Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-12-28
COT HIS LEOPARD
Incident in Which Kermit Roos-
nvelt Was Star Performer
Is Told.
THRILLING TIME IN. WILDS
Former President Writes of Manner
in Which Son Killed a Wound
ed Animal.

Many mammal skulls and birdskins
collected by the Roosevelt hunting ex-
petition in East Africa were shown TO
regents of the Smithsonian institution
at Washington after the annual meet
Ing the other day. One of the most
interesting exhibits was 81 collection
of almost Il dozen skulls of the dix
dix, the little antelope about which a
good deal has been said in print
There was also a large collection of
other antelope skulls, appropriateness
and rhinoceroses and the skulls of gil
RATES. and of wild boars. The bird
skins included a very large number of
highly colored small birds, besides
specimen Of the rosy pelican and rare
herons and the secretary bird.
There were two tables covered with
the skulls of rhinoceroses, hlppos. i'm
mense skulls of giraffes and specimens
Of boars' skulls with murderous look
ing tusks. One Of the most interesting
questions that presented itself to the
regents was how a giraffe, with a neck
ten feet long, could ever manage to
handle the immense skull which was
at the end of this grent lever.
There was one skull of a rhinoceros
shot by Colonel Theodore Roosevelt
that nicely displayed what a small
brain directs immense brute force. The
bullet had entered just above the right
eye and had blown out the top Of the
skull, leaving the brain cavity exposed.
This was just big enough to make
nice cup for mans fist
Brain Capacity Question.
1t raised the question anew whether
quantity or quality was necessary in
the brain development OF animals. The
rhinoceros is credited with being
stupid animal. At the same time the
elephant has almost as small n brain
cavity and is rated as one of the most
intelligent Of animals.
The skull Of the dikdiz was scarce
~ as large as that of a small terrier
dog When placed alongside the i'm
mense skull of an African buffalo it
was altogether lost by comparison.
There We're many other antelope skulls
and skulls OF other horned cattle.
There were also on view several
cases Of small birds collected by Dr.
Mearns, although the larger specimens
were nearly all shot by Colonel RoOse-
Welt.
1t was said that the collection Of
skins and skulls was the best that the
Smithsonian ever received. All the
specimens were received in better con
dltion than any previous collection.
The selection OF specimens had been
made with great SIX ?.
It is possible that one of the first
things that will be done is to arrange
an exhibit Of the various varieties Of
some single species with view to
showing how completely the ground
I2Ss been covered.
Trophies of Expedition.
The secretary of the board reported
that 6,663 skins had been taken by the
expedition up to Dec. 10, of which
rather less than one-half had been re-
ceived at the institution.
Those now at the institution are
divided briefly as follows: Large man.
mails. 2d3: small mammals, about 1900;
birds. 1856. In addition to these, there
have been about $500 sheets of plants
collected whose Importance to the ma
tioDal herbarium was very great, as
no material had previously been re
ceived from this part of Africa. The
collection has a series of human skulls
picked up along the line Of an ancient
slave trail. These are of special i'm
portance as illustrating the cranial
character of pure bred homo Africanus.
The secretary announced further that
as q result of the African expedition
a collection Of living animals had been
presented by Mr.. Mcmillan to the Ma
tfonal Geological park; that an agent
Of the park had visited Nairobi and
received this gift and was soon ex-
pected to arrive In the United States
with these animals.