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Show Old Mines in Mexico Studied . Smithsonian Institution Tells of Other Scientific Expeditions. Washington. Mexican silver and lead mines which have been in almost constant operation since the Spanish conquest of the Sixteenth century provided pro-vided study and collecting ground for Dr. F. W. Foshag, under the auspices of the Smithsonian institution and the Harvard Mineralogical museum. Rich as Mexico is in ores, little is known of its geology or mineralogy. In his investigation, Doctor Foshag visited the Maraville mine where crystals of pure gypsum 6 feet in length rise from the floors of two caves. In the Sierra Mojada district, which owes its discovery to a band of smugglers attempting at-tempting to elude pursuit, he found the old Spanish methods of mining still in force. Much of the ore is brought to the surface on the backs of peons, often up ladders made of notched logs, popularly called "chicken "chick-en ladders." It is said that a strong peon will carry loads in excess of 220 pounds. In the state of Durango. Doctor Foshag visited the Ojuela mine, which has more than 5o0 miles of tunnels driven to extract the lead ere. Other Expeditions. This is one o: the 35 expeditions described in the institution's exploration explora-tion pamphlet. There were trips to Sumatra, to China, to Algeria, to Baluchistan Ba-luchistan and South Africa. Their ; purposes included the capture of wild I game, the unearthing of buried villages vil-lages which Nourished in prehistoric America, the collection of fossil footprints foot-prints and fossil elephants and shells, the gathering of ferns in the West Indian mountains. The introduction to the pamphlet reveals that "'during the past year more expeditions in which the Smithsonian was represented represent-ed have gone out than ever - before, und this in spite of the fact that the Institution has nraotioallv no unre- ttrlcted funds for field work." A summary sum-mary of the expeditions described says : "The year's expeditions were headed by a 30,000-niile journey to Algeria, Raluchistun and Southwest Africa, undertaken un-dertaken by Dr. C. G. Abbott, acting secretary of the Smithsonian, under the auspices of the National Geographic Geo-graphic society and the Smithsonian, to select a site for a solar observatory observa-tory in the eastern hemisphere. He picked Mount Ilrukkaros among the Hottentots of Southwest Africa and ihe observatory is already f uni-thming there. The purpose of the field work of the Smithsonian's astrophysicul observatory, according to Doctor Abbott, Ab-bott, has been aimed for the I at eight j ears to solve the question of whether the sun varies, and, if so, what ef-f ef-f -cts on our weather do the changes of solar heat produce? Smithsonian-Crysler Expedition. "Another section of Africa Tanganyika Tan-ganyika territory provided the scene 1 r the Smithsonian-Chrysler live-game live-game collecting expedition und'T Dr William M. Mann. The expedition I rough: home about 1.7I.K; live animals 1 r tiie National Zoological park un-i. un-i. -r Smithsonian direction, including a pair of giraffes, live irnpalla. a greater kudu, an eland, a blue duiker, rod duiker, three white-boarded gnu. 1 air wnrthogs and quantities of birds. Finnll mammals and reptiles. The Fieeess of the expedition was made possible by the hearty co-operation of the game department of Tanganyika, and an all-inclusive license from the governor. This proved invaluable because be-cause of the numerous native gamekeepers game-keepers who were constantly dropping in on the camp, asking to see the license, taking its number and the name of the party and inquiring from the native hunters what the purpose of the expedition was. The license also enabled Doctor Mann to hire 00 porters of the Wamboro and Wam-bugo Wam-bugo tribes, who are so swift they can run down animals. "Several attempts to capture young rhino failed due to the absence of young. Adult rhinos charged the party five times, without inflicting serious damage. Doctor Mann refutes the theory that the tick birds warn their hosts of an approaching enemy. Those birds cluster thickly on the rhinoceros rhinoc-eros to eat the ticks which are so abundant on his body. At the approach of any suspicious object, the tick birds make a loud twittering, thereby indicating indi-cating to men the whereabouts of the rhinoceros. "The wing impression of a large insect in-sect like a dragonfly which lived an unknown number of million years ngo was one of the iri7.es brought back by diaries Gilmore with his collection of fossil fcHitprints