TWENTY-NINTH CONGRESS, 1845-1847. 407 



concerned, it was everything-. The first duty of a trustee was to carr}^ 

 into effect the object of the trust, and if the duty was neglected were 

 we not bound to provide at least against the loss of the fund? 



In reference to the advocacy by Mr. Adams of the application of the 

 fund to a library, and to some remarks of Mr. Adams [as the reporter 

 understood] that it was more in accordance with his fancy, Mr. Owen 

 urged that fancy should have nothing to do with the question; that we 

 were bound to appropriate this fund strictly according to the intentions 

 of the testator, whose intentions the appropriation of the principal 

 portion of which to a library, he argued, could not meet, inasmuch as, 

 though a library might tend to the "diffusion," it would not to the 

 "increase" "of knowledge among men;" and as, if a librar}^ had been 

 intended by Mr. Smithson, he would undoubtedly have expressed it. 



He was not specially wedded to this feature of normal schools, yet 

 he confessed he considered it the most important one in the bill. And 

 the gentleman from Massachusetts wholly misunderstood him if he 

 supposed that his (Mr. Owen's) proposition was to supersede the State 

 normal schools. It was rather a supplement to them — an institution 

 which would carry them farther, where the science of education should 

 be improved. And for this they had high authority. He referred to 

 Mr. Van Buren's language on the subject, from which, though not 

 express to this point, he considered the inference fair that he would 

 be in favor of such a feature. 



As to the disgrace of educating our children with foreign aid, there 

 was no proposition in this bill to educate children, but the teachers of 

 children. And as to the disgrace, it might be said with equal propri- 

 ety that it was disgraceful to receive foreign aid for the founding of a 

 library. 



One special portion of the duties of this normal branch would be to 

 call the attention of the States generally to these normal schools, and 

 it might, and he hoped would, in this way become the means of increas- 

 ing these schools. 



In conclusion, he said the practical effect of the amendment of Mr. 

 Adams would be to postpone the matter indefinitely. His (Mr. Owen's) 

 opinion coincided, much more nearly with the opinion heretofore 

 expressed (from a source he respected so highly) on at least four dif- 

 ferent occasions; and he hoped that Congress would no longer delay 

 to appropriate this fund, as in honor and justice they were bound, so 

 as to carry out as near as might be the intentions of James Smithson. 



Mr. E. H. EwiNG dissented from that part of the amendment of 

 Mr. Adams, which went to make a legislative promise that nothing 

 should be done until the arrears of interest were collected from the 

 States in whose bonds the funds had been invested, and gave notice of 

 a motion to strike it out. 



He was not able to say that this Government had performed in a 



