t 
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 
UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 
WASHINGTON 25. D. C. 
November 10, 1955 
Mr. Bruce Eredin 
Box 87 
Wilmington, Delaware 
Dear Bruce: 
In the course of formulating the plans for your Belgian Congo ejqjedition 
it was suggested to us by a Mr. Fred Barclay of the Nepera Chemical Company 
that the saving of soil samples for their antibiotic content might prove very 
worthwhile. As a result we collected some 60 lots. These were offered to 
the Nepera people on our return, as set forth in my letter of September 16 to 
Dr. George W. Mast, Vice President and scientific director. With a carbon of 
that letter I enclose also a copy of the list of the samples and his reply of 
November 7 to me. 
I bring this matter to your attention at this late date because I have 
since heard that the "DuPonts," or some branch of that far flung organization, 
had once been interested in soil samples for biotic assay. Is that still the 
case? If so, they should have the opportunity of examining these samples 
before we now approach anyone else. There was no expectation of cashing in 
on the samples in a big way but if anything were to develop certainly the 
Bredin Fund for exploration should derive some return from it. 
If you find that the "DuPonts" are not interested I could follow Mast’s 
advice and see Dr. Welch, or do you think we should approach the Merck people 
first? Whomever is approached regarding these samples must be able to assure 
the Department of Agriculture that this unfmigated material will be properly 
safeguarded before it will be released, I shall be glad to send the samples 
to any DuPont laboratory that would be interested in them. 
As the identification of the Congo specimens progresses we are finding 
some things of scientific interest. Dr. Ghace was telling me of a rare crab 
that turned up in our Lake Tanganyika collections, and remarked that there 
must be more interesting forms of life than have yet been discovered in that 
general area. The count of the mammals, rodents, and bats mostly runs close 
to a hundred, I had not realized that we had gotten quite so many. 
Sincerely 
Waldo L. Schmitt 
Head Curator 
Department of Zoology 
£ncs. 
