XXII PROCEEDINGS OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS. 



of its ability, and had caused a circular to be sent during- the past sum- 

 mer to the libraries, universities, and scientific establishments of the 

 United States, and solicited support for this international project in 

 the name of the Institution. He was gratified to be able to say that 

 the response had been most hearty, and that 66 sets of this costly pub- 

 lication had been subscribed for here, which was a much more consid- 

 erable aid than had been rendered by the peoples of any other nations 

 apart from the national subscriptions. 



The Secretary hoped that our Government would yet do something 

 for this. He was entirely willing that the work should be continued 

 provisionally under the Institution as suggested by the Secretaiy of 

 State, but while he believed that it was the wish of all American 

 scientific men that the work should be done here, he did not desire to 

 have the Institution appear as a solicitor of Congress for the necessary 

 appropriation while so many things of more immediate urge nee to its 

 own interests were ungranted. He would temporarily continue a cer- 

 tain amount of the cataloguing as aid on the part of the Institution, 

 which was. in this respect, taking the duties of what was called in 

 Europe a "regional bureau." 



SPECIAL STATEMENT SMITHSONIAN FUND AND MUSEUM. 



Continuing, the Secretary said: 



The Regents have received my printed official report, and as I hope that they have 

 read it 1 shall nut dwell on its contents, but will speak now of certain subjects of 

 special concern. The real matter, to the Secretary at least, always lies in the actual 

 presence of the Regents, and his ability to bring to them his difficulties directly and 

 to obtain their guidance. I say this now not with reference to anything that presses 

 for present action, hut to be sure that I know theirwishes in the shaping of a policy 

 which causes me frequent official anxiety. I do not mean with reference to the 

 parent Institution, for there never was a time when its small means were productive 

 of more satisfactory results, or when it was better known throughout the whole 

 world than it is to-day, but I immediately speak of the bureaus which the Govern- 

 ment has put in its charge, and for the moment particularly of the Museum. 



The Regents will remember that on the resignation of Acting Assistant Secretary 

 ( lharles 1 ». Walcott, I asked them to authorize the removal of the restrictions on the 

 appointment of the Assistant Secretary, Mr. Richard Rathbun, so that he could be 

 assigned to other duties, especially that of Assistant Secretary in charge of the 

 Museum, with the aid of three Head Curators, and that I spoke of this as an experi- 

 ment upon which 1 would report later. It having been found impracticable that 

 Mr. Rathbun should give his chief attention to the parent Institution and satis- 

 factorily administer the Museum also, I have recently made arrangements by which 

 lie could give his principal attention to the latter, and in this form, after two years' 

 trial, I can report favorably upon the plan. 



1 think it is working well tor two reasons. The first is personal to Mr. Rathbun, 

 who has a fund of tact and patience, muted with professional sympathy, which few 

 men possess in a greater degree. 



The other reason why the present plan is successful lies, I think, in the nature of 

 the Regents' own control, and here 1 want to revert to the fact that the Museum as it 

 exists has grown from the parent stem of the Smithsonian Institution, and grown so 



