NATIONAL ACADEMY BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS VOL. VIII 



that an account of them deserves an important place in a me- 

 moir of his life. The breadth of ttye organization reflected his 

 native interest in comprehensive schemes and his unusual ca- 

 pacity in developing them. King h,ad already secured the 

 services of a number of geologists from the several surveys 

 that had been disbanded and Powell brought in still others ; 

 thus a good volume of inherited work was quickly brought 

 forward for publication./ He had in Gilbert a wise adviser on 

 scientific problems and in McChesney an able aid in all finan- 

 cial matters. \The enlistment of many professors of geology in 

 colleges all over the country, to contribute reports on subjects 

 that they had previously studied independently, showed the 

 broadly inclusive spirit in which the development of the Survey 

 was conceived ; thus the Director secured the personal interest 

 of many widely distributed experts in the maintenance of the 

 Survey, and at the same time brought together much accumu- 

 lated knowledge in local or special fields. This was a wise 

 step at the beginning, when the supply of well-trained young 

 American geologists was small ; but such a method of securing 

 field geologists was outgrown half a generation later, when the 

 students of the professors of the earlier time had in good 

 number become expert members of the Survey, practiced in 

 methods adapted to its special needs, and not distracted from 

 its work by duties to other institutions, j The standard of tech- 

 nical preparation expected of members in various branches of 

 geology and topography was at the outset necessarily low, for 

 there had been no demand to excite a well-trained supply, and 

 the pressure of Congressmen to secure places for their rela- 

 tives and friends did not tend to raise the standard ; but it was 

 raised as rapidly as possible, and the Survey thus reacted most 

 helpfully on the development of the geological departments in 

 our universities. In the meantime, if "Senators' nephews" 

 sometimes gained positions as camp assistants or rodmen, they 

 were seldom capable of geological work, and in any case 

 Powell squarely accepted all responsibility as to the character 

 of his appointees. He wrote in the Sixth Annual Report: 

 "If, then, improper persons are employed, it is wholly the Di- 

 rector's fault." 



I^A liberal policy was adopted regarding the exchange of the 



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