THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. 327 



his money made by the regents, and largely also through the results 

 of the great exploring expedition of Captain Wilkes, there grew up a 

 Smithsonian Museum, one which was exclusively cared for from the 

 Smithson fund; but which, partly through the greater activity of the 

 government surveys and partly through the gifts of private individu- 

 als, and also through the valuable objects presented to the United 

 States government by foreign nations at the close of the Centennial 

 at Philadelphia in 1876, brought about the establishment of what is 

 now known as the United States National Museum of the Smithsonian 

 Institution, which is under control of the regents of the institution, 

 for which a building was. provided, and which now receives direct sup- 

 port from congress. This museum has now the matter belonging to the 

 original institution collected by the Smithsonian's own observers, with 

 much more secured through the general government, making in all over 

 5,000,000 specimens, and is the foremost collection in the world in 

 everything that relates to the natural history, ethnology, geology, and 

 paleontology of that portion of North America now the United States, 

 besides containing many valuable series from other countries. The col- 

 lections have been visited by over 7,500,000 persons, and the institution 

 has carried selections of its specimens to every large exhibition held in 

 the United States, and distributed 850,000 specimens to colleges and 

 academies, thus powerfully stimulating the growth of museums large 

 and small in every section of the country. 



The publications of the Smithsonian have been in several series, 

 mostly to convey to specialists the results of its original scientific 

 investigations and to thus represent the first half of its fundamental 

 purpose 'for the increase of knowledge,' and, subordinately, others 

 to include handbooks and indexes useful to students, and some publi- 

 cations which, while still accurate, contain much information in a style 

 to be understood by any intelligent reader, and thus represent the 

 second half of the founder's purpose for the 'diffusion of knowledge.' 

 Many valuable publications, too, have been issued by the museum and 

 the Bureau of Ethnology, and recently by the Astrophysical Observa- 

 tory. In all, 265 volumes in over 2,000,000 copies and parts have been 

 gratuitously distributed to institutions and private individuals, these 

 works forming in themselves a scientific library in all branches. 



Partly by purchase, but in the main by exchange for these publica- 

 tions, the institution has assembled a library of over 150,000 volumes, 

 principally of serial publications and the transactions of learned socie- 

 ties, which is one of the notable collections of the world. The major 

 portion of it has been since 1866 deposited in the Library of Congress, 

 with which establishment the most cordial and mutually helpful rela- 

 tions subsist. 



