NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Antiquities

At the turn of the century, there were nine reserved areas which were already, or were to become, national parks. Nine other areas under the Federal Government's jurisdiction at that time have since been proclaimed national monuments, national battlefield sites, national historical parks, or national memorials. It is interesting to note that only one of these areas, Casa Grande, was established to protect evidence of prehistory of the Nation.

Maintenance of these areas was the responsibility of the Departments of War, Agriculture, and Interior. Generally speaking, there was little effort to preserve the less spectacular features or sections of the reserved lands, and, in some cases, the primary features for which the areas had been set aside were also victims of public apathy and inappropriate use. However, it was the situation in the hitherto isolated western part of the country which began to excite the greatest concern.

Though most of the West was still wild, it was no longer dangerous to leave the inhabited areas, and the Country was being mapped, surveyed, and developed. Facilities for reasonably safe exploration of the back country were appearing, particularly in the Southwest, and the commercial value of Indian relics was increasing to the point where the looting of such articles as prehistoric baskets, pottery, and stonework paid real dividends to the collector. Where this occurred, the true significance of these objects as a part of a greater story was lost, since few looters took the trouble to keep even the most casual records of where they obtained their material. American archeology was still in its infancy and the few archeologists who were interested in the prehistory of the United States had little time and almost no money to examine the thousands of sites where the story of prehistoric man in the New World was being shredded away. Yet the few excavations which were scientifically conducted in this region gave indications of the richness of these fragile deposits.

Accordingly, various professional organizations began to work for protective legislation and, since most of the destruction was taking place on lands in the public domain, it was logical to expect that the administration of such an act would be best handled by the Federal Government.

Laws to protect antiquities from vandalism were not unusual in other countries, particularly in the nations where legal codes had been derived from the Roman law. A fundamental principle of this code is that the land is basically the property of the Nation, and that the individual may own the rights to the use of the land, but still be subject to considerable control in his application of those rights. In such nations, of which most European and South American countries are examples, laws have been passed making all antiquities automatically the property of the state, regardless of whether they are on private land or public domain. Many such laws were in existence before the turn of the century.

In our law, however, based on the English codes, we do not have such restrictive provisions, and the property of an individual is not subject to restrictions other than those which are intended to keep him from unwarranted intrusions upon his neighbors or upon the public.

The Federal Government recognized an interest in the study of objects of scientific interest when the Smithsonian Institution was established in 1846. This became more definite in 1879 with the creation of the Bureau of American Ethnology. And the U. S. Geological Survey, also established in 1879, together with its forerunners, such as Hayden, Wheeler, King, and Powell Surveys, had effectively shown a precedent for the Federal Government's interest in objects of scientific importance apart from archeology.

But these were primarily research institutions devoted to the acquisition of knowledge by scientists. While the knowledge thus obtained was diffused, it still was a case of "science for the sake of science." The results of work performed were transmitted primarily to the professional not to the layman. The Antiquities Act was among the first steps in modifying this approach to include more extensive dissemination of knowledge.

While specific Congressional action had been taken to set aside a few areas of natural scenic and scientific importance before the Antiquities Act, there was no authority under which such areas could be established by executive action, and no way of protecting them until legislative action could be taken. In the Old World, the inspirational and recreational benefits to be derived from natural surroundings were occasionally available to the privileged classes, but the use of then was denied to the majority of the people. Hot Springs, Yosemite, and Yellowstone were worldwide innovations when they were set aside expressly for the enjoyment of all the people of the Nation.

So Section 2 of the act became extremely important, since it clearly stated that the Federal Government accepted a responsibility in conserving objects and areas of historic or scientific interest. Look at the legal history of the Park. Perhaps, it would not now exist as a unit of the National Park System if there had been no Antiquities Act or if that act had not contained those few important words.

Once the act was passed, it became necessary to provide for its standard administration by the several agencies of the Federal Government which administered public land. Section 2 is primarily a matter of Presidential responsibility, although it is normally the practice to consult with the Secretary of the Interior, the Director of the National Park Service and the Advisory Board before a new national monument is established under Antiquities Act authority. So, among the major considerations of the Service, is the matter of research performed under the authority of Section 3.

The authority to grant a permit to any organization or institution outside of the Service to perform research under the provisions of Section 3 and the Uniform Rules and Regulations on lands under Department of the Interior jurisdiction rests with the Secretary of the Interior. This includes permits for work on land administered by the Service, with one exception. The Superintendent may, after examining the professional qualifications of an employee of the Service, grant a permit for research of the kinds covered by the Antiquities Act by that employee within a Park or Monument. In this case, the employee is acting as a representative of the Service not as an individual, and he must follow the same requirements of reporting as are required of an outside institution by the Secretary.

Under the Uniform Rules and Regulations prescribed to carry out the provisions of the act by the Secretaries of War, Agriculture, and Interior, approved on December 28, 1906, permits are restricted to ". . . reputable museums, universities, colleges, or other recognized scientific or educational institutions, or to their duly authorized agents."

This has been subject to administrative interpretation which requires the institution involved to meet certain qualifications of staffing. The provisions of the act would be nullified if the permits were to be granted to the Podunk Historical Museum, which is open three afternoons a week, and has as its professional staff the lady who tends the desk and who may have taken a course in ancient history in finishing school 30 years ago. The principal prerequisite is that a qualified investigator be on the staff, and that this individual be present to supervise the work. Qualifications are normally based on the technical training and the field experience of the person involved. There are many cases in which the only way of ascertaining qualifications is to contact technical personnel at the Smithsonian Institution or in one of the field areas of this Service. Many archeologists today have considerable field experience, gained before the study of archeology in colleges and universities had been common, and this background frequently entitles them to consideration purely on the basis of experience. Determination of the qualifications of both archeologists and paleontologists is a matter which is best left to the technical staff of the Service. It is not probable that these problems will affect the field area to any extent.

A second requirement of the Uniform Rules and Regulations is that the institution applying for a permit arrange for the proper care and disposal of the collections obtained so that they will be preserved in a public museum and be made accessible to the public. This goes far beyond simply having a few glass cases and visiting hours. Modern preservation methods make it possible to recover and protect objects of surprising fragility, but these methods must be used by persons skilled in their use; competent museum people must be always close at hand. Above all, the material must be available to the professional archeologist and paleontologist, and the information gained from the material, as well as the material itself, must be arranged for the greatest public good.

The third requirement of the Uniform Rules and Regulations is that the data gained from excavations and investigations under the act be made available to scientists as well as to such interested laymen as desire it. This applies to the publication of properly prepared scientific reports, either in professional journals or in other published form which will adequately disseminate technical data. Here, especially, the need for qualified scientists on the staff of the institution is apparent. Without such publication, the knowledge gained from the work is of very limited use.

From this point on, we will divide the consideration of responsibility for enforcing the act. Parts IV and V will deal with archeology; Part VI with paleontology. While many of the points brought up in each section will concern both fields, the differences will also be apparent.