresher and had it threshed! The threshing
process broke open the unripe bolls and removed some of the trash,
after which it was possible for the gin to handle it more satisfactorily.
7 Cotton mown like hay and chemically digested, Science, n. s., vol. 83, p. 10,
May 22, 1986; Macormac, Alfred R., Utilization of the whole cotton plant, Sci.
Month., vol. 48, pp. 285-286, September 1936; Scientia omnia vincit: Experiments
in turning the whole cotton plant into rayon, Sci. Amer., vol. 163, p. 243,
November 1940.
A418 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
At best the resulting product must have been of rather low grade, and
stripping for some time thereafter was utilized only as a last resort.
Nevertheless, because the cotton grown in this area is subject to
early frost and was often pulled or snapped in the boll by hand,
growers demanded that the ginners develop methods of handling
immature or “bollie” cotton. Consequently gins were redesigned
to include more effective cleaning and burr-extracting devices than
were found in most parts of the Cotton Belt.
In 1926 there was another critical season in the High Plains. The
crop was unusually large, prices fell abruptly, labor for hand harvest-
ing was scarce and expensive, and the weather was unfavorable for
picking by hand. Farmers were again compelled to take unusual
measures to save the crop. Many of them built their own sleds, em-
ploying a variety of original designs with the assistance of the local
blacksmiths; and cotton stripping received its first extensive trial.
By this time the improved gins were able to process the cotton, and
it was reported that the mechanically stripped cotton actually pro-
duced a better sample than cotton that was hand stripped because the
additional handling before it reached the gin removed much of the
dirt.
As a result of the extensive use of homemade contrivances in the
Lubbock area during the 1926 season, several implement manufac-
turers became interested in developing cotton-stripping machines and
the following year a number of commercial strippers appeared on
the market. Deere and Co., the leading firm, began in 1930 to manu-
facture both mule-drawn and tractor-mounted strippers and two
years later had increased its output to 500 units per year.
Following the onset of the depression, however, interest in mechan-
ical strippers languished on the part of farmers and manufacturers
alike. With cotton selling at 6 cents a pound, wages for hand snapping
at 30 cents per hundredweight, and cash extremely scarce, the market
for labor-saving devices disappeared. The John Deere strippers
were offered at $185 each on a contract calling for $25 on delivery
and the balance at $5 for each bale harvested. Even so dealers even-
tually disposed of their remaining stock in 1941 at $15 each.
In the meantime experimentation in stripper design was continued
by the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station at College Station
and at the Lubbock (High Plains) substation. Between 1927 and
1930 experiment station engineers worked out and tested the design
for an improved stripper which incorporated a burr extractor to
“Neighbour, L. B., Progress in the mechanical stripping of cotton, Summary
Proc. 2d Ann. Beltwide Cotton Mechanization Conf.; reprinted in Acco Press,
vol. 26, pp. 8-9, November 1948.
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 419
clean the cotton as it was harvested. This machine importantly in-
fluenced the design of most of the commercial strippers that were
later built.
When labor shortages began to occur in the High Plains during
World War II, farmers lost no time in adopting mechanical strippers.
Deere and Co., which had sold practically no strippers from 1932
to 1942, was at last able to capitalize on its previous developmental
work and became the chief supplier with an output of about 4,400
machines from 1946 to 1948. The contrast with depression condi-
tions is indicated by the fact that in the latter year the company sold
its machines at a delivered price of $905, exclusive of tractor. Several
other manufacturers turned out machines in smaller quantities, and by
1955 it was estimated that there were over 23,000 strippers available
for use on southwestern farms (see table 1). Some of the newer
strippers employ revolving fiber brushes instead of a metal stripper
roll, following a design developed by the Oklahoma Agricultural
Experiment Station in cooperation with the United States Department
of Agriculture.”
Although cotton strippers have been tested in nearly all portions of
the Cotton Belt, to date their effective use has been confined largely to
the High Plains and Rolling Plains of Texas, Oklahoma, and New
Mexico, where they seem best adapted to harvesting the type of cotton
grown under the rather exceptional climatic conditions prevailing in
those areas. About one-fifth of the Texas and Oklahoma crops were
harvested by strippers in 1955 (see table 1).
SPINDLE PICKERS
Inventions in this group have included a multiplicity of cotton
harvesters designed to pick the open cotton from the bolls by means of
spindles, fingers, or prongs. The aim has been to construct a machine
that could be used for repeated pickings during the season without
material injury to the unopened bolls and the foliage necessary for
continued growth. However, from the time of Rembert and Prescott’s
early invention in 1850 until the nineties very little progress was made
in developing such a machine. About this time Angus Campbell, a
Scottish patternmaker employed by the Deering Harvester Co.,
began to work out the essential mechanical principles for a machine
that would pass a series of rotating spindles through a cotton plant
and twist the loose fiber from the bolls. He started work in 1885 and
took out his first patent in 1895.
“Smith, H. P., et al., Mechanical harvesting of cotton as affected by varietal
characteristics and other factors, Texas Agr. Exp. Stat. Bull. 580, December 1939.
#* Oates, W. J.; Witt, R. H.; and Wood, W.S., The development of a brush-type
cotton harvester, Agr. Eng., vol. 33, pp. 185-136, 142, March 1952.
420 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
TABLE 1.—Estimated number and percentage of mechanical cotton harvesters on
farms, and percentage of cotton mechanically harvested, by States, 1955-56 season
Percentage of
Spindle pickers ! Strippers ! cotton harvested
by machine 2
Number | Percent| Number | Percent | Picked |Stripped
Southeast:
Adah ame ven ne by oPtiae 8 a8 198 1 41} (4) 2 (4)
GOOT CIA Mees a3 eee ee 260 1 yey. pemere 3 (*)
INMNEG sroliia see an oe 65 (4) (8) pee oe daaae 24S
roi 2 a) b Da: Naeger Te ie i EAL 300 2 bo) ll lS a a pas ba a
Midsouth:
(Ap keanigsaictecricy ty IW) RRs 8 2, 600 14 63 (4) 25 (4)
(Louisiamay = oe at Ek 1, 035 6 2) Ne ae 28 jos aoe
IMISSISHIDDIe Seo el ee 2, 600 14 G) ae) & ee 7 fe
IMSS OUT ie tabi oe reac ee 1, 345 7 (8) Mia: PAG i ath
Renn essere vieees eae Mee as 255 1 Ole eee 22. ee
Southwest:
Oklahoma. wwe ek 39 (4) 2, 805 12 (4) 20
MONA ie RES beer ae es 1, 547 9 | 19, 524 85 3 21
West
aN (76) 0 mir bon Dap 2, 100 ig] Nien dace Pf 39 abe ee
California essere ee Nr. 6, 000 SPAN ite, 2a |e ees 8 Gis. See
New. Mexico 2 Lule see es) 300 2 689 3 16 4
Dc 21 sept Di Ey MR a Sa 18, 644 100 | 238, 122 100) "217 56
1 Estimates compiled by National Cotton Council of America, Memphis.
2U.S. Agricultural Marketing Service, Charges for ginning cotton, costs of selected services incident to
marketing, and related information, season 1955-56 (mimeographed), May 1956, p. 2.
3 Estimate either not requested or insignificant number reported.
4 Less than 0.5 percent.
§ Percentage of total United States crop harvested by respective method.
Campbell showed great persistence and personal sacrifice in his
efforts to perfect his machine over a period of 37 years. Each harvest
season for over 20 years he used his vacation time to journey from his
place of employment in Chicago to Texas, Louisiana, or Mississippi,
where he would try out his latest model. In 1910, after trying out
some 55 designs, he was so confident of success that he put five ma-
chines into the field in a widely publicized demonstration at Waxa-
hatchie, Tex. Evidently his optimism was premature, since few
farmers bought machines.
The same year Campbell joined forces with Theodore H. Price,
who had independently devised a cotton harvester which he patented
* For contemporary accounts of Campbell’s activities, see Page, op. cit., pp. 13,
748-760; Day, William, Picking cotton by machine, Sci. Amer., vol. 104, p. 231,
March 4, 1911; A machine that is philanthropist, Outlook, vol. 97, pp. 484-485,
March 4, 1911.
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 421
in 1904. The Price-Campbell cotton picker was patented in 1912 and
underwent continuous testing and improvement until Campbell’s death
in 1922. The results, however, were never completely satisfactory.
The self-propelled machine was heavy, complicated, and expensive
to build. It left too much cotton on the plant or knocked to the
ground, in addition to which it injured the unripe bolls.
Notwithstanding these deficiencies, Campbell had done a valuable
piece of work. The heart of his machine was an ingenious cam-
actuated mechanism that positioned a battery of revolving barbed
spindles in the cotton plant as the machine passed over it, and then
removed the lint from the spindles by means of stationary doffers.
The Price-Campbell patents were taken over by the International
Harvester Co. in 1924, and although further testing and modification
required another quarter-century, Campbell’s basic ideas contributed
importantly to the ultimate success of the first commercial cotton
picker when it appeared in 1948.
Other inventors who attempted to perfect one version or another
of the spindle cotton picker during the first quarter of the century
included P. P. Haring of Goliad, Tex.; B. Johnson of Temple, Tex.;
George R. Meyercord of Chicago; John F. Appleby (the widely known
inventor of the self-knotting grain binder) ; and Hiram N. Berry of
Greenville, Miss.* AI] their machines attracted some notice at various
times, but none was fully successful. Moreover, each inventor was
confronted with the fact that because of the abundance of low-paid
farm workers in the South, a mechanical cotton picker would have
had to be overwhelmingly efficient to compete successfully with hand
labor.
The longest continuous effort to devise a spindle picker was made
by the International Harvester Co., which had evidenced interest in
the problem from the time of its formation in 1902. Drawing on the
experience of one of its predecessor companies, the Deering Harvester
Co., the implement firm spent 40 years in research and an estimated
$5,250,000 before it was able to demonstrate in 1942 a spindle picker
which it regarded as satisfactory for production.
Between 1924 and 1930 company engineers designed, built, and
tested in the field seven distinct types of machines, beginning with
an improved model of the Price-Campbell picker. They also tested
literally hundreds of variations in the shape, size, and arrangement
of spindles, doffers, and other essential parts. Recognizing the finan-
cial limitations of cotton growers, they sought to simplify the pon-
* After Hiram N. Berry’s death his son, Charles R. Berry, continued to make
improvements on his father’s self-propelled picker. In 1943 Deere and Co.
bought the Berry patents and utilized them for a time in the development
of its own spindle picker.
422 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
derous self-propelled picker and thus reduce its cost. The introduction
of the all-purpose tractor in 1925 spurred them to devise a trail-model
picker that could be attached to the tractor with a power-takeoft
arrangement and that would yet leave the tractor available for other
purposes on the farm.
The company believed it was ready to introduce a trial machine on
a limited basis in 1929 and the parts for 20 such machines were already
completed when the financial collapse of that year abruptly altered
the economic outlook. In the succeeding years of deepening depres-
sion conditions became less and less propitious for the introduction of
a machine that would displace labor. Experimentation went on, but
as Clarence R. Hagen, chief development engineer, remarked,
Considerable opposition to mechanical picking was encountered in the field.
Many cotton farmers were very skeptical, and sure that the cotton crop could
not be mechanized. At the end of every harvest season we returned with a
little more experience and a little more ridicule, for the average cotton grower
believed firmly in the eternal supremacy of the Negro cotton picker.”
Yet it was in the midst of these depression years, when the acreage-
reduction program had contributed its share of displaced farm workers
to the ranks of the already unemployed, that there appeared on the
scene a mechanical harvester which seemed to meet the requirements
for efficiency and labor saving that would enable it to compete suc-
cessfully with human labor at extremely low wages. This was the
cotton picker invented by John D. Rust and developed with the
assistance of his brother Mack. The advent of this machine is interest-
ing not only as a technical achievement but for the social dilemma it
posed.
As children on a Texas cotton farm John and Mack Rust had picked
cotton on their knees and had often discussed the possibility of in-
venting a machine to ease this form of human drudgery.” John
Rust became an itinerant farm mechanic whose only formal training
in engineering came from a correspondence course. While working
for a combine manufacturer in Kansas City in 1924, he began to devise
the principal mechanical features of his spindle cotton picker.
He was bafiled, as many before had been, by the problem of removing
the cotton from a spindle that was sufficiently barbed or serrated to
** Hagen, Clarence R., Twenty-five years of cotton picker development, Agr.
Eng., vol. 32, p. 594, November 1951.
“ For short biographical accounts of the Rust brothers, see Straus, op. cit., pp.
386-395; Rust, John, The origin and development of the cotton picker, West
Tennessee Hist. Soc. Pap., vol. 7, pp. 38-56, 19538; Mr. Little Ol’ Rust, Fortune,
vol. 46, pp. 150-152, December 1952; Weybright, Victor, Two men and their
machine, Surv. Graphic, vol. 25, pp. 482-483, July 1936.
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Street
aeey 2
ae
High-drum spindle cotton picker.
PEATE 2
Street
mithsonian Report, 1957.
S
‘SuIpvoyun JayoId Uuo}JOD MOI-OMT,
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 423
twist the lint from the boll. According to his own account, it was
while lying in bed one night in the spring of 1927 that he remembered
how the morning dew had caused the cotton to cling to his fingers when
he had picked cotton as a boy. He also recalled that his grandmother
had always moistened the spindle of her spinning wheel in order to
get the cotton to adhere.
“IT jumped out of bed,” he wrote, “and found some absorbent
cotton and a nail for testing. I licked the nail and twirled it in the
cotton and found that it would work.” *
Rust thereupon returned to Texas, where he worked out the plans
for an experimental model. It differed from previous pickers chiefly
in the use of moistened smooth-wire spindles instead of roughened,
barbed, or twisted spindles to secure aggressive picking action. It
also employed a simplified endless-belt mechanism to position the
rows of spindles in the plants without raking and injuring the bolls.
As the loaded spindles traveled on their circuit they were easily
stripped clean by pairs of traveling steel ribbons. Although his
machine subsequently underwent many modifications, the picking
principle has been preserved in essentially its original form in machines
based on Rust patents currently in use.
Rust’s first patent was filed in January 1928, and his first test
model was completed that year. He was joined by his brother Mack,
who had been employed in Schenectady as an electrical engineer,
and together they embarked upon a series of trials and improvements.
Although they had many discouragements with the performance of
the early models and their financial backing remained meager, they
aroused the interest of a number of supporters who shared the humani-
tarian outlook the Rust brothers were attempting to apply in the
introduction of their invention.
The Rust harvester set a record when it picked a bale of cotton
in one day during a test conducted at Waco, Tex., in 1931. Two
years later an improved model picked five bales in a single day at
the Delta Experiment Station at Stoneville, Miss. These tests received
little publicity, however, and it was not until the publication of an
article in national magazines in early 1935 that the invention and its
social implications became the subject of intense public discussion.?®
Another public field trial was held under the auspices of the Delta
Experiment Station on August 31, 1936. This time, under rather
favorable conditions, the machine picked at the rate of four-fifths
* Rust, op. cit., p. 15.
” Carlson, Oliver, The revolution in cotton, Amer. Mercury, vol. 34, pp.
129-136, February 1935; reprinted in condensed form in Reader’s Digest, vol.
26, pp. 138-16, March 1935.
451800—58——28
424 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
of a bale an hour—40 to 50 times the average rate for hand picking.
There was considerable trash added to the lint and waste in the rows,
but there was no doubt that the machine would pick cotton. The
demonstration was widely reported in the national press, for it ap-
peared to show conclusively the labor-saving potentialities of the
picker and thereby to cast an ominous shadow on future employment
prospects in the region.”°
The Rust brothers were now faced with a perplexing set of prob-
lems. They were eager to see their machine put to use, but they
did not wish to be responsible for encouraging the trend toward
large-scale mechanized farming at the expense of small farm owners
and sharecroppers. They were afraid widespread labor displacement
would result if the sale of their machine were unrestricted.
For a time they refused to sell their shop-produced machines out-
right, but offered to lease them to farm operators who would agree
to maintain minimum wages and maximum working hours on their
farms, and who would give up the use of child labor. Few planters
were willing to provide such guarantees in return for the doubtful
advantages of mechanical harvesting.
The Rust brothers also encouraged the trial of their machines on
various types of cooperative farms which sprang up during the
depression, but the need to save labor was rarely the chief problem
in these ventures. Hoping to make their picker available to small
farmers, the inventors spent several years trying to devise a “Universal
Pull Model” that could be drawn by a mule or a small tractor. These
efforts proved to be technically impracticable.
In 1937 the Rust brothers abandoned their leasing plan and an-
nounced that they would sell their 2-row, self-propelled machines
on the open market for $4,800. At the same time they declared that
they would restrict their share in the returns to an amount not to
exceed 10 times that of their lowest paid employee. A foundation
was to be set up to apply any remaining personal profits to the
assistance of displaced farmers and to promote cooperative farming.
Nevertheless, the requisite capital was not forthcoming, and under
the stringent conditions of World War II the shop tools had to be
sold off to meet the company’s debts. John and Mack Rust parted
company at this time. Mack Rust went west with a few demonstration
models to establish a custom picking business on the irrigated farms
of Arizona and California.
7° Cotton picker portents, Business Week, No. 366, p. 15, September 5, 1936;
Cotton-gin rival: Rust cotton picker, Lit. Dig., vol. 122, pp. 45-46, September 5,
1936; Rust brothers’ cotton picker, News Week, vol. 8, p. 29, September 5, 1936;
Picker problems, Time, vol. 28, pp. 47-48, 50, September 14, 1936.
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 425
In addition to his financial difficulties, John Rust had reached the
dispiriting conclusion that his machine as it then existed lacked
sufficient durability for general sale. Working models, while they
would pick cotton when kept in continuous repair, tended to break
down in the field when critical parts became worn. Under the en-
couragement of his wife, and with the requirements of mass production
in view, he sat down to redesign the entire machine from the drafting
board.
THE INTRODUCTION OF THE COMMERCIAL PICKER
It was at about this time that the long efforts of the International
Harvester Co. to develop a commercially satisfactory picker came to
fruition. Under the direction of A. W. Scarratt and C. R. Hagen
the machine was radically redesigned to be mounted on a powerful
high-clearance tractor with higher picking units to accommodate rank
irrigated cotton. The tractor itself was operated backward to per-
mit the picking units to contact the plant before other parts of the
machine could knock the cotton from the bolls. The machine in-
corporated 600 tapered, slightly barbed spindles, and had a moisten-
ing device to aid in picking and dofling.
The enormous departure of labor from southern farms during the
war years led to increasing reports of labor shortages and for the first
time opened the way for serious consideration of labor-saving ma-
chinery in the cotton region. To meet the emergency, Fowler McCor-
mick, president of the International Harvester Co., announced in 1942
that his company regarded its cotton picker as practicable for use and
offered to begin production if materials allocations could be made.
Wartime priorities rendered this temporarily impossible, but the an-
nouncement spurred other manufacturers to get into the race to pro-
duce the first commercial cotton picker.”*
Deere and Co. acquired the Berry patents at this time, and the
Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Co. negotiated an agreement with
John Rust to construct machines incorporating his new designs on a
nonexclusive basis. In the confused postwar adjustment period, how-
ever, none of the companies was able to get into quantity production.
There was still considerable doubt that cotton growers were ready to
accept complicated, expensive machines to harvest their crop when
labor was drifting back to the farms. It was increasingly clear that
an important secondary bottleneck—the hand labor needed for weed-
7 Cotton harvester: International Harvester’s machine, Newsweek, vol. 20,
p. 68, December 7, 1942; Six-bale picker, Business Week, No. 748, pp. 69-70, 72,
November 27, 1943 ; Race for pickers, Business Week, No. 748, pp. 61-62, January
1, 1944.
426 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
ing and thinning—would also have to be eliminated before growers
could rely on a completely mechanized crop.
In the face of these uncertainties, the International Harvester Co.
under the leadership of R. P. Messenger, an executive vice president,
proceeded with the construction of a new plant in Memphis. In 1948
this plant turned out over 1,100 machines, priced at $7,600 when
mounted on a large model-M tractor. Professor Gilbert C. Fite com-
mented, “This is an astronomical sum for over half of the cotton
growers who produce less than four bales of cotton a year and farm
less than thirty acres of cropland.” 7
Nevertheless, a commercial market for the machines was developing
among the larger growers and custom operators. By 1952 the Inter-
national Harvester plant had produced more than 8,000 machines,
including both high- and low-drum models. In 1956 it added a new
2-row picker, also available in sizes suited to different growths of cot-
ton. In the meantime the Allis-Chalmers Co. acquired a new plant
at Gadsden, Ala., and turned out 1,200 pickers between 1949 and 1952.
These included a 2-row machine and a small single-unit attachment
that was priced under $2,500 (exclusive of tractor) to bring it within
the reach of a greatly increased number of users.
During the same period Deere and Co. produced about 750 1- and
2-row pickers, and a new entrant to the field, Ben Pearson, Inc., at
Pine Bluff, Ark., built 1,500 1- and 2-row machines based on Rust
patents. In addition, this company is now constructing picking at-
tachments which are mounted on the respective tractors of the J. I.
Case Co. and Massey-Harris-Ferguson, Inc., and the assembled ma-
chines are being marketed by those companies. Versions of Rust
cotton pickers are thus being sold by four companies. Until his death
in 1954 John Rust continued to make improvements in his invention,
and he was at last able to realize his goal of an educational and charita-
ble foundation financed by patent royalties.
The growing acceptance of the cotton harvester as a successful farm
tool, although it has not yet been widely adopted in some portions
of the Cotton Belt, is clearly indicated in table 1. It is estimated
that over 18,000 spindle pickers and 23,000 strippers were available
for the 1955-56 harvest, most of them concentrated in the western
cotton States and the Mississippi Valley. In other areas the pre-
dominantly small farms, broken terrain, and relative abundance of
hand labor still pose obstacles, but research is under way to adapt the
machines for more effective use under such conditions.
* Fite, Gilbert C., Recent progress in the mechanization of cotton production in
the United States, Agr. Hist., vol. 24, pp. 19-28, January 1950.
MECHANIZING THE COTTON HARVEST—STREET 427
The introduction of mechanical harvesting has been vastly facili-
tated by a large variety of complementary inventions and techniques
which have emerged in the past few years, and which have been pro-
moted by the National Cotton Council through its annual beltwide
mechanization conferences. The weeding and thinning problem is be-
ing met by the application of pre- and post-emergence chemical herbi-
cides, flame weeders, and newly designed mechanical choppers and
cultivators. Plant breeders are developing varieties suited to mechani-
cal harvesting. Chemical defoliants are used to remove the leaves
before harvest, and improved ginning machinery aids in preserving
clean, high-quality lint. Taken together, these advances constitute a
technological revolution, the profound consequences of which are only
beginning to be appreciated.
Reprints of the various articles in this Report may be obtained, as long
as the supply lasts, on request addressed to the Editorial and Publications
Division, Smithsonian Institution, Washington 25, D. C.
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Oh a biaseican ‘
Aniline Dyes—Their Impact on Biology
and Medicine’
By Morris C, LEIkIND
Medical Historian and Archivist
Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
Tum year 1956 marked a centennial significant not only in the his-
tory of chemistry and chemical technology, but in the history of
biology and medicine as well. It was just 100 years ago that an
English schoolboy, aged 18, made the first aniline dye.
