38 SMITHSONIAN BEQUEST. 



(Jlarhe^ Fyiiiiuyre & Fladgate to Richard Rush. 



48 Craven JStkeet, Amjmt 18, 1837. 



Dear Sir: The court htiving now risen for the long vacation, we 

 deem it our duty to report to you briefly the state of the cause to 

 which the President of the United States and Mr. Drummond are 

 parties, instituted for the purpose of enabling the President to receive 

 the legacy given by the will of Mr. Smithson. 



Pursuant to your constant instructions to bring the matter to a 

 termination with all practicable dispatch, we have been actively occu- 

 pied in satisfying the inquiries directed to be made by the decree of 

 the 1st of February last, and, although the master's report touching 

 these inquiries is not yet made, we have been so far successful as to 

 induce us to hope that we should satisfy him upon all points, and 

 obtain earl}" in the next term such a report as will insure the speedy 

 receipt by j^ou, on behalf of the President, of the funds in question. 



You will remember that these inquiries were threefold: (1) As to 

 Fitall, the annuitant under the will of Smithson. (2) As to Hunger- 

 ford's death, unmarried and without issue. (3) As to the alleged 

 claim of Madame de la Batut. 



On the first point we have no difficult}^, having obtained a certificate 

 of the death of Fitall, whose annuity was paid up to the time of his 

 death, except only the last quarter, which his widow will now receive. 



2. As to Hungerford's death without issue, we have obtained a cer- 

 tificate of the death of one Henri de la Batut, under which name we 

 found that he had died, and we have also obtained a certificate, identi- 

 fying de la Batut with Henry James Hungerford. We have, as 

 directed by the decree, advertised in the newspapers here, in France, 

 and in Italy, touching any wife and children, and these advertise- 

 ments have produced no claimants. We have obtained from France 

 other confirmatory evidence on these points, among the rest. Monsieur 

 de la Batut's statement (which however, 3^ou will i-emember he refused 

 to confirm on oath), and we have little doul)t, as above observed, that 

 the evidence obtained will be such as to satisfy the master upon the 

 subject. 



These inquiries have of course consumed much time, but we should 

 have had the report before this had it not been for the remaining 

 point, the claim of Madame de la Batut. As stated in our letter 

 addressed to you on the 22d of July, it is most important that the 

 claim should l)e disposed of in the present suit; and we are happy to 

 say that the claim has now been formally made, and, we trust, in such 

 a shape as will, if it be sustained by the court at all, bar any ulterior 

 proceedings. The evidence in support of it is not strong, and, for 

 the purpose of strengthening it, interrogatories for the examination 

 of Mr. Drummond have been brought into the master's office; which, 



