24 Kansas Academy of Science. 



tory of the University the record of a busy life is to be found — the 

 story of a marvelous career. 



In the summer of 1907 Dr. Snow conducted his twenty-sixth and 

 final expedition for the collection of insects among the mountains 

 of Arizona. He returned with more than 12,000 specimens. His 

 first expedition was undertaken in 1872. Generally he had with 

 him members of his own family, students and young scientists, 

 with whom explorations were made in Kansas, Colorado, Texas, 

 New Mexico, Arizona and other sections of the country. In a few 

 years large quantities of plants, insects, mammals, birds, fossils and 

 meteorites were placed in the museums of the University, worth 

 many thousands of dollars and of great scientific value. At the 

 present time the entomological collection contains over 21,000 spe- 

 cies and 275,000 specimens of insects, the largest collection in the 

 United States. The entomological expedition of 1903, in south- 

 western Arizona, brought back nearly 25,000 specimens, and of 

 these there were from 50 to 100 new species. In this collection 

 there were 5430 beetles; 4500 flies; 1926 butterflies and moths; 

 11,822 bees and wasps; 550 grasshoppers and crickets; 232 bugs; 

 169 dragon-flies ; in all 24,629. It was on this trip that the pro- 

 visions of the party ran rather low. Flour was about the only thing 

 left when they began to return. Of potatoes there were none for 

 some time, and of butter they were destitute for a month. In re- 

 lating their experiences. Doctor Snow said: "We took turns at 

 cooking, but I did the baking — that was my job every morning. I 

 baked more than 1500 muffins, and the boys said they were good, 

 too,"' and the scientist smiled with boyish satisfaction. 



But let no one think that the scientific expeditions led by 

 Doctor Snow were mere holidays spent in fun and frolic, and to 

 have a good time. On the contrary, they were often dangerous and 

 full of hazard. They were sometimes in the midst of perils, seen 

 and unseen — snakes, wild animals, Gila monsters and savage 

 Indians, waterspouts and storms. On one occasion, the doctor 

 had caught a small rattlesnake which he was attempting to put into 

 a bottle of alcohol. As it was going in tail foremost, it suddenly 

 stiffened itself and bit one of his fingers. He did not lose his pres- 

 ence of mind for a moment. Nevertheless the snake was bottled, 

 and the doctor began a vigorous sucking of the bitten finger, had 

 a string wrapped tightly above the wound, and continued the suck- 

 ing process until the finger looked like a piece of dead meat. No 

 serious effects followed. 



In the summer of 1881, with a party of three, one of whom was 



