Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-06-29

damental data. Yet it is far from COM
plete. 1t can never be.
Great gaps exist in all departments
of the collection. What difference does
that make? The answer is simple.
Agriculture has to war INCREASINGLY with
insect pests of all kinds. Frequently q
new type Of pest shows up like the bean
beetle, the boil weevil, the japanese
beetle.
Fighting the pest without knowing
what 1t is, where it comes from, what
its natural enemies are, is like boxing
IN the dark. Only great collection of
carefully studied insects from all over
the world can make possible the neces-
sary identification. The Smithsonian
has the largest insect collection, run
ming into millions. Collections must
aim toward absolute completeness. So
basic Is this fact that the Smithsonian
sends out annually to the limit of its
FUNDS, private as we'll as Government,
expeditions to all parts of the world to
collect In all fields of natural history.
Organized in 1889.
1t is now almost a century ago that
an English scientist, James Smithson,
who died in 1929 bequeathed funds to
establish in Washington an institution
for the increase and diffusion of
gress finally organized the Smithsonian
Institution with compromise charter.
The charter did not mention the prin-
cipal activity of the institution-re-
search In pure science. But it did au->
thorize the institution to erect a build
ing for the reception and exhibition of
"al objects of art and of foreign and
curious research and of natural his
tory of the United States.
.IrSpnh HaY1rv 4 D,;.l
first secretary and assistant secretary
OF the Smithsonian, directed the mu-
scum 70 serve in the field of research.
They SystematiZed the collection of
plants, minerals, animals and of ethnol-
ogical material native to this continent.
Instead OF burying 1t on the shelves, they
distributed 1t to scientists and special
lists all over the world to have them
study 1t and report on it.
The work progressed. and in 1870
Congress made an appropriation toward
the. support of the museum In 1877
Congress gave S250,000 for the arts and
industries building. In 1907 $500 900
was appropriated for the National Mu-
scum Building.
And now the Government recognizes
the Importance of pure research, for the
whole country in passing the Smoo.-
Elliott Dill without dissenting vote
STAFF of Ninety Scientists.
The Smithsonian has a permanent
stah of 80 scientists who are constantly
at work on the collections. The mu-
scum provides facilities for hundreds of
visiting specialists from all countries to
study the material that interests them.
The new extension of the Natural
History Building will about double the
present floor space of 912 acres. In adj
dition to increased room for exhibits.
this Will permit enormous expansion of
collections which are now@jnsufficieut.
due to overcrowding.
The exhibit function of a museum
has, in addition to it's educational value.
reference and historical value. This
Is specially true of the arts and indus
tries collection of the National Mu-
scum, which is at present squeezed into
the old red brick building next to the
Smithsonian Building. Patent disputes
involving great sums have been settled
out OF court by reference to exhibits IA
invention