Los Angeles herald., 1910-03-07

i
lM Z wi of the Smithsonian ipsti-
i'm tuition opened the new
lW n IA EI National museum to the
MM public. With its ten acres
lz-z9Aszz9zsI of floor space, every foot
oil wnlcn IS splendidly lighted few mu-
seums in the world are so we'll housed.
The new structure makes the third of
the smithsonian National museum
group, and together they give approx
| imately twenty acres of floor space to
the cause of science and the spread of
knowledge.
The 100000 objects which constitute
the National museum collections will
be distributed among the three build
ings, but all Of those which are chiefly
of interest for exhibition purposes will
be housed in the new building. The
museum while literally filled with ex-
hibits of interest to the layman, con-
fines its principal activities toward
making an institution of research
Scarcely week passes without several
students from a distance going over
its collections for study purposes. It's
collections soon will be so complete
that the most serious investigator will
find all the material he seeks.
The division of geology affords a
striking illustration OF this Here is
gathered the worlds best collection of
economic geology specimens. In the
I
connected with this work he has ram
sacked the whole world for materials,
and there are now more than q half
million separately catalogued speci-
mems in his division. Hundreds of
cases. each with hundreds of wide,
shallow drawers, contain thousands Of
specimens. each specimen a page in the
great book of NatC- e, rich in lessons
for the student of geological subjects.
Perhaps less than one-thirtieth of the
specimens are on exhibition.
The collection of meteorites is one of
the best in the world. the largest being
at Vienna. While for show purposes
the collection at the American Museum
of Natural History in New York takes
first rank, the kinds of specimens
which are most valuable for study pur-
poses are to be found at the National
museum. Scientists refer to exhibition
collections as the 'oh my" exhibits
The main effort of the National mu-
scum has been to gather such meteor
ties as win enable scientists to deter
mine the secret of their origin and
travels
The exhibit of extinct animals is
full of interest, but mere again mu-
seums of other cities have advantages
over the National museum In that they
have more responsive sources than
congress for funds with which to ac-
uuire new material of this nature. One
may see the skeletons of giant dino
saur and other mighty monsters or
prehistoric times, gathered from Amer
lean excavations. Had Roosevelt
lived in America some 60 S ago ne
would not have had to go half way
around the world to find elephants and
other giant creatures for his sport. IL
is Dr. Merrilrs firm conviction that
millions of elephants once roamed over
our soil as did the bison at later
date. AS exhibit No. !, by way or
proof, he has the s.-eleton of gl-
eantic old fellow which was unearthed
in a Michigan peat-bog some years
ago. This skeleton is mounted ana
makes those of African elephants look
like pygmies in contrast.
The collecti ms of the division or
mammals are of rare interest. From
an exhibition standpoint such EXHIBITS
as the Roosevelt trophies take nrst
rank, but from a scientific standpoint
such collections as those made by DIR.
Abbott in the East Indies are or prime
value. 1t is said that there are some
5000 known species of mammals IN the
world, of which some 1900 inhaolt
America, but new species are being
described at the rate OF about 800 a
wear No other museum I'm the world,
except the British museum, has such
a large and representative collection
Of mammal specimens. The catalogues
show the National museum TO be
ahead of any of the other European
museums. even i'm It's collections OF
mammals from that continent.
In the past few weeks the museum
authorities have installed one little
case of exhibits Rooseveltiana. In IL
are the skulls of a lion, rhinoeerous'
a giraffe and several smaller animals.
The case is in the hall occupied py
the exhibits of comparative anatomy,
which is one of the most interesting
collections in the museum. Here one
NAV study the strange relationships
that exist between all mammals. In
one case is the skeleton OF a man
leading the skeleton of horse, snow
ing at a glance all points of similarity
and dissimilarity In this hall Is the
skeleton of one of the biggest whales
that ever disported in the playgrounds
of the sea. and one stands almost
under it while looking az the 242 eX-
hibits of sea shells so small that IL
requires a high-poWered microscope 10
tell whether they are grains of dust
or perfectly formed creatures OF the
deep. -.,. ..,,oo-