58 McGEE MEMORIAL MEETING 



and other interests. He was president of both the American and 

 Washington societies and was editor and contributor to the section 

 on anthropology in the International Encyclopedia. He was United 

 States Commissioner in the International Commission of Archaeology 

 and Ethnology, and in 1904 he was senior speaker in the World's Con- 

 gress of Arts and Sciences. One of his most notable pieces of work 

 while on the Bureau of Ethnology was an exploration of Tiburon 

 Island in the Gulf of California. This island is inhabited by savages 

 who had never been investigated before, and the expedition, which 

 was a highly perilous one, afforded a large number of interesting and 

 novel data. Another important item of his work in anthropology was 

 the formulation of principles relating to geological evidence of human 

 antiquity. 



Probably McGee's most notable service to humanity was the promi- 

 nent part which he had in the great movement for the conservation 

 of our natural resources. He was one of the fathers of this move- 

 ment, and exerted very powerful influence in its growth and promul- 

 gation. He also furnished a large amount of useful data, specially in 

 the hydrographic line. He was a most prominent member of the 

 Conservation Association, and his council was always of greatest serv- 

 ice to that body. He was chief promoter of the project of having 

 the great Conference of Governors which President Roosevelt brought 

 to the White House in 1908. He was secretary of the Conference, 

 guided its deliberations, and prepared the fine volume of its proceed- 

 ings. He was made a member of the Inland Waterways Commission 

 when it was created in 1907, and later was appointed its Secretary, an 

 office in which he continued to the time of his death. He did a vast 

 amount of work for that commission, and much of its value came 

 from his services. 



McGee was greatly interested in our scientific societies and had 

 prominent part in their organization, meetings, and administration. 

 He was a member and frequent attendant at all the societies in 

 Washington, and the Historical Society owes its existence largely to 

 his interest and energy. The National Geographic Society also had 

 his aid in its inception and development, and he edited its magazine 

 for several years. After his active editorship ceased he remained an 

 associate editor until 1908. He was president of the society in 1904 



