100 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1911. 
In answer to Senator Bacon’s inquiry as to the scope of the work 
intended, the secretary said it was to cover studies of the animal 
and plant life of the land and waters of the Canal Zone. Such a 
survey is necessary before the canal is completed, as it is believed 
that conditions will be changed after the canal is opened to commerce 
and the waters of the Atlantic Ocean are joined with those of the 
Pacific: The organisms of the various watersheds would then be 
offered a ready means of mingling together, the natural barriers 
would be obliterated, and the data for a true understanding of the 
fauna and flora placed beyond reach. 
THH HARRIMAN TRUST AND GIFT. 
The secretary stated that he was desirous of establishing at the 
Institution a number cf research associateships. He wished to give 
exceptionally strong men an opportunity to do research work with- 
out the care and burden of administrative duties, and with full 
knowledge that as long as their work was properly conducted it 
would be continued and that in the event of incapacity for active 
work, provision would be made for them. 
As an illustration, he cited the case of Dr. C. Hart Merriam, who 
has been provided for through the hberality of Mrs. Edward H. 
Harriman. He also mentioned that the Carnegie Institution of 
Washington has a number of men engaged in special fields of work, 
but added that there would be no probability of duplication of work. 
The Carnegie Institution does not undertake exploratory work such 
as that of the African expedition or the biological survey of the 
Panama Canal*Zone. The field for scientific investigation is exten- 
sive and there are numerous worthy projects that can not be*under- 
taken because of lack of means. 
In this connection the secretary announced that Dr. Merriam’s 
splendid collection of American mammals had been purchased by 
Mrs. Harriman for $10,000 and presented to the Institution. 
HODGKINS GOLD MEDAL. 
The secretary called the attention of the board to the establishment 
some years ago of a gold medal under the name of “The Hodgkins 
Medal of the Smithsonian Institution.” This was in honor of Mr. 
Thomas George Hodgkins, the donor of the Hodgkins fund, and was 
to be awarded for exceptional contributions to our knowledge of 
the nature and properties of atmospheric air, or for original and 
practical applications of existing knowledge of the air to the welfare 
of mankind. 
The first Hodgkins medal was awarded in 1898 to Prof. James 
Dewar for his researches on the liquefaction and solidification of 
