REPORT

OF

THE ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE

OF

THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION:

WITH

THE RESOLUTIONS ACCOMPANYING THE SAME, AND ADOPTED BY THE BOARD
OF REGENTS;

ALSO, THE WILL OF THE TESTATOR, THE ACT ACCEPTING THE BEQUEST,
AND THE ACT ORGANIZING THE INSTITUTION.

PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS.

WASHINGTON:
PRINTED AT THE OFFICE OF BLAIR AND RIVES.
1847.

RESOLUTIONS

*Appointing a Committee on Organization, and regarding the
printing and disposal of their Report.*

The following Resolutions were adopted by the Board of
Regents:

On the 8th of September, 1846, it was

*Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed by the Chancellor, from the members of the Board, to digest a plan to carry out the provisions of the act to establish the Smithsonian Institution, and that they report the same to the next meeting of the Board.*

Whereupon, the Chancellor appointed Mr. OWEN, Mr. HILLIARD, and Mr. BACHE, said committee.

And on the 9th of September, 1846, it was further

*Resolved, That Mr. CHOATE and Mr. PENNYBACKER be added to the committee appointed yesterday to digest a plan to carry out the provisions of the act establishing the Smithsonian Institution.*

On the 1st of December, 1846, the Chairman of the Committee on Organization reported; and, on the 21st of December, the report, on motion of the Chairman, was recommitted to the Committee. On the 25th of January, 1847, the Report, as here presented, was made, and certain resolutions therewith submitted; and the whole series of resolutions recommended by the Committee, and herein appended to the Report, were finally adopted by the Board. They comprise the outline of an entire plan of organization, to carry out the provisions of the act establishing the Smithsonian Institution.

And it was further

*Resolved, That, of this Report, in such form as it may be ultimately adopted, five thousand copies be printed, under the direction of the Secretary; and that he be required to transmit a copy of the same to each of the principal Scientific and Literary Societies, both in this and in other countries; and also to such

6

individuals of scientific or literary reputation as he may judge likely to find interest in the proceedings of the Institution.

*Resolved,* That ten copies of the Report accompanying these Resolutions be furnished to each member of the Senate and House of Representatives, and that each member be respectfully requested to transmit these to newspapers and to individuals, in his district or elsewhere, who may be likely to take interest in the proceedings of the Institution.

NOTE.—Mr. PENNYBACKER, appointed, as above, a member of the Organization Committee, died before the final report was made. On the 21st of January, 1847, it was

*Resolved,* That the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution have learned with profound sensibility, that, since their last meeting, the Honorable ISAAC S. PENNYBACKER, late a member of this Board, has departed this life.

*Resolved,* That in testimony of their high respect for the memory of their late associate, the members of this Board will wear the customary badge of mourning, for the period of thirty days.

*Resolved,* That these Resolutions be entered on the Journal, and a copy of them transmitted to the widow of the deceased.

REPORT.

"FOR the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men" were the words of SMITHSON's will—words used by a man accustomed to the strict nomenclature of exact science. They inform us, that a plan of organization, to carry into effect the intention of the testator, must embrace two objects: one, the calling forth of new knowledge by original research; and the other, the dissemination of knowledge already in existence.

SMITHSON'S words, liberal and comprehensive, exclude no branch of human knowledge; nor is there any restrictive clause in the charter under which we act. That charter indicates a few items, chiefly relating to one of the above objects, and leaves the rest of the plan, under the general provision of the bequest, to the discretion of the Board.

*First.* It sets forth, as one of the objects of the Institution, a library that shall contain valuable works in all departments of human knowledge.

*Second.* It requires that there be provided in the buildings of the Institution a hall or halls suitable for a museum capable of containing, on a liberal scale, collections of natural history, including geology and mineralogy, and objects of foreign and curious research; the large collection now in the Patent Office being transferred to the Institution.

*Third.* It requires that there be included in said building a chemical laboratory.

*Fourth.* The building is to contain, also, "the necessary lecture rooms." And,

*Fifth.* A gallery of art.

8

These items, with the exception perhaps of the laboratory, relate to the diffusion of knowledge only. They render necessary an annual appropriation to collect and support a library; another to maintain a museum; and indicate an intention, that a portion of the annual interest should be applied to the advancement of physical science and the arts, in part by lectures.

But, after enumerating these items, the framers of the charter added a clause of plenary powers, authorizing the Board, as to all funds not required for the above special purposes, to make of them "such disposal as they shall deem best suited for the promotion of the purpose of the testator."

In obedience to the requirements of the charter, which leaves little discretion in regard to the extent of accommodations to be provided, your committee recommend, that there be included in the building a museum of liberal size, fitted up to receive the collections destined for the institution; and that library room sufficient for a hundred thousand volumes be provided. They further recommend, that the lecture rooms required by the act shall not exceed two in number, of which one of small size should adjoin the laboratory, and another might be large enough to receive an audience of a thousand persons.*

As important as the cabinets of natural history, by the charter required to be included in the museum, your committee regard its ethnological portion, including all collections that may supply items in the physical history of our species, and illustrate the manners, customs, religions and progressive advance of the various nations of the world: as, for example, collections of skulls, skeletons, portraits, dresses, implements, weapons, idols, antiquities, of the various races of man.

*The plan of building adopted by the Board, out of thirteen different designs submitted to them by various architects, is that of Mr. James Renwick, jr., of New York. It comprises a museum 200 feet by 50; a library 90 feet by 50; a gallery of art 125 feet long; two lecture rooms, of which one is capable of containing an audience of 800 to 1000 persons; and the other is connected with the laboratory, together with several smaller rooms. The style selected is the later Norman, or rather Lombard, as it prevailed in the twelfth century chiefly in Germany, Normandy, and in Southern Europe, immediately preceding the introduction of the Gothic.

