Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-04-16

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will see the completion Of 1t.
The object Of the work. which will cost
more than a million and half dollars.
IL to secure a permanent chronological ana
pictorial record OF the fast-vanishing
race. which shall preserve II for the stu
dent hundreds Of years after It has been
lost from the face OF the earth.
Over a hundred volumes will make the
complete record. Twenty OF them win
constitute the work proper. and the. re-
mainder. which will be placed in some
central library, will consist OF the field
notes. In the twenty volumes nearly
every page OF type alteTnates With
magnificent Photographic reproduction IL
Illustrating some feature Of INDIAN life.
Only 500 copies of each volume are Is
sued The cost Of each copy Is $4,000.
which is paid not as q purchase price,
but is. the amount Of the subscription
Of some one of the hackers OF tho enter
prise. Mr.. Morgan's contribution Is vast
ly more. He has made a loan and has
purchased the work at an incredibly
large figure, which, however, just meets
the expenses-for this is not a money
making venture, but is entirely scien-
tifc.
To secure a perfect record. Mr.. Curtis
has devoted his life to living among the
Indians. and probably no one mas ever
gotten so close to their inner life as he.
From Arizona to Alaska and British Co
lumbia he has lived among Them ana
learned their secrets.
That strange devotional life OF theirs
has been guarded jealousy from the eyes
of the white man, and no one heretofore
has been able to learn more than fras-
. ments Of It But Mr., Curtis mas become
a priest in many tribe and has hlmseli
officiated as such in their most sacred
ceremonials, SUCH for instance, as the
snake dance of the Pueblos.
In the course Of his journeys he-has be-
came the acquaintance and friend or the
ern and southwestern wars, and to him
they and the warriors have told In con-
fidence the real facts about those cam-
paigns. And. these facts are not the
facts" OF history as 1t is written. - -
The Indians have let, the pale face"
write the history OF the last Indian wars,
and the veterans OF such campaigns as
the New Perez war and the Custer cam
paign have smiled in derision when they
heard the stories the white man told in
his histories" but have not told their
side of the story. But to Mr. curtis, lying
out on the ground with them before some
wigwam in a western twilight and ex-
changing condolences. they have told 1t.
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Mr. Curtis halls from Madison, Wis.
His start in life work Of so much value
to the world was almost accidental. As
q photographer he undertook to demon
hat nh
be made artistic without being spectacu-
lar. and in demonstrating it picked out
Indians for subjects. Before long he had
become interested in the chronological
aspects of the work, and the idea of MAX
ing an authoritative study OF the vanish
ing Indian dawrred on him.
Some wears ago he found that the
money he had been able to raise and that
advanced by enthusiastic believers IN MS
enterprfse would not sufhce to carry. IL
through He laid the matter before MT.
Morgan, who examined himself the great
collection of photographs Mr.. Curtis had
made. became enthusiastic, and advanced,
partly by loan to cover the Held opera
lions and partly by purchasing the work.
the immense sum needed TO complete the
research.
nished by Mr. Morgan, but the amounts
maid by the 500 subscribers and that ad-
vanced by Mr.. Curtis and his packers
the whole work will cost over Sl.oOO.OUo.
Such round numbers are often gwen IN
conjectural way about all large enter
prises but In this case the figures are Mt
orally correct. Mr.. Morgan's own stan
of auditors was employed to determine
the amount of the expense and they ar
rived at the total after weeks OF WORK:
Doubtless says Prof. w McIee'
the celebrated ethnolOgist, the cniei per
manept value of Curtis work Will lie In
hts remarkably successful photo-mechan-
teal representation of Indians and Indian
scenes. for SO long as books last ana
minds run toward faithful representation
of actualities his pictures will form our
most trustworthy graphic memorial OF
our passing aborigines. In his twenty
volumes almost every page OF text Is al
ternated with a photogravure showing
some feature of Indian life. and with each
volume there is q portfolio OF such photo-
gravureS.
4 y
Five hundred years from now the value
Of this work will be beyond all calcutta
ton and it Is chiefly for posterity that
he and Mr. Morgan are working.
Are the Indians willing to tell you
about themselves?' asked a reporter OF
Mr., Curtis. 1T is generally supposed that
they are secretive and jealous OF their
avn manners and customs
'sNow that the work has been under