Evening star., 1911-08-26

also. one of which will be of especial in
terest to the District. 1t consists of all
the local birds that have ever been col
lected within the confines of the original
ten miles square. Thus any one inter-
ested In bird study can identify in the
collection any of the birds he meets in his
walks. The other special collection will
birds of all sorts. typical and exceptional
specimens of each.
Great AUX Without Label.
When the collection was being arranged
it was found that the gem of the whole
display. the great aux. had no identifica-
tion label on it. and even some of the
scientists interested in arranging the
collection did not know where it came
from. The species has been extinct for
half a century, and there was only three
other museum specimens known in the
United States. search of the museum
records showed that the bird was killed
on one of the islands off the coast of
Iceland. 1t was sent in a collection to a
Mr.. Shibimin. a dealer in natural history
objects in Hamburg. Thence it was
transferred to another collector in Bre-
men and thence came into the possession
of the Smithsonian Institution in 1884.
The specimen was not well mounted
originally. and was afterward turned over
to Mr.. Wood. the expert taxidermist of
the Smithsonian Institution, and mounted
in it's present shape Great auks are not
a common article of commerce. but the
latest specimen that was auctioned in
London brought S1,5G0. 1t is not likely
that the price will decline There is an
auk's egg in the museum collection. but
this Is entirely too valuable for the view
of the public. SO there is painted cast
of the egg In the case with the bird.
This is worth just about as much as the
bird itself
An Unpublished Story.
The search for the record of the aux
acquisition brought out story that has
never been included in any of the pub
lications of the Smithsonian Institution,
but may be mentioned as an oversight
in the distribution of the institutions
contributions to knowledge 1t Is an ac-
count of how this country nearly ac-
quired a near aux from London,
bird rarer. If anything than the great
aux.
One of the scientists Of the institu-
tiOn was one day walking in London
near the Kensngton Museum. wheny in
the window of small taxidermist's shop
he saw a stuffed great aux. He nearly
dropped with astonishment. The speci-
men was protected with bell glass, but
did not otherwise show the evidence of
great care. Instead of buying 1t at
| once he made mental note of the shop
and related his experience on his re-
turn. There was rich friend of the
museum who was willing to have another
aux in the country If ii could be gotten.
and after several conferences the dis
coverer of the neglected specimen wrote
to friend in London to negotiate the
sale.
Some weeks later they got back an
explanation, but not the aux. 1t ap-
peared that during the closed season for
American tourists and when business
was mad the ingenious dealer had manu-
factured a great aux out of odds and
ends of ducks, geese and other barnyard
fowls for which he had no further use.
That specimen of the great aux has
never been imported. but some Of the
Smithsonian experts say that under an
efficient system OF protection there Is no
reason why the United States should not
build up a great aux manufacturing in
dustry OF It's own.
Profit in Manufacturing.
The incident of the aux recalled to one
of the custodians of the mammal depart
ment another fragment of unpublished
Smithsonian history showing that the
manufacture of natural history specimens
can be made a paving business. 1t is said
that during the earlier days of the coun-
try Massachusetts, in common with the
other states, paid a bounty on wolves.
To save running the pelts the bounty was
paid on wolves noses. it being fact
well esta blished by science that one wolf
seldom had more than one nose.
On the outskirts of what is now Brook
line there lived a particularly expert wolf
trapper who appeared irregularly at the
state capitol with greasy string from
which dangled half a dozen to a dozen
wolf noses He really produced more
VOLTS nose than all the other hunters
of the state combined. He had no visiDe
means of support except from wolf boun-
ties, still he lived we'll
But one day during his absence the
state officials made an examination OF
his premises and there discovered quite
| a complete plant for the manufacture OF
papiermache wolf noses. which, when
jointed to fragment of butchers meat,
proved perfectly satisfactory as method
Of collecting bounties. The trapper had
apparently been careful in watching the
tax lists to see how much the state could
afford to spend on wolves and had re-
| Trained from glutting the market. But
the discovery of the plant broke up
another infant industry
.Bounties as Source of Revenue.
Bounties have often been. made a good
, source of revenue, and one Of the New
England members of the institution re-
called the time when a bounty was paid
on seals along the coast. The seals not
only deplete the fisheries. but they used
to tear up the nets of the thrifty fish
ers In those days when seals were
plentiful Maine used to pay a bounty on
the short tail between the rear f1ippers
and Massachusetts paid bounty on seal
noses.
The businesslike fishermen saw no use
in letting perfectly good seals go to
| waste and used to always save both the
nose and tall selling one in Maine and
| the other in Massachusetts. One of the
| philologists of the Smithsonian, who was
| listening to the conversation. declared
| that this probably was the origin of the
expression of playing both ends against
| the middle" and promised if he could
| confirm the belief he would include 1t in
| = ,,;o<}apory Of Americ nisrnS he is now