9

In the accumulation of these collections, the Institution has at command great facilities. The collections of the Exploring Expedition, which already belong to its museum, furnish an ample commencement, especially as regards Polynesia. Through the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and the various agencies under his control, the North American race can be reached; and at small expense the collection of Indian curiosities already begun at the Patent Office may be rapidly extended. So, through our army and navy officers, and our consuls in foreign nations, European and South American collections (the latter so recently enriched by modern discovery) might be gradually brought together.

In this connexion, your committee recommend the passage of resolutions, asking the coöoperation of certain public functionaries, and of the public generally, in furtherance of the above objects.

Your committee are further of opinion that, in the museum, if the funds of the Institution permit, might judiciously be included various series of models illustrating the progress of some of the most useful inventions; such, for example, as the steam engine, from its earliest and rudest form, to its present improved state; but this they propose only so far as it may not encroach on ground already covered by the numerous models in the Patent Office.

Specimens of staple materials, of their gradual manufacture, and of the finished products of manufactures and the arts, may also, your committee think, be usefully introduced. This would supply opportunity to examine samples of the best manufactured articles our country affords, and to judge her gradual progress in arts and manufactures.

As chemistry was the favorite study of Smithson's life, of which a considerable portion was spent in his own laboratory, and as it is, without doubt, one of the most comprehensive and important of the natural sciences, your committee recommend, that this department be fitted up in as complete a manner as modern science can suggest. And for the purpose of encouraging in the young men

10

of our country original research in the same branch of science in
which Smithson himself successfully labored, and inasmuch as
many are now compelled, in order to complete their studies as
practical chemists, to resort to Paris or Germany, your committee
further recommend, that there be included in the building a work-
ing laboratory, somewhat, perhaps, after the model of that insti-
tuted by one of the ablest of German chemists, the celebrated
LIEBEG; to be opened under proper regulations and supervision,
without charge, to those who may desire to institute experiments
and prosecute researches for themselves in that science.

The gallery of art, your committee think, should include both
paintings and sculpture, as well as engravings and architectural
designs; and it is desirable to have, in connexion with it, one or
more studios, in which young artists might copy without inter-
ruption, being admitted under such regulations as the Board may
prescribe. Your committee also think, that as the collection of
paintings and sculpture will probably accumulate slowly, the room
destined for a gallery of art might properly and usefully mean-
while be occupied, during the sessions of Congress, as an exhibi-
tion room for the works of artists generally; and the extent and
general usefulness of such an exhibition might probably be in-
creased, if an arrangement could be effected with the Academy
of Design, the Arts-Union, the Artists' Fund Society, and other
associations of similar character, so as to concentrate at the me-
tropolis, for a certain portion of each winter, the best results of
talent in the fine arts.

The charter provides, that the Secretary of the Institution may,
with the consent of the Board, employ assistants; and the items
above enumerated touching a library, museum, and laboratory,
seem to demand, at the proper time, the appointment of not less
than three such assistants: one as librarian, one as curator of the
museum, and one as chemist. After a careful review of the
means of the Institution, and the annual demands upon it neces-
sitated by the objects specially required in the charter, your com-
mittee are not prepared, with the present endowment only at
command, to recommend a greater extension than these named

11

of permanent offices requiring scientific or literary qualifications. And they think that the appointments of curator and chemist may be postponed until the time, or nearly the time, when the building is likely to be completed.

In these various recommendations, your committee have been guided chiefly by the words and specific recommendations of the charter. They are of opinion, however, that the task assigned them would be ill performed if they stopped short here, and neglected to avail themselves of the authority, liberally, and wisely, your committee think, conferred upon the Board, after providing for the above special objects to such extent as they may consider necessary and proper, to dispose of the remaining funds, annually accruing, in such manner as "they shall deem best suited for the promotion of the purpose of the testator."

"Increase and diffusion of knowledge," your committee beg leave to repeat, was that purpose.

How can knowledge be increased?

By original research throughout its various fields; yielding, when successfully prosecuted, positive additions to the sum of what had theretofore been known.

For this, there is no provision in the items specifically enumerated in the bill and above provided for, except, it may be, in the chemical department, where the chemist, or others engaging in experiment and investigation, may furnish actual contributions to the science of chemistry.

But how may original researches generally be encouraged and called forth?

First, by premiums, your committee think, annually offered for original papers on such subjects as may be selected; it being a strict condition, that each paper accepted and obtaining a premium, shall contain a specific addition to the sum of human knowledge, resting upon original investigations, and not mere unverified hypotheses. The accepted paper may be published in the successive numbers of Transactions, which may be entitled "Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge," and which your committee recommend to be issued periodically or occasionally, as materials

12

present themselves. The names of the competitors for premiums should, in all cases, remain unknown until the award is made.

A liberal price might also be paid for other papers that may be considered worthy of a place in the Transactions.

Again, as an additional means of promoting increase of knowledge, special appropriations may occasionally be made, to institute definite lines of research under the direction of competent persons; after the manner, perhaps, of the British Association. Such appropriations, however, your committee think, should be made with great care; for important objects only, and where there is fair promise of speedy result: and it might be advisable, as an additional guarantee, that in deciding the kind of research and the amount of money to be appropriated, the Board avail itself of the suggestions of a council of scientific men.

In the prosecution of researches undertaken at the instance of the Institution, and requiring the aid of valuable apparatus, the use of that belonging to the Institution might, under proper regulations, be granted.