The repercussions of this discovery were felt in the fields of chem-
istry and chemical technology, in the textile industry and in fashion
salons, and also in agriculture, in coal mines, in banks and counting-
houses, in legislative halls, and in the foreign offices of governments.
Last but not least, the coal-tar dyes had an impact on biology and
medicine that was as unexpected as it was significant.
Before reviewing the influence of aniline dyes upon the growth and
development of the life sciences during the past hundred years, it
seems not only appropriate but even necessary to recall briefly the
life and work of William Henry Perkin. Although he has been dead
scarcely half a century, few among the present generation of biolo-
gists and medical men know who he was, and fewer of the many who
use biological stains and administer wonder drugs know anything of
the man who made them possible.
William Henry Perkin was born in London on March 12, 1838. He
was the youngest son of George Fowler Perkin, a builder and con-
tractor of moderate means. William’s education began in a private
school. His father wanted him to become an architect, a wish en-
couraged by the fact that the boy liked to draw and often copied
plans for his parent.
*Read at the Perkin Centennial, 1856-1956, commemorating the discovery of
aniline dyes, held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York City, during the
week of September 10, 1956. Sponsored by the American Association of Tex-
tile Chemists and Colorists.
429
430 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
However, shortly after his twelfth birthday, William found a friend
who showed him some chemical experiments and as a result he
acquired a keen interest in chemistry. He was fascinated by chemical
reactions and especially by the beautiful forms of crystals and de-
cided that if it were at all possible he would become a chemist. By
the time he was 18 he was accumulating bottles of chemicals and
performing experiments at home. Just about this time he was sent
to the City of London School, one of the very few schools in England
where science was taught. Even there, however, instruction in science
was informal, for it had no place in the regular curriculum. The edu-
cated man was marked by his knowledge of the classics rather than of
science and “stinks” was the name reserved for chemistry.
The man who taught science at this school was a Mr. Thomas Hall
who had been a pupil of the great chemist, August Wilhelm Hofmann.
Hall’s teaching of science was informal and was a sideline to his regu-
lar and full schedule of conventional classical subjects. Twice a week
during the dinner hour science instruction was more or less “sneaked
in,” and it was in this way that young Perkin obtained his first system-
atic knowledge of chemistry. His assiduity attracted the attention of
his teacher, who invited the boy to become his laboratory assistant.
William found chemistry so interesting that he skipped many meals in
order to have time for experiments. When he was 14 his instructor
suggested that he write to Michael Faraday, then lecturing at the
Royal Institution, for permission to attend the lectures. Faraday
graciously consented and sent a ticket that admitted the youth to the
Saturday afternoon sessions.
By this time Hall felt that his pupil was ready for more advanced
studies and urged him to enter the Royal College of Chemistry. The
boy’s father objected since he still wanted his son to become an archi-
tect and he could see no prospects for a decent living in chemistry.
In the course of several personal visits to the elder Perkin, Hall ob-
tained parental permission for the boy to choose his own career. Thus
at the age of 15 he enrolled for study under Hofmann, a student of
Liebig, who, during 20 years as director of the Royal College of
Chemistry, trained the leading British chemists of the Victorian Era.
William Crookes, of Crookes’ tube fame, was an assistant in the Col-
lege and he gave the new student his first task—that of studying
the reactions of metals. Perkin soon completed the ordinary course
of analysis but was not content to become a mere analyst. He wanted
to do research, and it was not long before he attracted the attention
of Hofmann himself who was then investigating the production of
organic bases from hydrocarbons by the reduction of nitroderivatives.
He gave Perkin the job of trying this method on anthracene. The
first problem was to extract this substance from coal-tar pitch, but
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 431
it ended in failure since, with laboratory quantities, the yield was
insignificant. Larger amounts of pure anthracene were finally ob-
tained from a tar distillery and Perkin tried to nitrate this. Again he
failed. As a matter of fact, it was 25 years before the problem was
finally solved. Nevertheless, Perkin did, without realizing it then,
produce anthraquinone by the action of nitric acid on anthracene.
Anthraquinone happens to be the parent substance of alizarin, the red
dyeing principle of madder, which Perkin later had a hand in
synthesizing.
Despite these failures, Perkin had now learned a great deal of
chemistry, and Hofmann made him his assistant. Hofmann was him-
self a most enthusiastic and stimulating teacher, and through him
Perkin was able to meet most of the scientific leaders of Britain and
the Continent when they visited the Royal College of Chemistry.
Thus by the age of 18 he already had a vast knowledge of contempo-
rary chemistry and a mature insight into its problems. Since Perkin’s
duties at the College left him little time for independent research he
fitted up a small laboratory at home where he could work evenings
and during vacation. It was there that he made his first great
discovery.
Hofmann, in the annual report of his laboratory for the year 1849,
had suggested that the time was ripe for an attempt to synthesize
quinine. This drug, it will be recalled, is the principal alkaloid of
cinchona, the bark of the cinchona tree, native to certain areas of
South America. It has long been used for the treatment of fevers,
especially of malaria. For centuries the drug was used simply in
the form of the powdered bark of the tree or as an extract or infusion.
Then in 1820 Pelletier and Caventou of France succeeded in isolating
quinine from the bark as an alkaloid in which form it gained an in-
creased popularity as a drug. At the same time chemists became
interested in synthesizing this compound, but without success. Never-
theless Professor Hofmann felt that the state of chemical knowledge
of the mid-nineteenth century justified another attempt at the synthesis
of quinine. In 1849 he wrote:
It is a remarkable fact that naphthalene, the beautiful hydrocarbon of which
immense quantities are annually produced in the manufacture of coal gas, when
subjected to a series of chemical processes may be converted into a crystalline
alkaloid. This substance, which has received the name of naphthilidine, con-
tains 20 equivalents of carbon, 9 equivalents of hydrogen and 1 equivalent of
nitrogen. Now if we take 20 equivalents of carbon, 11 equivalents of hydrogen,
1 equivalent of nitrogen and 2 equivalents of oxygen as the composition of
quinine, it will be obvious that naphthilidine, differing only by the elements of
2 equivalents of water, might pass into the former alkaloid simply by the assump-
tion of water. We cannot, of course, expect to induce the water to enter merely
by placing it in contact, but a happy experiment may attain this end, by the
discovery of an appropriate metamorphic process.
432 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
We know now, of course, that his reasoning was wrong, based as
it was upon an incomplete knowledge of chemical structure.
Nevertheless, it was this “happy experiment” which Perkin in his
eighteenth year attempted to perform in his home laboratory during
the Easter vacation of 1856. He began with toluidine, a coal-tar de-
rivative, which he treated with allyl-iodide, getting allyl-toluidine
which was converted into a salt and precipitated with potassium
dichromate. A dirty reddish-brown substance was the result, but it
was not quinine. This did not discourage Perkin. He found the
reaction interesting and he thought that a clue to the synthesis of
quinine might be found by using the same procedure on a simpler
base. He therefore chose aniline. He treated aniline sulfate with
potassium bichromate and now he got a black precipitate. But again,
it was not quinine.
At this point many investigators would have become discouraged
and quit. In fact, it is often stated, without much foundation in fact,
that Perkin did get discouraged and dumped his residue into the sink
whereupon a purple color appeared. This makes a good legend but is
not borne out by the facts. For Perkin did not throw his residue into
the sink. He decided to take a second look. He began to investigate
the nature of the precipitate, and what he found was most interesting.
When this black precipitate was purified and dried and then digested
with spirits of wine, it gave a brilliant purple solution. Then came
an act of genius. Perkin immersed a piece of silk in this colored solu-
tion and found that his aniline purple was a dye.
Perkin put the quinine problem aside and concentrated on a study
of the coloring matter. When he returned to the Royal College of
Chemistry he showed the new substance to one of his colleagues who
strongly urged him to patent it. But Perkin was hesitant. He
doubted the practical value of the dye because it appeared difficult
to make on a large scale. Nevertheless, he did send a sample of dyed
silk to a textile firm and received a most enthusiastic response, with
a reservation, of course, about price. The new coloring matter was
found to be not only attractive but also faster than any similar color
available. This latter quality was highly important to textile manu-
facturers. So fugitive were the contemporary purples that if a lady
put a violet ribbon on her hat in the morning she could never be sure
that it would retain its color till evening.
Encouraged by the reception of his first samples, Perkin continued
his pilot experiments, and by August 1856 he was sufficiently sure of
his results to obtain a patent. He now decided to leave the College
to become an industrial chemist. As he later wrote about this episode:
Although the results were not so encouraging as could be wished, I was per.
suaded of the importance of the colouring matter, and the result was that, in
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 433
October, I sought an interview with my old master Hofmann and told him of
the discovery of this dye, showing him patterns dyed with it, at the same time
saying that as I was going to undertake its manufacture, I was sorry that I
should have to leave the Royal College of Chemistry. At this he appeared
annoyed, and spoke in a very discouraging manner, making me feel that perhaps
I might be taking a false step which might ruin my future prospects.
But this youngster of 18 was not deterred. Although he antago-
nized his professor by deserting pure science for a commercial gamble,
he succeeded in persuading his own hard-headed father to invest his
life savings in this enterprise. His elder brother, who already had a
promising business as a builder, was also induced to join the firm.
In 1857 a small factory was started at Harrow and a new industry was
about to be born. The beginning was not easy. Besides purely
chemical problems which had to be solved, there were chemical engi-
neering problems as well. Much of the apparatus needed for large-
scale manufacture of dyes did not exist and had to be invented. Yet
within 6 months after the factory was opened, Perkin, not yet 20, was
selling aniline dyes. Within 2 years aniline purple was being made in
France where it gained the name “mauve,” and soon the color was so
fashionable it was made the subject of music-hall jokes. (Punch
reported that a Frenchman who visited London returned and told his
friends that even the policemen there were ordering people to “get
a mauve on.”) When Queen Victoria wore a silk dress dyed with
aniline purple, the rage for mauve was really on. In 1859, the
French paid tribute to the importance of this discovery by awarding
a medal to Perkin. It was the first of many similar honors paid to
him. Within a relatively few years he was manufacturing eight coal-
tar colors, seven of them by processes originating in his own works.
These included mauve, Britannia violet, Perkin’s green, and alizarin,
all of which were made on a large scale. Alizarin, which Perkin de-
veloped independently of Graebe and Liebermann in 1869 (the Ger-
mans beat Perkin to the patent office by one day), was of the greatest
economic importance. Natural alizarin, or turkey red, was an ancient
dyestuff obtained from the fleshy part of the root of the madder plant
(Rubia tinctorum and R. perigrina). It was known to the ancient
Egyptians, and it has been identified as one of the dyes used to color
some of the robes worn by King Tut. It was introduced into England
in the eighteenth century by way of India, the Levant, and France.
The demand for this coloring matter was great and thousands of
acres were devoted to raising the plants from which the dye was
produced. Madder, incidentally, was one of the earliest dyes used in
microscopy, as we shall see shortly. Then in one fell chemical stroke
an immense agricultural industry was wiped out. Within a very few
years after the synthesis of alizarin, some 400,000 acres in France and
434 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
elsewhere, which had been producing the madder plant, had been con-
verted to the growing of food crops. A few years later the synthesis
of indigo forced the elimination of another agricultural product.
By 1874 Perkin felt that he had had enough of chemical technology.
He therefore sold out his interests for about 100,000 pounds and re-
tired to devote himself to pure research. His later work included
the synthesis of coumarin, an odoriferous substance with the smell of
new-mown hay. With this discovery he laid the basis for the syn-
thetic perfume industry. He also studied the formation of unsat-
urated fatty acids and did considerable fundamental work on the sub-
ject of magnetic rotation.
Perkin married twice and had three sons and four daughters. The
sons all became chemists, and the eldest, William Henry Perkin, Jr.,
became one of England’s greatest organic chemists. The elder Perkin
received many honors during his lifetime. He was elected a Fellow
of the Royal Society in 1866, named a Royal Medallist in 1879, and
was awarded the Davy Medal in 1889. In 1906 the Jubilee of the Dis-
covery of Mauve was celebrated in both England and America. In
1907, shortly before his death, Perkin was knighted by his king.
We turn now to a consideration of the effect of the discovery of
aniline dyes on biology and medicine. This is in fact one of the most
instructive episodes in the history of science, since it illustrates so
beautifully the unexpected way in which a discovery in one field of
science may profoundly influence developments in other areas. In
1856 when the first aniline dyes were made no one could have antici-
pated that within a few years a whole family of coloring agents de-
rived from coal tar would be of assistance in solving many funda-
mental problems in cellular biology and pathology and would play a
major role in the discovery of the causes and cures of many infectious
diseases.
To appreciate the full significance of the discovery of aniline dyes
on the biological and medical sciences let us glance quickly at the
status of knowledge in these subjects a century or more ago.
The way in which aniline dyes exerted their influence on biology
and medicine was first of all as an aid to the microscope. ‘These dyes
were discovered at a moment when they could be effectively used to
help solve certain important problems for biologists and medical men.
To appreciate this it will be useful to recapitulate very briefly a few
facts about the history of the microscope and microscopy. Several
periods may be distinguished. Although the microscope was in-
vented sometime between 1590 and 1608 (the exact date is uncertain)
little important scientific work was done with it at first. The first
important phase from 1660-1723 was the time of the “Classical Mi-
croscopists.” These included Marcello Malpighi, who discovered the
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 435
capillaries and was a pioneer in the study of the microscopic anatomy
of plants and animals; Robert Hooke, who first described compart-
ments in cork which he called cells, thus introducing this word into
the language of biology. Hooke also published the first serious sci-
entific monograph on microscopy. Another of these early workers
was Jan Swammerdam, who performed incredible dissections of
insects under the microscope and devised the techniques of micro-
injection and micromanipulation. Perhaps the greatest of the classi-
cal microscopists was Antony van Leeuwenhoek, who first saw bac-
teria and protozoa, saw the blood pass through the capillaries from
arteries to veins, described spermatozoa, and was also the first to use
a coloring agent to stain tissue for observation under the microscope.
From the time of the death of Leeuwenhoek in 1723 to about 1830
advances in microscopy were sluggish. One reason was that micro-
scopes were so crude and their lenses so poor that few persons were
willing to take the trouble to use them. The principal defect in the
lenses was chromatic aberration. By 1830, however, crown and flint
glass was available, and this glass made possible the development of
lenses, especially in combinations, in which chromatic aberration was
eliminated. With the aid of achromatic lenses new advances were
made. The microscopic structure of plants and animals began to be
better undestrood, and in 1839 Schleiden and Schwann summarized
the observations of many workers and announced the cell theory. His-
tology, cytology, and embryology began to emerge as sciences. Nev-
ertheless, for technological reasons, progress was again limited. Most
of this early work was done with the use of low-powered lenses and
weak illumination and without the use of stains. Thus it was that in
the middle of the nineteenth century, Ferdinand Cohn, professor of
botany in Breslau, wrote:
As long as the makers of microscopes do not place at our disposal much
higher powers, and, as far as possible, without immersion, we will find ourselves
. . . in the situation of the traveller who wanders in an unknown country at the
hour of twilight at the moment when the light of day no longer suffices to
enable him clearly to distinguish objects, and when he is conscious that, not-
withstanding all his precautions he is liable to lose his way.
Cohn’s complaint was soon to be answered. The production of the
substage condenser and the development of homogeneous immersion
lenses (unavailable in Cohn’s day) led to the tremendous improve-
ment in the illumination of objects observed under the microscope.
Simultaneously staining techniques were introduced, and they soon
became indispensable in biological and medical research and in medi-
cal diagnosis.
The early history of biological staining is, as a matter of fact, still
quite confused, and it is foolhardy for anyone at present to give more
436 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
than a tentative priority to any one individual because the prospects
are still good that a diligent searcher may at any time unearth an
obscure reference showing that someone else has antedated one’s
own “first.”
If one investigates the early history of the subject, he can see this
for himself. For a long time it was believed that Joseph von Gerlach
introduced the use of stains in microscopic work in 1858. Then it
was shown that Goeppert and Cohn (1849) had preceded him. They
had, in fact, been antedated by Ehrenberg in 1838. Preceding all of
them was the Englishman Sir John Hill, who as early as 1770 had
used dyes, especially extract of logwood, to study the microscopic
structure of timber. Actually, however, as mentioned earlier, it was
Antony van Leeuwenhoek who was apparently the first to record the
use of a dye as an aid to microscopic observation. He was attempt-
ing to study the difference between the muscle fibers of a fat cow and
a lean one. To improve the visibility of the material under his
lenses, he soaked some fibers in saffron, a yellow dye obtained from
the crocus plant. Leeuwenhoek failed to follow up his observations,
or to perfect his technique, and so it was almost two centuries before
systematic efforts were made to use dyes or coloring matter as an aid
to microscopic observation.
But if Joseph von Gerlach was not the undoubted originator of
staining, he certainly was its most articulate promoter, and for this
he definitely deserves credit. Gerlach (1820-96) was professor of
physiology and then of anatomy at the University of Erlangen during
most of his active life. He was a keen student of microscopic anatomy
and contributed much to the development of microscopic technique.
One of his greatest contributions was the discovery, independently,
and partly by accident, of the staining properties of carmine, a dye
obtained from the cochineal insect. He had been trying unsuccess-
fully to use this dye as a stain when on one occasion he inadvertently
left a section of brain in a dilute solution overnight. In the morning
he found a beautifully stained specimen. His previous failure had
obviously been due to the use of a highly concentrated solution. He at
once recognized the significance of this observation and proceeded to
develop its technical consequences. Not only that, but he so enthusi-
astically promoted its use among his colleagues and students that
despite the earlier use of carmine by others Gerlach’s name was associ-
ated with the beginning of staining techniques in biology.
Tt was at this most opportune time that William Perkin made his
epochal discovery of aniline dyes. As soon as the dyes were com-
mercially available, it was almost inevitable that someone would try
them out on a microscopic preparation. This happened in 1862 when
Beneke of Marburg, about whom little is known, employed acetic acid
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 437
colored with lilac aniline. It is not certain just what dye this was in
modern terminology, but it is believed to have been the same as aniline
violet, aniline purple, or mauve discovered by Perkin. Beneke’s an-
nouncement was made in the form of an untitled letter to the editor of a
small journal and it is difficult to assess its influence. Im 1863 W.
Waldeyer, also a German, began to use aniline dyes for anatomical
studies. He used such stains as aniline red, Paris blue, and aniline
violet. Soon other workers were experimenting with the new dyes.
In the United States the first worker to use aniline dyes for the
staining of pathological tissues was Joseph Janvier Woodward
(1883-84), a surgeon and brevet lieutenant colonel in the United States
Army. Practically all who have written on the history of stains and
staining have overlooked Woodward’s contribution. He was an assist-
ant curator of the newly established Army Medical Museum in Wash-
ington, D. C., when he did his histological work. In 1864 he wrote
a letter to Rudolph Virchow in Berlin, the draft of which still exists
in the Medical Museum Archives, and it contains the following
passage:
Have you been able to retain with any permanency the color of your carmine
preparations? Have you used aniline or any of its derivatives for coloring
microscopical specimens, or are you acquainted with any coloring material
preferable to either?
Regrettably, Virchow’s reply, if he ever answered, has not been
found. During the following year, however, Woodward published a
note in the American Journal of the Medical Sciences (vol. 49, pp.
106-113), under the title: “On the use of aniline in histological re-
searches, with a method of investigating the histology of the human
intestine, and remarks on some of the points to be observed in the
study of the diseased intestine in camp fevers and diarrheas.”
He began his paper with these words:
Since July 1864 I have made considerable use of aniline colors in my histo-
logical studies and they have been extensively employed in the investigations
carried on under my direction for the microscopical Department of the Army
Medical Museum. As the use of these colors for the purpose of staining certain
parts of tissues and thus rendering them more visible appears to be unknown
in this country and, so far as I can learn from the journals accessible to me, is
imperfectly understood abroad, I have thought it advisable to make public the
method of using them employed in the laboratory under my direction.
Woodward’s first samples of dye were obtained from a Dr. Genth
of Philadelphia. He used fuchsin, a reddish dye, and a blue one
labeled Bleu de Lyon. He was the first American to employ aniline
dyes in histological work and was probably the first anywhere to use
them in pathological studies. His efforts unfortunately had little
influence on the development of staining techniques in this country.
438 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
There were very few microscopes in America, and microscopists were
even scarcer. Thus the principal advances were made in Germany
where the dye industry was being developed at a rapid pace and where
research, both academically and industrially, had already progressed
from amateur to professional status.
A technical development of considerable importance came in 1869
when Boettcher and, later, Fleming (both of Germany) in 1875 devel-
oped the principle of alcoholic differentiation. By overstaining and
then removing the excess dye with alcohol it was found possible to
control with great accuracy the end result. It was this method of
differentiation which led Fleming to develop some years later his
famous triple stain. The method of producing double and triple
staining effects had very important consequences in another direction
to which we shall come in a moment when we consider the work of
Paul Ehrlich.
In the field of biology the advent of the new dyes made possible new
knowledge concerning the internal structure of cells and a better
understanding of the phenomena of cell division. The stains provided
the roots for such fundamental terms in cytology as chromatin and
chromosomes, referring to the ability of these structures to take
up dyes.
In pathology the new stains helped to improve diagnostic techniques
and were invaluable tools in the solution of many problems. Thus in
1869 Julius Cohnheim of Breslau began his classical studies of in-
flammation, the nature of which was scarcely understood. Even
Virchow had misconstrued the process since he argued that inflamma-
tion was a local cellular response manifested by cells at the site of
injury. However, there were some who believed that other cells,
especially white corpuscles of the blood, were also involved. In a
brilliant series of experiments Cohnheim showed that this was so by
tagging leucocytes with aniline blue and then following their course
to the seat of an inflammatory process.
But useful as the aniline dyes were to pathology in increasing our
understanding of the seats of diseases, they played an even more signifi-
cant role in revealing the causes of infections and parasitic diseases and
even in their cure.
One of the most important applications of the new dyes was in the
field of bacteriology, then in the process of becoming a science. It will
be recalled that Leeuwenhoek had first seen bacteria in 1676. He did
not, however, associate these minute organisms with infectious dis-
eases. Indeed it was 200 years after bacteria were first seen before
their role in the etiology of disease was conclusively proved. There
were, of course, many reasons for the delay. The solution of the prob-
lem had to wait upon improvements in the microscope, improvements
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 439
in observing techniques, and above all on the invention of methods for
handling bacteria and growing them in pure culture. Practically all
the early observations were made upon free-living forms as found in
nature. Their role in such natural phenomena as fermentation and
putrefaction was not understood at all; most workers, in fact, regarded
microbes as the result of these reactions rather than the cause. These
ideas implied a belief in the theory of spontaneous generation. Thus,
before any real progress could be made in understanding the role of
bacteria in the economy of nature, this theory had to be disproved.
The story of the battle over abiogenesis is too long to recount at this
time. Through the labors of many workers, especially Louis Pasteur
and John Tyndall, it was finally shown beyond the shadow of a doubt
that bacteria are not generated in fermenting or putrefying materials
but in fact are the causes of these reactions. It was demonstrated that
if proper precautions were taken to keep microbes out of such things as
milk, urine, blood, grape juice, flesh, etc., no fermentation or putrefac-
tion occurred. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that specific reac-
tions were associated with the presence of specific micro-organisms.
