SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 
UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 
WASHINGTON, D. C. 
June 12, 1924. 
Mr. Oakes Ames, 
Boston, Massachusetts. 
Dear Mr. Ames: 
Long before this I should have answered 
your letter with regard to the Costa Alcan photographs. 
I have delayed doing so partly because I have been more 
than ordinarily busy, but chiefly because I did not have 
the photographs requested. This year I had with me two 
cameras and a large quantity of films, but most of the 
latter were brought back unused. I was so busy collecting 
specimens that I simply did not have time for photographic 
work, which does require a great deal of time. In Costa 
Rica I got nothing at all. While in Panama I did take a 
number of views in Mr. Powell’s garden, part of which I 
believe he sent you. If you would be interested in those, 
I shall be glad to send them. 
In Costa Aica I bought a few photographs of orchids, 
some very fine ones of Cattleya skinneri and C. dowiana . 
to be used for illustrations. If you should be ineterested 
in having lantern slides of them, I believe it would be 
possible to have them made in San Jose. They show culti¬ 
vated plants, of course. Mr. Powell has some negatives 
of cultivated orchid plants. 
Bor the next volume of the Smithsonian reports I 
am trying to prepare some sort of a popular article upon 
Central American orchids. In this I hope it may be possible 
to give an account of Mr. Powell's collection, for he is 
very anxious to have it advertised as much as possible. 
A few days ago I received the labels for the Central 
American plants. Some time ago I separated the orchids from 
the other specimens, and I am now writing the labels for 
them. It is slower work than I had anticipated, but I 
hope to have them ready to send in the near future. 
I presume you received the shipment of Brenes orchids 
in good condition| and 4 hope there may be something worth 
while among them. Did he send you the letter that he 
promised? Recently I had a letter from Don Anastasio 
Alfaro in which he stated that he had secured a number of 
additional orchids, and I hope we may receive specimens 
soon. Incidentally he inlosed a photograph of an orchid 
whose name he is anxious to learn. I hope that you may 
be able to name it offhand, but if not, I have specimens 
of it somewhere. It Is a species with brownish flowers 
that is common about San Jose. 
There is one orchid whose name I am particularly 
anxious to learn. It is the commonest representative 
of the family about San dose and Cartago, occurring upon 
