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#2

-2-

Mr. John H. Cobbs,

of the country. I am specially interested in the atlatl or throwing stick, and have wanted to make a visit to Lake Patzcuaro, where I might study this interesting implement, and see it in use. If I could arrange for the proposed work, I might be able to kill two birds with one stone.
  
Now concerning the work. Do you think it would be possible to carry on the investigations without a permit from the Mexican Government; in other words, are you in touch with the officials in Apatzingan to such an extent that the news of any work that we might carry on, would not be sent to the City of Mexico? In some places our Museum expeditions have met with great opposition, whereas, in others, they were not molested at all.

If you have time I wish you would give me a general idea of the difficulties that might be encountered in this line, and whether it would be advisable to work under the direction of the Mexican Government? The latter proposition is rather a hard one, as the men who are usually sent to keep tab on such investigations, have very little interest in the specimens themselves, and are therefore, hard to handle when scientific accuracy demands a slow and careful uncovering of rare objects.
  
In your work on the irrigating ditches, there are possibilities which may not have appealed to you; these are in the form

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#2 written in top right hand corner of page as well as centered on top line of first line of copy