Appendix II. 

 REPORT ON THE BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY. 



Sir : The operations of the Bureau of American Ethnology for the fiscal 

 year ended June 30, 1909, conducted in accordance with the act of Congress 

 making provision for continuing researches relating to the American Indians, 

 under direction of the Smithsonian Institution, were carried forward in con- 

 formity with the plan of operations approved by the Secretary June 18, 1908. 



As in previous years, the systematic ethnologic work of the bureau was in- 

 trusted mainly to the regular scientific staff, which comprises eight members. 

 As this force is not large enough to give adequate attention to more than a 

 limited portion of the great field of research afforded by the hundreds of 

 Indian tribes, the deficiency was supplied in a measure by enlisting the aid of 

 other specialists in various branches of ethnologic work. By this means the 

 bureau was able to extend its researches in several directions at a compara- 

 tively modest outlay. 



The work of the bureau for the year comprised: (A) The continuation of 

 various unfinished researches among the Indian tribes and (B) the summar- 

 izing for publication of available data from all sources. 



(A) The unfinished researches were in continuation of systematic investiga- 

 tions already in hand and were essential to a reasonable rounding out of the 

 work among the tribes. These researches were distributed as follows : 



Regular force : Matilda Coxe Stevenson, the Pueblo tribes ; James Mooney, 

 the Great Plains tribes; J. N. B. Hewitt, the Iroquoian tribes; J. R. Swanton, 

 the Southern tribes ; F. W. Hodge, literary researches for the Handbook of the 

 Indians; J. W. Fewkes, archeology of Southwestern tribes; W. H. Holmes, 

 technology of the tribes; Cyrus Thomas, bibliography of Hawaii. 



Collaborators : Franz Boas and eight assistants, the languages of the tribes ; 

 Ales' Hrdlicka, the physical anthropology of the tribes; Frances Densmore, 

 ceremony and songs of the Ojibwa tribes ; J. P. Dunn, linguistics of the Algon- 

 quian tribes of the Middle West ; N. B. Emerson, the Hawaiians ; H. M. Ballou, 

 the Hawaiians; H. E. Bolton, the tribes of Texas; J. P. Reagan, Northwest 

 Coast tribes; Alice C. Fletcher, the Omaha tribe; Francis La Flesche, the 

 Omaha tribe ; W. F. Gerard, etymology of Indian names. 



(B) The summarizing of the materials now available relating to the tribes 

 was initiated by the preparation of the Handbook of the Indians, which assumes 

 to cover the whole ground in brief articles arranged in alphabetical order. 

 Its preparation has led to a clearer understanding of the work done and to be 

 done, and the researches now in hand contemplate the preparation of a series 

 of handbooks, each to be devoted to a full presentation of a single branch of 

 the subject, as follows : 



(a) Handbook of the Tribes: History, distribution, settlements, population, 

 etc., of each stock, tribe, and minor group. Preliminary assemblage of the 

 data is embraced in the present Handbook of American Indians, of which Part 

 I is published and Part II almost ready. 



(6) Handbook of Languages: Volume I now in press, Volume II in prepa- 

 ration. As several hundred languages are to be considered, a number of years 

 will be required to complete the work. 

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