Sept. S6, 1933. 
Mr. Arthur T. Evans, 
KBBfeasor of Botai^r, 
Misuni University, 
Oxford, Ohio. 
^ dear Professor Evane: 
*?hon you. sirrite on the subject of Crusoe* s Xsle you. touch upon 
one very near ay hea3rt. I too should love to revisit that place, better 
equipped than when I tsus there the first time, fhere is a great deal 
of max ine biology yet awaiting investigsition. (Phe botany has been worked 
at on a nuiaber bf occasions and the latest report upon it is that of 
Carl Skottsberg. Paper Ho. 7, of l^rt 2, 7oi. II, Botany, 
History of Juan Fernandes and Easter Island”, Uppsala 1922 (Almquist & Wik~ 
sells Boktryokeri-A.-B. ) : ”fhe Plvanerogams of the Juan Permndez Islands”. 
As complete as his collections niay have been, the fact reisains that hia 
specimens are all in Swedish herbaria, and that probably this country has 
next to nothing from those islands. 
My own interest being zoolt^ical, I got practically nothing in the 
plant lino excepting a fow ferns for our Ifr. iSaxon. 
If you could got Skottsborg’a roport, you may be able to determine 
the time of year better than froia anj' word of mine. All 1 know is that the 
month of December, which I spent on the Island, was a most delightful time. 
Prom your point of view yoirr visit should bo tiiaod so as to got most of the 
things in the flowering state, and tliat you will be able to ascertain from 
the remarks that Skottsberg has made on his collectiozis . Ho also gives a 
biblio£?raphy , which will indicate the principal work tizat has been done the: 
If you are able to raise the funds to comsumtaate your desires, I shall be 
glad to tall you what I loiow of life on Juan Fernandez, which isn’t much, 
ihey are not equipped to handle visitors. fPhe tourists who see the place 
come on an excursion steamer which servos as their home during the one day 
they have on the island. 
If you haven’t much botanical literature bearing on the place 
at Oxford, it might pay you to come to ?/ashington before you finally enter 
in upon your trip 
worth your while. 
. Wo Imven’t everything hme, bat still enough to make it 
WLs/nks 
Waldo L, Schmitt 
Curator of Marine Invertebrate 
