Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1855-01-18
WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP.

At large VIII, doubtless, receive with gro0t
satisfaction Information of tho action of the.
House, yesterday, upon Mr.. Meacham's resos=
luton for the appointment of specisl COM
mittee, to be charged with the duty of making
thorough investigation into and showing Of
the manner in whic b the affairs of the Smith
sonisn institution have been conducted up to
this time. The imprudence of the Board of Re-
gents, to call it by no harsher name, rende: ed
it, in the opinion of the public at Iargey the
imperative duty Of Congress to relieve them.
selves Of just responsibility for, at least, the
main Objectionable feature of the system I'M
der which the Regents have seen it to conduct
their trust Without bonds or the slightest
legal responsibility imposed on them, they
have been entrusted by Congress with the
duty Of managing great trust fund " for the
diffusion of knowledge among men" They
have deliberately elected to manage it with
the pail Of secrecy thrown around them, as it
were, for the very intent and purpose of dis.
guising from the knowledge of the public thsir
acts as the public's agents. We make no
Charges whatever against what they have done
in secrecy, though all who will take the trou-
bic of inquiring, will understand that the be.
lief is very general here, that the Board of
Regents have done things and permitted
others to do things, for whose acts, under such
circumstances, they are justly responsible,
which it would be most inconvenient to have
made public. We refer to their various steps
going GTadually to turn the Institution into
sort Of close corporation. Otherwise, where is
the necessity for the Management of a public
trust fund in secrecy?
Our own recent publications have probably
compelled the publication of the brief notes
of their late journal published yesterday morn.
ing in the National Inteikigencer, which fur
nish any thing but reliable key towards
giving the public an opportunity fully and
fairly to understand how this Institution has
been conducted up to the present day
We are ipdisposed to take part in the con-
trcversy as to which is the best plan for con.
Quoting its operations that of Professor Henry
or that Of Professor Jewett? We war only
on the fact that already it has been deemed
proper by the irresponsible parties placed over
it by Congress, to conduct its affairs with
closed doors if not with sealed lips
1t is public institution. No man has pr
vats property or private rights in conn sction
with it. We hesitate not to declare that
there never was public trust fund managed
in secrecy, which was not improperly man
aged.
1t is morally impossible that any set of mon
who are surrounded with no legal responsible.
ity for their acts as ous.oiians of an immense
trust fund, can manage it in secret without
mismanaging it.
We are after bringing before the country all
their acts, Whatever they may have been and
also desire that public opinion may duly no.
tify them that, hereafter, there must be no
secrecy connected with any part of their con.
duct az the custodiaLs of this immense trust
fund fox the diffusion of knowledge among
men" That accomplished, and CUR task in
connection with the matter is ended
The following is copy Of Mr.. Rufus
Choate's letter, resigning his position as one
Of the Regents Of the Smithsonian Institution:
TO the Hon. Jesse d. Bright, President pro
tempore Of tito Senate, 0ad Hon. Linn
Boyd, Speaker Of TIE House ofRepresent-
at,ves:
1 take leave to communicate to the two
Houses OF Congress, my esignation of the Of
fee ct Regent Of the Smithsonian Institution
It's due to the body which las been pleased
to honor ne with this trust for some years,
and has recently conferred il for a new term,
to say that this step is taken, not from any
less Of interest IN the welfare Of that import
ant establishment, but in part from the incon.
venience experienced in attending the meet
lngs, and In part, also, and more Immediately
from my inability to concur or aequiesce in
an Interpretation of an act of Congress consti-
tuting the actual Institution and TIE Board of
Regents, which has been adopted, and is now
about to BIS practically carried into admins
tration, by majority of the Board That
act, 1t has seemed to me, peremptori!y - di.
reefs Manner and devises and prescribes a
plan, according to which it intends that the
Institution shall accomplish the win of the do.
nor. By the earlier law, accepting the gift,
Congress engaged 10 direct such @ manner
and TO devise such plan, and pledged the
faith CT ths United States that the funds should
DC applied according to such plan and such
manner Il fulfllment of that pledge, and in
the performance Of its inalienable and in
communicable duty es trustee Of the charity,
that body, after many years Of delibsration,
:Tom which 1t never sought to relieve itself,
by dsvolving tho work upon the discretion Of
others matured its plans, and established the
actual Institution to carry it out. Of this plan
the general features are sketched with
great clearnsss and great completeness in
The law. Without rcsortin., for aid in its
Interpretation to its parliamentary history.
the journals and debates, the substantial
meaning seems to be Ipalpable and uncquivo.
cal in its terms. BY such aid it is rendered
quite certain. A board of regents is created
to administer it. Some discretionary powers
Of course are given 10 the board in regard of
details, aid in regard Of possible surpluses Of
income which may remain at any given time,
while the plan Of Congress is being zealou8ly
and judioiously carried into effect bat these
discretionary powers are given, think, in
trust for the plan Of Congress, and az auxiliary
to, cooperative with, and executo1y of it.
They were given for the sake Of the plan
simply TO enable the regents the moro efrec.
tually and truly to administer that very one
not to enable them to devise and administer
another OF their own, unauthorized in the
terms OF tho law incomoatihla NTH ira