Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1897-05-08


debtedness against the United States
The congress then made the Smith
scnian bequest good by placing to tn,
credit of the Smithsonian institutio,
in the treasury of the United States the
sum of $53s,00O; and so it was that tht
Smithsonian institution, as it now Is
was begun. It's officers are the presi
dent of the United States, the vice pres
ident, the chief justice of the suprem,
court, the members of the cabinet, thre,
senator's, three representatives, two res
idents of the District of Columbia three
residents of different states, secretary
and an assistant secretary. The secre
Nary is the chief officer of the institu
tion.
The first secretary, Joseph Henry
! served from 1916 to 1S7s The second
secretary, Spencer Fullerton Baird, from
1878 to 1857, and the third and presen,
secretary, Samuel Pierpont Langley.
from 1887 until this date. The publics.
tions of the Smithsonian institution
form a library in themselves, and are
called "The Annual Reports" "The
Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collec.
tions," bulletins of the National Mu.
seum," THE Annual Reports of the
Bureau of Ethnology," and THE Bulle
tin of the Bureau of Ethnology."
These books are given to educationa!
| institutions all over the world. In re.
turn for these, and by purchase, the in
stitution has received library of 3oO,.
GOO volumes, which is deposited in the
congressional library for safe keep
ing.
In 1881. new library was built, at a
cost of $250,000, to accommodate the
growing needs of the National museum
whose collections of wonderful curiosi
ties had become so large that the orig
inal building was no longer able to hole
it. The bureau of exchange establishes
communication with scholars in al
parts of the world, by which their pub
lications are exchanged for publications
of similar societies.
The bureau of American ethnology
has preserved all the vocabularies Of
the different types of American Indians
| in substantial volumes. Their indefati
gable author, Powell, who has been in
| charge of the bureau since 1879, has
undertaken many important expedi
tions to the west, notably among the
tribes of Utah, California, Arizona anG
New Mexico, by which the stock Of
knowledge added to American ethnol
ogy has been very largely increased
The important expeditions of the Ste
vensons, Cushings, Fawles and the
Muddeseffs among the Pueblo Indians
and the ruins of the southwest; thos,
of Holmes, among the prehistoric
quarry cities and villages of the east
ern part of the continent; those O.
Thomas, among the mounds OF. the Mis-
sissippi valley and of the northeast sec
ton, among the Popago and Seri In
dians of the southwest, have also bee;
conducted under the authority OF tn,
bureau of ethnology. f4.s.,w-s =, :
The Geological park was established
by the aid of congress inathesyear lsal
for the preservation of such American
animals as were then on the verge o
extinction. The park is situated nortl
of Washington, in the beautiful pre-
cinct of Rock creek, contains 16
acres, and is the largest of its kim
in the world.
Besides the original bequest of Smith
son, congress every year makes an ad
ditional appropriation for the mainte
nance of the institution.
SMITH D. FRY.