Childs Frick approached the Smithsonian Institution in 1911, looking for a scientist to accompany him on his collecting trip to Africa. Frick’s goal was to assemble a comprehensive collection of animals from various parts of Abyssynia (Ethiopia and Kenya) and the vicinity, including northern portion of British East Africa and the coast of Lake Rudolph. Frick and a friend (Mr. Brick) were accompanied by Edgar Alexander Mearns. Frick agreed to pay Mearns's salary and expenses, and donate all bird collections to the United States National Museum. This was Mearns's last expedition.
Smithsonian Institution Archives Field Book Project: CorporateBody : Description : rid_116_eid_EACE0116