﻿NO. 7 SMITHSONIAN EXPLORATIONS, I926 59 



away. His noted collection was bequeathed to his son, Mr. John A. 

 RoebHng, of Bernardsville, New Jersey, who, in memory of his 

 father, generously presented it to the Smithsonian Institution, with 

 an endowment of $150,000 for the purpose of maintaining its present 

 high standard. 



On October 27, Dr. W. F. Foshag, Miss Margaret Moodey, and 

 Mr. James Benn, of the staff, were detailed to go to Trenton to pack 

 the collection for shipment to Washington. Mrs. Foshag also acted 

 as a volunteer assistant for the greater part of the time. The work 

 occupied a period of approximately six weeks, and the collection, con- 

 tained in 258 boxes, was transported by truck and safely stored in 

 the National Museum by December 7. It should be stated, incidentally, 

 that Mr. Roebling defrayed all expenses connected with this work. 



The career of Col. Washington A. Roebling, soldier, engineer, and 

 mineralogist, is too well known to need narration here. The collecting 

 of minerals was begun as a recreation and was energetically carried 

 on from 1874 until the time of his death. With ample means to indulge 

 this hobby, he spared no expense in securing rare minerals, both 

 from American and foreign sources. In a large room in his beautiful 

 home in Trenton, called by his family and friends " the museum," 

 the collection was artistically arranged, and it was here that the 

 Colonel spent most of his leisure time, delighting in showing his 

 treasures to his friends, and being particularly happy if the caller 

 chanced to be a mineralogist with whom he could discuss his rare iinds. 

 So methodical was the arrangement that he could place his hand almost 

 immediately on any specimen desired. 



Comprised of upward of 16,000 specimens, embracing almost the 

 entire number of known mineral species, the collection contains much 

 to delight both the eye of the seeker for mere beauty and the heart 

 of the ardent student. Gem minerals are plentiful but there are only 

 a few cut stones ; showy examples of the more common minerals — 

 malachite and azurite, quartz, calcites. and especially fine zeolites — are 

 in abundance, but the chief value of the collection lies in the rare 

 specimens which only the student can appreciate. Many of these 

 represent the only example of a species in America. During the Col- 

 onel's lifetime, these were always freely loaned for study or com- 

 l)arison, and their usefulness will be increased when their final instal- 

 lation in the national collections makes them accessible to all accredited 

 students. 



BIOLOGICAL COLLFXTING IN SUMATRA 



Lieutenant Henry C. Kellers, Medical Corps, United States Navy, 

 was detailed as representative of the Smithsonian Institution with 