This stimulating and cherishing of research in unexplored fields seems to your committee the more necessary and proper in a country like ours, where but few have at command that easy leisure, common in older countries, and there permitting the prosecution of researches through years, or a lifetime, without expectation or necessity of pecuniary return.

Your committee are aware that the researches here recommended, no matter how intrinsically important, demanded as they are, too, by the wording of the bequest which endowed our Institution, will be likely, in their inception and first publication, to interest a comparatively small circle only. The Transactions of the Institution can be expected to obtain but a limited circulation. Not that the discoveries there to be presented are of little intrinsic importance, and bear no practical fruit: the reverse is true. Some may be immediately productive; others will include investigations, unproductive in themselves for the time, yet the necessary preliminaries to the actual discovery of modes and forms that become, in everyday life, productive and profitable;

13

for invention is but the practical application of scientific results. But the severe investigations in physics which ultimately resulted in the steam engine and the magnetic telegraph, inventions that are now revolutionizing the world, attracted in their original form the attention only of the strictly scientific. To reach the people generally, other and further means must be employed. And this brings your committee to speak of the testator's second object—

The *diffusion* of knowledge among men.

In connexion with this branch of Mr. Smithson's purpose, your committee are reminded of the wide-spread and beneficent influence, reaching to the remotest hamlet and the humblest hearth, exerted, not in England alone, but in other and distant countries, by the British "Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge," its Scientific Tracts, and its Penny Magazine.

This example indicates the most effectual mode of reaching the popular mind of the world. Influenced by the results of such experience, your committee recommend the issuing, to such extent as the funds of the Institution permit, of publications, in brief and popular form, on subjects of general interest. They advise, also, that courses of free lectures be delivered during the session of Congress, in the lecture rooms of the Institution, by its officers, or by able men in the different branches of knowledge, who should be invited for the purpose, and paid out of the funds of the Institution. It should also, your committee think, be made the duty of the Secretary and his Assistants to exhibit, in these lecture rooms, at stated periods, experimental illustrations of new discoveries in science, and interesting and important inventions in the arts.

And, if now or hereafter the funds of the Institution permit, they think it desirable that such lectures should not be restricted to Washington, but should be given by lecturers selected by the Institution, throughout the United States.

The difficulty, in this latter recommendation, is the great expense that must be incurred to procure the delivery of such lectures by men of suitable ability, throughout every section of the Union, without preference or omission.

14

Though neither the bequest nor the charter restrict the subjects that may be treated in publication and lecture, yet, as the funds of the Institution are limited, and some selection from the vast range of human subjects of inquiry must be made, your committee recommend, that, in the first place, the efforts of the Institution be chiefly directed to the diffusion of knowledge in the physical sciences, in the useful arts, and in the theory and practice of public education. They suggest, that the lectures and popular publications of the Institution may usefully treat, of agriculture and its latest improvements; of the productive arts of life; of the sciences, and the aid they bring to labor; of common-school instruction, including the proper construction of school rooms, the most improved apparatus for teaching, and the most judicious management, moral and intellectual, of children in common schools. They might also, if suitable talent can be inlisted, treat of history, natural and civil, including the physical history of the various races of men, and the gradual advance of each to its present state of civilization; of political economy in its practical connexion with the everyday business of life; and, generally, touch upon any department of useful knowledge not strictly professional.

By such means, we may reasonably expect gradually to stir
up a love of science among those in whose minds, for lack of an
awakening word, it now lies dormant; and by directing the at-
tention of the people generally to the rich sources of knowledge
that everywhere exist around them and beneath their feet, by de-
grees to substitute, for the deleterious excitements sought in haunts
of dissipation, the healthful and humanizing interest to be found
in scientific research. The inestimable importance of common-
school education, and the practical means of increasing and
improving it, might thus also be pressed home upon those,
whose children have often no other means of instruction or im-
provement.

As an additional means of diffusing knowledge, your commit-
tee suggest the publication of a series of Reports, to be published
annually or oftener, containing a concise record of progress in

15

the different branches of knowledge, compiled from the journals of all languages and the transactions of scientific and learned societies throughout the world. The matter of these reports may be furnished by collaborators eminent in their respective branches; and these should be supplied with all the works necessary to a proper execution of their task, and paid in proportion to their respective labors. Copies of these Smithsonian Reports may be furnished to the principal libraries and scientific societies of the country free of expense, and sold to individuals at a small price.

Your committee beg leave here to remark, that with the limited annual income of the Institution, charged as it is with extensive collections, to maintain which will prove a considerable yearly drain on its funds, they do not imagine or propose that all the recommendations here set down should be carried out, at least simultaneously. These are put forward as objects which your committee consider desirable and strictly within the purpose of the bequest. Such as may seem to the Board the most important may be first attempted. Other portions of the plan may follow in their turn. And experience will gradually sift out whatever is most judicious and effective.

Your committee are of opinion, that it does not come properly within the scope of our Institution to impart professional education; and therefore they recommend no school of any of the learned professions, nor any professorships of ancient languages, or others of similar character. It is not, however, their purpose to exclude lectures of a general character on subjects connected with any of these professions, but only to shut out those courses of lectures which treat of them in professional detail. The studies referred to are already provided for in numerous institutions throughout the United States; and it has been the endeavor of your committee, not only in this instance, but throughout the entire plan here submitted, to occupy, so far as may be, ground hitherto untenanted, and rather to step in where it comes not within the province of other institutions, learned or literary, to extend their

16

efforts, than to compete with them in fields of labor peculiarly
their own.

