The Detroit times., 1910-10-21
The GOVERNMENT AT WORK
THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIW

weather are manifold. The farmer
could know whether the season ahead
or him was TO be wet one or dry
one, and could plant such crops as
would be most adyantageously
grown under such conditions. The
ship owner could know whether IL
was safe for his vessels To leave port.
the big conventions could be held on
fair days, and in a thousand ways this
knowledge could be used in the ad-
vancement OF the welfare of man
kind.
Through the bureau OF ethnology
the songs. customs and traditions OF
the aboriginal American are being
preserved Handbooks dealing with
Indian languages, Indian arts, and In
dian habits are being published.
Through the national geological park
there is being gathered together one
OF the finest collections OF wild ami.
, mails in the world From every con
tinent and almost every country
species that are rare and interesting
have come to'enrich the collections
al the national 700. The Roosevelt
African expedition gathered many in
teresting specimens of birds and ami
mails for this collection.
No finer museum for scientific re-
search is to be found anywhere in the
world than the national museum.
maintained under the Jurisdiction of
the Smithsonian Institution. Here
one may see men and women from
every part OF the world engaged in
studying the various collections. The
division of economic geology contains
l. . a
hibits. and holds the worlds first rank
among all exhibits OF this kind One
may find any sort OF exhibit from a
huge meteorite to few grains OF
sand It's collection of meteorites
ranks next TO the one in Vienna.
Scientists are continually studying II
in the hope of finding the source OF
their origin One may see the skele-
tons OF extinct animals, SO large that
the elephant looks small in compari-
son. lie may stand under the skele-
ton OF huge whale more than hun
dred feet long. and look through
microscope at sea shells so small that
to the naked eye they seem but
specks OF dust.
No collection in the museum is
more interesting 10 the ordinary visi-
tor than the anthropolCgical exhibit.
Here one may trace human progress
from the stone age existence Of his
antediluvian ancestors TO his own
twentieth century civilization. Like
wise he may trace. in other collec-
tions, the development of the arts and
sciences. He may follow ship-build-
ing from the rude hollowed-out log TO
the perfected ocean greyhound. He
may trace the act of printing from
the toughest wood-type to the finest
steel engraving.
The collection of birds in the ma
tional museum contains 100000 diff
ferent exhibits There are 10000
known species OF birds and nearly
every one is represented. The col
lection OF insects is also large and
valuable one There may be seen
huge bugs as large as the hand and
tiny ones as small as a pins head.
Some OF them are unusually interest
ing. The Hercules beetle is the
worlds original sawyer lie has man.
dbles which are fitted with saw teeth.
He grasps a twig with these and flies
round and round until he succeeds in
saving II OFF The Bombadier bug is
/ the original shooting instrument OF
the world When attacked by an
enemy IL fires a wad OF blue smoke
with a report that serves to give II
/ protection.
Through the international exchange
service OF the Smithsonian Institu-
/ ton the United States is able TO keep
I IN cfUsc-toHeA- scientific prog
I ress in other parts OF the world. II is
the mission of this service 10 supply
scientific institutions of the world
! with such American scientific litera