238 PROCEEDINGS OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS 



3. A part of the contents of the Regents' room, including the personal effects 

 of Smithson, with the exception of his portrait and library. 



4. The contents of the rooms in the towers, including the meteorological 

 instruments, the workshop, containing a lathe and a large number of valuable 

 tools, nearly all the stock on hand of the duplicate copies of the annual reports, 

 and many other public documents and books intended for distribution to libra- 

 ries, as well as a quantity of stationery, hardware, &c. 



5. The wood-cuts of the illustrations contained in the Smithsonian publi- 

 cations. 



The loss to other parties was as follows : 



1st. The contents of what was called the Picture Gallery, viz : a. About two 

 hundred portraits, nearly all of life size, painted and principally owned by Mr. 

 J. M. Stanley, formerly of this city, and now of Detroit, Michigan, and which 

 were on deposit in the institution, h. A number of half-size Indian portraits, 

 painted by Mr. King for the government, c. A copy, in Oarrera marble, of the 

 antique statue known as the " Dying Gladiator," by John Gott, and owned by 

 Mr. J. 0. McGuire, of this city. 



2. A number of surveying instruments belonging to the government. 



3. The clothing, books, and private effects of several of the persons connected 

 with the Institution, and of those engaged in scientific studies. 



4. The library removed from Beaufort, South Carolina, by the army, and 

 also that of Bishop Johns, from Fairfax Theological Seminary, given in charge 

 to the Institution by the Secretary of War for safe-keeping, which librai'ies were 

 stored in an upper room in the south tower. 



Independent of injury to the building, the loss to the Institution, as far as it 

 may be estimated and can be restored by money, may be stated at about $20,000, 

 and to individuals $26,000, viz : To Mr. J. M. Stanley, $20,000 ; Mr. J. O. 

 McGuire, $1,000 ; Professor Joseph Henry, $1,500 ; Mr. W. J. Rhees, $1,200 ; 

 Mr. W. DeBeust, $1,300 ; and all others, $1,000. 



Although the loss which the Institution and individuals have sustained is 

 much to be regretted, yet it is a source of consolation that by far the greater 

 part of the valuable contents of the building have escaped without injury. The 

 valuable library of the Institution, the most extensive, in regard to the transac- 

 tions of learned societies and scientific books, in this country ; the museum, in- 

 cluding the collection of the exploring expedition and those of the Institution ; 

 the large stock of many thousand duplicate specimens for distribution to all 

 parts of the world; the records of the museum; a large portion of the corre- 

 spondence relative to natural history ; nearly all the records of meteorological 

 observations which have been accumulated during the last fifteen years ; the 

 sets of Smithsonian publications (except the annual reports) which have been 

 reserved to supply new institutions, and the stei-eotype plates of all the works 

 which have been published during the last four or five years, have been saved. 

 All the original vouchers of the payments made by the Institution, the ledger 

 in which they were posted, and the daybook from 1858, were also preserved, 

 having been deposited in a safe in the Regents' room. The contents of the con- 

 necting range between the library and the museum are uninjured ; this includes 

 a series of plaster casts and portraits of distinguished men, among the latter a 

 life-size portrait of Guizot, by Healy ; an original full-length figure of Wash- 

 ington, by the elder Peale; and also a valuable series of rare engravings illus- 

 trative of the history of the art, purchased from the Hon. George P. Marsh. 



All the important acts of the Regents from the beginning, and an account of 

 the operations of the Institution, having been published from year to year in the 

 several reports to Congress, a continued record of the history of the establish- 

 ment from the beginning is, therefore, still in existence. As these reports have 

 been widely distributed, they are generally accessible to the public. 



The burning of the roof of the building can scarcely in icself be considered 