Now the way was cleared for an attack on one of the oldest of human
problems, the cause and prevention of infectious diseases. From time
immemorial men had lived in helpless dread of plagues and epidemics.
They were attributed to evil spirits, the wrath of God, or to such
assumed natural causes aS miasmas or noxious emanations from
swampy or low-lying areas, or climatic conditions. Thus the name
“malaria” (literally bad air) is a verbal fossil surviving from the days
of miasmatic thinking. But from time to time some bold thinkers
put forth the notion that invisible living agents might cause infectious
diseases. After the discovery of bacteria, the number of these specula-
tions increased. But no one came forth with any proof. In 1840,
Jacob Henle, a German pathologist, published a small monograph in
which he examined this question. He argued that the time was ripe
for an experimental attack on the problem of infectious disease and
pointed out that there was some very suggestive evidence indicating
that microbes might in fact be the causative agents. Henle drew up
a set of postulates or principles which would have to be satisfied in
such a demonstration. First of all it would have to be shown that a
specific organism was invariably associated with a specific disease.
Second, it should be possible to separate the specific organism from the
diseased body and grow it in pure culture. Third, it would have to
be possible to produce the disease in susceptible animals by infecting
them with this organism and then reisolating it. Twenty-five years
later, Henle’s brilliant pupil, Robert Koch, working in a home labora-
tory with homemade equipment, demonstrated the validity of these
criteria (hence generally known as Koch’s postulates) in anthrax, a
451800—b8——29
440 § ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
disease of cattle. He saw the germs of the disease in the blood of
infected cattle. He was able to grow these germs outside the animal
body for several generations in culture media which he devised; and
when he reintroduced these germs into susceptible mice they promptly
became ill and died of anthrax infection.
While Koch was carrying on these investigations, another worker,
Carl Weigert, was working along a line that converged on Koch’s
problem. Weigert as a pathologist was concerned with methods of
recognizing cellular elements under the microscope. He knew about
the new dyes that were appearing from the great chemical factories
in Germany. He was also aware of one of the cardinal problems in
the infant science of bacteriology. This was the question of recogniz-
ing the presence of bacteria in tissues. In the unstained state they
were almost impossible to distinguish from other cellular structures.
Weigert tested a number of dyes, and in 1875 he was successful in
demonstrating cocci in tissues by the use of methyl] violet, a coal-tar
stain. In 1877 he successfully stained anthrax bacilli in various
organs of a dog using methyl violet, Bismarck brown, and other
aniline colors. These results helped enormously in convincing skep-
tics that there might be something to the germ theory of disease.
Robert Koch now began to perfect methods for handling and
observing bacteria, techniques without which bacteriology could not
emerge as a science. He developed the solid-culture method for
isolating and growing pure cultures of bacteria. Then he devised a
simple method for staining bacteria outside the body tissues. In the
living state, especially while in motion, microbes were almost im-
possible to resolve and identify under the microscope. This fact
made accurate diagnosis practically hopeless, and study extremely
difficult. Koch solved the problem by making very thin smears or
films of bacteria from cultures, body fluids, or exudates on glass
slides or cover slips. These films were fixed by gentle heat or air
drying and were then stained. The organisms now stood out sharp
and clear in a microscopic field without distortion or alteration of
size. Koch found that of all dyes the aniline colors were best suited
to bacteriological work. He further found that such stained prep-
arations could easily be photographed. From his photographs,
Koch was able to confirm the existence of flagellae in bacteria, struc-
tures about which a controversy had been raging between those who
claimed they saw them and those who said they were imaginary.
Within a span of about two decades, often called the golden age of
bacteriology (1875-95), with the aid of pure culture techniques and
staining methods devised by Koch and his school, the causative
agents of many of the most important diseases afflicting man and
animals were identified. ‘These included the tubercle bacillus and
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 441
the germs of leprosy (now called Hansen’s disease), cholera, typhoid
fever, puerperal fever, pneumonia, glanders, diphtheria, brucellosis,
malaria, tetanus, and others.
The discovery of bacterial and parasitic causes of disease led at
once to attempts at prevention and cure. In the field of surgery
Joseph Lister worked out the principles of antisepsis, later modified
to asepsis. These were primarily techniques for keeping bacteria
away from a surgical operative field by the use of antiseptics and
sterilized instruments and dressings. Thus the horrors of wound
infection were removed from the operating room and hospital wards.
In this field also, coal-tar derivatives played a most important role
in serving as a source for antiseptic agents for wound dressings and
as a sterilizing medium for instruments.
But the real impact of aniline dyes in the field of therapeutics was
made by the work of Paul Ehrlich, who was born in eastern Germany
in 1854, just two years before Perkin made the first coal-tar dye.
Like Perkin, Ehrlich was also a very young man when he made his
first notable scientific contribution. While still a medical student he
began to study the effect of dyes on tissues. Stimulated by the work
of his teacher Julius Cohnheim and his cousin Carl Weigert, Ehrlich
became interested in the chemistry of dyes and the relation of chemi-
cal structure to specific actions on cells. The coal-tar dyes very
quickly attracted his attention, and he was the first to recognize the
biological difference between acid and basic dyes. This led him
during the years 1877 to 1880 to his epochmaking studies on blood in
which he differentiated several varieties of white blood corpuscles
by means of their responses to stains. These included basophiles,
eosinophiles, neutrophiles, lymphocytes, and monocytes. He was the
first to recognize stippling in red blood cells and described the earliest
known case of aplastic anemia. Shortly after leaving medical school,
Ehrlich was invited by Robert Koch to work in his laboratory in the
Imperial Health Office in Berlin. He arrived there about the time
that Koch was carrying on his classic researches into the cause of
tuberculosis. On the day after Koch announced his discovery of
the tubercle bacillus, Ehrlich devised an improved method of stain-
ing the organism with aniline dyes. Ehrlich’s method is still used in
every diagnostic laboratory, although it is known to generations of
technicians as the Ziehl-Nielson stain because of two minor technical
modifications introduced by these workers. Ehrlich also worked out
the rationale of the polychromatic staining methods which have since
become so popular and useful. There are numerous modifications
among which may be mentioned Unna’s polychrome methylene blue,
Mallory’s aniline blue connective tissue stain, Romanowsky’s eosin
methylene blue stain for use on blood smears and for the diagnosis
442 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
of malaria. Variants of these stains are known by the names of
Leishman, Giemsa, Wright, Hastings, and others.
Shortly after coming to Berlin, Ehrlich contracted tuberculosis and
went to Egypt to recuperate. After 2 years, the disease arrested, he
returned to Germany and began work on the standardization of
antitoxic sera, especially those against diphtheria and tetanus. His
studies, although directed toward a very practical purpose, produced
results of the highest theoretical significance, since they led him to
evolve his famous side-chain theory of immunity. It would lead us
too far afield to discuss this here, but it should be mentioned that the
basic concept was derived by Ehrlich from his work on the specificity
of staining reactions. From the very beginning of his investigations,
he had been obsessed with the idea that the basis of staining reactions
was the ability of specific cells or parts of cells to fix or have an affinity
for specific stains. He generalized this idea in his motto “Corpora
non agunt nisi fixata’”—bodies do not react unless they are fixed—
and from this Ehrlich derived his idea for a search for a “magic
bullet” or drug effective against the specific agent of specific diseases.
The “magic bullet” was no mere whimsey or figure of speech. It
derives from an ancient theme in Germanic folklore and in fact
provides the motif in von Weber’s opera, Der Freischiitz.
With this notion, Ehrlich created the modern science of chemo-
therapy. He began from the observation that methylene blue seemed
to have a special affinity for nerve cells. He was curious about the
reason for the unique specificity. He therefore suggested to chemists,
notably Caro of the Badische Analin and Sodafabrik, that certain
modifications of the dye be prepared which might provide a clue to
its selective action on nervous tissue. In the course of these investi-
gations a new coal-tar intermediate was discovered which provided
the basis for synthesizing a whole new series of commercially im-
portant dyes, the rhodamine series. Here we have an example of
how a purely biological research proved useful to industry and
commerce. In the meantime Ehrlich had discovered that methylene
blue was a very effective stain for malaria parasites. This was in
1891 and it led to some trials on patients. The results were not too
promising but were not completely negative since they pointed the
way later to the synthesis of some really effective antimalarial drugs.
Ehrlich next attempted to find a drug effective against trypanosomes,
one type of which causes African sleeping sickness. The first result
was the synthesis of a tetrazo dye, trypan red. This was found to be
effective against Trypanosoma equinum, the causative agent of mal
de caderas, a disease of horses. Trypan red worked in mice infected
with this organism and was the first example of a specific drug syn-
thesized to be effective against an experimental infectious disease.
ANILINE DYES—LEIKIND 443
Shortly thereafter two French workers, Mesnil and Nicolle, made
up two additional dyes of the same series, trypan blue and afridol
violet. The trypan blue was found to be effective against a try-
panosome disease of cattle. But the carcasses of cows so treated en-
countered sales resistance in the butcher shop. Bright blue meat
did not attract customers. A search was therefore started for a
colorless trypanocide. The Bayer Company, after synthesizing and
testing several thousand compounds, finally developed Bayer 205 or
Germanin, which was found to be very effective against African
sleeping sickness—so effective, in fact, that the Germans, after World
War I, offered to release the formula only in return for their last
African colonial empire. Britain refused and shortly thereafter
Fourneau of the Pasteur Institute in Paris successfully synthesized
the drug.
Ehrlich meanwhile pressed forward with his own researches. In
1906 he was made the head of a privately endowed laboratory in Frank-
furt, the George Speyer Haus, devoted exclusively to chemotherapeutic
research. As early as 1902 Ehrlich had begun to study certain ar-
senic-containing compounds related to atoxyl. This was the first
organic arsenical tried in trypanosomiasis. It was named atoxyl be-
cause at first it was thought to be nontoxic to the host. This proved
not to beso. Ehrlich and his chemists attempted to modify the mole-
cule so as to enhance its effect on the parasite while decreasing the
toxicity for the host. One byproduct of this work was the production
ofacriflavin. This chemical, while not effective against trypanosomes,
was found to have value as a wound disinfectant. In 1905 Schaudinn
and Hoffmann discovered the cause of syphilis and at once Ehrlich
began a hunt for a compound effective against the spirochete. Once
again he tried modifications of arsenic compounds in the form of a
radical hooked onto a dye molecule. In 1909, after testing com-
pound 606 in his series, he, together with his assistant Hata of Japan,
announced the discovery of salvarsan or arsphenamine as a cure for
syphilis. It was Ehrlich’s greatest triumph. Among many honors
showered upon him was the Nobel Prize.
Ehrlich now became interested in the possibility of finding a cure for
cancer. It was his last major investigation before he died in 1915.
That he failed is not to his discredit since no one else has yet dis-
covered a cure for this disorder. Yet if and when such a cure is found
one may predict that it will probably be discovered along the road
and by the methods so successfully charted by Paul Ehrlich.
The high hopes raised by Ehrlich’s brilliant chemotherapeutic suc-
cesses were not sustained after his death. For, while a number of
compounds had been found which were useful in the treatment of
protozoal and spirochetal diseases, no really effective magic bullets
had been found against bacterial infections.
444 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
The outbreak of World War I led to a renewed search for new and
better antiseptics to combat wound infections. Once again aniline
dyes proved useful. It had already been observed that certain of these
dyes, when incorporated into media for growing bacteria, had the
ability to suppress the growth of some germs while permitting others
to develop. This was a useful diagonostic tool in isolating certain
bacteria from mixtures. Now it was found that some of the germs
against which the dyes exerted a selective bacteriostatic action were
common causes of wound infection. Gentian violet, brilliant green,
and other members of the triphenylmethane series were found to be
especially effective. Thus, during the war gentian violet was used
with considerable success at the Walter Reed Hospital in Washington
for the treatment of diphtheritic infections of amputation stumps.
Another antiseptic of considerable value developed during this period
and stemming directly from Ehrlich’s own studies was neutral acri-
flavine. Mercurochrome and related substances are familiar to all.
Yet despite a concerted effort in numerous laboratories all over the
world, little practical progress was made in finding chemotherapeutic
agents effective in the patient’s body against such organisms as the
pneumococcus, streptococcus, the enteric organisms. The _ break-
through came in 1932-85, when Gerhard Domagk of Germany discov-
ered the first of the sulfa drugs of which literally hundreds have been
synthesized. Again these find their chemical basis in coal-tar dyes.
The subsequent discovery of the antibiotics is outside the scope of this
story. However, to make this account complete and, in fact, to return
to the starting point, as it were, I must mention the search for anti-
malarial drugs. It will be recalled that Perkin discovered aniline
dyes by accident while attempting to synthesize quinine. With the
increase in chemical knowledge, others took up the problem where
Perkin left it and this time with more success. Between World Wars
J and IJ a series of potent antimalarial drugs such as atabrine, plas-
mochine, paludrine and others were prepared. These were found
to be especially effective during the Second World War when supplies
of natural quinine were cut off. Then in 1944, quinine itself was
synthesized by Woodward and Doering of Harvard. How Perkin
would have rejoiced at this feat, for a feat it was. But synthetic
quinine, while representing a scientific triumph, is not a practical drug
since it is too expensive for commercial use.
In summary, we have seen how the aniline dyes discovered by Wil-
liam Henry Perkin came at a most fortuitous moment in the history
of medicine and biology. In retrospect, it is even possible to question
whether medicine and biology as we know them today could have
reached their present position had they not traveled the rainbow road
that poured out of Perkin’s test tubes and tar buckets.
Causes and Consequences of Salt
Consumption ’
By Hans Kaunitz
Department of Pathology, Columbia University
Tur appitTion of salt (sodium chloride) to our food has been curi-
ously taken for granted, although there seems to be little physiological
evidence as to whether we are benefited by this habit. Ever since his-
torical records have been kept, salt has played an amazingly important
part in the lives of men. Wars have been fought over its sources, and
for centuries its trade was more important than that of any other
material, as can be seen from the word “salary.” Homer called it
“divine,” and it has played an important part in many religious cults,
in folklore and superstitions.
Although there was certainly a great deal of deep wisdom connected
with the use of salt in ancient rites, it scarcely seems possible at present
to appreciate the meaning of the old cults because we have as yet
been unable to free ourselves from many prejudices connected with
its use. In our own time, the sharpness of the discussions as to the
advisability of salting one’s food may still be a reflection of this tra-
dition, which also makes it understandable that the discussions are so
frequently carried on by faddists rather than nutritionists.
For these reasons and because the physician is so frequently ap-
proached with the question of whether one should use salt, an unprej-
udiced discussion of this subject seemed desirable. It should be stated,
however, that undeniable facts, which should form the basis of this
discussion, are indeed scarce. One is forced to be guided all too often
by biological innuendoes and vague clinical impressions; thus the
conclusions here set forth should be taken with more than a “grain
of salt.”
It seems particularly timely to give consideration to the problem of
the action of sodium and potassium salts from a point of view other
than their conventionally accepted role as regulators of osmotic pres-
1 Reprinted by permission from Nature, vol. 178, pp. 1141-1144, Nov. 24, 1956.
Bibliography omitted.
445
446 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
sure because, in the present era, of cell physiology, the conclusion is
inescapable that inorganic materials play an important part in hor-
monal and enzymatic processes. Therefore, it seems not inappropriate
to discuss the role of sodium and potassium salts from this point of
view, although at this time the considerations are largely of a specula-
tive character.
Theories which lay the groundwork for our own concepts were
gradually developed about 150 years ago. In a book which reveals a
remarkably modern outlook, Lehmann, in 1853, came to the conclusion
that the adding of salt to natural foodstuffs is unnecessary for man.
This view seemed to be supported by the fact that most animals, in
freedom and in captivity, do well on natural foodstuffs without addi-
tion of salt. Although some species (for example, cattle, deer, etc.)
consume salt eagerly when they are offered the substance or when they
encounter it in salt licks, there is no proof that they need it for a
healthy life.
Later, however, von Bunge formulated his famous hypothesis that
extra dietary salt is needed by populations consuming predominantly
vegetable products. The excess salt was presumed to be necessary for
the more effective excretion of potassium. Bunge arrived at this con-
clusion on the basis of anthropological studies which he thought indi-
cated that nomadic societies mainly subsisting on meats do not add
salt to their food, whereas, once agriculture is developed, salting
becomes necessary. He linked this with his observation that the intake
of salt is accompanied by the rapid onset of potassium excretion. How-
ever, he emphasized that the large amounts of salt usually consumed are
out of proportion to what he thought are biological needs. Osborne
and Mendel later showed that salt requirements for growth of experi-
mental animals are indeed low; their animals were able to live on
traces of salt. Thus, one might have expected that this theory could
never have achieved major importance; but, curiously enough, this
has not been the case, and it is still cited without further discussion by
current textbooks of nutrition and anthropology.
Objections to the theory should by now be all too obvious. So far
as the increased potassium excretion after salt intake is concerned,
such a reaction occurs unspecifically with many injuries and diseases.
Bunge himself never offered any proof that the increased potassium
excretion is biologically of advantage, although he implied it. Now
we might be inclined to the opinion that these potassium losses are
disadvantageous.
As for Bunge’s anthropological data, he brushed away the objection
that some African tribes mainly subsisting on a vegetarian diet use
potassium-rich plant ashes rather than salt as a condiment. Even at
the present time there exist a considerable number of societies which do
SALT CONSUMPTION—KAUNITZ 447
not add salt to their food. Important in this respect are studies by
Kroeber of the food habits of Indians of the northwest Pacific. In
the southern half of the area studied, salt was used, but not in the
northern half. There was no predominance of plant or animal food
in either region.
I have been given recent and direct anthropological evidence dealing
with this question by various workers in this field.?_ I have learned
of studies of places as distant as Melville Island in Australia, the
Kalahari Desert in South Africa, and Tierra del Fuego which lead
to the conclusion that the use or non-use of salt by various tribes is
irrespective of the amount of agricultural products they consume.
The observation is probably of deep significance that the Siriono
Indians of eastern Bolivia, a hunting people, were ignorant of salt
until it was introduced to them by an anthropologist. At first, they
found it distasteful, but they later developed a craving for it. This
indicates that, once some people are exposed to salt, they cling to its
use stubbornly—as do so many of us to the consumption of alcohol,
coffee, nicotine, etc.
When carefully weighing the available evidence, one cannot escape
the conclusion that normal metabolic processes are possible without
the adding of salt to natural foodstuffs. Why then do we eat salt ?
Merely to answer that certain societies like its taste whereas others
do not would be trite and superficial. It seems to me that salt intake
is probably correlated with emotional stimulation, a fact perhaps more
keenly appreciated in the superstitions of the ancients than in our
own rational approach. In view of the fact that this stimulation
may be consciously or unconsciously pleasurable, it may be a causal
factor in the craving for salt.
When we now try to deal with the possible consequences of adding
salt to the diet, it must be emphasized that the nutritional essentiality
of salt for humans has been firmly established. Only the quantity
necessary is much in doubt. For a better understanding of this sub-
ject, it seems advisable to review briefly the main trends in studies
dealing with the biological effects of sodium chloride.
One involves investigations of its distribution in the organs and
the excretion of salt in health and disease. Others deal with the
peculiar antagonism of sodium and potassium in living organisms.
An important subject of investigation is concerned with why salt is
an essential ingredient of any living cell; and another trend centers
?I wish to express my gratitude for the invaluable information given to me by
Miss Jane C. Goodale, of the University Museum of the University of Pennsyl-
vania, Drs. S. K. Lothrop, Hallam L. Movius, Jr., and John Marshall, of the
Peabody Museum of Harvard University, and Dr. Harry Tschopik, Jr., of the
American Museum of Natural History.
448 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
around the regulatory mechanisms, especially of the higher animals,
developed for the maintenance of an optimum distribution in the body.
The high potassium content of the parenchymatous cells as opposed
to the higher sodium chloride content of the blood serum has been
recognized at least since von Liebig’s time. Soon thereafter, many
studies were conducted which gradually led to the recognition that,
in disease, the low sodium chloride content of the cell increases while
the potassium level decreases. Speculation as to how the body can
maintain the high concentration gradients within the distance of a
few microns between the surface of the cell and the blood plasma origi-
nally involved the idea of the specific permeability of cell membranes.
It was held that the cell membrane is specifically permeable to potas-
sium salts and almost impermeable to sodium chloride under normal
conditions and that this is disturbed in disease.
Some investigators recognized the weaknesses of these hypotheses
at an early date. Keller, in particular, attacked the idea that the
separation of the minerals was due to the function of an “inert” mem-
brane rather than to the discriminatory power of the whole living
cell. He tried to replace this static view with his electrostatic theory,
the study of which is still rewarding even after 50 years. Neverthe-
less, the permeability theory was accepted by most biologists until
isotope studies proved that the cell membrane is equally permeable
to both potassium and sodium salts and that the low sodium chloride
content of the cell is due to its rapid expulsion from the cell. This
mechanism is now often referred to as the “sodium pump,” a term
which might well be improved. Although these studies prove that
the removal of sodium chloride from the cell is a dynamic process
the disturbance of which leads to the accumulation of sodium chlo-
ride within the cell, and although many modern physiologists have
demonstrated the weaknesses of the membrane theory, some investi-
gators are not as yet ready to give it up entirely.
The modern concept of competitive antagonisms within enzyme
systems, which gradually evolved from studies on minerals, has proved
a useful tool for the understanding of some functions of sodium and
potassium salts. In practically all biochemical and pharmacological
studies, it has been shown that sodium and potassum have opposite
functions. For example, potassium salts favor diuresis; sodium salts
do the opposite. Many more examples have been cited. Lately,
some evidence has been put forth that this antagonism is particularly
important in regard to the action of chloride, the biological effect of
which depends upon whether it is accompanied by sodium or
potassium. | }
In studies concerned with the question of why sodium chloride is
essential for the living cell, tenable ideas are sketchy. It seems im-
SALT CONSUMPTION—KAUNITZ 449
portant that a number of enzyme systems can only function if sodium
chloride is present at certain concentrations. In view of the fact
that we now believe that the life of the cell is maintained by enzymatic
processes, sodium chloride is an integral part of the cell.
These dynamic equilibria are encountered in any living organism.
In higher animals they are, to a considerable extent, under hormonal
control, and disturbances of the more basic processes become notice-
able if the hormonal control breaks down. Thus, one finds that in
many diseases the sodium-potassium ratio in the tissues is disturbed,
which probably interferes with metabolic processes bound to a con-
stant sodium-potassium ratio. It is quite probable that in diseases
which are of generalized character and are also accompanied by signs
of renal damage, excess dietary salt can enhance the disturbances of
the sodium-potassium ratio in the tissues and can thus contribute to
the occurrence of metabolic failure; but these conditions are by no
means clear, and the influence of dietary salt in health and disease
can be better appreciated from its effect on the hormonal mechanisms
than from its action on the basic processes.
The regulatory mechanisms of salt metabolism not only involve
incretory glands but also every major organ directly or indirectly.
One mechanism involving the central nervous system was discovered
by Claude Bernard, who demonstrated that injury to a certain part
of the medulla is followed by the excretion of large amounts of sodium
chloride. Although a great deal of thought has been given to the
central nervous regulation of mineral metabolism, neither its correla-
tion to other regulating mechanisms nor how it is affected by changes
in salt intake is clear.
