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crease the facility of access to those who reside in the central portion of 

 the city. The construction of such a bridge has been proposed to the city 

 council, and your committee hope that the objects and operations of this 

 Institution will commend the proposition to their favorable consideration. 



For a minute statement of the progress made in the building, and other 

 details connected with the subjects noticed in the foregoing remarks, the 

 committee refer to the report of the architect hereto appended. 



Respectfully submitted, 

 Signed JEEFERSON DAVIS, 



HENRY W. BILLIARD. 

 WALTER LENOX. 



* Washington, January 7, 1851. 



To the Honorable the Building Committee of the Smithsonian Institution : 



Gentlemen : By a resolution of the Honorable the Board of Regents, 

 passed July 3, 1850, it was determined to change the plan originally 

 adopted for the finish of the interior of the central building, which con- 

 sisted of wooden columns and girders, and to substitute in its place a plan 

 of fire-proofing. 



In accordance with the above resolution, the undersigned prepared and 

 submitted to the honorable the committee charged with the examination of 

 the building, four ditferent plans for fire-proofing, and the one preferred by 

 him was adopted. 



This plan may be described as follows : The foundation will consist of a 

 series of stone piers, connected by a system of inverted arches of brick, 

 resting on base courses of long stone and laid in cement mortar ; the in- 

 verted arches are arranged in such manner as to insure an equal pressure in 

 all parts of the foundation, and thus to counteract, as far as possible, any 

 unequal settlement of the earth upon which the building rests. The first 

 story of the building containing the library, &c., will be constructed with 

 piers and groined arches of brick, laid in cement mortar ; and the second 

 story containing the museum, will be finished with cast iron columns and 

 girders and a groined ceiling furred with wrought iron. The whole interior 

 will be plastered on the above described brick and iron work, in the same 

 ir.anner as was specified in the original contract, so as to complete the 

 building in harmony with the original design. 



Though this change in construction will add to the expense of the build- 

 ing, it is believed that the additional cost will be repaid by the permanence 

 of the fire-proofing and the perfect security it will afford to the valuable 

 collections which may hereafter be placed in this portion of the building. 



The above determination of the honorable the Board of Regents, also 

 rendered it necessary that only such portions of the work embraced in the 

 original contract for the building as would harmonize and become an inte- 

 gral part of the fire-proofing, should be constructed by the present contractor 

 and that the expense of the portions not necessary to effect this change 

 should be deducted from the original contract price. 



It therefore became necessary to determine accurately the exact amount 

 io be paid to the contractor under the above alteration in plan, and the un- 

 •lersigned, by the direction of the honorable the Building committee, made 