from the Grand canyon. can-yon. Mr. Gilmore has gathered footprints foot-prints from three distinct geological horizons, one above the other In the canyon. Each set represents, of course, different animals, distant In time from one another by the ages that it took to deposit four or five hundred feet of sedimentary rocks. "Lieutenant Henry C. Kellers reports re-ports that the whir of the automobile has driven the iungle beasts of Sumatra Su-matra into the interior of the Jungles so that collecting Is not what it used to be. Lieutenant Kellers, medical corps. U. S. N.. was assigned to represent repre-sent ihe Smithsonian institute with the Naval ( 'l-servatory Kciipse expedition expedi-tion to Sumatra. Lieutenant Kellers speaks highly of the natural history lore of the natives. They possess both generic and specific names, though the latter are apt to be misleading from a scientific standpoint. Among them 'the tiger is the mii-t feared of the mammals, although statistics show that crocodiles claim a larger share of victims. In the native legends and folk lore, the men Inhabiting Koriiu hi district of Sumatra have the power of transforming themselves into tigers.' Last of the Whaling Stations. "In a viit to w hat might be called I the last of the whaling stations, situated sit-uated at Trinidad. Humboldt county, Calif., A. I'.razier Howell learned the methods u--ed for catching the speedier, speed-ier, less valuable whales which are all that remain to the Industry. These fii.bn'k and humpback whales can attain at-tain a sp'.d of :;u miles an hour, so that it requires careful maneuvering find superior harpoons to capture one. 'If the hoi. ih fails to ethnic or the harpoon, weighing somewhat less ihan l.'.O pounds, Is placed too far hack, a light "f several hours may ensue. The whale may take our a mile of cable and must be as carefully played as a game fi-Ji. for although the line consists of a ."cinch iiciiiilu hawser j with breaking strength of Is.. 'on j pounds, the animal will snap Ihis with I case If too mii'h strain be applied or j too much slack be given.' I "Dr. Waldo S'hmitt is on his sec-ond sec-ond year of exploration of the coastal j waters of Sotith America, latere. ting himself particularly In crustaceans. At Guayaquil he collected a little shrimp that bores holes in rocks. "Explorations by Smithsonian ar-cheologists ar-cheologists and ethnologists spanned the continent of North America and stretched over into China. Dr. J. Walter Fewkes excavated a type ruin near Flagstaff, Ariz., an area hitherto almost unknown archeologieally. This important ruin he has called 'Elden I'lielilo.' As a result of his study of this ancient structure. Doctor Fewkes concludes : " 'There remain many unexplored areas in our Southwest, the pottery of which is unknown. One of these is the region west of Little Colorado and south of the Grand canyon, as far west as California and southwest to the Gila valley. Elden I'ueblo lies in the geographical center or heart of this extensive urea, of which archeologieally archeo-logieally and ceramically we knew next to nothing up to the past summer. sum-mer. As a type ruin strategically placed, adding new facts bearing upon architecture and ceramics to the oldest ruins In Arizona, It is very pronounced. pro-nounced. It has many points of resemblance re-semblance to the ruins In the Gila basin, apparently connecting them ; with the pueblos of the San Juan. In this region we evidently have a meeting meet-ing place of the types of prehistoric cultures in the northern and southern parts of Arizona.' Survey of Alaska. "Doctor Ales llrdlicka completed the first extensive anthropological survey of Alaska, following the probable prob-able routes of the first Americans on their arrival from Asia, and selecting regions which promise to be most fruitful for future investigations. Doctor Doc-tor llrdlicka says In his conclusion: 'These remains show at first sight that the Eskimo of these regions are by no means the high'y differentiated Eskimo Eski-mo of Labrador and Greenland, but that they approach. In some cases almost al-most to an Identity, or on one band the Asiatic and Mongoloid types of people, and on the other the American Indians, more particularly those of Alaska. The writer has no longer any hesitation In believing that the Eskimo Eski-mo and Indian originally were not any two distinct races nor even two widely distinct mid far-away types, but that If we could go u little back In time they would be found, to be like two neighboring lingers of one hand, both proceeding from the same palm or racial source.' " j |
