THE SECRETARY, 1878-1887 397 



mansion of Dolly Madison and Commodore Wilkes, on 

 Lafayette Square. 



The club was organized December I3th and Professor 

 Baird elected its first President. 1 This dissipated the 

 suspicions of some perturbed individuals who had seen 

 in the formation of such a club a scheme to influence 

 Congress and create a scientific cabal intended to control 

 governmental scientific activities. 



January i6th, 1879, memorial services for Professor 

 Henry were held at the Capitol, Vice-President Wheeler 

 presiding. This meeting is described at length in Baird's 

 Journal and forms the longest entry in it. The following 

 day the Board of Regents met at the Smithsonian and 

 provided that Professor Baird should have an allowance 

 for house rent, such as had been granted Professor 

 Henry. On the 3rd of March the bill providing for a 

 new building for the National Museum was approved by 

 Congress. 



Provision was also made for a small steamer for the 

 particular service of the Fish Commission, which had been 

 planned by Baird and which was appropriately named 

 the "Fish Hawk." 



The ventilation of the houses of Congress had long 

 been a subject of complaint, and at this session a commit- 

 tee was ordered to thoroughly investigate and report on 

 the subject. Of this committee Baird was a member, and 

 the meetings and investigations connected with it for 

 nearly two years added appreciably to the burden of 

 work he carried. 



In May he terminated his editorial work for the 

 Harpers, for reasons elsewhere stated, and notes in his 



1 Major J. W. Powell had for two months previously presided 

 over the committee of organization. 