The party politics of the day, on which men differ so widely and
so warmly, should not, your committee think, enter among the
subjects treated of in any lecture or publication put forth under
the sanction of the Institution. And they would deeply regret
to see party tests and party wranglings obtrude themselves on the
neutral ground of science and education; jeoparding, as such in-
trusion surely would, the tranquillity of the Institution, disturbing
the even tenor of its action, perhaps assaulting its welfare, cer-
tainly contracting the sphere of its usefulness.

Your committee think it important that the Institution, at the
time it is first opened, should have already in its library a collec-
tion of such valuable works of reference, as, in the prosecution of
its plan, may be required. In order to attain that object, your
committee recommend, that, for the present, twenty thousand dol-
lars be set aside for the purchase of books and fitting up of the
library.

An additional reason which has induced your committee to
recommend, out of the accrued interest, so large an appropriation
at the outset, is, that large annual appropriations from the accruing
interest, after the Institution is under weigh, are thereby rendered
the less necessary.

In proposing that, in the building about to be erected, there
should be provided library room sufficient to receive a hundred
thousand volumes, your committee yielded rather to what seemed
a fair concession to the spirit of the eighth section of our charter,
than to their own deliberate conviction that a library of more than
half that size could, with the present means of our Institution,
advantageously be purchased.

But, without a vast accumulation of books in this metropolis,
your committee conceive, that the Librarian of the Smithsonian
Institution may, under a proper system, become a centre of litérary
and bibliographical reference for our entire country. Your com-
mittee recommend, that the Librarian be instructed to procure

17

catalogues, written or printed, of all important public libraries in the United States, and also, in proportion as they can be obtained, printed catalogues of the principal libraries in Europe, and the more important works on bibliography. With these beside him, he may be consulted by the scholar, the student, the author, the historian, from every section of the Union, and will be prepared to inform them whether any works they may desire to examine are to be found in the United States, and, if so, in what library; or, if in Europe only, in what country of Europe they must be sought.

Informed by these catalogues, it will be easy, and your committee think desirable, for those who may be charged with the selection of books, to make the Smithsonian library chiefly a supplemental one; to purchase, for the most part, valuable works, which are not to be found elsewhere in the Union; thus carrying out the principle to which your committee has already alluded as influencing all their recommendations, that it is expedient, as far as may be, to occupy untenanted ground.

Exceptions to this rule must here, of course, be made; as in the case of standard works of reference required for the immediate purposes of the Institution, and also of the very numerous works, many of current science, which, by a proper system of exchanges, we may procure without purchase. In this latter connexion, the Transactions and Reports of the Institution will obtain for us valuable returns.

In following out this mode of collecting a library for the Institution, whenever a particular class of works of importance is found to be specially deficient in the libraries of our country, the vacancy may be filled. The Librarian might also procure, by entering into correspondence with the librarians of other countries, any special extracts or items of information required by students.

Your committee consider it inexpedient to commence the regular purchase of books, until about a year before the time when the building is prepared to receive them. Meanwhile, lists and catalogues should be procured.

For the procurement of chemical and philosophical apparatus,

B

18

models, &c., your committee recommend, for the present, an appropriation of four thousand dollars. If the funds permit, four thousand dollars more, your committee think, might profitably be appropriated for this object before the opening of the Institution.

Before concluding their report, your committee desire to add a few words touching the duty and qualifications of one of the officers of the Institution.

Inasmuch as the Chancellor of the Smithsonian Institution, being a regent, can receive no salary for his services, it results, almost necessarily, that the Secretary should become its chief executive officer. The charter seems to have intended that he should occupy a very responsible position; granting, as it does, to the Secretary, in conjunction with the Chancellor, the power to determine the necessity, and the amount, of appropriations made for the purposes of the Institution.

The office of Secretary must, in the opinion of your committee, be regarded, not as one to be filled by any man capable to act as recording clerk, or to receive, with politeness, the visitors of the Institution, or to reply, with mechanical propriety, to its correspondents; but as an office on the due administration of which the executive efficiency of our Institution at home and its reputation abroad, mainly depend; an office, then, demanding, in its incumbent, weight of character and a high grade of talent.

To secure such stamp of talent as your committee consider essential in a Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, it may be necessary to attach to the office a considerable salary. The best talent, in any country, ever commands a high remuneration; and though money cannot always command talent, it is, as a general rule, one of the elements necessary to obtain it. Inadequate character and qualifications are not worth purchasing, at any rate, no matter how low. The money spent to procure them is utterly cast away.

Your committee think it would be an advantage if a competent Secretary could be found, combining also the qualifications of a professor of the highest standing in some branch of science. If

19

to these be added efficiency as an executive officer and a knowl-
edge of the world, we may hope to see filling this distinguished
post a man who, when brought into communication with dis-
tinguished men and societies in this and other countries, shall
be capable, as representative of the Smithsonian Institution, to
reflect honor on the office, not requiring to borrow distinction
from it.

Your committee will not withhold their opinion, that upon the
choice of this single officer, more probably than on any one other
act of the Board, will depend the future good name and success
and usefulness of the Smithsonian Institution.

A similar view, your committee believe, has been taken of this
matter by the principal scientific societies throughout the world.
NEWTON disdained not to answer, at much length, the friendly
and able criticisms on some of his theories addressed to him by
OLDENBURG, first Secretary of the London Royal Society; and
the name of ARAGO, Secretary of the Academy of Sciences,
of Paris, is known and honored wherever science extends her
sway.

All which is respectfully submitted.

ROBERT DALE OWEN,

Chairman.

The following Resolutions, appended to the Report of the Com-
mittee and recommended for adoption, were, after debate, passed
by the Board.

