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Smithsonian Notes David C. Graham -7- [[red check marks over box numbers 37 and 38 in text]] May 11. I have been sick in bed with influenza and am still so weak that I have to take things very carefully and easily. Labeled Box 37 and 38, insects gathered about May 1st at Chengtu, Szechuan, China, altitude about 1700 feet. [[red check mark over box number 39 in text]] May 14. The Military are commandeering coolies so much that most of the farmers nearby have been carried away and the spring crops are going to waste. I have had to prevent the netters, Li and Yao from leaving the compound. They have succeeded in catching night moths. The moon is disappearing and night moth catching is improving daily. Filled another box of insects, No. 39, May 10-14, Chengtu, altitude 1700 feet. [[red check mark over box number 40 in text]] May 22. Civil war still continues and our collectors have not dared to leave our yard during daytime but are catching night moths on our back porch by means of the electric light. Filled insect box No. 40, May 15-22, alt. 1700 ft. May 25. Yesterday and today I have mailed about a dozen boxes of specimens to Shanghai to be forwarded to the Smithsonian Institution. War conditions still prevail at Chengtu and our collectors cannot go about by day. They are in danger of being forced to join the army. They collect night moths. June 1. The father of the netter Yao has died and he has gone home for ten days. Li is getting lots of night moths. I recently bought a black bear skin, Mammal 1168. [[red check marks over box number 41-45 in text]] June 6. Filled Boxes 41-45, all of insects caught at Chengtu, altitude about 1700 ft. and wrapped them for shipping. Secured Mammal No. 1169, a common house rat, gray in color. I skinned this to teach a scientific student how to do it. June 16. The skin of the small black bear I bought and killed some time ago has almost been eaten up by vermin. I find also that the same vermin are on the black bear skin I bought recently. I'll have to open all the boxes and look over the skins and try every way to prevent the skins reaching the Smithsonian Institution in a useless condition. Probably the only hope is to use lots of arsenic. Mammal No. 1169 is a common house rat secured at Chengtu, Szechuan, China. Mammals No. 1170-71 were secured by [[strikethrough]]Yane Tong Ghave[[/strikethrough]]^[[Yang Fong Chang]], the hunter atnTseo Jia Keo, south of Suifu, Szechuan, China on the Szechuan Youman Border. The collectors Ho and Yang are shut up by the military operations beyond Kuanshien and cannot get out. There is a rumor that there is war between Chinese and Tibetans beyond Tats[[strikethrough]]eenbo[[/strikethrough]]^[[ienlu]]. Box No. 46, insects collected between June 8 and 13, alt. 1700 ft. [[five red stars in left margin]] June 19. Filled Box 47, Insects. Box 47 insects collected June 1-20,1933, altitude 1700 ft. Box 48, animal skins, value $10.00 " 49 " " " [[ditto marks for "Box" and "animal skins, value"]] 6.00 " [[ditto mark for "Box"]] 50 black bear skin " [[ditto mark for "value"]] 45.00 market value $30.00 Today I fired one of the collectors who constantly plays possum instead of working. I found vermin very thick in the big black bear skin and put a lot of arsenic in the skin. I packed some more specimens.
