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  ANNUAL 
  EEPOET 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1927 
  

  

  Other 
  ancient 
  cities 
  and 
  towns 
  have 
  suffered 
  the 
  ravages 
  of 
  war 
  

   and 
  have 
  disappeared. 
  If 
  the 
  ground 
  on 
  which 
  they 
  used 
  to 
  stand 
  

   is 
  dug 
  into 
  many 
  antiquities 
  can 
  be 
  found. 
  Only 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  easy 
  to 
  

   undertake 
  such 
  work 
  because 
  of 
  the 
  opposition 
  of 
  the 
  country 
  people 
  

   whose 
  superstition 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  overcome, 
  and 
  also 
  because 
  the 
  space 
  

   to 
  be 
  excavated 
  is 
  too 
  large. 
  We 
  have 
  to 
  wait 
  until 
  the 
  country 
  is 
  

   politically 
  more 
  stable 
  and 
  the 
  mass 
  is 
  educated 
  to 
  a 
  certain 
  point. 
  

  

  For 
  the 
  present, 
  what 
  we 
  can 
  hope 
  to 
  do 
  is 
  to 
  train 
  experts 
  and 
  

   improve 
  our 
  tools 
  so 
  that 
  when 
  the 
  opportunity 
  comes 
  we 
  can 
  imme- 
  

   diately 
  set 
  to 
  work. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  second 
  place, 
  we 
  should 
  try 
  to 
  improve 
  our 
  technique. 
  For- 
  

   merly 
  the 
  methods 
  used 
  were 
  the 
  methods 
  of 
  old 
  Chinese 
  archeolo- 
  

   gists, 
  which 
  were 
  handed 
  down 
  from 
  Ouyang 
  and 
  Chao 
  with 
  slight 
  

   improvements 
  from 
  time 
  to 
  time. 
  The 
  old 
  methods 
  have 
  good 
  points, 
  

   but 
  they 
  are 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  perfect. 
  We 
  hope 
  that 
  in 
  the 
  near 
  future 
  

   all 
  the 
  institutions 
  for 
  higher 
  learning 
  will 
  provide 
  for 
  the 
  special 
  

   subject 
  of 
  archeology 
  in 
  their 
  curricula 
  and 
  that 
  we 
  will 
  adopt 
  the 
  

   methods 
  of 
  western 
  scholars. 
  

  

  For 
  instance, 
  former 
  archeologists 
  made 
  use 
  of 
  the 
  designs 
  on 
  the 
  

   objects 
  to 
  determine 
  the 
  age, 
  which 
  is 
  certainly 
  adequate. 
  But 
  when 
  

   objects 
  have 
  neither 
  designs 
  nor 
  characters 
  the 
  archeologists 
  are 
  at 
  

   their 
  wits' 
  end. 
  From 
  now 
  on 
  archeologists 
  should 
  try 
  to 
  study 
  the 
  

   quality 
  and 
  color 
  of 
  the 
  objects 
  that 
  have 
  no 
  external 
  evidence 
  and 
  

   determine 
  the 
  date 
  or 
  age 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  criteria 
  thus 
  arrived 
  at. 
  

  

  For 
  instance, 
  geologists 
  can 
  use 
  their 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  different 
  

   layers 
  of 
  rocks 
  to 
  determine 
  the 
  period 
  to 
  which 
  a 
  particular 
  object 
  

   may 
  belong. 
  Anthropologists 
  can 
  use 
  their 
  knowledge 
  to 
  determine 
  

   the 
  differences 
  in 
  the 
  structure 
  of 
  the 
  body 
  and 
  head 
  of 
  a 
  skeleton. 
  

   These 
  sciences 
  can 
  contribute, 
  directly 
  or 
  indirectly, 
  to 
  archeology. 
  

   In 
  a 
  word, 
  we 
  want 
  to 
  gather 
  the 
  material 
  our 
  predecessors 
  have 
  

   failed 
  to 
  gather. 
  We 
  v/ant 
  to 
  apply 
  the 
  methods 
  our 
  predecessors 
  

   have 
  never 
  tried 
  to 
  apply. 
  We 
  want 
  to 
  carve 
  a 
  new 
  piece 
  of 
  land 
  

   out 
  of 
  tangled 
  woods 
  and 
  unweeded 
  gardens. 
  

  

  With 
  a 
  large 
  country 
  like 
  China, 
  with 
  such 
  a 
  long 
  history 
  and 
  such 
  

   an 
  abundance 
  of 
  hidden 
  treasures 
  as 
  China 
  has, 
  I 
  am 
  sure 
  we 
  are 
  

   destined 
  to 
  play 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  part 
  in 
  the 
  archeological 
  world, 
  

   if 
  only 
  we 
  carry 
  on 
  our 
  work 
  with 
  undiminished 
  ardor 
  and 
  persist- 
  

   ence. 
  In 
  this 
  work 
  many 
  of 
  our 
  young 
  scholars 
  are 
  now 
  engaged. 
  

  

  At 
  this 
  opportune 
  moment 
  we 
  are 
  honored 
  with 
  the 
  visit 
  of 
  His 
  

   Koji'al 
  Highness, 
  the 
  Crown 
  Prince 
  of 
  Sweden. 
  It 
  is 
  our 
  sincere 
  wish 
  

   that 
  His 
  Royal 
  Highness 
  will 
  graciously 
  give 
  us 
  some 
  valuable 
  ad- 
  

   vice 
  and 
  help. 
  And 
  it 
  is 
  our 
  unanimous 
  sentiment 
  that 
  the 
  visit 
  of 
  

   His 
  Royal 
  Highness 
  will 
  mark 
  a 
  new 
  epoch 
  in 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  Chinese 
  

   archeology. 
  

  

  