The postcard has a red 2d KGV Head stamp canceled by a roller cancel ‘SEND/ A/ TELEGRAM and a circular postmark HOBART/ 1PM/ 19 AP/ 1933. It is addressed to The Carnegie Inst. Of Washington, Washington (D.C.), U.S.A. (Figure 1).
The reverse has a ‘Belt & Buckle’ insignia enclosing a crown over a map of Tasmania, originating from The Royal Society of Tasmania, The Museum, Hobart, 21st April 1933. In print there is the following: ‘On behalf of the Royal Society of Tasmania I desire to acknowledge the receipt of the undermentioned Publication and to thank you for this valuable addition to the Library’. This is followed by a manuscript: ‘Report of the President 1932. Annual Report of Dir(ector) Terrestrial Magnetism. Report from Year Book No. 31. The last Year Book received by us is No. 27 (1927/28). Yours faithfully, Secretary & Librarian There also is a blue reception handstamp May 23, 1933 (Figure 2).
The Royal Society of Tasmania was the first Royal Society established outside the United Kingdom. It was set up by Sir John Eardly-Wilmot in 1843 to administer the Colonial Gardens in Hobart, and a body of enthusiastic amateurs soon established a Museum and a Library. The Royal title was conferred in 1844. The Society contacted numerous international bodies and countless individuals, both at home and abroad, arranging for the exchange of items and soliciting donations. Its activities were broader in scope than any other colonial scientific body in the mid and late 19th century, on account of its museum and gardens; because it published a regular journal, in which overseas contributions appeared as well as articles by local authors, informing people about Tasmania’s natural history and scientific endeavors. The journal was the basis for publication exchanges that enhanced its library.
Members interests included meteorology, industrial development, tourism, immigration, public health, agriculture, mapping, land surveying, fisheries, scenery and wild life as well as science. The Society’s base is in Hobart with a northern branch centred in Launceston. A medal to commemorate the centenary of the Royal Society of Tasmania is shown in Figure 3.
Andrew Carnegie founded the Carnegie Institution of Washington in 1902 as an organization for scientific discovery. His intention was for the institution to be home to exceptional individuals, men and women with imagination and extraordinary dedication, capable of working at the cutting edge of their fields. Today, Carnegie scientists work in six scientific departments on the west and east coasts of the U.S.A..
The legal name, the Carnegie Institution of Washington, has led to confusion because four of the departments are outside Washington and because the legal name does not distinguish it from other non-profit organizations created by Carnegie. As a result, the institution adopted a new look and name in 2007, the Carnegie Institution for Science. The new name closely associates the words “Carnegie” and “science” and thereby reveals its core identity. The institution remains officially and legally the Carnegie Institution of Washington, but now has a public identity that more clearly describes its work.
Carnegie investigators are leaders in the fields of plant biology, developmental biology, earth and planetary sciences, astronomy, and global ecology. They seek answers to questions about the structure of the universe, the formation of the solar system and other planetary systems, the behavior and transformation of matter when subjected to extreme conditions, the origin of life, the function of genes, and the development of organisms from single-celled egg to adult.
The Carnegie Institution for Science is headquartered in Washington, D.C. It is an endowed, independent, nonprofit institution. Significant additional support comes from federal grants and private donations. A board of trustees, consisting of leaders in business, the sciences, education, and public service, oversees Carnegie’s operations. Each of the six departments has its own scientific director who manages the day-to-day operations, and it is under the leadership of the Carnegie president, Richard A. Meserve. A picture of the Carnegie Institution for Science is seen in Figure 4.