410 SPENCER FULLERTON BAIRD 



caption: "for preservation of the collections of the 

 surveying and exploring expeditions of the government, 

 in the Smithsonian Institution," or an analogous wording. 

 But it was not until 1877 that Senator T. W. Ferry 

 presented a resolution of the Board of Regents urging 

 the erection of a suitable building, that public action was 

 taken, and it was not until March 3rd, 1879, tnat a para- 

 graph in the Sundry Civil Appropriation bill giving 

 $250,000.00 for the erection of a fireproof building to 

 hold the collections was agreed to by both houses of 

 Congress. 



Of course for years previously Baird had familiarized 

 public men with the desirability of such a building, hold- 

 ing a national collection, but circumstances had been 

 unfavorable. The stupendous debt created by the Civil 

 War tended for many years to make unwelcome to the 

 average member of Congress any large appropriation 

 which was not for political or "practical" purposes. 

 The country at large was not educated to the point of 

 appreciating the importance of science, and especially of 

 pure science. 



The idea of a great commemorative Exposition of an 

 international character to celebrate the Centennial of the 

 Declaration of Independence, however, appealed to the 

 patriotic sentiment of the country and was authorized 

 by Congress in 1871. In 1875 appropriations were made 

 for the participation of various departments of the govern- 

 ment in the exhibition, including $67,000.00 for the use 

 of the Smithsonian and $5000.00 for the Fish Commission, 

 each appropriation to be pro rata diminished by a portion 

 sufficient in the total to erect a building for the govern- 

 ment exhibit. By other legislation a considerable sum 

 of government money was lent to the corporation pre- 