*Resolved,* That it is expedient, and demanded by the will of the
testator, that, in our plan of organization, the increase of knowl-
edge by original research should form an essential feature; that,
in furtherance of this object, premiums be offered at such times
and to such amounts as the Board may hereafter decide, for
original papers, containing positive additions to the sum of hu-
man knowledge; and that these, together with other suitable
papers, be published in Transactions of the Institution, to be
entitled "Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge," and to be

20

issued periodically or occasionally, in quarto form, as materials
may be obtained.

*Resolved, That it is within the strict purpose of the trust, and may materially advance its legitimate objects, occasionally to make specific appropriations for definite lines of research, the results to be published as above.*

*Resolved, That, with a view to the diffusion of knowledge, there may properly be included in the plan of organization the issuing of publications, in brief and popular form, on subjects of general interest.*

*Resolved, That, with a similar object, there may also properly be included in the plan of organization the issuing of periodical reports, containing records of the progress of knowledge in its different branches.*

*Resolved, That there may also properly be included in the plan free lectures, to be delivered by competent persons, on useful subjects; and that it may advantageously be made a part of the duty of the Secretary and his Assistants, to give, in the lecture rooms of the Institution, at stated periods, illustrations of discoveries in science, and important inventions in the arts.*

Besides the above Resolutions, originally reported by the Committee on Organization, the following additional Resolutions, submitted by a member of the Committee on Organization, as a compromise between two great conflicting opinions, were adopted by the committee, and passed by the Board:

*Resolved, That it is the intention of the act of Congress establishing the Institution, and in accordance with the design of Mr. Smithson, as expressed in his will, that one of the principal modes of executing the act and the trust, is the accumulation of collections of specimens and objects of natural history and of elegant art, and the gradual formation of a library of valuable works pertaining to all departments of human knowledge, to the end that a copious storehouse of materials of science, literature, and art, may be provided, which shall excite and diffuse the love of learning among men, and shall assist the original investigations and efforts of those who may devote themselves to the pursuit of any branch of knowledge.*

*Resolved, That, for the purpose of carrying into effect the two*

21

principal modes of executing the act and trust pointed out in the resolutions herewith submitted, the permanent appropriations out of the accruing interest shall, so soon as the buildings are completed, be annually as follows, that is to say:

*First*. For the formation of a library composed of valuable works pertaining to all departments of useful knowledge, and for the procuring, arranging, and preserving of the various collections of the Institution, as well of natural history and objects of foreign and curious research and of elegant art, as others, including salaries and all other general expenses connected with the same, excepting those of the first complete arrangement of all such collections and objects as now belong to the United States, in the Museum of the Institution, when completed, together with one-half of the salary of the Secretary, the sum of fifteen thousand dollars.

*Secondly*. For the preparation and publication of transactions, reports, and all other publications of the Institution, including appropriations for original researches, and premiums for original papers; for the delivery of all lectures and payment of all lecturers; and for all general expenses connected with said lectures and publications, together with one-half of the salary of the Secretary, the remainder of the annually accruing interest:* it being understood that all general and incidental expenses not specially connected with either of the above two great divisions of the plan of the Institution, shall be equally divided between them.

*Resolved*, That it is the opinion and intention of the Board, that in the appropriation for the objects of the Institution of any surplus of accrued interest which may remain after the completion of the buildings of the Institution, an equal division shall be made between the two great branches; that is to say, one-half shall be appropriated to the library and museum fund, and the other half to the fund for original research, publications, and lectures; and that, in regard to all other funds hereafter to accrue to the Institution, the same division be made.

In accordance with the above plan of Organization, and tending

*The annual amount appropriated by this clause is fifteen thousand nine hundred and ten dollars.

22

to carry out its details, the following Resolutions, submitted by the Committee, were adopted by the Board:

*Resolved, That, for the present, out of the interest accruing to the Institution, the sum of twenty thousand dollars be, and the same is hereby, appropriated, for the purchase of books and the gradual fitting up of a Library, and all other incidental expenses relating to the Library, except the salaries of the Librarian or Librarians; the said appropriation to commence from the first of January, eighteen hundred and forty-eight.*

*Resolved, That the portion of the building to be for the present set apart for a Library be of sufficient capacity to contain not less than one hundred thousand volumes; and that it is desirable that the plan should be such as to render an extension practicable, if hereafter desired.*

*Resolved, That, for the present, the sum of four thousand dollars, out of the interest accruing to the Institution, be appropriated, for the purchase of philosophical and chemical apparatus, models, &c.; the said appropriation to commence on the first day of January next.*

*Resolved, That the Secretaries of State, of the Treasury, of War, and of the Navy of the United States, be respectfully invited to furnish to consuls and other public officers, in this and foreign countries, under their respective Departments, such suggestions as they may deem proper, in regard to the procurement, as opportunity offers, of additions to the Museum of the Institution, especially to its ethnological department; that three hundred copies of this report, when printed, be placed at the disposal of each of the above-named Secretaries, as an explanation to these public functionaries of the views of the Institution in regard to a Museum; and that five hundred dollars be, and the same is hereby, appropriated, out of the accruing interest, to pay transportation, or other expenses connected with the transmission from foreign parts to Washington, of any collections thus made. And to such contributions, when placed in the Museum, the name of the officer obtaining and forwarding the same shall, in all cases, be appended.*

*Resolved, That the Secretary of War be respectfully invited to furnish to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs such suggestions as he may deem proper regarding the procurement, from the

23

Indian country, of collections for the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, illustrating the natural history of the country, and, more especially, the physical history, manners, and customs of the various tribes of aborigines on the North American Continent; that one hundred copies of this Report, when printed, be placed at his disposal, as a means of informing the various Indian Agents of the special character of the collections desired; and that the sum of five hundred dollars be, and the same is hereby, annually appropriated, out of the accruing interest of the Smithsonian Institution, for the procurement and transportation of such Indian collections; and, when placed in the Museum, there shall be appended to each the name of the agent through whom the same may be procured.