Renal mechanisms in salt metabolism have received considerable at-
tention. In fact, the salty taste of urine attracted the curiosity of
people for a long time, and this was the reason for its medicinal use.
Despite the enormous amount of work done since then on the ex-
cretory mechanism of the kidney, there is little evidence as to
whether the dietary intake of salt eventually interferes with the
excretory power. From an evolutionary point of view, it is well to
remember that sodium chloride is a scarce material for most animals
and is constantly reabsorbed by the kidney. Excess salt intake forces
the kidney to excrete rather than to reabsorb it, which may “prove
too much for it” in the long run. Such a view is supported by the
rapid occurrence of histological changes in the kidneys of animals
on a high dietary salt intake.
The regulatory mechanism for sodium chloride metabolism at pres-
ent best understood rests in the adrenals. This function of the
adrenal cortex was educed in R. F. Loeb’s studies on patients with
Addison’s disease. It was demonstrated that the low serum sodium
450 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
chloride values in patients with adrenal insufficiency are associated
with continued urinary losses and are accompanied by low potassium
excretion and increased serum potassium values. These changes are
prevented by the normal secretion of the adrenal cortex involving
steroids such as deoxycorticosterone, cortisone, and aldosterone.
However, these hormones not merely influence sodium chloride and
potassium salt metabolism but also play an important part in the
regulation of protein metabolism (increased urea excretion in hyper-
adrenalism), carbohydrate metabolism (diabetes in adrenal hyper-
function; hypoglyczemia in adrenal insufficiency), blood pressure
(hypertension in adrenal hyperfunction; low blood pressure in
adrenal insufficiency), fat metabolism (changes in fat distribution in
adrenal hyperfunction), pigment metabolism (discoloration in ad-
renal insufficiency). If, then, certain body functions are directly
influenced by the adrenal cortical hormones, one might ask whether
the intake of sodium chloride affects them because of its intimate
relationship with adrenal function.
Abundant proof has been given that the deleterious effects of ad-
renal insufficiency can be at least partially counteracted by the ad-
ministration of salt. This is true both for humans suffering from
Addison’s disease and adrenalectomized animals. On the other hand,
salt intake is clinically undesirable in conditions in which the induc-
tion of hyperadrenalism is a disadvantage. As is known, the ad-
ministration of either cortical hormones or salt may lead to similar
symptoms in circulatory conditions, hypertension, and the like.
There exists by now a considerable body of evidence linking the
functions of the cortical hormones to those of salt. Thus, hypertension
produced by deoxycorticosterone is enhanced by simultaneous admin-
istration of sodium chloride. The kidney lesions and changes in food
and water intake brought on by salt are potentiated by cortisone.
There exists, furthermore, a considerable similarity in the influence
which the adrenal cortex or salt exerts on carbohydrate metabolism.
Hyperadrenalism is accompanied by increased deposition of glycogen
in the liver and a high blood sugar. On account of the simultaneously
increased urea excretion, it was deduced that the increased glycogen
formation is due to catabolic processes in protein metabolism. The
administration of salt leads to similar changes, namely, increased
deposition of glycogen, reduced oxidation of glucose leading to in-
creased blood sugar, and increased urea excretion. On the other hand,
the reduced intestinal absorption of glucose on adrenalectomized
animals can be equally corrected by a salt or by adrenal hormones.
Unless one assumes that this latter finding is only due to improved
intestinal blood supply, a more specific salt effect becomes probable,
which leads to the conclusion that the effects of salt and of adrenal
SALT CONSUMPTION—KAUNITZ 451
hormones on carbohydrate metabolism are perhaps interrelated and
that the mechanism of this effect is the stimulation of the cortex by salt.
The restoration of carbohydrate metabolism in adrenalectomized ani-
mals may perhaps be due to the stimulation by salt of tissues which are
functionally related to the adrenals. Additional material in support
of such a theory will be given below.
Thus, the conclusion is unavoidable that cortical hormones and salt
enhance each other’s actions. But the question must be asked whether
this relationship is important when salt is added to the diet, because
one might argue that excess salt leads to a compensatory decrease in
adrenal secretion of some of the hormones. This latter seems im-
probable because it has been shown experimentally that increased salt
intake is followed by adrenal enlargement suggestive of adrenal
hyperfunction. Clinically, high salt intake is probably related to
hypertension, again a sign of high cortical hormone secretion.
Such a concept is supported by the effect of sodium chloride in a
number of conditions which have in common: loss of sodium chloride
by way of one of the body fluids, a drop in serum sodium chloride,
and a favorable response to the administration of salt. In addition
to Addison’s disease, one should mention here heat exhaustion, various
uremic conditions with or without histological signs of kidney disease,
and high intestinal obstruction. It is usually believed that the benefit
resulting from the intake of sodium chloride in these conditions is
due to the replacement of sodium chloride which has been lost. A
more careful analysis indicates a different mechanism.
In profuse sweating, the sodium content of the sweat and urine
is rapidly reduced to such an extent that the total salt loss was, within
5 to 8 hours, less than that occurring in the same period without pro-
fuse sweating; a correlation between the salt content of sweat and
adrenal activity has been fairly well established. The fact that vari-
ous uremic conditions respond favorably to salt administration has
been well known for at least 30 years. These studies are related to
observations on “salt wasting nephritis.” No balance studies indi-
cate whether these patients actually had a negative salt balance. We
were able to carry out such a study on one patient with a rapidly
progressing uremia, profuse vomiting, and a drop in serum sodium
chloride. This patient consumed only a little bread and milk and
yet had a positive sodium and chloride balance. Similarly, it is
known that the amounts of sodium chloride necessary for improving
the condition of animals vomiting because of intestinal obstruction are
much higher than the amounts actually lost.
The improvement produced by salt in the above conditions cannot
be due merely to the replacement of salt losses but must be rooted
partly in some pharmacological effect of the substance. The thera-
452 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
peutic effect becomes understandable if one assumes that the pharma-
cological effect of salt is that of adrenal stimulation, which results
in the improvement of the existing “stress” condition. This theory
would be more acceptable if it could be demonstrated that there is
some reason for the assumption that a similar mechanism is partly
responsible for the salt action in Addison’s disease and in adrenalec-
tomized animals. In human adrenal insufficiency, the amount of salt
required to produce optimal clinical improvement is high, perhaps
50-100 times what might be considered “normal” minimum require-
ments. Whether these high requirements are only due to the high
renal losses or whether they are also needed for their adrenal-stimu-
lating effect has not as yet been studied. If the effect were only due
to the replacement of losses, one should suspect that the amount just
sufficient to bring about equilibrium of the salt balance should allow
optimal clinical improvement. Whether the high doses are neces-
sary to give equilibrium of the salt balance or whether this could be
achieved with much smaller amounts has not as yet been studied.
Some very sketchy information obtained on adrenalectomized rats
indicated that the salt requirements for maximal improvement are
much higher than those necessary to bring about equilibrium of the
balance. This point, however, needs more attention in the future.
Finally, if one asks whether a similar mechanism may also be re-
sponsible for the action of salt in adrenalectomized animals, some
pertinent data can be uncovered in the literature. As mentioned be-
fore, the intestinal absorption of carbohydrate is restored by salt or
adrenal hormones. Similarly, fat resorption is improved. Salt or
cortical hormones keep hemoglobin formation at normal levels, keep
adrenalectomized rats fertile, and prevent cytological changes in the
pituitary of adrenalectomized animals. Inasmuch as salt has scarcely
a hormonal effect per se, its action may well be mediated by stimula-
tion of tissues capable of partly replacing the adrenals.
The stimulating effect of salt probably sets in motion adaptive
mechanisms involving enlargement of the liver, kidneys, and adrenals;
this has been found in experimental animals. Similar conditions have
been thoroughly discussed in many other “stress” conditions.
The possible changes, especially perhaps in the emotional sphere,
brought on by the stimulating action of salt are, of course, entirely a
matter of speculation. The greater responsiveness of people, if they
were so stimulated, could have helped throughout the ages in the ac-
cumulation of knowledge. Whether this is one of the roots of the
reverence which was accorded salt by the ancients can scarcely be
guessed at this time.
It would be of inestimable value if we could be sure how long ago
the majority of mankind learned to eat salt. It has been assumed that
SALT CONSUMPTION—KAUNITZ 453
this took place when peoples went through their neolithic stages, which
were accompanied by the introduction of agriculture and which took
place for the more complicated civilizations about 5 to 10 thousand
years ago. The evidence for the simultaneous introduction of agricul-
ture and salt eating isscant. The first known signs of salt mining were
found in the Austrian Tyrol and date back to the late Bronze Age
for that part of he world, about 1000 B. C. However, it is obvious
that all the more complicated older cultures (Egyptian, Babylonian,
Chinese) antedating that period knew the use of salt. One clue as to
when tribes became used to salt is that Sanskrit and its daughter lan-
guages have no common root for salt and that therefore the Indo-
Europeans, when first migrating, did not then know its use. For these
reasons, we are still inclined to believe that salt was gradually more
extensively used when the tribes went through their neolithic stage.
Is there any reason to assume that the constant use of salt as a stimu-
lant has changed our intellectual capacity? If our previous specula-
tions are correct, one must assume that man in the upper Paleolithic
period (10 to 35 thousand years ago) did not salt his food; yet, Cro-
Magnon man created magnificent art. Intellectually, therefore, he
was our equal. He differed from us only in his lack of knowledge.
Thus, although salt eating did not change man intellectually but may
have facilitated learning, it possibly was an important historical
force.
Are there, finally, any reasons why the physician and public-health
worker should recommend a certain level of salt intake on the basis
of present-day scientific knowledge? There is no question that there
is a sound basis for the prescribing of low-salt diets in many diseases,
particularly those involving the circulatory system. When it comes
to normal people, however, recommendations are infinitely more diffi-
cult. It is certainly true that the chemistry of the body does not re-
quire the addition of salt to our food. The physician, however, is not
primarily interested in the mere metabolic processes but in the general
welfare of his patients, and he should consider that the quickened pace
of a more complicated society demands persons with a heightened re-
sponsiveness. Salt may be one of the ingredients producing this
effect.
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Roman Garland Sarcophagi from the
Quarries of Proconnesus (Marmara)
By J. B. Warp PERKINS
Director, British School at Rome, Italy
[With six plates]
Frew opsects of antiquity have received more attention from the
archeologist and the art historian than the rich series of sculptured
Roman sarcophagi, dating from the second to fourth centuries, ex-
amples of which, of varying degrees of refinement, can be seen in
most of the museums of the western world. The literature is vast
and scattered, dealing both with individual pieces and with groups
classified by style, subject matter, or location. For all its bulk, how-
ever, this literature is curiously stereotyped. There are innumerable
studies of these sarcophagi as documents for the history of Roman
art; others, less numerous but equally fruitful, treating them as social
documents, indicative of the status and beliefs of the persons buried
in them. Little attention has, on the other hand, been paid to other
more prosaic, but no less important, questions which they raise. Where
were they made, and by whom? How were they produced and dis-
tributed? What was the relation between sculptor and client?
These are in themselves vital questions to anyone who wishes to
study Roman sarcophagi in their proper setting, rather than as
museum pieces, detached in time and space, and unrelated to the lives
and aspirations of those who made them and used them. They are,
moreover, questions that need to be answered before one can hope to
get a true picture of them either as works of art or as social documents.
In studying, for example, the representation of a particular pagan
myth, it is obviously essential both for the art historian and for the
student of ancient beliefs to know whether any individual piece was
created for a particular client, or whether it was a school piece, one
of a group of standardized products, manufactured in quantity for
sale in the open market. The point is an obvious one; but it is all too
often ignored.
In all this the student of Roman sarcophagi, as of so many other
fields of classical antiquity, has been the victim of an attitude of
451800—58——30 455
456 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
mind—that of generations of classical archeologists preoccupied above
all with problems of style and stylistic attribution. It is true that in
recent decades there has been a steady tendency to substitute for this
predominantly esthetic approach one borrowed from archeology
proper and based primarily on typology and systematic classification.
The result has been a series of iconographic and regional studies,
which have greatly advanced our knowledge of individual categories
of sarcophagus, and have produced a valuable framework of reference
for further research. But even studies such as these are, by definition
and intent, limited in their approach; in very few cases have they
taken into account the practical problems of output and distribution
that conditioned the activities of sculptor and client alike. It is these
that are the subject of the present article, as illustrated in an important
group of second- and third-century sarcophagi, one of the finest of
which is now at the Smithsonian Institution.
The sarcophagus at the Smithsonian Institution is one of a pair
that were acquired in Beirut, Lebanon, by Commodore Jessie D.
Elliott, USN, and brought to the United States in 1839 aboard the
U.S. 8S. Constitution. The circumstances of their discovery are not
recorded; but from a study of the sarcophagi themselves it is evident
that they were found together, presumably in some underground
burial chamber in Beirut itself or in the immediate neighborhood;
and that, although looted in antiquity, they had remained concealed
and protected until very shortly before the time of their acquisition.
On their arrival in the United States, Commodore Elliott presented
one of them to the National Institute for use as a final resting place
for the remains of President Andrew Jackson; its companion he
presented to Girard College, near Philadelphia, as a tomb for its
recently deceased founder, the distinguished philanthropist Stephen
Girard (1750-1831). Neither was in fact put to its intended use.
Jackson declined to be buried in a tomb which, he felt, would not be
in keeping with his republican principles, and Commodore Elliott
accordingly gave the National Institute permission to retain it as a
historical relic. It was first exhibited at the Patent Office, and was
turned over to the Smithsonian Institution in 1860, where it now
stands in front of the Arts and Industries Building. Its companion,
after standing for many years in Girard College, was recently trans-
ferred on permanent loan to Byrn Mawr College, where it can now
be seen in front of the deanery, close to the entrance to the library (1).
The body and lid of the Smithsonian sarcophagus (pls. 1 and 2)
are carved from single blocks of Greek marble, white, tinged with
blue in more or less definite streaks, and of a uniform crystalline
*Numbers in parentheses refer to notes at end of text.
ROMAN GARLAND SARCOPHAGI—WARD PERKINS 457
structure, with medium-sized crystals. The body, which measures
7 feet long by 3 feet 6 inches wide by 3 feet 1 inch high, is carved
on all four faces, with moldings at top and bottom and, between them,
a formal design of looped garlands, variously supported and enriched
with small decorative motifs in the spaces above each loop. The
massive gabled lid, with acroteria at the four corners and slightly
irregular in shape, measuring 7 feet 414 inches (7 feet 514 inches) long
by 3 feet 10 inches (3 feet 1014 inches) wide by 2 feet 1 inch (2 feet
1% inches) high, is carved only on the front and ends; it was fastened
to the body with six iron cramps, sealed into place with lead. The
contents of the sarcophagus were looted in antiquity through a hole
cut in the upper part of the left-hand end, but apart from various
clean breaks at the back and ends it is otherwise intact and in good
condition. Its companion at Bryn Mawr (pl. 3) is of identical marble
and carved to a very similar design. Its proportions are such that it
appears rather less bulky than the Smithsonian sarcophagus, although
the dimensions of the body are in fact slightly larger than those of
its fellow (7 feet long by 3 feet 6 inches wide by 3 feet high) and
those of the lid almost the same (7 feet 5 inches by 3 feet 10 inches by
2 feet 2 inches). It, too, was looted in antiquity through a hole cut
in the rear right corner of the lid, which the thieves evidently found
too heavy to move, even although it had not been fastened with
metal cramps; as it now stands, the lid has been placed back to
front. Both sarcophagi have a panel reserved for an inscription, but
only the Bryn Mawr sarcophagus was actually inscribed. The text,
IVLIA. C. FIL. MAMABA. VIX. ANN. xxx (2), records that the sarcophagus
contained the body of Julia Mamaea, daughter of Gaius, who lived to
the age of 30. The name, Julia Mam(m)aea, is the same as that of
the Syrian wife of Emperor Alexander Severus (A. D. 217-235),
who was murdered in Syria, and it is perhaps not altogether surprising
that, when first found, the pair of sarcophagi were thought to be those
of the imperial couple—a fact which no doubt helps to explain the
scruples of Andrew Jackson. In actual fact, although the date cannot
be very far wrong, the purchasers of these sarcophagi must have been
folk of much humbler standing; Julia Mamaea was probably the
daughter of the couple who were buried in the Smithsonian
sarcophagus, whose names and style were no doubt prominently re-
corded elsewhere in the mausoleum in which the pair of sarcophagi
once stood.
The two sarcophagi from Beirut belong to a distinctive group
of sarcophagi which were quarried on the island of Marmara (the
ancient Proconnesus) near the southern entrance to the sea of the
same name, and which were exported over the greater part of the
eastern Mediterranean. In antiquity, as later, the island was one of
458 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the principal sources of fine white marble. The earliest reference to
this marble is a statement by Vitruvius (3) that king Mausolos of
Halicarnassus, the builder of the fabulous Mausoleum, used it to
veneer the walls of his palace, and it seems to have early acquired and
to have long retained a reputation for quality among the cities of
western and southwestern Asia Minor, where there are a number
of inscriptions stipulating that a particular monument (in several
cases the monument in question is a sarcophagus) is to be made of
this specific marble (4). Despite its uniform grain and fine translucent
surface, it was never much in demand for statuary, no doubt on
account of the difficulty of getting a large enough block that was
free from blue discoloration. But as a building material it was
rivaled only by the Pentelic marble of Attica. This, the marble
of the Parthenon, was in some respects a finer marble, but it had two
serious disadvantages : there were few beds from which it was possible
to quarry really large blocks that were free from veins of impurities,
which were both unsightly and a source of structural weakness; and
the location of the quarries on Mount Pentelikon meant heavy initial
expenditure from quarry to shipboard. Proconnesian marble suffered
from neither disadvantage, and it must always have been considerably
cheaper than its rival.
These were not, of course, by any means the only Greek marbles
of this type to be quarried, some of them virtually indistinguishable
from Proconnesian both in quality and appearance. Few if any
others, however, were exploited for more than local use, certainly
none on a scale approaching that of the quarries of Proconnesus after
the great expansion of production that took place during the first
century A. D. The immediate result of the reestablishment of the
Pax Romana by Augustus, and of the great imperial building pro-
grams carried out both in the capital and increasingly, as time went
on, in the provinces, had been to create an enormously increased de-
mand for fine building materials. Augustus’ well-known boast that
he found Rome a city of brick and left it a city of marble had a solid
foundation of truth; and although most of the marble of his own
buildings came from the newly opened quarries of Luni (the modern
Carrara), which remained for several centuries the principal source
of supply for domestic Italian use, his successors made ever-increasing
demands upon the supplies of finer-quality marble that were available
in the provinces, principally in Greece and Asia Minor, although
there were also important quarries in North Africa (“giallo antico”)
and Egypt (porphyries and granite). Already by the middle of the
first century A. D. we begin to detect the impact of the new market
on the traditional sources of supply.
ROMAN GARLAND SARCOPHAGI—WARD PERKINS 459
As far as we can tell, the actual quarrying methods remained very
much what they had been before—what, indeed, they were to remain
until the introduction in very recent times of machines for the ex-
traction of the marble from the quarry face: marble working is in
many respects a very conservative trade, and a visit to the quarries
of Carrara can still teach one much about ancient techniques of ex-
traction and transportation. What was new was a revolution in the
scale and organization of production, and in the relations between
producer and client, a revolution that was greatly facilitated by the
fact that from the reign of Tiberius onward mines and quarries were,
by law, imperial property. In Greek times normal practice seems to
have been to quarry a particular consignment of marble for a par-
ticular purpose, at any rate in the case of an order of any size. The
Roman answer to the enormously increased demand was not only
to open up large numbers of fresh quarry faces, but also to introduce
what may not improperly be termed methods of mass production.
Apart from such exceptional cases as the blocks for Trajan’s Column
or the outsize columns used in some of the great Imperial monuments
(e. g., the Pantheon), the marble was henceforward quarried in bulk
to a variety of convenient shapes and sizes and held in stock against
future orders (5).
The principal evidence for the reorganization is to be found in the
simple fact that at various times within the first century A. D. the
marble from a limited number of imperially owned quarries did begin
to reach the foreign market in quite unprecedented quantities. There
is, however, also the evidence of the quarry marks, carved or painted
on individual blocks of marble, a large number of which have been
found both in the quarries themselves and in the marble yards of the
importing cities. These quarry marks consist normally of one or
more serial numbers, very often accompanied by the name of a respon-
sible official and a date, and they attest an elaborate system of account-
ing, with individually numbered quarries and working faces and
periodical stocktaking. The fact that individual blocks occasionally
bear two different dates shows that they were liable to be held in stock
for considerable periods.
The first and immediate result of this reorganization was to increase
greatly the amount of fine marble available for building purposes.
In Rome we can first detect the results with certainty during the reign
of Nero (A. D. 54-68), and by the end of the century the trickle had
become a flood. In the provinces the full results were not felt until
rather later, not really before the second century. In Tripolitania,
for example, an outlying and relatively unimportant area, the first
large-scale importation of foreign marble took place during the reign
460 | ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
of Hadrian (A. D. 117-137), and it was not available in bulk until
the middle of the second century. The impact, when it came, was for
that reason all the more striking. By the end of the second century
there was hardly a major public building in Lepcis Magna or Sabratha
that had not been at least partially rebuilt in the new material.
The effects were not, however, limited to the mere substitution of
one material for another. The structural properties of marble dif-
fered widely from those of the building stones available in many of the
provinces to which it was now imported. This alone was bound to
have an effect upon local architectural practices, There were, however,
other and more far-reaching consequences. Once again, the case of
Tripolitania will serve to illustrate what in varying degrees was
happening in many other parts of the Roman world. Here the monu-
mental architecture of the earlier Roman period, i. e., down to the end
of the first century A. D., was still a typically provincial architecture,
in that the classical models on which it was based were often pro-
foundly modified by local traditions, building practices, and materials.
This local style finds no expression whatsoever in the marble archi-
tecture that succeeded it. The constructional forms and ornament
of the marble buildings of second-century Tripolitania have nothing
to do with the previous architectural history of the province; they
were those of the regions from which the marble itself was imported
(with some admixture of motifs derived from the contemporary
architecture of the capital), and it is quite evident that in this par-
ticular case the shipments of partially prefabricated building ma-
terials were accompanied by the establishment of workshops capable of
carving and handling a material of which the local masons had had
no previous experience. This was a somewhat extreme, but by no
means unique, case. All over the Empire, even in Rome itself, we
find evidence of the establishment of permanent or temporary work-
shops, whose business it was to handle the consignments of marble
from the great exporting quarries. What had happened was that,
under conditions of widespread peace and commercial prosperity,
it was the highly organized producer who captured the market; and,
as is the rule in such cases, what had started as a practical reorgani-
zation, designed to increase output, became in the event a powerful
factor in shaping the development of architectural style and practice
throughout the eastern, and over large parts of the central and
western, Mediterranean.
