SMITHSOXIAX EXPLORATIONS, I929 II 



sent me as well as others on trips to collect specimens and to study 

 the stratigraphy of various classical crinoid-bearing areas in North 

 America. Similar trips to Ein-opean localities and museums were 

 planned, but his lamented death prevented their fulfillment during his 

 lifetime. 



Notwithstanding the size of his collection, it necessarily lacked 

 many species, jiarticularly those represented only by the types in 

 certain American and foreign museums. Realizing the value of casts 

 of these types for comparative i)urposes. J)(jctor Springer made j^Ians 

 to secure them and obtained a considerable number from American 

 museums. He especially desired casts of the echinoderms in the 

 famous Barrande collection at Prague, and for this reason, in the 

 summer of 1929, I prejxired to carry out his wishes by going person- 

 ally to Czechoslovakia to make the casts. \ was. therefore, detailed 

 to undertake this special work and also to collect and study in France 

 and Germany in the interest of the collection. 



Upon arriving at Cherboiu'g on August 3, 1929, various classical 

 localities in the Paris Basin were visited under the guidance of 

 Ferdinand Canu. A week was spent here in studying the Alesozoic 

 and Cenozoic rocks, in collecting, and ]iarticularlv in making ar- 

 rangements with s]:)ecialists in France for exchanges of echinoderms. 

 An important restilt was the stratigra]ihic information secured, 

 whereby many miscellaneous lots in the Springer Collection can now 

 be accurately labeled. Several days were then spent in the Rhine 

 A'alley region where good exhil)ition specimens of Devonian crinoids 

 and starfishes were secured. Following this, a week was devoted to 

 similar work in central Germany, with particular attention to the 

 Mesozoic strata. Through a friend of our Museum. Dr. Johan 

 \A'eigelt. director of the Geological Institute of the University of 

 Halle, I was able to arrange an exchange of not only fossil echino- 

 derms but of other classes of animals and plants much needed in our 

 study series. At Berlin. Leipzig, and Dresden, museum methods were 

 studied and information seciu'ed for futiu'e work on other type 

 specimens. 



Leaving Dresden for Prague, I took up the most important work 

 of the trip, namely, the casting of the Barrande types of fossil 

 echinoderms preserved in the National Museum of Bohemia. This 

 work was accomplished under most ]ileasant conditions due to the 

 cooperation and assistance of Dr. Jan Koliha, curator of the Bar- 

 randeum, the division of the museum housing the Paleozoic collection 

 assembled ]\v the celel)rated j^aleontologist Joachim Barrande. Dr. 

 Koliha not onlv gave me everv possible help in mv work but also 