*Resolved*, That the public generally be invited to furnish contributions to the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, and that all such contributions, when considered worthy of a place, shall be labelled with the name and residence of the donor.

And, previous to the election of a Secretary, the following Resolution, submitted by the Committee, was adopted by the Board:

*Resolved*, That it is essential for the advancement of the proper interests of the trust, that the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution be a man possessing weight of character and a high grade of talent; and that it is further desirable that he possess eminent scientific and general acquirements; that he be a man capable of advancing science and promoting letters by original research and effort, well qualified to act as a respected channel of communication between the Institution and scientific and literary individuals and societies in this and foreign countries; and, in a word, a man worthy to represent, before the world of science and of letters, the Institution over which this Board presides.

# APPENDIX.

## WILL OF MR. SMITHSON.

I, JAMES SMITHSON, son of Hugh, first Duke of Northumberland, and Eliza-
beth, heiress of the Hungerfords of Audley and niece of Charles the Proud,
Duke of Somerset, now residing in Bentinck Street, Cavendish Square, do this
23d day of October, 1826, make this my last will and testament:

I bequeath the whole of my property of every nature and kind soever to
my bankers, Messrs. Drummonds of Charing Cross, in trust, to be disposed of
in the following manner, and desire of my said executors to put my property
under the management of the court of chancery.

To John Fitall, formerly my servant, but now employed in the London
Docks, and residing at No. 27, Jubilee Place, North. Mile End, Old Town,
in consideration of his attachment and fidelity to me, and the long and great
care he has taken of my effects, and my having done but very little for him,
I give and bequeath the annuity or annual sum of £100 sterling for his life,
to be paid to him quarterly, free from legacy duty and all other deductions,
the first payment to be made to him at the expiration of three months after
my death. I have at divers times lent sums of money to Henry Honori
Juilly, formerly my servant, but now keeping the Hungerford Hotel, in the
Rue Caumartin at Paris, and for which sums of money I have undated bills
or bonds signed by him. Now I will and direct that if he desires it, these
sums of money be let remain in his hands at an interest of five per cent. for
five years after the date of the present will.

To Henry James Hungerford, my nephew, heretofore called Henry James
Dickinson, son of my late brother Lieut. Col. Henry Louis Dickinson, now
residing with Mr. Auboin, at Bourg la Reine, near Paris, I give and bequeath
for his life the whole of the income arising from my property of every nature
and kind whatever, after the payment of the above annuity, and after the death
of John Fitall, that annuity likewise, the payments to be at the time the inter-
est or dividends become due on the stocks or other property from which the
income arises.

Should the said Henry James Hungerford have a child or children, legiti-
mate or illegitimate, I leave to such child or children, his or their heirs, execu-
tors and assigns, after the death of his, her, or their father, the whole of my

26

property of every kind absolutely and forever, to be divided between them, if there is more than one, in the manner their father shall judge proper, and in case of his omitting to decide this, as the Lord Chancellor shall judge proper.

Should my said nephew Henry James Hungerford marry, I empower him to make a jointure.

In case of the death of my said nephew without leaving a child or children, or of the death of the child or children he may have had under the age of 21 years or intestate, I then bequeath the whole of my property, subject to the annuity of £100 to John Fitall, and for the security and payment of which I mean stock to remain in this country, to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.

I think it proper here to state, that all the money which will be standing in the French five per cents. at my death in the names of the father of my above mentioned nephew, Henry James Hungerford, and all that in my name, is the property of my said nephew, being what he inherited from his father, or what I have laid up for him from the savings upon his income.

JAMES SMITHSON. [L. S.]

## ACT OF CONGRESS ACCEPTING BEQUEST.

AN ACT to authorize and enable the President to assert and prosecute with effect the claim of the United States to the legacy bequeathed to them by James Smithson, late of London, deceased, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.

[SEC. 1.] *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the President of the United States be, and he is hereby, authorized to constitute and appoint an agent or agents, to assert and prosecute for and in behalf of the United States, and in their name or otherwise, as may be advisable, in the Court of Chancery, or other proper tribunal of England, the right of the United States to the legacy bequeathed to them by the last will and testament of James Smithson, late of London, deceased, for the purpose of founding at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men; and to empower such agent or agents so appointed to receive and grant acquittances for all such sum or sums of money, or other funds, as may or shall be decreed or adjudged to the United States, for, or on account, of said legacy.*

SEC. 2. *And be it further enacted, That the said agent or agents shall, before receiving any part of said legacy, give a bond or bonds, in the penal sum of five hundred thousand dollars, to the Treasurer of the United States, and his successors in office, with good and sufficient securities to the satisfaction of the*

27

Secretary of the Treasury, for the faithful performance of the duties of the said agency, and for the faithful remittance to the Treasurer of the United States of all and every sum or sums of money, or other funds, which he or they may receive, for payment in whole or in part of the said legacy. And the Treasurer of the United States is hereby authorized and required to keep safely all sums of money or other funds which may be received by him in virtue of the said bequest, and to account therefor separately from all other accounts of his office, and subject to such further disposal thereof as may be hereafter provided by Congress.

SEC. 3. *And be it further enacted,* That any and all sums of money, and other funds, which shall be received for or on account of the said legacy, shall be applied in such manner as Congress may hereafter direct, to the purpose of founding and endowing at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men; to which application of the said moneys and other funds, the faith of the United States is hereby pledged.

