NATIONAL MUSEUM BUILDINGS. 195 



wing, and to arrange two lecture rooms, and no more, in the building. Temporary 

 arrangements shall be made to receive in the west wing of the building the library 

 of the Institution, until the library proper be completed. 



2. Resolved, That the building committee invite proposals for the construction of 

 the exterior walls of the building of upper Potomac sandstone, of marl)le, of granite, 

 and of blue gneis.s, respectively, and adopt that one of these four named materials which 

 shall be deemed to combine the requisites of clieapness, beauty, and durability. 



The manner of providing for the cost of l)uildino- and other matters 

 relating thereto were explained by Secretar}" Henry in his report for 

 1850, in which he say.s that — 



The law of Congress incorporating the Institution, while it did not forbid the 

 expenditure of a part of the income for other objects, authorized the formation of a 

 library, a museum, and a gallery of art, and the erection of a building, on a liberal 

 scale, for their accommodation. It was, indeed, the opinion of many that the whole 

 income ought to he expended on these objects. The Regents did not consider them- 

 selves at liberty to disregard the indications of Congress and the opinion expressed 

 in favor of collections, and after much discussion it was finally concluded to divide 

 the income into two equal parts, and after deducting the general expenses, to devote 

 one-half to the active operations set forth in the plan just described and the other 

 to the formation of a library, a museum, and a gallery of art. 



* * * It therefore became absolutely necessary that the income should be 

 increased, and in order to do this it was proposed to save the greater part of the 

 1242,000 of accrued interest which Congress had authorized to be expended in a 

 building, l)y erecting at a cost not to exceed $50,000 the nucleus of an edifice which 

 could Vje expanded as the wants of the Institution might require, and to add the 

 remainder to the principal. 



ITnfortunately, however, for this proposition. Congress had presented to the Insti- 

 tution the great museum of the exploring expedition^ and a majority of the Regents, 

 sui)posing it necessary to make immediate provision for the accommodation of this 

 gift, had taken preliminary .steps, previous to my appointment, to construct a large 

 building, and, indeed, a majority of the committee to w hich the matter was referred 

 had determined to adopt the i)lan of the present edifice. Strenuous opposition was, 

 however, made to this, and as a compromise it was finally agreed to draw from the 

 United States Treasury $250,000 of accrued interest, and instead of expending this 

 immediately in completing the i)lan of the proposed building to invest it in Treasury 

 notes, then at par, and to finish the l)uilding in the course of five years, in part out 

 of the interest of these notes, in part out of the sale of a portion of them, and also in 

 part out of a portion of the annual interest accruing on the original bequest. It was 

 estimated that in this way, at the end of five years, besides devoting $250,000 to the 

 building, the annual income of the Institution would be increased from $30,000 to 

 nearly $40,000, a sum sufficient to carry out all the provisions of the programme. 



It is t(j be regretted that * * * instead of the plan of a costly building there 

 had not been adopted the nucleus of a more simple edifice, which could have been 

 modified to meet the wants which experience might indicate. 



The original estimate for the l)uilding, furniture, and improvement of the grounds 

 was $250,000, and could the actual cost have been confined to this sum all the results 

 anticipated from the scheme of finance which had been adopted would have been 

 realized at the end of five years. During the past year, however, it has been found 

 necessary, for the better protection of the collections, to order the fireproofing of 

 the interior of the edifice, at an increased expense of $44,000. This additional draft 

 on the funds can only be met by extending the time for the completion of the build- 

 ing, and even this will require the appropriation of a portion of the income which 



