REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 26 



part ol 1872, for the purpose of delivering in a few of our principal <jities 

 courses of lectures on physical science, he very generously presented 

 the entire net proceeds of his lectures to trustees for the purpose of pro- 

 moting science in this country. These popular lectures, eloquently pre- 

 sented and admirably illustrated experimentally, were attended by large 

 and appreciative audiences in Boston, New Haven, New York, Brook- 

 lyn, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington. 



Professor Tyndall's trust deed, executed in New York, February 7, 

 1873, just before his departure for England, was forwarded with a 

 friendly personal letter of the same date, to Professor Henry of this In- 

 stitution, and was published in full in the Smithsonian Eeport of 1872, 

 pages 104-100. By this grant it was found that he assigned to our peo- 

 ple the liberal fund of $13,033, in the following gracious terms, — omitting 

 here all but the more essential passages : 



"As an evidence of my good-will toward the people of the United 

 States, I desire to devote this sum of $13,033 to the advancement of 

 theoretic science and the promotion of original research, especially in 

 the department of physics, in the United States. 



''To accomplish this object I hereby appoint Prof. Joseph Henry, Sec- 

 retary of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington City, D. C, Dr. E. 

 L. Youmans, of New York, and General Hector Tyndale, of Philadelphia, 

 to act as a board of trustees to take charge of the above sum — to care- 

 fully invest it in permanent securities; and I further direct that the 

 said board shall, for the present, appropriate the interest of the fund 

 in supporting or in assisting to support, at such European universities 

 as they may consider most desirable, two American pupils who may 

 evince decided talents in physics, and who may express a determina- 

 tion to devote their lives to this work. My desire would be that each 

 pupil should spend four years at a German university — three of those 

 years to be devoted to the acquisition of knowledge, and the fourth to 

 original investigation. 



" If however in the progress of science in the United States, it should 

 at any time appear to the said board that the end herein proposed 

 would be better subserved by granting aid to students, or for some 

 special researches in this country, the board is authorized to make the 

 appropriations from the income of the fund for such purposes. 



" I further direct that vacancies which may occur in said board, by 

 death or otherwise, shall be filled by the president of the National 

 Academy of Sciences," 



Even with the wise and far-seeing provision for discretion of judg- 

 ment vested in the trustees by the donor, they experienced much 

 greater difficulty in satisfactorily carrying into effect the enlightened 

 I)urpose of the grant than could have been anticipated. One promising 

 student, in the uncertainty of devoting his life to the career of scientific 

 research contemplated, very honorably returned to the trustees the sum 

 advanced to him. Another, after hesitating as to the condition of re- 

 maining for four years in a German or other European university, 

 finally declined to avail himself of the opportunity afforded him. It 

 thus resulted, from the conscientious administration of the trust, and 

 the earnest desire of the trustees to execute the expressed wishes of 