SEC. 4. *And be it further enacted,* That, to the end that the claim to the said bequest may be prosecuted with effect, and the necessary expenses in prosecuting the same be defrayed, the President of the United States be, and he is hereby, authorized to apply to that purpose any sum not exceeding ten thousand dollars, out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated.

Approved 1st of July, 1836.

## ACT ESTABLISHING THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.

AN ACT to establish the "Smithsonian Institution," for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.

James Smithson, Esquire, of London, in the Kingdom of Great Britain, having by his last will and testament given the whole of his property to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men; and the United States having, by an act of Congress, received said property and accepted said trust; therefore, for the faithful execution of said trust according to the will of the liberal and enlightened donor—

*Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,* That the President and Vice President of the United States, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, the Postmaster General, the Attorney General, the Chief Justice, and the Commissioner of the Patent Office of the United States, and the Mayor of the city of Washington, during the time for which they shall hold their respective offices, and such other persons as they may elect honorary members, be, and they are hereby, constituted an "establishment," by the name of the "Smithsonian Institution," for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men; and by that name shall be

28

known and have perpetual succession, with the powers, limitations, and restrictions hereinafter contained, and no other.

SEC. 2. *And be it further enacted,* That so much of the property of the said James Smithson as has been received in money, and paid into the Treasury of the United States, being the sum of five hundred and fifteen thousand one hundred and sixty-nine dollars, be lent to the United States Treasury, at six per cent. per annum interest from the first day of September, in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight, when the same was received into the said treasury; and that so much of the interest as may have accrued on said sum on the first day of July next, which will amount to the sum of two hundred and forty-two thousand one hundred and twenty-nine dollars, or so much thereof as shall by the Board of Regents of the Institution established by this act be deemed necessary, be, and the same is hereby, appropriated for the erection of suitable buildings, and for other current incidental expenses of said Institution; and that six per cent. interest on the said trust fund—it being the said amount of five hundred and fifteen thousand one hundred and sixty-nine dollars received into the United States Treasury on the first of September, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-eight, payable, in half-yearly payments, on the first of January and July in each year—be, and the same is hereby, appropriated for the perpetual maintenance and support of said Institution; and all expenditures and appropriations to be made, from time to time, to the purposes of the Institution aforesaid, shall be exclusively from the accruing interest, and not from the principal of the said fund. *And be it further enacted,* That all the moneys and stocks which have been, or may hereafter be, received into the Treasury of the United States on account of the fund bequeathed by James Smithson, be, and the same hereby are, pledged to refund to the Treasury of the United States the sums hereby appropriated.

SEC. 3. *And be it further enacted,* That the business of the said Institution shall be conducted at the city of Washington by a Board of Regents by the name of the Regents of the "Smithsonian Institution," to be composed of the Vice President of the United States, the Chief Justice of the United States, and the Mayor of the city of Washington, during the time for which they shall hold their respective offices; three members of the Senate, and three members of the House of Representatives, together with six other persons, other than members of Congress, two of whom shall be members of the National Institute in the city of Washington, and resident in the said city; and the other four thereof shall be inhabitants of States, and no two of them of the same State. And the Regents, to be selected as aforesaid, shall be appointed immediately after the passage of this act—the members of the Senate by the President thereof, the members of the House by the Speaker thereof, and the six other persons by joint resolution of the Senate and House of Representatives; and the members of the House so appointed shall serve until the fourth Wednesday in December, the second next after the passage of this act; and then, and biennially thereafter, on every alternate fourth Wednesday of December, a like number shall be appointed in the same manner, to serve until the fourth Wednesday in December, the second succeeding their appointment.

29

And the Senators so appointed shall serve during the term for which they shall hold, without reëlection, their office as Senators. And vacancies, occasioned by death, resignation, or otherwise, shall be filled as vacancies in committees are filled; and the other six members aforesaid shall serve, two for two years, two for four years, and two for six years; the terms of service, in the first place, to be determined by lot; but after the first term, then their regular term of service shall be six years; and new elections thereof shall be made by joint resolution of Congress; and vacancies occasioned by death, resignation, or otherwise, may be filled in like manner, by joint resolution of Congress. And the said Regents shall meet in the city of Washington on the first Monday of September next after the passage of this act, and organize by the election of one of their number as Chancellor, who shall be the presiding officer of said Board of Regents, by the name of the Chancellor of the "Smithsonian Institution," and a suitable person as Secretary of said Institution, who shall also be the Secretary of said Board of Regents; said Board shall also elect three of their own body as an Executive Committee, and said Regents shall then fix on the time for the regular meetings of said Board; and on application of any three of the Regents to the Secretary of the said Institution, it shall be his duty to appoint a special meeting of the Board of Regents, of which he shall give notice by letter to each of the members; and at any meeting of said Board, five shall constitute a quorum to do business. And each member of said Board shall be paid his necessary travelling and other actual expenses in attending meetings of the Board, which shall be audited by the Executive Committee, and recorded by the Secretary of said Board; but his services as Regent shall be gratuitous. And whenever money is required for the payment of the debts or performance of the contracts of the Institution, incurred or entered into in conformity with the provisions of this act, or for making the purchases and executing the objects authorized by this act, the Board of Regents, or the Executive Committee thereof, may certify to the Chancellor and Secretary of the Board that such sum of money is required; whereupon, they shall examine the same, and, if they shall approve thereof, shall certify the same to the proper officer of the Treasury for payment. And the said Board shall submit to Congress, at each session thereof, a report of the operations, expenditures, and condition of the Institution.