It is hardly surprising that the methods employed with such suc-
cess in architecture should have been applied also to the manufacture
of sarcophagi. Here we lack the evidence of inscriptions; but for-
tunately that of the sarcophagi themselves is quite explicit. The
Italian quarries, which supplied the bulk of the marble used in the
ROMAN GARLAND SARCOPHAGI—WARD PERKINS 461
workshops of the West, seem to have been content to produce rec-
tangular, coffin-shaped blocks, without attempting to give them any
more finished form. But the two other major centers of production
for export, Attica and Proconnesus, both in varying degrees adopted
the methods of prefabrication that had proved so successful in the
architectural market. In the case of the fine figured sarcophagi of
Attica, examples of which were shipped all over the Mediterranean,
it is clear that in a great many, very possibly in all, cases the figured
designs were sketched on the sarcophagus in low relief before despatch.
All that remained was for the carving to be completed on receipt,
either by skilled workmen who accompanied an individual consign-
ment, or by workshops established in the major receiving centers in
the provinces (6)—an ingenious compromise, whereby the work-
shops of Attica were able to make the fullest and most economical
use of the local resources of skilled craftsmanship upon which the
quality of their products ultimately depended, while at the same time
avoiding the damage to fine detail that would certainly have taken
place had these massive but fragile objects been shipped fully carved.
The workshops of Proconnesus were less ambitious. They adopted
a system whereby the broad lines of the finished design were estab-
lished before despatch, but considerable latitude was left to the re-
ceiving workshop as to the working-out of the design. In the case of
one widely distributed series, all that the quarry did was to shape the
body and lid, the former as a plain rectangular trough, the latter to
the roughed-out outline of a gable roof with acroteria, just as we see
it on the back and one end of the lid of the Smithsonian sarcophagus.
Sarcophagi so shaped were widely used locally, in Thrace and north-
western Asia Minor; and they were exported in large numbers to
the Danube provinces and northern Italy, and as far afield as southern
France (7). The advantage of this particular design was that it
greatly reduced the weight, and therefore the cost, of transport, while
leaving wide latitude to the importing workshop to develop the super-
ficial ornament in accordance with local taste.
The series to which the Smithsonian and the Bryn Mawr sarcophagi
belong was more specialized. Here, in addition to shaping the ld,
the quarry workshops also roughed out the body to the simple design
illustrated on plate 4, figure 1, a sarcophagus now in the grounds of
the American University at Beirut. There were minor variations
from one sarcophagus to the next. The design might be carved on
all four faces, or alternatively on three only, leaving the back plain;
the central motif on the front might be a panel destined to carry an
inscription or it might be just another circular boss, like those within
the two flanking loops; or again, the upper molding might be omitted
altogether, indicating presumably that the dimensions of the parent
462 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
block were found to be insufficient. These were, however, minor var-
iants within what was in practice a remarkably stereotyped design.
And the fact that this design is found identically on the unworked
faces of sarcophagi as widely scattered as in Asia Minor, in Syria, and
in Egypt, leaves no room for doubt that it was carved before shipment.
It was only on arrival at its destination that the sarcophagus was
worked up into its final form. That, too, is proved beyond question,
not only by the consistent differences that distinguished, for example,
a sarcophagus found in Syria from one found in Egypt or Asia Minor,
but also by the fact that the sculptor of the finished piece has very
eften been able to take into account the location of the sarcophagus
within the tomb for which it was destined, and so to concentrate his
attention upon those sides that would be most conspicuously visible
after installation. One or more sides might be left rough, just as re-
ceived from the quarry, and in certain extreme cases this is the only
surviving indication that a particular sarcophagus belonged to the
series in question. Such, for example, are a pair of fine sarcophagi
from Tripoli, in Syria, now in the museum at Istanbul (8), the one
showing on the front a woman reclining on a couch and attended by
a slave girl, the other a figured scene from the story of Hippolytus and
Phaedra, which is clearly inspired by the representations of the same
scene on contemporary Attic sarcophagi. The marble of both, how-
ever, is Proconnesian and the telltale garland design can still be seen
roughed out, in the one case on the two ends, in the other on the back.
They were found moreover, with a garland sarcophagus of unusual
elaboration but otherwise conventional design (pl. 4, fig. 2) (9), and
there can be no doubt that all three were shipped from Proconnesus
as potential garland sarcophagi, roughed out in the usual manner.
The three sarcophagi from Tripoli are exceptional, a shipment that
found its way to a local workshop of unusually cosmopolitan tastes and
competence. Normally the importing workshops seem to have been
content to work within the limits imposed by the parent design. The
garlands are supported by Victories or Cupids standing on bases or
brackets, or by rams’ or bulls’ heads; the circular bosses above the
garlands are worked up into human heads, or rosettes, or small birds;
the garlands themselves are variously carved, with or without pendent
bunches of grapes. By cutting a little deeper into the marble the
sculptor could introduce secondary motifs in low relief, such as the
ribbons which figure on many of the sarcophagi, trailing into the field
above and below the garlands. Alternatively, he might simplify the
design by leaving parts of it substantially uncarved, one of the com-
monest of such simplifications being to treat the garlands as the plain,
bolsterlike loops that figure on the Bryn Mawr sarcophagus. He
might even be content merely to work over the original quarry design,
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Ward Perkins PLATE 1
TIO
GLA ASRS Meat
2. Back and left-hand end of the Smithsonian sarcophagus.
PLATE 2
Smithsonian Report, 1957.— Ward Perkins
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1. Bryn Mawr sarcophagus, front. (Photograph from Girard College.)
2. Bryn Mawr sarcophagus, back. (Photograph from Cornelius Vermeule.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Ward Perkins PLATE 4
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2. Tripoli (Syria) garland sarcophagus. (Photograph from British School at Rome.)
PLATE 5
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Ward Perkins
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Ward Perkins PLATE 6
1. Byzantium (Istanbul) sarcophagus. (Photograph from British School at Rome.)
3. Detail of right-hand panel of Byzantium sarcophagus.
ROMAN GARLAND SARCOPHAGI—WARD PERKINS 463
dressing and smoothing the surfaces, but making no attempt to add
any fine detail. In an extreme case the sarcophagus might even be used
just as it was received from the quarry without any further refine-
ment, as in the case of the sarcophagus illustrated in plate 4, figure
1. The range of possibilities was very wide, and we can rarely do
more than guess at the reasons that lie behind the idiosyncrasies of
a particular piece—economy, the shortage of competent local crafts-
men, a sudden emergency, the taste of an individual sculptor or
client. But such individual traits are no more than variations on
a basic theme, a theme that was determined in broad outline by the
form in which the sarcophagus was shipped from the quarry.
How did this form first come to be adopted? This is one of the as
yet unresolved problems connected with this series of sarcophagi, and
we must be content to state such facts as do seem to be reasonably
established. The close similarities that exist between the more elab-
orate of the finished pieces, wherever they are found, make it clear
that the designs carved on them all derive from a single source,
either an actual individual sarcophagus or else a small group of
very closely related pieces. The Smithsonian sarcophagus, with its
wide repertory of figures (Victories, Cupids, bulls’ heads, rams’
heads) and secondary motifs (Medusa heads, rosettes, bunches of
grapes) contains nearly all the motifs that can be attributed to the
archetype, and, allowing for certain differences of detailed treatment,
it may well give a very good idea of its general appearance. How
or why this particular iconographic scheme came to be adopted in
the first place is another matter. The individual motifs are all such as
would have been available to a sculptor working in northwestern
Asia Minor in the early years of the second century, and we may guess
that garland sarcophagi of this sort were first produced for local use.
If so, they were not long in reaching a wider market. The earliest
well-dated example is that of Caius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, whose
tomb chamber beneath the library at Ephesus was completed some-
where about A. D. 135; and it cannot have been very long after this
that the first sarcophagi of this sort were reaching Syria and Egypt
and the cities of Pamphylia and Cilicia, in southern Asia Minor.
These first examples must have been accompanied by craftsmen who
set up workshops in certain favored centers, such as Alexandria, and
who there established the pattern of the finished design in local
usage. The practice of carving a simplified version of the garland
design before shipment was probably adopted with an eye to those
markets that were dependent on relatively unskilled local workshops
(the saving in weight can hardly have been a sufficient reason in itself) ;
and the form of it may well have been suggested in the first place by
464 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
the way a sculptor would naturally lay out a pattern of this sort on the
surface of the stone before starting work.
Whatever the circumstances in which the type of the garland sar-
cophagus was first established in the marble yards of Proconnesus,
there can be no doubt of its subsequent popularity, especially in the
provinces of the eastern Mediterranean seaboard. Well over a hun-
dred examples are known from this area, and this can only be a
tiny percentage of those that once lined its crowded cemeteries. Of
the 30 recorded marble sarcophagi from Alexandria, 29 were of this
type (10) ; and Professor Mansel’s recent excavations in the cemeteries
of Perge, in Pamphylia (11), are a vivid reminder of how much has
been lost on other, less favored sites. Outside Egypt they are found
principally in Syria and the coastlands of Asia Minor, in both of
which areas they constituted by far the largest single group of
imports. They are not found at all in mainland Greece, and only
a single example in Cyrenaica, where .the Attic workshops seem to
have secured a monopoly comparable to that of the Proconnesian
workshops in Alexandria. In the West, the distribution was rather
different. The plain gabled sarcophagi of Proconnesus found a good
market in northern Italy, and a few garland sarcophagi reached
Rome itself. On the whole, however, the exporters of Proconnesus
seem to have found it wiser to conform to Italian practice, and the
very large quantities of Proconnesian marble that were used in the sar-
cophagi of Italy and southern Gaul, and to a lesser extent in the other
western provinces, seem to have been imported almost exclusively in
plain form, without any prior shaping in the quarry workshops.
To the art historian these sarcophagi have a value quite apart from.
the glimpse that they afford of the sculptor at work and of the factors
that controlled his output. The essential unity of the series offers an
invaluable connecting thread for the study of a whole range of other-
wise disparate objects, scattered over territories whose detailed artistic
development within the Roman period isstill all too little known. The
garland sarcophagi were not only imported; they were copied, and
copied widely, by local craftsmen working in local materials. In the
Syrian coastlands the commonest form of decorated sarcophagus in
the Roman period is derived so closely from these imported marble
models that their earliest commentator, mistaking the nature and di-
rection of the relationship, was led to claim the garland sarcophagus
as a specifically Syrian creation (12). Nor was it only the more elabo-
rately carved pieces that were copied. Local craftsmen found the
simplified quarry version of the design both congenial and easy to copy,
and it, too, passed into the local repertory—a remarkable and possibly
unique instance of a purely abstract design passing into provincial
Roman art from a purely classical source. Much the same thing hap-
ROMAN GARLAND SARCOPHAGI—WARD PERKINS 465
pened in Egypt. In the Kom el-Shukafa catacomb, for example, we
find the frontals of the grave recesses carved with garlands and rosettes,
in obvious imitation of the familiar marble design (18); and at the
same time we also find the local workshops producing a version of
the quarry design in a dark local stone, several examples of which can
still be seen in Alexandria itself (14) and, by some unexplained twist
of circumstances, two others in Ravenna, beside the church of San
Vitale. In at least two cases it was not only the design that was
copied but also something of the methods of producing it. At
Ephesus, which had a good white marble of its own, there is a local
series of garland sarcophagi which is barely distinguishable from those
of Proconnesus, and which may very well have been inspired in the
first place by that of Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, already re-
ferred to as having been buried in a heroon beneath the library that
bore his name. There is also a series of miniature sarcophagi based
on the same model, and these were widely exported within Asia Minor
and even, in exceptional cases, abroad, to Athens and to Rome (15).
So, too, in the region of Salonica a number of sarcophagi that are
virtually indistinguishable from those of Proconnesus were carved
in the coarse, grayish-white marble from the nearby quarries of
Thasos. Even in Italy, there can be very little doubt that the few
examples that were imported from Proconnesus had an important
influence on (and may even have originally inspired) the large and
varied Italian series of garland sarcophagi. In this case, however,
it is difficult to be more precise until the latter have been more
thoroughly studied.
To the student of Roman funerary symbolism, the Proconnesian gar-
land sarcophagi have little to offer. There is an important distinction
(all too often disregarded by those who discuss the history of religious
ideas) between those symbols that are consciously selected and used
to convey a particular idea and those others whose use is determined
mainly or even entirely by association and custom. The motifs used
on the Proconnesian sarcophagi fall decisively into the later category.
To the average purchaser of one of these sarcophagi the message con-
veyed by its ornament can have been little more profound than the
cherubs and scrollwork on an eighteenth-century tombstone. The
fact that so many people were prepared and able to purchase them
is, on the other hand, an interesting commentary on the distribution
of wealth in the cities of the eastern provinces. However economi-
cally organized, the quarrying and transport of one of these bulky
objects must have been a very heavy item in the budget of any pri-
vate individual. It was probably this fact above all that gave the
Proconnesian quarries their advantage in the eastern Roman market.
Produced in very large quantities and loaded almost directly on
466 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
shipboard, without any costly land transport, they must have been
one of the cheapest items of their quality available.
Rather than the artistic qualities or the social significance of these
sarcophagi, however, it is the evidence which, in common with many
other aspects of the marble trade, they yield of Roman economic or-
ganization that makes them of particular interest to ourselves. They
show that the methods of standardized production and prefabrication
which we are apt to regard as a discovery peculiar to the present me-
chanical age have ample precedent in antiquity. Asso often when one
comes to examine the detail of almost any aspect of Roman achieve-
ment, one is brought vividly up against the fact of its essential
modernity.
NOTES
1. For information about, and facilities for studying, these two sarcophagi
the writer is indebted to the authorities of the institutions concerned; also, for
much valuable help, to Karl 8. Brown, Prof. Howard Comfort, Perry B. Cott,
Harold W. Parsons, M. Henri Seyrig, Prof. Lily Ross Taylor, and Cornelius
Vermeule.
2. Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, iii, 1, 15*=iii, Suppl. 1, 6694.
3. li, 8,10; ef. Pliny, Hist. Nat., xxxv1, 47.
4. For sarcophagi, see Corpus Inscriptionum Graecarum, 3268, 3282, and
Inscriptiones Graecae ad Res Romanas Pertinentes, 1464, 1465 (all from
Smyrna) ; Arif Mtifid Mansel, Excavations and researches at Perge (Tiirk Tarih
Kurumu Yayinlarindan, ser. 5, No. 8), p. 4, No. 4 (at Perge, in Pamphylia), 1949,
Ankara.
5. For this reorganization see the article “Tripolitania and the Marble Trade”
cited in Bibliographical Note, p. 467.
6. See the article “The Hippolytus Sarcophagus from Trinquetaille” cited
in Bibliographical Note p. 467.
7. They are common, for example, in the cemeteries of Aquileia and Concordia.
The example illustrated in plate 6, figure 1, is characteristic of those found in
the cemeteries of Byzantium (Constantinople), which were commonly left rough,
as received from the quarry, with one or more small carved or inscribed panels
cut in the principal face. The two details of the same sarcophagus (pl. 6, figs.
2 and 8) illustrate very clearly the successive stages of dressing the marble:
with a coarse punch, to shape the whole block; with a slightly finer punch, to
rough out the right-hand panel (which for some reason was never fully carved)
and to prepare a more level surface for the carving of the left-hand panel;
with a claw chisel, for the triangular panels on either side of the inscription
(the secondary surfaces of a sarcophagus were often left at this stage); and
a smooth chisel for the carved detail. For a recent discussion of this group,
see A. M. Mansel, Belleten, vol. 21, p. 395 ff.
8. G. Mendel, Musées Impériaux Ottomans: catalogue des sculptures grecques
romaines et byzantines, vol. 1, No. 26, pp. 109-114, 1912, and vol. 3, No. 1170,
pp. 412-414, 1914.
9. Ibid., vol. 3, No. 1159, pp. 397-399.
10. The greater part of the Alexandrian series has been well, though not very
accessibly, published by HE. Breccia in Le Musée Gréco-romain (Municipalité
d’Alexandrie) 1922-1923, pp. 10-19, 1924, Alexandria; see also subsequent vol-
umes in the same series, variously titled, for the periods 1925-31 (Breccia),
1932-33 and 1935-39 (A. Adriani) ; and A. Rowe, Illustrated London News, June
25, 1949, p. 893.
ROMAN GARLAND SARCOPHAGI—WARD PERKINS 467
11. See note 3, above.
12. EH. Michon, Syria, pp. 295-3804, 1921. Commodore Elliott’s two sarcophagi
are presumably to be identified with Nos. 12 and 13 on Michon’s list (from
Beirut, present whereabouts unknown).
18. Alan Rowe, K6ém el-Shukafa (reprint from Bulletin de la Société royale
d’archéologie d‘Alexandrie, No. 35), 1942.
14. e. g., Breccia, op. cit., pl. XII, figs. 2, 3.
15. A. L. Pietrogrande, Nuova serie asiatica di urne e di piccoli sarcofagi,
Bullettino del Museo dell’Impero Romano, vi, pp. 17-87, 1935 (appendix to
Bullettino della Commissione Archeologica del Comune di Roma, Ixiii, 1935).
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
The pioneer of a broader approach to sarcophagus studies was the late Gerhart
Rodenwalt, whose article ‘“Sarkophagprobleme” in Roemische Mitteilungen,
vol. 58, pp. 1-26, 1948, sums up his own previous work and is by far the best
general statement of the whole problem (Abb. 7 and 8 of this article illustrate
a Proconnesian garland sarcophagus from Viminacium on the Danube). An
outstanding detailed study, in which a small group of sarcophagi found together
in Rome are considered as documents both for the artistic development and for
the beliefs of the period, is that of K. Lehman-Hartleben and E. C. Olsen,
Dionysiae sarcophagi in Baltimore, 1942, Baltimore; for sarcophagi as docu-
ments for the beliefs of their purchasers, see further the works of Franz Cumont,
passim, and Jocelyn Toynbee and J'iohn Ward Perkins, The shrine of St. Peter,
chap. 4 (b), “Beliefs,” 1955. As examples of valuable regional and iconographic
surveys, one may cite C. R. Morey, The sarcophagus of Claudia Antonia Sabina
and the Asiatic sarcophagi, Sardis, vol. 5, p. 1, 1924, Princeton; M. Lawrence,
Columnar sarcophagi in the Latin West, Art Bulletin, vol. 10, pp. 1-45, 1927;
id., The sarcophagi of Ravenna, College Art Association of America, 1945;
Fernand Benoit, Sarcophages paléochrétiens d’Arles et de Marseille (supplement
& Gallia, V), 1954, the last-named author being one of the few students to have
appreciated the vital importance of identifying the source of the material from
which a sarcophagus is made.
Other articles by the present writer on the marble trade in Roman antiquity,
the results of which are cited largely in the preceding pages, are Tripolitania
and the marble trade, Journal of Roman Studies, vol. 41, pp. 89-104, 1951 (the
organization of bulk trade in marble for architectural purposes); and The
Hippolytus sarcophagus from Trinquetaille, ibid., vol. 46, pp. 10-16, 1956 (the
carving and shipment of Attic sarcophagi).
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Stone Age Skull Surgery:
A General Review, with Emphasis
on the New World
By T. D. STEwart
Curator, Division of Physical Anthropology
United States National Museum
[With 10 plates]
NearRLy A CENTURY has elapsed since anthropologists first realized
that Stone Age men practiced operations on the living human head—
operations which sometimes were spectacular and often were success-
ful. This came about as a result of a trip to Peru in 1863-65 by
E. G. Squier, the American diplomat-anthropologist. While in Cuzco
Squier obtained part of a human skull that had a rectangular opening
in the forehead made by canoe-shaped cuts crossing one another in
a tick-tack-toe pattern (fig. 1). Not having seen such a thing before
and wondering whether the opening could have been made in life,
Squier sought the opinion of Paul Broca, the leading French physical
anthropologist of the day. The latter saw signs of infection in the
porosity of the surrounding bone and therefore declared (1867) that
this Peruvian Indian had lived about 15 days after his operation.
Although the present writer raised doubts recently (1956) about the
accuracy of Broca’s interpretation in this instance, this belated criti.
cism did not negate the fact that discoveries of many specimens during
the 1870’s and 1880’s in both the Old and New Worlds had confirmed
the antiquity of skull surgery. These discoveries also had told much
about how and why the operations were practiced so commonly and
so widely.
Two cases little publicized heretofore bear witness to the spectacular
nature of skull surgery (trephining or trepanning) as practiced in the
New World (pls. 1 and 2). One of these, like Squier’s case, comes
from Cuzco but differs in showing 7 healed circular openings (the
largest number previously reported is 5—MacCurdy, 1923). Very
likely this individual had undergone seven separate successful oper-
ations. The other case is a mummy from Utcubamba, probably in the
469
470 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Central Highlands (Vidal Senéze, 1877), and shows a large unhealed
circular opening in the left parieto-occipital region made by the drill-
ing technique, a somewhat uncommon procedure. Although larger
openings made by other techniques have been reported, this one seems
to be the largest made in this way. It should be noted also that
the appearance of the opening in the scalp indicates that the opera-
tion was made in life. However, since the bone gives evidence of
being unhealed, the operation, as the saying goes, was successful,
but the patient died.
The writer’s contribution to this subject, mentioned above, is based
on a series of 75 Peruvian skulls in the United States National
Museum—many previously undescribed—and introduces the idea that
evidence has been preserved regarding the nature of the incisions
made through the scalp to expose the bone for trephining. Involved
in this new addition to our knowledge of an ancient practice is a dif-
ferent way of looking at skulls that have been operated upon. The
nature of the reorientation will be explained later and here it will be
mentioned only that the rarity of specimens filling in certain parts
of the surgical picture led the writer to seek verification in other unde-
scribed collections. His quest took him first to the American Museum
of Natural History in New York where he was enabled to study 23
skulls with artificial openings collected in the region of Lake Titicaca
in the 1890’s by A. F. Bandelier, and then to the Peabody Museum,
Harvard University, where he studied 102 such skulls collected in the
Central Highlands of Peru prior to 1912 by Julio Tello. Subse-
quently the writer saw a few more specimens at the British Museum
(Natural History) in London and at the Musée de Homme in Paris.
For courtesies received at these institutions he is indebted especially
to Dr. Harry L. Shapiro, Dr. W. W. Howells, Dr. Kenneth Oakley, and
Dr. Henry V. Vallois, respectively.
The present paper will give a broad summary of skull surgery as
practiced in ancient times and among certain recent people still having
a Stone Age culture. In the part dealing with the New World some
of the new observations on the collections mentioned above will be pre-
sented. In addition, some new observations on putative examples of
trephining from North America will be presented.
DISTRIBUTION
Europe.—tThe publicity that Broca gave to Squier’s trephined skull
from Peru led soon to the recognition of skulls showing evidence of
surgery from the Neolithic period in France. It began with Pru-
niéres’ report of 1873 (1874) of such specimens from the dolmens of
Lozére in southern France and was followed by Broca’s (1876) expla-
nation of the perforations and the often accompanying rondels or
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 471
amulets of bone, and still later by Manouvrier’s (1895) recognition of
the nature of the “sincipital T’”—a cross-shaped scarring of the skull
vault resulting from cauterization—to mention only landmarks in the
resulting extensive literature for Europe. Fortunately, it is no longer
necessary to go back to this literature for answers to many of the
questions that come to mind, because Piggott (1940) has summarized
and interpreted the record in an admirable fashion. He has also
listed most of the references for this area.
Ficure 1.—Squier’s famous Cuzco skull, the first recognized case of prehistoric trephining.
q ? g P Pp g
(Squier, 1877, p. 457.)
