PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY OP WASHINGTON. 299 



'58, and 1S59. Instructive articles on Magnetism and Meteor- 

 ology were prepared in 1861 for the American Encyclopasdia. 

 And as an illustration of his continued interest in such studies, 

 one of his latest published papers comprised a minute account of 

 the effects of lightning in two thunder-storms ; one occurring in 

 the spring of last year (1817) at a Light-house in Key West, 

 Florida, and the other occurring in the summer of last year at 

 New London, Connecticut.* 



A?^chseological Work. — One of the earliest subjects taken 

 up for investigation by the Institution, was that of American 

 Archosology ; the attempt by extended explorations of the exist- 

 ing pre-historic relics, mounds, and monuments, of the abori- 

 gines of our country, to ascertain as far as possible their primi- 

 tive industrial, social and intellectual character, and any evidences 

 ot their antiquity, or of their stages of development. The first 

 publication of " Smithsonian Contributions" comprised in a good 

 sized quarto volume an account of extensive examinations of the 

 mounds and earthworks found over the broad valley of the Mis- 

 sissippi, with elaborate illustrations of the relics and results 

 obtained: and this volume extensively circulated by gift and by 

 sale, attracted a wide-spread attention and interest, and gave a 

 remarkable stimulus to the further prosecution of such researches. 

 "Whatever relates to the nature of man is interesting to the 

 students of every branch of knowledge ; and hence ethnology 

 affords a common ground on which the cultivators of physical 

 science, of natural history, of archaeology, of language, of his- 

 tory, and of literature, can all harmoniously labor. Consequently 

 no part of the operations of this Institution has been more gen- 

 erally popular than that which relates to this subject, "f 



Special explorations inaugurated by the Institution, have sup- 

 plied it with important contributions to archaeological informa- 

 tion, and with the rich spoils of collected relics ; which together 

 with much material gathered from Arctic and from Southern 

 regions, from Europe, from Asia, and from Africa, fill now a 

 large museum hall 200 feet long and 50 feet wide, exclusively 

 devoted to comparative Anthropology and Ethnology. In 1868, 

 the Secretary reported that " during the past year greater effort 

 has been made than ever before to collect specimens to illustrate 

 the ethnology and archaeology of the North American conti- 

 nent:" and he dwelt upon the importance of the subject as a 

 study connecting all portions of the habitable earth, pointing 

 out that "it embraces not only the natural history and pecu- 

 liarities of the different races of men as they now exist upon the 



* Journal of ihe American Elfctricnl Society, 1878, vol. ii. pp. .37-43. 

 TliH comtnunieation is dated Oct. 13, 1877; though not published till 

 durina; his last illness. 



j- Smithsonian Report for 1860, p. 38. 



73 



