Los Angeles herald., 1910-02-16
THE ROOSEVELT HUNT
BY Frederic il Haskin

It was done by W. T. Hornaday, now
mead OF the Bronx ZOO He killed the
big bull bison himself, and declares
that when he shot the splendid crea-
| ture he felt as though he had perpe-
| trated cruel murder.
Not all of the mammals will be
mounted for exhibition purposes, as
they require too much space. After
the principal specimens are mounted
| 1T is probable that the others will be
used as exchanges with various mu-
| seums Of the country. OF course, a
good specimen of every species will be
kept at the Smithsonian and the Ma
tional museum. DIR. Gerrit Miller, Gu
rator Of the division of mammals, Ma
tional museum, who has charge OF the
animal collections, says that when a
big animal is mounted and placed In
an exhibition case science bids good
by to it. The action of the light will
| change the color of its hair, and other
transformations will take place which
end it's usefulness to science.
Not less interesting than the animal
collections are those Of the birds
About 1900 have been received and
some 400 more are expected shortly
They range from the tiny little sun
bird, that is sometimes confused with
the humming bird, up to the goliath
heron, the saddle-billed stork and the
are carefully skinned, the skins pois-
oned so as to render them immune to
vermin and parasite attack, and then
stuffed with cotton. At the Smith
sonian they are kept in trays in big
dark cases.
One of the most interesting speci-
mems is the honey guide. This little
bird has taste for larvae and other
life that abounds In q wild beehive.
1t has learned that man is fond Of
honey and will work all day trying
to pursuade the hunter to follow it,
How it has acquired the idea of the
relation between man and honey is a
most remarkable thing, but that it has
done so is agreed by all who know
its habits. 1t will guide a hunter to
a bee tree as unerringly as pointer
dog will locate covey of partridges
The secretary bird 'is another inter-
esting member of Africas feathered
tribe. 1t has a crest of feathers, which
when the bird is at attention resemble
an old fashioned quill pen placed be-
hind the ear of a clerk. Hence its
name. 1t is a snake eater and an
adept in the art of snake catching.
1T kills the snakes it eats by carrying
them high into the air and dropping
them on hard ground.
Weaver birds build their nests to-
dred families under a common cover.
Another interesting species represented
in the collection is the little whydah
bird. This brd and the wart hes seem
to have aroused Colonel Roosevelt's
sense of the grotesque more than any
thing else he saw in East Africa. The
wart hog always gets the BOBBY prize
at African beauty shows and the why
dah is cumbersome because 1t has more
tail than it can handle in windy
weather. 1t is said to be the cham
pion bird dancer. 1t goes into the
grass, cuts out a neat little circle,
spreads out the ALLEN blades as car
pet and begins to dance.
The bird specimens are all stuffed
with cotton and dried. When Major
Mearns comes home they will be placed
in dampened sand or sawdust and kept
there until the skins become pliable
again. Then the work of mounting
will begin. Only the notable speci-
mems will be mounted for exhibition
purposes. There are more than 100000
birds in the Smithsonian collection, and
vet the first shipments from the Roose-
Welt expedition have brought about
seyenty-hve species that were not
heretofore represented. During fifty
years the Smithsonian never received
an African crowned crane. Since the
one klll6u ny lllG IAOOoSNClI CNlJSNAitiOiA
arrived another friend Of the institu-
tion has sent one in.
The value of the Roosevelt-Smith-
sonian expedition to science is said to
be very great. The thoroughness of
it's work, in place where species are
most numerous, gives opportunity for
geological and ornithological studies
heretofore impossible. With the 500
large mammals, 1879 small mammals,
27S4 birds, 1900 reptiles and batFachians
and 250 fish collected, the British East
African territory has been covered
thoroughly. The reports from Uganda
have not yet come in 1t is the hope
of the Smithsonian authorities that the
example of Colonel Roosevelt may
stimulate others to add to its collec-
tions. In England nearly everything
is sent to the British museum. In
America every big city gets specimens,
hence there has been no one collection
as complete as that of the British
museum. It is now intended to en-
bark seriously upon the work of MAX
ing the Smithsonian and the National
museum collections the most compre-
hensiYe in the new world.
Tounorrnv-The Panama Lottery.