In brief, some 370 examples of the practice have been reported from
the whole of prehistoric Europe, from Portugal in the southwest to
Sweden in the northeast, and from England in the northwest to Czecho-
slovakia in the southeast (fig. 2). In time they range from about
3000 to 200 B. C. Judging from the concentrations of specimens and
from archeological considerations, it would appear that a major surgi-
cal center developed in southern France about 1900-1500 B. C. and this
led—perhaps through a cult—to the formation in late Neolithic times
of a secondary center in the Paris area and also to much of the wide
distribution noted. Very likely the ancient custom can be connected
directly with the beginnings of modern European surgery.
Pacific.—It is not clear just when knowledge of the practice of skull
surgery in the South Pacific reached the western world. In France
451800—58——-81
472 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Hamy already knew about it in 1874 when Sanson summarized an
article on the subject from the Medical Times for the Anthropological
Society of Paris. Hamy could add that in his opinion the perforations
made by the South Sea surgeons differed considerably from those
made by Neolithic man in France. Thus, although the existence of
the practice in the Pacific may have been known in Europe for some
PREHISTORIC ye
TREPANNED #¢
SKULLS
Ficure 2.—Map of Europe showing 98 sites from which some 200 trephined skulls have
been reported. (Modified from Piggott, 1940, p. 117, fig. 2.)
time, the fact that it was still continuing in this remote area seems to
have been overshadowed by the current discoveries in Europe concern-
ing the antiquity of the practice. Also, actual examples of trephining
from the Pacific were slow in reaching Europe. In 1875 Lesson sent
to Topinard some surgical instruments, said to be for trephining,
which he had collected in Tahiti, but not until 1879 does it appear that
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 473
the Anthropological Society of Paris received a trephined skull—in
this case from New Caledonia. (See Bull. Soc. Anthrop. Paris, 3° sér.,
vol. 2, p. 719.)
Among the best summaries of the literature on skull surgery in the
Pacific area are those by Wolfel (1925), Ford (1937), and Heyerdahl
(1952). From these and other sources it appears that the practice
centered mainly in Melanesia, particularly in the Gazelle Peninsula
of New Britain, in the southern part of New Ireland and certain out-
lying islands, in New Caledonia, and in the Loyalty Group (fig. 3).
*o
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NEW BGRITAIN SOLOMON 1S.
ere
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CA Wem AES,
Ficure 3.—Map of Melanesia showing the island groups where a primitive type of skull
surgery was practiced in recent times. (Modified from Ford, 1937, p. 473, fig. 1.)
Wher we consider how much study has been devoted to Polynesia,
the actuai evidence for the existence of the practice there seems
strangely disproportionate to the rumors. Heyerdahl (1952) made a
special study of this and many other cultural features in developing
the thesis of east-west transpacific migrations in prehistoric times.
Except for three trephined skulls in museum collections (one each
from the Marquesas, the Tuamotus, and New Zealand), his assembled
evidence is largely hearsay. The skull from New Zealand (Wé6lfel,
1925) is suspect because it is grossly pathological (syphilis), and proof
is not yet forthcoming that syphilitic gummata cannot leave healed
openings resembling trephine openings in the skull. Doubts arise
also from certain seeming errors in reporting. For example, Wélfel
points out (p. 13) that Turner (1884) may have mistaken the name of
the island Uvea (or Uea) in the Loyalty Group for the island with the
474 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
same name near Samoa and thus moved the practice far from its real
setting. As for the surgical instruments from Tahiti sent to Topinard
in 1875, referred to above, Topinard frankly admitted that he did not
believe they were used exclusively for trephining and suggested that
they might have been used for scarification, lancing, etc. Thus it is
not easy to say whether Heyerdahl is correct when he concludes:
We have ample evidence to suggest that the Peruvians brought trepanning and
its associates down-wind into the Pacific at an early period when Polynesia was
still virgin land. The strongest evidence has survived on both sides of Poly-
nesia, but although this latter intervening area has later been overrun by another
immigrant stream, some islands ... present sufficient evidence to show that
the trepanation bridge formerly spanned the whole water from the coast of Peru
to the islands in Melanesia. (P. 665.)
Nothing is known about time depth for the practice of skull surgery
in the Pacific. The reliable records consist either of eyewitness ac-
counts or actual skulls which had been operated upon in recent times.
Even these skulls seem to be few in number, totaling, so far as can be
judged from the literature, scarcely 100.
South America.—F ollowing Squier’s discovery of the first trephined
skull in Peru, a long time elapsed before much more became known
about skull surgery in South America. The next specimen to receive
publicity was from Chaclacayo, near Lima, Peru (Mason, 1885).?
Surprisingly, in this case the opening in the forehead was said to have
been made after death and it was stated further that all “examples of
aboriginal trephining in America were more than probably post
mortem” (p. 411). Doubtless this erroneous opinion reflects the con-
troversy then in progress regarding certain North American skulls
cut post mortem to obtain amulets (Fletcher, 1882; Gillman, 1876,
1885).
Not until 1897, when the Smithsonian Institution published the
classic monograph by Mufiz and McGee on Peruvian trephining, did
the world learn much more about the practice in Peru. Even after
this, important contributions to the subject were slow in appearing
(Tello, 19138; MacCurdy, 1923; Quevedo, 1943; Weiss, 1949; Graiia
et al., 1954). Yet it appears now that more trephined skulls have been
found in Peru than in all the rest of the world together. If to this
number are added skulls showing other types of surgical intervention,
probably the total approaches 1,000.
Although Peru doubtless was the surgical center of South America,
the practice was restricted largely to the central and southern parts
* Originally cataloged as No. 75961 in the Division of Ethnology, U. 8. National
Museum, it was subsequently transferred to the Army Medical Museum (now
Medical Museum of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology) where it now
bears AFIP No. 287904.
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 475
of that country and to the neighboring part of Bolivia in the region
of Titicaca. Within this general area, as in Europe and Melanesia,
the surgical specimens have been found concentrated in certain
places—for example, around Huarochiri in the Central Highlands,’
at Paracas on the Southern Coast, and around Cuzco in the Southern
Highlands. Very likely these concentrations reflect cultural patterns
(Weiss, 1953).
The oldest skulls from Peru showing artificial openings or areas
with the outer table scraped away probably are those from Paracas
(ca. fifth century B. C. to fifth century A. D.). However, it is not
clear that the Paracas specimens represent a surgical practice for
therapeutic purposes. Although Tello states that bone regeneration is
present in some cases (Stewart, 1943), in all those seen by the writer
the cuts looked fresh. Perhaps, therefore, the trephined skulls of
Paracas represent a phase of the locally well-developed head-trophy
cult rather than true surgery. Elsewhere in Peru the custom appears
to be much later, and even associated with the rise of the Incas.
Bolivian, and possibly also Peruvian, Indians continued to operate
on living heads into post-Columbian times (Bandelier, 1904). How-
ever, very little reliable information has been recorded by eyewitnesses.
A few pottery jars ornamented with representations of surgical scenes
have been found (Morales Macedo, 1917; Vélez Lopez, 1940), but
these add little to our knowledge of the practice. It should be added,
also, that on at least two occasions present-day Peruvian surgeons
have operated on living heads with primitive implements obtained
from ancient sites (personal communication from Sergio A. Quevedo
in 1944; Grafia et al., 1954). Since the ancient skulls had already
proved that the operation could be accomplished by the use of such
tools, it is difficult to understand why these additional demonstrations
were undertaken.
North America.—Evidence for the practice of skull surgery in the
New World outside of Peru has not been summarized recently and
hence deserves extended consideration here. Reference was made
above to Gillman’s early descriptions of skulls with artificial openings
from the State of Michigan in the United States. These cases usually
have a small circular opening in the midline near bregma. In 1936
Hinsdale and Greenman showed that the distribution of such skulls
includes the regions adjoining the State on the south and east. Al-
though it was claimed almost from the beginning (Gillman, 1876)
that these openings were made post mortem and were probably in-
2? The collections obtained by Hrdlicka in 1910 and 1912 for the U. S. National
Museum and the San Diego Museum, and the collections obtained by Tello before
and after 1912 and now in the Peabody Museum (Harvard) and the Museo
Nacional d’Antropologia in Lima, respectively, are mainly from this area.
476 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
tended for suspending the skulls, Hinsdale (1924) has claimed that
one of them is an example of “real trephining” and that “the edges of
the opening show unmistakable evidence of a well-advanced healing
process, which could have gone on only during life” (p.13). Hrdli¢ka
(1939) agreed with Hinsdale, as might have been expected, since he
was one of the first to report a case of trephining from North America
(Lumholtz and Hrdlicka, 1897). Indeed, Hrdlitka seems to have
seen in many skull perforations, and even in some shallow depressions
in the skull vault (Anonymous, 1935), widespread evidence of the prac-
tice of skull surgery. These and other cases, totaling 17, that have
come to the writer’s attention in the literature, are listed chronologi-
cally in table 1.3
Now, obviously, 17 (or 19, when Romero’s other cases are included)
is not an impressive number of cases of trephining to have been as-
sembled in 60 years from the vast area stretching from Mexico to
Alaska and across the United States from coast to coast. One is in-
clined to wonder, too, why only two cases have turned up in the South-
west among all the hundreds of skulls found there. On this point the
writer noted in 1940, in presenting the case from Maryland, listed in
table 1 (pl. 3), that—
this one is perhaps the most convincing example of [trephining] yet found in the
northern continent. Yet as an example of primitive surgery it is singularly
isolated among the hundreds of skulls from this site. It would seem unreasonable
to expect such a successful end result on a first attempt at cranial surgery, but
according to modern pathological knowledge no other diagnosis fits as well.
(P. 16.)
It is difficult to describe the feeling of dissatisfaction with the evi-
dence and arguments which one gains in reading the individual reports
and in examining the accompanying illustrations. Some of the cases
undoubtedly represent old healed injuries in which there was no
surgical intervention; others are fresh openings which, since they
could have been made after death, do not prove the existence of sur-
gery in the real sense. Only two or three look anything like what is
often seen in Peruvian specimens.
Twenty years ago the writer reexamined the first three cases from
British Columbia listed in table 1. In none of these cases had objec-
tive proof of the findings, in the form of photomicrographs, been
given. Herewith (pls. 4-8) this deficiency is corrected. Inspection
of these plates should convince anyone that, with the exception of the
larger opening in the Eburne skull, evidence of healing is lacking or
*In a paper read at the reunion of the Mesa Redonda of the Mexican Anthro-
pological Society in Oaxaca in September 1957, Javier Romero summarized five
cases of trephining from Monte Alban, including one case from the Mixteca and
presumably the three cases listed here. When this paper is published, two more
cases can be added to those in table 1.
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 477
very doubtful. Histological study is needed here, as well as in some
of the other cases, to distinguish true healing from the surface smooth-
ing resulting from a cord passing through the opening.
From all these considerations the writer is inclined to be skeptical
about most of the cases cited being examples of real trephining. AI-
though healed openings such as occur in the Eburne and Accokeek
skulls look real, their isolation in large skull collections argues strongly
in favor of a natural process rather than surgery. Especially signifi-
cant is the absence of cases showing bone infection around the opening
or, in other words, showing survival for a short time following an
operation in life.‘
Africa.—The practice of skull surgery is not known to be represented
in the whole of the continent of Africa, except at two points very close
to western Europe: (1) Among the Kabyles in the Djebel Aouras
(Mount Aurés), in the province of Constantine, in Algeria (Malbot
and Verneau, 1897) ; and (2) on the island of Tenerife in the Canaries
(Beattie, 1930). In Algeria, where the practice has persisted into
modern times, trephined skulls have been found in archeological set-
tings antedating Roman times. How much further back in time the
custom goes, and whether it is entirely independent of Europe, is not
known. In Tenerife the existence of the custom is known from at
least 11 trephined specimens of uncertain age and probably over 30
others with bregmatic scars possibly indicating cauterization.
Drennan (1937) has tried “to demonstrate that the trepanation cult
was also practiced in a primitive form by the Bushman race” in South
Africa. However, his examples are not impressive, and look more
like healed wounds than surgery.
Asia.—In 1897 Zaborowski reported to the Anthropological Society
of Paris that the inhabitants of Dagestan, just west of the Caspian
Sea, practiced a form of cauterization of the vertex of the head, some-
what like the sincipital T, in order to prevent illness. According to
Guiard (1930), these people also practiced trephining for all sorts
of circumstances as late as the end of the nineteenth century. Whether
the practices here connect back with that of the Neolithic period in
Europe is unknown.
For a long time Dagestan was the only place where skull surgery
was known to have existed in Asia. Then in 1936 Starkey and Parry
reported the recovery of three trephined skulls from a seventh-century
B. C. ossuary at Tell Duweir in Palestine. Amazingly, two of the
‘The writer has a picture of the first female skull from Monte Albin which
shows a sinuous excavation surrounding the circular, steep-sided opening. The
specimen needs to be examined again to see whether this line represents bone
infection following operation. If indeed infection, the practice of skull surgery
would have considerable time depth in Mexico—at least to 700-1000 A. D.
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
478
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480 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
artificial openings had been made in the same rectangular fashion as
that in the original Squier specimen (fig. 1). Since there are indica-
tions of osteitis about one of these rectangular openings, probably the
individual briefly survived his operation. The third case probably
represents a healed decompressed fracture. It is noteworthy also that
all three Palestine cases were culled from a collection of several hun-
dred skulls, which suggests that skull surgery was not practiced very
often in this locality.
MOTIVES FOR OPERATING
A skull which has been operated upon seldom by itself tells why the
operation was undertaken. It is owing to this fact that most explana-
tions of primitive skull surgery include the word “thaumaturgy”—
magic, from the Greek word for wonderworking. Doubtless a large
element of mysticism became involved in such operations in the
course of time, but whether or not it led to, or grew out of, a therapeutic
measure, is debatable. For example, McGee (1897), evidently in-
fluenced by the discoveries in Europe and North America of amulets
and human skulls cut post mortem, maintained that “trephining
began . . . and was performed after death for the purpose of obtain-
ing amulets. It ... was gradually extended to living captives for
the same vicarious purpose.” (P.72.) From this beginning McGee
saw the procedure tied in more and more with “incantations . . . ac-
companied by medication or manipulation.” Then, according to this
reconstruction of events, whenever the procedure proved beneficial,
an otherwise aimless operation tended to grow into empiric surgery.
Other writers on this subject, who have not been impressed by the
role of amulet collecting, have felt that traumatic and/or pathological
indications requiring therapy first induced primitive man to cut into
the head. Tello (1913) listed four such indications, foremost of
which was fracture of the skull. On the other hand, Ford (1937),
speaking for Melanesia, where, as in Peru, warfare resulted in many
skull fractures, reconstructs events as follows:
The operation was undertaken for the immediate treatment of traumatic
cranial injuries, and in certain areas its performance was extended to the treat-
ment of severe headache and other ailments, and as a prophylactic measure, in
children, against the occurrence of such affections in subsequent life. (P. 477.)
Besides cutting through the skull, primitive surgeons in certain
areas, as we have seen, produced extensive scars on the skull vault,
some of them in the form of a cross (sincipital T). So far as Europe
is concerned, the nature of this practice is clear from surviving
medieval medical records (MacCurdy, 1905): chemical or thermal
cauterization was applied as a counterirritant in cases of dementia
and epilepsy. This does not mean that any large bone scar need be
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 481
interpreted as having been caused by cauterization, as Moodie (1921)
and Weiss (1955) seem toimply. Any damage to the scalp leading to
loss of blood supply to the bone followed by osteitis can end in bone
scarring (Stewart, 1956).
From these considerations it is understandable that similar appear-
ances of perforated and scarred skulls from widely scattered places
may hide variations in surgical motivations. Almost certainly the
alleviation of pressure on the brain caused by skull fracture was the
most frequent reason for the operation in Peru and Melanesia; it may
have been the reason less frequently in Europe. Probably in Peru, as
in Melanesia, the operation was undertaken for additional reasons,
otherwise it is difficult to explain why the individual whose skull is
shown on plate 1 would have had his head opened seven times. Just
what these reasons were in Peru, whether headaches, epilepsy, or
dementia, is not known.
Operations on the head to obtain rondels or amulets seem to have
been restricted mainly to Europe. These round pieces of skull, often
polished and sometimes perforated for suspension, have been found in
burials there and sometimes accompanying surgically opened skulls.
In these European examples apparently it was important that the
rondel include a bit of healed edge from a previous operation, thus
assuring to the possessor some quality connected with the operation.°
Judging from certain European skulls in which signs of altered growth
accompany healed openings, Broca (1876) concluded that the operation
often was made in infancy. Perhaps, therefore, the practice was
somewhat comparable to that in Melanesia where, according to Ford
(1937), women cut openings through the foreheads of some of the
children, 3 to 5 years of age, to ward off future trouble from trauma;
in other words, the European custom may have been an extension of a
surgical procedure from therapy to prophylaxis.
The Peruvians also operated on children. The United States Na-
tional Museum collection includes the skulls of three children close
to 6 years of age and three near 12 years of age. Only two of these,
including an incomplete specimen, lack a clear sign of fracture.
The Tello collection at Peabody Museum, Harvard University, in-
cludes the skulls of 4 children close to 6 years of age and 11 around
12 years of age (another lacks the face and hence the age is uncer-
tain). Signs of fracture are evident in seven of these. Plate 9
5In 1899 Thomas Wilson, then curator of prehistoric archeology in the U. S.
National Museum, prepared an extensive manuscript on ‘Prehistoric Trepanned
Skulls,” which includes summaries of most of the European finds to that date.
Wilson had seen many of the original specimens and had even helped recover
some of them. This manuscript, which is now in the division of physical anthro-
pology, has been of help in preparing the present paper.
482 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
(upper left) shows the skull of a child, whose permanent first molars
were just beginning to erupt, in which two trephine openings are
visible, but no sign of fracture, unless it be the little crack in the tem-
poral squama extending down from the smaller opening. This is
an example of how difficult it is sometimes to find the surgical
motivation.
SURGICAL TECHNIQUES
The striking feature about Squier’s Cuzco skull, as mentioned in
the beginning, is the rectangular pattern of canoe-shaped cuts (fig. 1).
Only three skulls with cuts of this type are known outside of Peru—
one from France and two from Palestine. In Peru such skulls have
been found mainly in the Central Highlands. By their nature these
cuts are deeper at the middle than at either end and hence when they
penetrate the skull in a rectangular pattern the piece of bone that is
freed is much smaller than the total area involved in the cutting.
This means that the primitive surgeon who used this technique had to
cut the scalp in such a way as to expose much more of the skull vault
than he intended to open. One of the dangers here was that the large
area of exposed bone would lose the blood supply normally received
through the scalp and that the ischemic bone would become infected.
Obviously, then, the ancient surgeons in Peru and elsewhere who
operated in this way were using a technically unsound procedure.
Just as obviously the technique used in cutting the seven holes in
the skull shown in plate 1 must have been efficient ; it enabled the indi-
vidual to survive each successive operation with a minimum of post-
operative bone scarring. When circular holes were to be made, ap-
parently very little more scalp was removed or turned back than was
needed for the opening in the bone. Other examples show that the
bone was cut and/or scraped in a circular fashion so as to produce
a beveled edge. It is not clear how often a button of bone was re-
moved or how often the bone simply was scraped away over the whole
area of the opening. In general, this technique, with one or other of
its variants, was favored wherever trephining was practiced in an-
cient times.
Trephining by drilling small holes in a circular pattern and then
cutting the slender connections between them, as illustrated in plate 2,
probably was not practiced outside of Peru and only occasionally in
Peru. Failure to use this technique more often may have been due
to fear that the tip of the drill would damage the brain.
In making their incisions through the scalp and in effecting an
opening in the skull, without the use of general anesthetics, primitive
surgeons relied on the sharp edges of flaked stones, especially flint and
obsidian. In Melanesia the shark’s tooth also was used as a cutting
instrument. When metals became available they were made into
STUNE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 483
surgical tools, but for a long time these new tools lacked the neces-
sary hardness and sharpness. Probably accessory objects of perish-
able materials, such as wood, cloth, etc., were used also, but little, if
anything, is known about them, except in areas where the practice has
persisted.
Like the surgeons’ implements of perishable materials, the soft
parts covering the prehistoric skulls have disappeared where they
have not mummified. On page 470 the writer mentioned his earlier
demonstration of the fact that the extent of the openings of the scalp
made by ancient Peruvian surgeons prior to opening the skull some-
times is still imprinted, so to speak, on the bone (mainly in connection
with rectangular trephine openings). This record is due to the fact
that in Peru the surgeons often removed the scalp completely over
the area where they planned to trephine, and in so doing they made
their incisions in an angular pattern so that the opening in the scalp
had three to five or more sides (but commonly only four). The im-
printing of this event on a skull could come about in several ways:
Postoperative bone infection could begin at the margins of the wound
where the blood supply was cut off and gradually undermine the
exposed outer table; or the infection could clear up and new bone
form with a pattern of scarring conforming to the preceding pat-
tern of infection; or, in the event the patient died during the opera-
tion, the soft parts could mummify, leaving the bone exposed by the
surgeon to be discolored differently from that covered by scalp
(either darkened by chemical dyes or bleached by sunlight). Plates
9 and 10 illustrate clearly these alternatives (see also figs. 3 and 5 in
Stewart, 1956). No longer is it sufficient to look at the trephine
openings alone; all the surrounding bone must be inspected for clues
as to what happened. For example, plate 9, lower left, shows one of
many cases of surgery on the forehead in which the incisions through
the scalp were in a diamond-shape pattern with long axis running
anteroposteriorly. Probably this shows a knowledge of the tensions
in the scalp.
In the fairly large number of Peruvian cases where death occurred
during or immediately after the trephining, and the soft parts did
not mummify, there is, of course, no way of knowing the size of the
opening in the scalp. However, accidental cut marks on the bone
beyond the limits of the opening sometimes suggest where the scalp
incisions were placed. Again, in the fairly large number of cases
where bone healing followed trephining without leaving much scar-
ring and certainly no angular pattern of scarring, it is assumed that
the edge of the scalp opening was near the edge of the opening in the
bone, or possibly small scalp flaps were replaced over the opening.
Perhaps such a technique was used in Europe in ancient times. In
Melanesia the skin flaps were replaced and then stitched (Ford, 1987).
484 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Nothing is known about the postoperative care of the surgical area
in prehistoric times. It is sometimes stated that a shell or metal disk
was placed over the hole in the skull, but there is no good evidence of
this practice. Hrdlicka (1939) illustrated a partly mummified head
from the Nasca region of Peru with what he interpreted as a surgical
bandage still in place over the rear parts. However, X-rays now show
that this head had not been trephined and nothing else about the head
itself suggests that this so-called bandage was connected with a surgi-
cal procedure. On the other hand, the writer has presented arguments
(1956) supporting the possibility that the patterns of osteitis and
bone scarring to which he has called attention (see also pls. 9 and 10)
were due to chemical irritants used in postoperative treatments. In
spite of this, the writer is inclined to favor septic osteitis rather than
chemical osteitis as the explanation of these features.
