The mirror., 1920-11-04

men. In corner of the Cobb Desert are
few herds of the only living wild horses.
Moreover, there are, in the Cobb, wild
camels and wild asses, as well as ante
lopes that can run sixty miles an hour.
The horses, asses and antelopes can be run
down in motor cars, lassooed by Mongol
cowboys, and some of the specimens
brought back alive to the New York Zoo
logical Park. Not far from this particu-
lar part of the desert, mountains tower to
a height of fifteen thousand feet, where
there are bighorn sheep and ibex that
have never heard the crack of high
power rifle. On the Tibetan steppes are
enormous yak snow leopards, giant PAN
das and beautiful golden monkeys with
blue, upturned noses; some of these species
are among the rarest and least known
animals of the world. In China is the
takin, creature with veritable "golden
fleece" strange oxlike animal that roams
the highest mountain valleys and that
actually represents an intermediate stage
between the antelope and the goat In
the forests of Manchuria is the long
haired tiger of the Amur River: tiger
larger and finer than the royal Bengal of
Indian fame, which has furnished sport
for kings and emperors; tiger living in
caves amid forests drifted deep with
snow.
The scientific results of the Third Asia
tic Expedition will be embodied in series
of volumes that should be, for many years
to come the standard work on the natural
history of Central and Eastern Asia, and
also in popular books written in nom
technical language. Furthermore, the pub
lie will be regularly informed of the
whereabouts and the activities of the
members of the expedition; for articles
written in the field will be published in
Asia magazine as rapidly as they can be
forwarded to New York.
There is very real desire on the part
of the sponsors for the expedition to make
it a factor in the development of the edu-
cational life of the Chinese Republic.
China has no institution wherein natural
history objects can be studied and ex-
hibited by modern methods and where
the scientific work of her own people can
be encouraged and directed. 1t was there
fore decided to invite the Chinese govern
ment to cooperate with the expedition in
will be invited to delegate to the expedi-
ton certain men who have had already
preliminary instruction in various branches
of science; under the best specialists in
the world, these men, while in the field,
will receive training in modern methods
of scientific exploration and study.
When the expedition has been COM
pleted, its sponsors will agree to deposit
in Peking duplicate set of the collections,
which will form the basis of the Chinese
Museum of Natural History. The pro-
posed institution will then have valuable
nucleus of specimens for exhibition and
study and staff of expert Chinese to
carry on the work. 1t will remain for
the government to set aside suitable
building where the collections can be
housed.
The Third Asiatic Expedition, with its
rich possibilities for making important dis
coveries in the departments of palae-
ontology, archaeology zoology, an thro-
pology and geography, is destined to in
crease the prestige of the United States in
the world of science. The American
scientists who will promote the advance
ment of Chinese science will cooperate
with the Chinese in an entirely new field.
Americans, with far-seeing idealism will
welcome an alliance of this kind, tending
to cement the friendly relations that al
ready exist between the two great repub-
lies of the East and the West. Thy will
- A. Il