36 SMITHSONIAN BEQUEST. 



Clarke, Fynmora ^ Fladgate to Richard Rush. 



43 Craven Street, Strand, July 22, 1837. 



Dear Sir : In answer to your letter of yesterday, on the 

 subject of Mr. Sraithson's bequest to the United States, we 

 beg leave to inform 3^ou that we have used all the means in 

 our power to bring the matter to a close, but we are still 

 unable to state any definite period at which you might ex- 

 pect to receive the funds. 



Our inquiries in Italy have, we trust, put us in possession 

 of such evidence as will fullj' establish the fact of Mr. Hun- 

 gerford's death, without having been married; but, how- 

 ever important it may be to do this, still there is another 

 i:»oint to be settled before the funds will be available to the 

 United States. This point is the claim of Madame de la 

 Batut, under the will of Colonel Dickinson, (whose executor 

 Mr. Smithson was,) under which will she is entitled for her 

 life to half the colonel's property. 



The outline of this claim is, that Mr. Smithson possessed 

 himself of all Colonel Dickinson's estate, and never ren- 

 dered to Madame de la Batut any account of it ; and that, 

 not having done so, she has now a right to call upon Mr. 

 Smithson's executor to do that which he in his lifetime 

 ought to have done. Mr. Drummond has no means of ren- 

 dering this account; but, until the claim is set at rest, the 

 court could not, of course, order the funds forming part of 

 Smithson's estate to be paid over to the United States ; as 

 for anj thing that appears to the contrary, the greater por- 

 tion of these funds might have arisen from the property of 

 Colonel Dickinson. Our object now, therefore, is to induce 

 Madame de la Batut to come in and establish some claim in 

 the present suit, (the amount, however, of which we seek, 

 as much as possible, consistently with justice to reduce,) so 

 as to bind her by the present suit, and make it conclusive 

 upon the subject. 



Her advisers have but little evidence to offer in support 

 of her case, and have, in consequence, very much delayed 

 the necessary proceedings. We pressed them as much as 

 possible, and, indeed, threatened to bar them, by getting 

 the master to report against them ; but, in reply to this, 

 they intimated that, if we did so, they should give notice to 

 Mr. Drummond to hold the funds, and file a bill against 

 him, as executor of Smithson, for an account. As this 