In contrast to the paucity of information on postoperative pro-
cedures in ancient times, numerous observations made directly on
patients have been reported from Melanesia. From the data which
Ford (1937) has assembled it seems that in the Gazelle Peninsula “the
hole formed at operation was plugged with a piece of native bark
cloth.” Here also it is reported that “before the scalp flaps were re-
placed the opening in the skull was covered with a piece of the inner
bark or inside leaf of the banana palm, which had been held for a
short time over the coals of a fire.” In the Loyalty Islands cocoanut
shell was used instead of bark. In these islands also “The scalp was
stitched with a needle made from the wingbone of a flying fox, and
some of their own twine, which is fine and strong.” And finally, after
the scalp flaps were replaced, it was the custom in the Duke of York
Group (north of New Britain), to bind the head with sun-dried strips
from the banana stalk. Ford adds (p. 474) that “the water of the
unripe cocoanut was used to wash the wound, and, in some cases, the
hands of the operator. This, since sterilization by heat was not under-
stood, provided the only relatively bacteria-free fluid available.” This
pieced-together picture of postoperative procedures may approximate
a custom that was common throughout Melanesia.
Ford implies that when the fracture cases were operated on the
patients were unconscious. This may have been true of most cases
of this sort everywhere. Even in Peru, where the cocoa leaf was
chewed for its narcotic effect, it is not certain how far this principle
was applied as a part of the surgical procedure.
SITES OF OPERATION
No part of the skull vault was immune to surgery, although naturally
the primitive surgeons did not go very deep under the temporal and
occipital muscles. Almost everywhere the left side of the skull seems
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 485
to have been the most common site of operation. This may have been
associated with warfare and the delivery of blows to the head by
right-handed adversaries. In a series of 112 operations studied by
the writer in the Tello collection in the Peabody Museum, 48.2 percent
are on, or largely on, the left side, as compared with 29.5 percent on,
or largely on, the right side, and 22.8 percent in the midline. The
further distribution of these operations is shown in table 2. Accord-
ing to these findings, the front of the skull received most attention.
Again, this would be an area vulnerable in warfare.
TaBLE 2.—Distribution of trephine openings in Peruvian skulls (Tello collection,
Peabody Museum, Harvard University)
Location Number of cases Percentage
Frontal area:
POCO ROR OMe AS SEE oe ute TN 26
Crossing right coronal suture_-_____________- 9
Reemrobvor prepa. = 2 2 eo 2 G0 fens see ae 53. 6
Crossing left coronal suture___.__..__._-_-- 12
Extending from frontal to temporal-_--_--_-_-- 1
Parietal area:
Bightoparietal bones so5 0520 2h see 3
@rossing sagittal suture. 22 622.2. 2k 15
Hermpariccal DONE 22 he 2d. eee os eee be 18 viespet ease oaie
Extending from parietal to temporal -_-_------ 1
Occipital area:
Mectoba ones oe ese OMe ae NN 4
Crossing right lambdoid suture_____.___---- 2
Repromotlambda-ca 222s 2 eS Yt Ds A en Aa 13. 4
Crossing left lambdoid suture__._____-_-_-- 1
Extending from occipital to temporal - - --__-- 1
obo) La nen eaten MESURE SI ek ane a ea 112
If the ancient surgeons knew of the danger of hemorrhage from
entering the sagittal and transverse venous sinuses, table 2 shows
that they were not deterred from cutting through the bone in these
areas (see also pl. 1). Neither were they deterred by the danger of
infection from operating on the frontal sinuses, although operations
at this point are not very common. Moodie (1929) illustrates some
cases and there is another in the United States National Museum
collection (No. 293795, Cinco Cerros). In the latter a fracture had
involved some of the facial bones and the frontal bone above the right
orbit. In making a trephine opening above the right orbit probably
the frontal sinus was encountered. Be this as it may, before healing
finally took place there was extensive scarring of the accessory nasal
sinuses from infection.
A word should be said about the efforts of the Peruvian surgeons
in some cases to follow outlines of fracture. There is a remarkable
486 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
example of this in the Tello collection, Peabody Museum (identified
simply by the letter “A,” but probably in the LI. series), consisting
of a mummified head which had received a large comminuted fracture
on the left side of the occiput. Apparently the surgeon had taken
out the loose pieces of bone, leaving an irregular hole 46 mm. long
and 31 mm. wide. Then he had followed one of the fracture lines
forward to the coronal suture, turning back the soft parts and clean-
ing the bone (as evidenced by the still displaced tissues and by
scratches on the bone). This was bold surgery. Had the patient
lived, his skull would have shown widespread scarring.
Piggott (1940, p. 122) says that in Europe “there .. . appears
little evidence for any regional predilection.” However, he notes
that “The commonest region trepanned seems the parietal, and there
is perhaps a tendency for the left side to be preferred” (p. 123). He
adds that “there is a curiously high proportion of frontal operations
in the Czechoslovak group and it occurs again at Grydej6] in Den-
mark” (pp. 122-123).
In Melanesia the frontal bone seems to have been the site of elec-
tion for the prophylactic operations made in infancy (Ford, 1987).
So far as adults are concerned, the distribution of sites may well
follow the Peruvian pattern, since in both places most of the skull
fractures were received in warfare.
OUTCOME OF OPERATION
It should be clear from what has been said, as well as from the
illustrations given, that trephining was practiced in ancient times,
and recently by peoples in a primitive stage of culture, with a con-
siderable degree of success. Fairly reliable data on this subject are
available for Peru, owing to the large number of specimens that have
been assembled from there. For example, by combining the 214
operations seen by the writer in the collections of the U. S. National
Museum, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Peabody
Museum, 55.6 percent show complete healing, 16.4 percent beginning
healing, and 28 percent no healing. Others have reported similar
figures (Stewart, 1950).
For the Neolithic period of Europe Piggott (1940, p. 122) says
simply that—
the proportion of survivals from this operation ... is extremely high, as is
evidenced by skulls showing the healthy growth of new bone around the edges
of the opening, nor is it unusual for one skull to exhibit evidence of two or
more operations all with healed edges.
Cases of repeated successful operations on the same individual are
known also from Melanesia. For this area Ford appears to subscribe
to the high estimates of recoveries given by several authors. One
figure he mentions is “about 80 percent,” and here emphasis is placed
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart PLATE 1
Skull from Cuzco, Peru, with seven circular healed trephine openings. British Museum
(Nat. Hist.) No. 1956.10.10.1. (Photograph courtesy of Kenneth Oakley.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957,—Stewart PLATE 2
Head of a Peruvian mummy with a large trephine opening in the left parieto-occipital
region made by the drilling technique. The opening is 57 mm. long and 43 mm. wide
and thus may be the largest on record made in this way. ‘The scalp has been turned
back to expose the opening; it appears to have been cut into three or four flaps by radiating
incisions. Musée de Homme No. 79-1—22, Utcumbamba, Piedra Grande. (Photograph
courtesy of Henri V. Vallois.)
PLATE 3
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart
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1J2] FY} 0} MOIA dYI UI payNuapr Sutsq suoremp oyy ‘Buruedo sures ay Jo sospa oy1 Jo SMAIA aoIYT, *7YSIY (‘OF6T “I1PMIIG) “PIN, “YooYoooy 1”
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Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart PLATE 4
Upper: Circular opening in left side of frontal bone of skull XII-B—1555 from Boundary
Bay, British Columbia-Washington, described by Smith (1924). Lower: Oval opening
(partly broken away) in right parietal of skull XII-B-1556 from the same source. (Photo-
graphs courtesy of National Museum of Canada.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart PLATE 5
Upper: View of inside of skull XII-B-1555 from Boundary Bay, British Columbia-Wash-
ington, showing broken edge of circular opening. Middle: Photomicrograph of portion
of edge of same opening. Note that there is smoothing but not obliteration of the inner
bone structure. Lower: Phctomicrograph of portion of outer surface around edge of
opening. Note cut marks. (Photograph courtesy of National Museum of Canada.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957,—Stewart PLATE 6
Upper: Photomicrograph of portion of edge of oval opening in skull XII-B-1556 from
Boundary Bay, British Columbia-Washington. ‘This portion of the opening is located
at the upper left of the view in plate 4, lower. Note open diploé and striations on outer
table. Lower: Photomicrograph of another part of the edge in the same opening. ‘This
portion of the opening is located at the top of the view in plate 4, lower. Note open
diploé and striations in triplicate suggestive of rodent tooth marks. (Photograph courtesy
of National Museum of Canada.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957,—Stewart PLATE 7
Rear view of skull No. 33 from the Eburne shell mound in British Columbia showing two
artificial openings described by Kidd (1930). (Photograph courtesy of City Museum
of Vancouver.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart PLATE 8
orn
Upper: Photomicrograph of a section of the edge of the smaller opening in skull. No. 33
from Eburne, British Columbia. Note cut marks. Lower: Photomicrograph of the
outer surface at the right-inferior edge of the larger opening in the same skull. Note
that the inner bone structure has been obliterated by the healing process. (Photographs
courtesy of City Museum of Vancouver.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart. PLATE 9
Skulls showing evidence of surgical openings through scalp and bone. Upper left: Child
(near 6 years). Lines of porosity above and behind the openings mark beginning of
osteitis. (Tello coll. No. A 15.) Upper right: Young adult male. Surrounding rectangu-
lar area crosses sagittal suture and is bordered with beginning osteitis. (Tello coll.
LI] 9.) Lower left: Adult male. Surrounding diamond-shaped area of osteitis has outer
table of bone sluffed off. (Tello coll. No. P 5.) Lower right: Adult male. Diamond-
shaped area of scarring surrounds healed opening and triangular area edged with be-
ginning osteitis surrounds fresh opening. (‘Tello coll. No. Cl 1.) (Photographs courtesy
of Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)
Smithsonian Report, 1957.—Stewart. PLATE 10
Skulls showing evidence of surgical openings through scalp and bone. Upper left: Adoles-
cent male. Rectangular area of discoloration is edged with beginning osteitis. (Tello
coll. No. A 7.) Upper right: Adult female. Rectangular area of discoloration is edged
with beginning osteitis. (Tello coll. No. Sak. 8.) Lower left: Adult male. Large
angular area of bleaching surrounds opening. (Tello coll. No. P 14.) Lower right:
Adult male. Diamond-shaped area of scarring surrounds each opening. (Tello coll.
No. H 41.) (Photographs courtesy of Peabody Museum, Harvard University.)
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 487
on the fact that the deaths were from the original injuries and not
from complications after the operations. This amount of success may
well be exaggerated, but it was certainly good enough to perpetuate
the custom.
CONCLUDING STATEMENT
In this review of our present knowledge of Stone Age skull sur-
gery many details necessarily have been omitted. Yet enough facts
have been presented to show that a great deal has been learned about
this subject since Squier returned from Cuzco with the first example
of primitive trephining. Indeed, by its bulk this knowledge tends
to create the impression that skull surgery was all of primitive sur-
gery. That this is not true will be seen by referring to Ackerknecht’s
(1947) review of primitive surgery asa whole. Yet the fact remains
that more is known about Stone Age man’s operations on the skull
than on any other part of the body. Piggott (1940, p. 114) explains
this situation as follows:
[the] apparent isolation [of trephining] in the prehistory of surgery may be
entirely accidental, due to the fact that the skull alone occupies a virtually
exoskeletal position in relation to a vital organ, and in consequence any opera-
tional approach to the brain must be made through the bone of the skull—an
enduring substance in the archaeological record.
Our knowledge of early operations on the skull tends also to give
the impression that the primitive surgeon was more daring in his
approach to the brain than the modern surgeon. This impression is
minimized by considerations which again have been nicely stated
by Piggott (p. 114) :
The trepidation with which we approach the cerebral operation today is
conditioned by our realization of the overwhelming importance of the brain
in the vertebrate anatomy, a fact but dimly appreciated until comparatively
recent times. It was not so long ago that, in both popular and professional
regard, the heart was the seat of courage, the spleen of anger, and that the
Salient mental characteristics of the individual were located in the various
viscera. Small wonder if prehistoric man approached trepanning in the same
matter-of-fact way and upon a similar misconception as to the localisation
of physiological activities.
LITERATURE CITED
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451800—58——32
488 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Brooa, PAUL.
1867. Cas singulier de trépanation chex les Incas. Bull. Soc. Anthrop.
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Lesson, A. See Toprnarp.
LUMHOLTZ, CaRL, and HrpiitKa, ALES.
1897. Trephining in Mexico. Amer. Anthrop., 0. s., vol. 10, pp. 389-396.
MacCourpy, Grorce GRANT.
1905. Prehistoric surgery—a neolithic survival. Amer. Anthrop., n. s., vol.
7, pp. 17-23.
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 489
1923. Human skeletal remains from the highlands of Peru. Amer. Journ.
Phys. Anthrop., vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 217-330, 49 pls.
Matsot, HENRI, and VERNEAD, R.
1897. Les Chaouias et la trépanation du crine dans l’Aurés. L’Anthrop.,
vol. 8, pp. 1-18, 174-204.
MANOUVBIER, L.
1895. Curieuse mutilation crfinienne néolithique. Bull. Soc. Anthrop. Paris,
4° sér., vol. 6, pp. 357-360.
Mason, Oris T.
1885. The Chaclacayo trephined skull. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 8, pp.
410-412, 1 pl.
McGee W J See Muniz and McGer.
Moooptrg, Roy L.
1921. A variant of the sincipital T in Peru. Amer. Journ. Phys. Anthrop.,
vol. 4, pp. 219-222, 2 pls.
1929. Studies in paleopathology, XXIII. Surgery in pre-Columbian Peru.
Ann. Med. Hist., n. s., vol. 1, pp. 698-728.
1930. Studies in paleopathology, XXIV. Prehistoric surgery in New Mex-
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Moraes Macepo, CARLOS.
1917. La trepanacién del crineo y su representacién en la cerfmica peruana.
Proc. Sec. Pan Amer. Sci. Congr., Washington, Sect. I, Anthrop.,
pp. 265-267.
Muniz, Manvuet Antonio, and McGen, W J
1897. Primitive trephining in Peru. 16th Ann. Rep. Bur. Amer. Ethnol. for
1894-95, pp. 3-72.
Parry, WILSON.
1936. Three skulls from Palestine showing two types of primitive surgical
holing ; being the first skulls exhibiting this phenomenon that have
been discovered on the mainland of Asia. Man, vol. 36, No. 234,
p. 170.
PriaGoTT, STUART.
1940. A trepanned skull of the Beaker Period from Dorset and the practice
of trepanning in prehistoric Europe. Proc. Prehist. Soc., n.s., vol.
6, No. 3, pp. 112-132.
PRUNIPRES (DE MAROEJOLS).
1874. Sur les criines artificiellement perforés 4 l’époque des dolmens. Bull.
Soe. Anthrop. Paris, 2° sér., vol. 9, pp. 185-205.
QuEvepo A., SERGIO A.
1948. La trepanaci6n incana en la regi6n del Cuzco. Rev. Univ. Cuzco, afio
32, No. 85, seg. sem., pp. 1-191. (Also separately, and in Rev. Mus.
Nac. Lima, vol. 12, No. 1, pp. 8-138; No. 2, pp. 181-211; vol. 13,
pp. 41-64, 153-192; vol. 14, pp. 82-123.)
ROMERO, JAVIER.
1935. Crfineos trepanados de Monte Albin (unpublished MS.).
1952. Los patrones de la mutilacién dentaria prehispfnica. Anales Inst.
Nac. Antrop. e Hist. for 1949-50, vol. 4, No. 32 de la coleccién, pp.
177-221, 19 pls., 2 folding figs. (See footnote 19, pp. 192-193.
and pl. 8).
Sanson, A.
1874. Sur les perforations artificielles du crane chez les insulaires de la
mer du Sud. Bull. Soe. Anthrop. Paris, 2° sér., vol. 9, pp, 494-495.
490 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
SHapmRo, H. L.
1927. Primitive surgery. First evidence of trephining in the Southwest.
Nat. Hist., vol. 27, pp. 266-269.
SMITH, Haruan I.
1924. Trephined aboriginal skulls from British Columbia and Washington.
Amer. Journ. Phys. Anthrop., vol. 7, pp. 447-452.
Squier, HW. GrorGceE.
1877. Peru; Incidents of travel and exploration in the land of the Incas,
p. 456; Appendix, p. 577. New York.
Srarkey, J. L.
1936. Discovery of skulls with surgical holing at Tell Duweir, Palestine.
Man, vol. 36, No. 233, p. 169.
STEWART, T. D.
1940. Demonstration of an Indian skull from Maryland with a perforation
suggesting trepanation. Amer. Journ. Phys. Anthrop., vol. 27, No. 2,
supplement, pp. 15-16.
1943. Skeletal remains from Paracas, Peru. Amer. Journ. Phys. Anthrop.,
n.S., vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 47-63.
1950. Deformity, trephining, and mutilations in South American Indian
skeletal remains. Bur. Amer. Ethnol. Bull. 143 (Handbook of
South American Indians), vol. 6, pp. 43-48.
1956. Significance of osteitis in ancient Peruvian trephining. Bull. Hist.
Med., vol. 30, No. 4, pp. 2938-320.
TELLO, JULIO C.
1918. Prehistoric trephining among the Yauyos of Peru. Proc. 18th
Internat. Congr. Amer. London (1912), pp. 75-83.
TOPINARD, PAUL.
1875. Des instruments de chirurgie de Taiti recueillis par M. A. Lesson.
Bull. Soc. Anthrop. Paris, 2° sér., vol. 10, pp. 619-621.
TURNER, GEORGE.
1884. Samoa a hundred years ago and before. London.
ViéiLEZ LO6pEz, LizArpo.
1940. La cirugia del craéneo en los vasos del Perf precolombino. Bol. Mus,
Hist. Nat., Lima, afio 4, No. 12, pp. 105-112.
VIDAL SENEZE, PIERRE.
1877. Peforations criniennes sur d’anciens cranes du haut Pérou. Bull.
Soc. Anthrop. Paris, 2° sér., vol. 12, pp. 561-563.
WAKEFIELD, BE. G., and DELLINGER, S. C.
1936. The probable adaptation of utilitarian implements for surgical pro-
cedures by the ‘““Mound Builders” of eastern Arkansas. Journ. Bone
and Joint Surg., vol. 18, pp. 484438.
1939. Possible reasons for trephining the skull in the past. Ciba Symposia,
vol. 1, No. 6, pp. 166-169.
WEISS, PEDRO.
1949. La cirugia del crfneo entre los Antiguos Peruanos. 34 pp. Lima.
1953. Las trepanaciones peruanas estudiadas como técnica en sus relaciones
con la cultura. Rey. Mus. Nac., Lima, vol. 22, pp. 17-34.
1955. Casos peruanos prehistoricos de cauterizaciones craneanas; T sincip-
ital de Manouvrier. Rev. Mus. Anthrop. y Arqueol. Lima, vol. 2,
pt. 2, 1°" sem., pp. 3-23, 8 pls.
STONE AGE SKULL SURGERY—STEWART 491
WOLFEL, D. J.
1925. Die Trepanation. Anthropos, vol. 20, pp. 1-50.
ZABOROWSKI.
1897. Le T sincipiatal. Mutilation des cranes neolithiques, observée en
Asie Centrale. Bull. Soe. Anthrop. Paris, 4° sér., vol. 8, pp. 501-503.
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INDEX
A
Abbot, C. G., x
Accessions, 11, 64, 65, 83, 84, 85, 88,
98, 121, 126, 174, 185
Bureau of American Ethnology,
64, 65
Freer Gallery of Art, 98
Library, 185
National Air Museum, 121
National Collection of Fine Arts,
83, 84, 85, 88
National Gallery of Art, 174
National Museum, 11
National Zoological Park, 126
Anderson, Clinton P., Regent of the
Institution, v, 4
Anglim, J. E., vi
Aniline dyes—their impact on biology
end medicine (Morris C. Leikind),
429
Applegate, Shelton P., 25
Appropriations, 5, 44, 147, 173, 203
Arthur lecture, 6, 233
Astrophysical Observatory (Fred L.
Whipple, Director), vii, 5, 8, 68
Appropriation, 5
Astrophysical Research, Division
of, 68
Field station, vii
Publications, 75, 80, 194
Radiation and Organisms, Divi-
sion of, vii, 77
Staff, vii
Astrophysical Research, Division of, 68
Publications, 75
Report, 68
B
Baerreis, David A., 55
Bales, Richard, 183
Bamboo in the economy of oriental
peoples (F. A. McClure), 391
Bartsch, Paul, ix
Bass, William M., 48
Bassler, R. S., ix
Battison, Edwin A., vi, 29, 30, 38
Bayer, Frederick M., vi
Beall, Carlton G., 150
Beggs, Thomas M., Director, National
Collection of Fine Arts, vii, 82, 95, 97
Belin, Ferdinand Lammot, Vice Presi-
dent, National Gallery of Art, viii, 172
173
Benn, James H., vi
Benson, Flizabeth, 179
Benson, Ezra Taft, Secretary of Agri-
culture, Member of the Institution, v
Bio-Sciences Information Exchange, 7
Bishop, Philip W., vii, 30, 38
Blanchard, Ruth, 187
Bliss, Robert Woods, 82, 83
Bolli, Hans, 27
Béving, Adam G., 39
Bowman, T. E., vi, 23
Bowsher, A. L., 26
Boyle, W. E., vi
Bredin, J. Bruce, ix
Briggs, R. E., vii
Brooks, Overton, Regent of the Institu-
tion, v, 4
Brown, Mrs. G. E., 36
Brown, John Nicholas, Regent of the
Institution, v, 4, 82
Brown, R. W.,. ix
Brown, William L., vi, 33
Brownell, Herbert, Jr., Attorney Gen-
eral of the United States, Member of
the Institution, v
Bruns, Franklin R., Jr., vii, 32
Buchanan, L. L., ix
Bureau of American Ethnology (Mat-
thew W. Stirling, Director), vii, 5, 8,
40
Accessions, 64, 65
Appropriation, 5
Archives, 62
Collections, 65
Editorial work and publications, 64,
194
Tilustrations, 64
Miscellaneous, 66
Report, 40
River Basin Surveys, 44
Staff, vii
Systematic researches, 40
Cc
Cairns, Huntington, Secretary-Treas-
urer and General Counsel, National
Gallery of Art, viii, 172, 184
Caldwell, Joseph R., 48
Caldwell, Warren W., 48, 53, 58, 59
Campbell, Leon, Jr., 73
Campbell, William P., 172, 179
Canal Zone Biological Area, viii, 5, 9,
155
Acknowledgments, 162
Appropriation, 5, 203
Buildings, equipment,
provements, 159
and im-
493
494
Canal Zone Biological Area—Continued
Finances, 162
Plans and urgent requirements, 160
Rainfall, 158
Report, "155
Scientists, students, and observers,
1
Visitors, 157
Cannon, Clarence, Regent of the Insti-
tution, v, 4, 204
Carmichael, Leonard, Secretary of the
Institution, Vv, ery gal 34, 82, 83, 112
Carriker, M. Ks
Cartwright, O. i. vi, 23
Chace, Fenner A., Jr, vi
Chamberlain, Joseph Miles (The de-
velopment of the planetarium in the
United States), 261
Chancellor of the Institution (Karl
Warren, Chief Justice of the United
States), v, 4, 172
Chase, Mrs. Agnes, ix
Chief Justice of the United States (Earl
Warren, Chancellor of the Institu-
tion), v, 4, 172
Chilton, Mrs. Alexander, 35, 36
Christensen, Erwin O., 179
Clain-Stefanelli, Vladimir, vii, 33, 38
Clark, Mrs. Leila F., librarian of the
Institution, v, 188
Clark, Robert Sterling, 38
Clark, T. F., treasurer of the insti-
tution, v
Clarke, Gilmore D., 82, 83
Clarke, J. F. Gates, vi
Cloud, Preston, ix
Coale, George L., 48
Coast and Geodetic Survey, United
States, 1807-1957 (Elliott B.
