﻿EXPEDITIONS ORGANIZED OR PARTICIPATED IN BY 



THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 



IN 1910 AND 1911. 



The Smithsonian Institution has been concerned in numerous 

 scientific expeditions and collecting trips during the last two years. 

 Some of these were new enterprises, while others were for the con- 

 tinuation of work initiated in earlier years. The resources of the 

 Institution not being sufficient to enable it to plan extensive investi- 

 gations in the field, or to maintain a corps of collectors, it is compelled 

 to concentrate its efforts on special work of limited scope, but of 

 such a character that the results shall, as far as possible, have an im- 

 mediate bearing on the progress of science. In recent years, as in the 

 whole of its past history, the Institution has had the aid of public- 

 spirited citizens and the cooperation of other institutions and of the 

 several branches of the United States government. It has, in turn, 

 cooperated with other organizations in the explorations which they 

 have conducted, being itself benefited thereby and benefiting those 

 with which it has been associated. 



The National Museum has participated in most of these enter- 

 prises, sometimes furnishing equipment or supplies, and at other times 

 detailing members of its scientific staff to conduct investigations or 

 to make collections. 



In recent years, opportunities have been afforded for participating 

 in exploring and hunting expeditions organized by private enterprise, 

 whereby scientific collections of great importance have been obtained. 

 These collections, with those from other sources, are preserved in 

 the National Museum for exhibition to the public, or for promoting 

 scientific studies. 



The field of these activities of the Institution has been world- 

 wide, but in the last two years attention has been concentrated on 

 Africa rather more than on any other region. Scarely had the 

 Smithsonian African Expedition returned from the field, with its 

 great zoological collections, than another opportunity occurred 

 through the generosity of Mr. Paul J. Rainey, of New York, to secure 

 specimens for the National Museum from the same region to supple- 

 ment and to supply deficiencies in the earlier collection. 



Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections Vol. 59, No. 11 



