40 REPORT OF THE SECRi<JTARY. 



of the world. The shadowy reputation which he has thus acquired is 

 too gratifying to his vanity to be at once reHnquished by the announce- 

 ment of his self-deception, and in preference he applies his ingenuity in 

 devising means by which to continue the deception of his friends and 

 supporters long after he himself has been convinced of the fallacy of his 

 first assumptions. In this way what was commenced in folly generally 

 ends in fraud. 



The records of the Patent-Office of this country exhibit a greater 

 amount of thought and ingenuity employed in the way of invention 

 than perhaps in a!iy other country, but for want of more definite con- 

 ceptions of scientific principles, an immense amount of labor is ex- 

 pended in futile attempts to produce results which are unattainable. 



Another branch of the correspondence relates to questions in regard 

 to the naming of objects of natural history, and especially to specimens 

 of mineralogy. The interest which is felt in regard to the mining-pro- 

 ducts of the country induce large numbers of specimens of ores to be 

 submitted to the Institution for examination. The rule adopted in re- 

 gard to these, is to give the results of a qualitative analysis, that is, an 

 enumeration of the substances contained in each specimen, without 

 giving the percentage of each. This information can be given without 

 very much labor for a single specimen, whereas an exact quantitative 

 analysis would require more time than the Institution can devote to an 

 inquiry which may be of commercial value to an individual, but of no 

 especial interest to the public at large. When information as to the 

 percentage of ingredients is required, the party is referred to some ex- 

 pert who will make the examination desired for a proper compensation. 

 This distinction in the kind of information furnished is necessary to pre- 

 vent the name of the Institution from being connected with transactions 

 of a character which have been injurious to the reputation of those con- 

 cerned in them. 



In carrying on the correspondence, much assistance has been rendered 

 hy the collaborators of the Institution. 



ETHNOLOGY. 



From the commencement of the Institution to the present time, the arch- 

 aeology of the United States has been to it an object of special interest. 

 In all cases in which information has been received of the locality of a 

 field of probable interesting discovery, an appropriation has been made 

 for its ethnological explorations. The articles obtained from such 

 sources have been deposited in the National Museum, with the intention 

 of having descriptions and discussions of them published in the Smith- 

 sonian Contributions to Knowledge. Tlie archaeology of the United 

 States has not been the only part of ethnology to which attention has 

 been given, but also special effort has been made from the first to obtain 

 illustrations and descriptions of the now -existing native inhabitants of 

 the North American continent. This latter subject is very important in 