SEC. 4. *And be it further enacted,* That after the Board of Regents shall have met and become organized, it shall be their duty forthwith to proceed to select a suitable site for such building as may be necessary for the Institution; which ground may be taken and appropriated out of that part of the public ground in the city of Washington lying between the Patent Office and Seventh street; Provided, The President of the United States, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, and the Commissioner of the Patent Office, shall consent to the same; but if the persons last named shall not consent, then such location may be made upon any other of the public grounds within the city of Washington, belonging to the United States, which said Regents may select, by and with the consent of the persons herein named; and the said ground so selected shall be set out by

30

proper metes and bounds, and a description of the same shall be made and recorded in a book to be provided for that purpose, and signed by the said Regents, or so many of them as may be convened at the time of their said organization; and such record, or a copy thereof, certified by the Chancellor and Secretary of the Board of Regents, shall be received in evidence in all courts of the extent and boundaries of the lands appropriated to the said Institution; and upon the making of such record, such site and lands shall be deemed and taken to be appropriated by force of this act to the said Institution.

SEC. 5. *And be it further enacted,* That, so soon as the Board of Regents shall have selected the said site, they shall cause to be erected a suitable building, of plain and durable materials and structure, without unnecessary ornament, and of sufficient size, and with suitable rooms, or halls, for the reception and arrangement, upon a liberal scale, of objects of natural history, including a geological and mineralogical cabinet; also a chemical laboratory, a library, a gallery of art, and the necessary lecture rooms; and the said Board shall have authority by themselves, or by a committee of three of their members, to contract for the completion of such building, upon such plan as may be directed by the Board of Regents, and shall take sufficient security for the building and finishing the same according to the said plan, and in the time stipulated in such contract; and may so locate said building, if they shall deem it proper, as in appearance to form a wing to the Patent Office building, and may so connect the same with the present hall of said Patent Office building, containing the National Cabinet of Curiosities, as to constitute the said hall in whole or in part the deposit for the cabinet of said Institution, if they deem it expedient to do so; provided said building shall be located upon said Patent Office lot, in the manner aforesaid: Provided, however, That the whole expense of building and enclosures aforesaid shall not exceed the amount of ——; which sum is hereby appropriated, payable out of money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated; together with such sum or sums out of the annual interest accruing to the Institution as may, in any year, remain unexpended, after paying the current expenses of the Institution. And duplicates of all such contracts as may be made by the said Board of Regents shall be deposited with the Treasurer of the United States; and all claims on any contract made as aforesaid shall be allowed and certified by the Board of Regents, or the Executive Committee thereof, as the case may be, and, being signed by the Chancellor and Secretary of the Board, shall be a sufficient voucher for settlement and payment at the Treasury of the United States. And the Board of Regents shall be authorized to employ such persons as they may deem necessary to superintend the erection of the buildings and fitting up the rooms of the Institution. And all laws for the protection of public property in the city of Washington shall apply to, and be in force for, the protection of the lands, buildings, and other property of said Institution. And all moneys recovered by, or accruing to, the Institution shall be paid into the Treasury of the United States to the credit of the Smithsonian bequest, and separately accounted for; as provided in the act approved July first, eighteen hundred and thirty-six, accepting said bequest.

31

SEC. 6. *And be it further enacted,* That, in proportion as suitable arrangements can be made for their reception, all objects of art and of foreign and curious research, and all objects of natural history, plants, and geological and mineralogical specimens belonging, or hereafter to belong, to the United States, which may be in the city of Washington, in whose ever custody the same may be, shall be delivered to such persons as may be authorized by the Board of Regents to receive them, and shall be arranged in such order, and so classed, as best facilitate the examination and study of them, in the building so as aforesaid to be erected for the Institution; and the Regents of said Institution shall afterwards, as new specimens in natural history, geology, or mineralogy, may be obtained for the museum of the Institution, by exchanges of duplicate specimens belonging to the Institution, (which they are hereby authorized to make,) or by donation, which they may receive, or otherwise, cause such new specimens to be also appropriately classed and arranged. And the minerals, books, manuscripts, and other property of James Smithson, which have been received by the Government of the United States, and are now placed in the Department of State, shall be removed to said Institution, and shall be preserved separate and apart from other property of the Institution.

SEC. 7. *And be it further enacted,* That the Secretary of the Board of Regents shall take charge of the building and property of said Institution, and shall, under their direction, make a fair and accurate record of all their proceedings, to be preserved in said Institution; and the said Secretary shall also discharge the duties of librarian and keeper of the museum, and may, with the consent of the Board of Regents, employ assistants; and the said officers shall receive for their services such sum as may be allowed by the Board of Regents, to be paid semi-annually on the first day of January and July; and the said officers shall be removable by the Board of Regents, whenever, in their judgment, the interests of the Institution require any of the said officers to be changed.

SEC. 8. *And be it further enacted,* That the members and honorary members of said Institution may hold such stated and special meetings, for the supervision of the affairs of said Institution and the advice and instruction of said Board of Regents, to be called in the manner provided for in the by-laws of said Institution, at which the President, and, in his absence, the Vice President of the United States shall preside. And the said Regents shall make, from the interest of said fund, an appropriation, not exceeding an average of twenty-five thousand dollars annually, for the gradual formation of a library composed of valuable works pertaining to all departments of human knowledge.

SEC. 9. *And be it further enacted,* That of any other moneys which have accrued, or shall hereafter accrue, as interest upon the said Smithsonian fund, not herein appropriated, or not required for the purposes herein provided, the said managers are hereby authorized to make such disposal as they shall deem best suited for the promotion of the purpose of the testator, anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding.

SEC. 10. *And be it further enacted,* That the author or proprietor of any book, map, chart, musical composition, print, cut, or engraving, for which a