44 



discussed, and in February following, the act was passed 

 constituting the members of the two societies members of 

 the Essex Institute. It was then organized into three 

 departments, that of History, Natural History, and Hor- 

 ticulture — Horticulture having been a leading object of 

 the Natural History Society, and to the horticultural ex- 

 hibitions held under its auspices that society was largely 

 indebted for its success. 



The bequest of Miss Caroline Plummer in 1854, of a 

 sufficient sum to erect this building, to the proprietors of 

 the Salem Athenaeum, and the removal of the library and 

 collections of the Institute to the same, in 1857, formed 

 a memorable epoch in its history. The endowment of a 

 fund of $140,000, by George Peabody, the great philan- 

 thropist, for the promotion of science and useful knowl- 

 edge in this his native county, which was placed in the 

 hands of nine trustees who were incorporated as "Trustees 

 of the Peabody Academy of Science," the purchase of the 

 East India Marine Hall, the refitting of the same for the 

 deposit of the valuable museum of the East India Marine 

 Society, and the extensive scientific collections of the In- 

 stitute, deserve a passing notice. Though the Institute 

 was thus relieved of the care of its scientific collections, 

 yet the growth of the library and the increase of specimens 

 illustrating the other departments of which the Institute 

 takes cognizance, require constant vigilance to provide 

 the requisite means to have the same properly arranged 

 for consultation and use by the members and students in 

 quest of information in their special line of inquiry. 



The last subject to which I shall allude is the amend- 

 ment of the charter in 1870, which provides that the In- 

 stitute shall have for its objects the promotion of the Arts, 

 Literature, and Science, in addition to those for which 

 the Essex Historical and the Essex County Natural His- 