Roberts), 221
Cochran, Doris M., vi
Collins, Henry B., Jr., vii, 41, 42
Compton, Arthur H., Regent of the
Institution, v, 4
Conger, Paul S., vi
Cooke, C. Wythe, ix
Cooke, Hereward Lester, 179
Cooper, G. Arthur, vi, 26, 38
Cosmic rays from the sun (Thomas
Gold), 233
Cott, Perry B., Chief Curator, National
Gallery of Art, viii, 172, 179
Cotton harvest, Mechanizing
(James H. Street), 413
Cowan, Richard 8., vi, 38
Crabill, Ralph E., Jr., vi, 37
Crist, Raymond E. (The land and
people of the Guajira Peninsula), 339
Cushman, Robert A., 3&
Cutress, Charles E., Jr., vi, 23
D
Dale, Chester, President, National Gal-
lery of Art, viii, 172, 173
Davis, Malcolm, 148, 150
Deaton, Norman_H., 33
the
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
DeGolyer, Everette Lee, Regent of the
Institution, 4
Deignan, H. re vi
Densmore, Frances, 66
DePrato, Mario, 148
Derrow, James M., 147
Dieter, Mrs. Nannielou, 69
Docent service, 35
Doolittle, Lt. Gen, na viii, 112
Dorman, C. G.,
Doyle, Mai. Gen. "oun P., 112
Drake, C. J.,
Dulles, John Foster; Secretary of State,
Member of pe Institution, v, viii
Dunbar, C. O.,
Dunkle, David f PVs 20,20
Dutro, As T2226
E
Editorial and Publications Division
(Paul H. Oehser, chief), v, 195
Report, 189
Eisenhower, Dwight D., President of
the United States, Presiding Officer
ex officio, v
Elder, R. A., Jr., vi
Elstad, Victor B., vii, 78
Erickson, Ray, 150
Establishment (Members of the Insti-
tution), v, 4
Ettinghausen, Richard, viii, 106, 107,
108, 110
Evans, Clifford, Jr., vi, 20, 21
Ewers, J. C., planning officer, National
Museum, vi
Executive Committee of the Board of
Regents, 4, 196, 204
Members, v, 204
Report, 196
Appropriations, 203
Assets, 198
Audit, 203
Cash balances, receipts and
disbursements, 200
Endowment funds, 196, 198
Freer Gallery of Art, 198
Smithsonian, 196
Summary of, 198
Gifts and grants, 201
Investments, classification of,
198
Unexpended funds and endow-
ments, 199
Exhibitions, 33, 91, 96, 177
National Museum, 33
Special, 96, 177
Traveling, 91, 177
Exhibits, 2, 338, 100, 114, 125
Freer Gallery of Art, 100
Modernization of, 2, 33
National Air Museum, 114
National Zoological Park, 125
Exploration and fieldwork, 20, 40
Bureau of American Ethnology, 40
National Museum, 20
River Basin Surveys, 45
INDEX
F
Fauntleroy, Travis, 148
Feidler, Ernest R., Administrator, Na-
tional Gallery of Art, viii, 172
Field, W. D., vi
finances, 5
Appropriations, 5, 44, 147, 173, 203
Finley, David E., 82, 83
Fireman, E. L., vii, 72, 76
Fleming, Robert V., Regent of the
Institution, v, 4, 5, 204
Folsom, Marion B., Secretary of Health,
Education, and Welfare, Member of
the Institution, v
Foshag, William F., 38
Freer Gallery of Art (A. G. Wenley,
Director), viii, 9, 98
Attendance, 103
Auditorium, 104
Building, 102
Collections, accessions, 98
Repairs to, 100
Exhibitions, changes in, 100
Library, 101
Publications, 102
Report, 98
Reproductions, 102
Staff, viii
Activities of, 104
Friedmann, Herbert, vi, 22
Froiland, A. G., vii
Fyfe, Howard, 150
G
Garber, Paul E., head curator, National
Air Museum, viii, 124
Gardner, Paul Vickers, vii, 82, 95
Gazin, Cc. Lewis, vi, 24, 25
Gazin, Mrs. Elisabeth sa 187
Gettens, Rutherford J., viii, 104, 106,
107, 108, 109, 110
Gifts, 88, '89, 112, 127, 160, 162, 174,
184, 201
Canal Zone Biological Area, 160,
192
National Air Museum, 112
National Gallery of Art, 174, 184
National Zoological Park, 127
Glance, Grace E., vi
Goins, Craddock R., vii
Gold, Thomas, 6
(Cosmic rays from the sun), 233
Goodrich, Lloyd, 82
Graf, J. E., Assistant Secretary of the
Institution, v
Graham, D. C., ix
Graves, Mrs. Walter, 36
Greeley, F. A., 69
Greenewalt, Crawford H., Regent of
the Institution, v, 4
Greengo, Robert ae 48, 61
Greenwood, Mrs. Arthur, ix, 33
Griffenhagen, George B., vii, 5, 32
Grimmer, J. Lear, viii, 147, 149
Grosvenor, Melville Bell, 34
495
Guajira Peninsula, The land and people
of the (Raymond E. Crist), 339
Guest, Grace Dunham, x
H
Hafstad L. R. (Science, technology, and
society), 207
Hale, Mason E., Jr., vi, 38
Handley, Charles O., Jr., vi, 22
Harrington, John P., ix, 66
Hartle, Donald D., 55, 59
Haskins, Caryl P., Regent of the Insti-
tution, v, 4, 204
Hawkins, Gerald 8. (The development
of radio astronomy), 279
Hayes, ie H., 82
Heizer, R. F.,
Henbest, L. és. “26
Henderson, E. P. 5 cA!
Henize, Karl G., 73, 76
Herber, Elmer C., ix
Herman, Carlton, 149
Hilger, Sister M. Inez, ix
Hindle, Brooke, 38
Hobbs, Horton H., Jr., ix
Hood Maj. Gen. Reuben C., Jr., viii,
11
Howard, James H., 48, 61
Howell, A. B., ix
Howell, Edgar M., vii, 33, 38
Humphrey, George M., Secretary of the
Treasury, Member of the Institution,
Vv, Vill
Hunsaker, Jerome C., Regent of the
Institution, v, 4
Huscher, Harold A., 52, 53, 59
Hynek, J. Allen, 73, 76
I
International Exchange Service (D. G:
Williams, chief), viii, 5, 9, 163
Appropriation, 5
Foreign depositories of governmen-
tal documents, 164
Foreign exchange services, 170
Interparliamentary exchange of the
official journal, 167
Packages received and sent, 163
Report, 163
Irving, William N., 53, 59
J
Jacchia, Luigi G., vii, 72
Jacks, G. V. (The influence of man on
soil fertility), 325
Jackson, Hartley H. T. (The return of
the vanishing musk oxen), 381
James, Macgill, Assistant Director,
National Gallery of Art, viii, 172
Jellison, W. L., ix
Jet streams (R. Lee), 293
Johnson, Alfred E., 59
Johnson, David H., vi, 22
Jones, Mrs. L. Frances, 187
Judd, N. M., ix
496
K
Kainen, Jacob, vii, 30
Kauffmann, Henrik, 113
Kaunitz, Hans (Causes and conse-
quences of salt consumption), 445
Keddy, J. L., Assistant Secretary of the
Institution, v
Kellogg, A. Remington, Director, Na-
tional Museum, vi, 34, 39
Kendall, Edward C., vii, 31
Kestner, F. B., chief, photographic
laboratory, v
Kier, P. M., vi
Killip, E. P., ix
King, W. James, vii, 29, 30
Klapthor, Mrs. Margaret W. Brown,
vii
Klein, W. H., vii, 78, 81
Knight, J. B., ix
Koford, Carl B., viii, 162
Koford, Mrs. C. B., 161
Kress, Rush H., viii, 172
' Krieger, H. W., vi
Krook, Max, vii, 69
L
Lachner, Ernest A., vi, 22, 23
Lamont, Mrs. Edward, 36
Lang, Andrew, 71
Lautman, Don, 73
Lectures, 6, 104, 181
Archaeological Institute of America
(George E. Mylonas), 6
Arthur (Thomas Gold), 6, 233
Freer Gallery of Art, 7, 104
National Gallery of Art, 7, 181
Lee, R. (Jet streams), 293
Leikind, Morris C. (Aniline dyes—
their impact on biology and medi-
cine), 429
Leonard, E. C., vi
Leopold, Estella B. (Pollen and spores
and their use in geology), 303
Lewis, G. E., 26
Lewton, F. L., ix
Library (Mrs. Leila F. Clark, librarian),
v, 9, 101, 120, 182, 185
Freer Gallery of Art, 101
National Air Museum, 120
National Gallery of Art, 182
Smithsonian, 9, 185
Accessions, 185
Report, 185
Statistics, 188
Lindsay, G. C., vi
Loeblich, A. R., Jr., 27, 37
Loeblich, Mrs. Helen N., ix
Loehr, Max, x
Loening, Grover, viii, 112
Lowe, Frank O., 125
Lyon, Rowland, 95
M
Macdonald, Mrs. Peter, 36
Mack, Peter, 114
MacKay, F. W., ix
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Male, W. M., viii
Manfuso, Mrs. John, 36
Mann, William M., ix, 3, 125
Manship, Paul, 82, 83
Martin, Glenn J., 96
Matalas, Nicholas, 71
McCall, F. J., vii
McClure, F. A., ix
(Bamboo in the economy of oriental
peoples), 391
McClure, Mrs. William, 36
McCormick, Mrs. Robert, 36
McIntosh, Allen, ix
McKern, T. W., ix
MeNutt, Charles H., 56, 59
Meggers, Betty J., ix, 20, 21
Mellon, Paul, viii, 172, 173
Meltzer, Alan S., vii, 70
Members of the Institution, v, 4
Meteors (Fred L. Whipple), 239
Miller, Carl, 44, 48, 49, 54
Mitchell, James P., Secretary of Labor,
Member of the Institution, v
Moh, C. C., vii, 80
Mongan, Elizabeth, 179
Moore, Bruce, 113
Moore, J. P., ix
Morrison, J. P. E., vi
Morton, Conrad V., vi, 22
Muesebeck, C. F. W., ix
Multhauf, Robert P., vi, vii, 27, 34, 38
Murray, Mrs. Anne W., vii, 38
Mucue of History and Technology, 5,
Appropriation, 5
Musk oxen, The return of the vanishing
(Hartley H. T. Jackson), 381
Musteric, Joseph, 161
Myers, George Hewitt, 83
Mylonas, George E., 6
N
National Air Museum, viii, 5, 9, 111
Accessions, 121
Advisory Board, viii, 111
Appropriation, 5
Assistance to Government depart-
ments, 117
Exhibits, improvements in, 114
Public information service, 118
Reference material, 120
Report, 111
Special events and displays, 113
Stephenson bequest, 113
Stored aircraft, restoration of, 116
National Collection of Fine Arts
tee M. Beggs, Director), vii, 5,
, 82
Accessions, 83, 84, 85, 88
Appropriation, 5
Art works lent, 85
Barney, Alice Pike, fund, 89
Information service, 94
Loans returned, 88
Myer, Catherine Walden, fund, 85
Publications, 94, 194
Ranger, Henry Ward, fund, 90
INDEX
497
National Collection of Fine Arts—Con. | Nelson, Mrs. Robert, 35, 36
Report, 82
Smithsonian Art Commission, 82
Smithsonian lending collection, 88
Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition
Service, vii, 91
Special exhibitions, 96
Staff activities, 94
Withdrawals by owners, 85
National Gallery of Art, viii, 6, 9, 172
Accessions, 174
Activities, 179, 183
Appropriation, 173
Attendance, 6, 173
Audit of private funds, 184
Buildings and grounds,
nance of, 182
Educational program, 180
Exhibitions, special, 177
Traveling, 177
Gifts, 174, 184
Index of American Design, 182
Library, 182
Officials, viii, 172
Organization, 172
Personnel, 173
Publications, 180
Report, 172
Restoration, 179
Trustees, vili, 172
Works of art, lent, 176
On loan, 175
Returned, 176
National Museum (A. Remington Kel-
logg, Director), vi, 5, 7, 11
Appropriation, 5
Buildings and equipment, 36
Collections, 11
Exhibitions, 33
Exploration, fieldwork, and related
travel, 20
Organization and staff, 37
Report, 11
Staff, v
Visitors, 36
National Zoological Park (Theodore H.
Hed Acting Director), viii, 5, 6, 9,
mainte-
Accessions, 126
Animals in the collection on June
30, 1957, 131
Appropriation, 5, 147, 203
Births and hatchings, 129
Cooperation, 150
Exchanges, 128
Exhibits, 125
Finances, 147
Gifts, 127
Information and education, 148
Personnel, 147
Plans for the future, 153
Purchases, 128
Report, 125
Status of the collection, 130
Veterinarian’s report, 148
Visitors, 6, 151
Neuman, Robert W., 52, 53, 60
Newman, J. B., chief, personnel divi-
sion, v
Newman, Marshal T., vi, 21
Newville, Leslie J., 30
Nicol, David, vi, 26
Nixon, Richard M., Vice President of
the United States, member of the In-
stitution, v, 4
Norris, Ralph, 148
O
Oehser, Paul H., chief, editorial and
publications division, v, 195
Officials of the Institution, v
Oliver, L. L., superintendent of build-
ings and grounds, v
Oliver, Smith H., 37
Olsen, R., 71
O’Neil, R., 71
Orr, Douglas, 82
Ott, John E., 26
iB
Pancoast, John E., 172, 179
Parfin, Sophy, vi
Pearce, Franklin L., 24, 26
Pearson, Mrs. Louise M., administrative
assistant to the Secretary, v
Perry, Kenneth M., vii, 30
Perry, Stuart Hoffman, 38
Personnel division (J. B. Newman,
chief), v
Peterson, Mendel L., vii, 32, 38
Phillips, Duncan, viii, 172, 173
Photographic laboratory (IF. B. Kestner,
chief), v
Planetarium, The development of the,
in the United States (Joseph Miles
Chamberlain), 261
Pollen and spores and their use in
geology (Estella B. Leopold and
Richard A. Scott), 303
Pope, Mrs. Annemarie H., chief, Smith-
sonian Traveling Exhibition Service,
vii, 95
Pope, John A., Assistant Director,
Freer Gallery of Art, viii, 105, 106,
109
Powell, Mrs. Bolling, 36
President of the United States (Dwight
D. Eisenhower, Presiding Officer ex
officio of the Institution), v
Presiding Officer ex officio (Dwight D.
Eisenhower, President of the United
States), v
Price, Derek J., 27, 28, 38
Price, Leonard, vii, 79
Publications, 10, 64, 75, 80, 94, 102, 180,
189.
American Historical
195
Association,
498
Publications—Continued
Asteplysical Observatory, 75, 80,
Beret of American Ethnology, 64,
19
Daughters of the American Revolu-
®& tion, 195
Distribution, 189
Freer Gallery of Art, 102
National Collection of Fine Arts,
94, 194
National Gallery of Art, 180
National Museum, 192
Report, 189
Smithsonian, 190
Q
Quigley, Carroll, ix
R
Radiation and Organisms, Division of
vii, 77
Publications, 80
Report, 77
Staff, vii
Radio astronomy, The development of
(Gerald S. Hawkins), 279
Ray, David, 186
Red tide, Mystery of the (F. G. Walton
Smith), 371
Reed, Theodore H., Acting Director,
National Zoological Park, viii, 4, 154
Reeside, J. B., Jr., ix
Reeves, Mrs. Jay B. L., 36
Regents, Board of, v, 4, 196
Annual meeting, 5
Executive Committee, v, 4, 204
Members, v, 204
Report, 196
Members, v, 4
Rehder, Harald A., vi, 23
Research associates, collaborators, and
fellows, ix
Rhoades, Katherine N., x
Riesenberg, Saul H., vi, 37
Riggs, F. Behn, Jr., vii, 71
Rinehart, J. S., Assistant Director,
peepee Observatory, vii, 70,
River Basin Surveys, v, 5, 44
Appropriation, 5, 44
Cooperating institutions, 62
Fieldwork, 45
Alabama, 49
Arkansas, 49
Georgia, 49
Towa, 50
Kansas, 50
Missouri Basin, 51
Snake River Basin, 61
Report, 44
Washington office, 48
Roberts, Elliott B. (United States
Coast and Geodetic Survey, 1807-
1957), 221
ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1957
Roberts, Frank H. H., Jr., Associate
Director, Bureau of American Eth-
nology and Director, River Basin
Surveys, vii, 40, 41, 44, 48
Rogers, Grace L., vii, 31
Roth, Rodris C., vi
Rudd, Velva E., vi
Ruhoff, Theodore B., 24, 25
Runnestrand, Paul, 162
Russell, Rear Adm. James S., viii, 112
Ss
Salt consumption, Causes and conse-
quences of (Hans Kaunitz), 445
Saltonstall, Leverett, Regent of the In-
stitution, v, 4
Sarcophagi, Roman garland, from the
quarries of Proconnesus (Marmara)
(J. B. Ward Perkins), 455
Sawyer, Charles H., 82
Schaller, W. T., ix
Schmitt, Waldo L., vi, 4, 23, 37
Schoenfeld, Mrs. John, 36
Schultz, Leonard P., vi
Schwartz, Benjamin, ix
Schwartz, Raymond A., viii
Science, technology, and society (L. R.
Hafstad), 207
Scott, Richard A. (Pollen and spores
and their use in geology), 303
Searle, Mrs. Harriet Richardson, ix
Seaton, Fred A., Secretary of the In-
terior, Member of the Institution, v
Secretary of the Institution (Leonard
Carmichael), v, 172, 173
Secretary of State (John Foster Dulles),
v, viii, 172
Secretary of the Treasury (George M.
Humphrey), v, viii, 172, 173
Setzer, Henry W., vi, 34
Setzler, Frank M., vi, 20, 35
Shapley, Mrs. Fern R., 172
Shepard, Katherine, 179
Shoemaker, C. R., ix
Shropshire, Walter, 78, 79, 81
Sigiura, Atsushi, 100
Sinton, William M., 70
Sirlouis, J. R., vii
Skinner, John, 26
Skull surgery, Stone Age: A general re-
view, with emphasis on the New
World (T. D. Stewart), 469
Sladen, William, 149
Smith, A. C., 37
Smith, F. G. Walton (Mystery of the
red tide), 371
Smith, G. Hubert, 53, 59, 60, 61
Smith, H. Alexander, Regent of the
Institution, v, 4
Smith, Lyman B., 22, 38
Smithsonian Art Commission, 82
Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Serv-
ice, vii, 91
Snodgrass, R. E., ix
Sohns, Ernest R., 37
Soil fertility, The influence of man on
(G. V. Jacks), 325
INDEX
Solecki, Ralph S., ix, 66
Soper, C. C., x
Squier, R. J., ix
Staff, v, 37
National Museum, vi, 37
Stanley, Wendell M. (The nature of
viruses, cancer, genes, and life—A
declaration of dependence), 357
Stephenson, Robert L., 51, 54, 56, 58
Stern, Harold, P., viii, 106, 107, 108
Sterne, Theodore E. , Vii, 69, 74
Stevenson, J. A.,
Stewart, ai Dale: a | 20 a0
(Stone Age skull surgery: A general
review, with emphasis on the
New World), 469
Stirling, Mrs. E. T., 36
Stirling, Matthew W., Director, Bureau
of American Ethnology, vii, 40, 67
Stirling, Mrs. Matthew W., 40
Stout, William B., 112
Straub, P. A., ix
Street, James H. (Mechanizing the
cotton harvest), 413
Sturtevant, W. C., vii, 42, 48, 44
Sugiura, T., 100
Sullivan, Francis, 179
Summerfield, Arthur E., Postmaster
General of the United States, Member
of the Institution, v
Superintendent of buildings and grounds
(L. L. Oliver), v
Supply division (A. W. Wilding, chief), v
Swallen, Jason R., vi
Swanton, John R., ix, 66
Switzer, George S., vi
T
Taylor, Frank A., Assistant Director,
National Museum, vi, 28
Taylor, William R.., uw 37
Taylor, W. W., Jr.,
Tobin, W. J., ix
Traveling Exhibition Service. (See
Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition
Service)
Treasurer of the Institution (T. F.
Clark), v
U
United States Coast and Geodetic Sur-
vey, 1807-1957 (Elliott B. Roberts),
Payal
Usilton, Mrs. Bertha M., 109
Vv
Vice President of the United States
(Richard M. Nixon, Member of the
Institution), 4
Viruses, cancer, genes, and life, The
nature of—A declaration of depend-
ence (Wendell M. Stanley), 357
Visitors, 6, 36, 103, 151, 157, 174
Canal Zone Biological Area, 157
Freer Gallery of Art, 103
National Gallery of Art, 173
499
Visitors—Continued
National Museum, 36
National Zoological Park, 151
Vorys, John M., Regent of the Insti-
tution v, 4
WwW
Waddell, John H., 70
Walker, Egbert H., vi
Walker, Ernest P., ix, 125
Walker, John, Director, National Gal-
lery of Art, viii, 172, 173
Wallis, Mrs. Richard, 36
Ward Perkins, J. B. (Roman garland
sarcophagi from the quarries of Pro-
connesus Cuesaraer 455
Waring, A. J., 18g, 66
Warren, Earl, TT anite Justice of the
United States, Chancellor of the In-
stitution, v, viii, 4
Watkins, C. Malcolm, vi, 21
Watkins, William N., vii
Wedderburn, A. J., Jr., vii
Wedel, Waldo R., vi, 21, 54, 55
Weeks, Sinclair, Secretary of Commerce,
Member of the Institution, v
Wegenroth, Stow, 82
Weiss, Helena M., vi
Wenley, Archibald G., Director, Freer
oi of Art, viii, 82, 107, 108, 109,
West, Elisabeth, 107
West, Mrs. Lnor O., 109
Wetmore, Alexander, ix, 23, 24
Wheeler, Richard P., 61
Whipple, Fred L., Director, Astro-
physical Observatory, vii, 77, 81
(Meteors), 239
White, Lawrence Grant, 82
White, P. Alton, 162
White, Theodore E., 56
Whitney, Charles A., vii, 69
Wilding, A. W., chief, supply division, v
Williams, D. G., chief, International
Exchange Service, viii, 171
Williams, Woodbridge, 40
Wilmeth, Roscoe, 55
Wilson, ‘Charles E., Secretary of De-
fense, Member of the Institution, v
Wilson, Mrs. Mildred S., ix
Withrow, Mrs. Alice P., vii, 79
Withrow, R. B., vii, re 78, 80, 81
Wolff, J. B. , vii, 79°
Woodbury, Robert S., vi, vii, 28, 29,
30, 38
Woolworth, Alan R., 55
Wyeth, Andrew, 82
Wyeth, Mrs. George, 36
¥
Young, Mahonri, 82
Z
Zahringer, J., 72
Zetek, James, x, 160
Zoological Park (See National Zoo-
logical Park) .
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