THIRTY-SIXTH CONGRESS, 1859-1861. 621 



friends of the Institution, amongst them myself, said, "No; we will 

 take this $500,000 and get the best we can out of it." From that time 

 to now I have always opposed any appropriation for it. If the Insti- 

 tution can not sustain itself, let it fall. I believe it is doing good. 

 I do not want to make it one of those things that shall constantly eat 

 into the vitals of this Government. This is a Government here by 

 itself, controlling itself, and controlling many other things around it. 

 My feelings to it are nothing but kind; but I think it ought to sus- 

 tain itself, and I shall vote against every appropriation for it. I rise, 

 however, only to say a word in regard to a remark made by the Sena- 

 tor from Maryland, who is almost always right. He spoke of the 

 ignorance of the Senator from New Hampshire on this subject. I 

 simply want to say to the Senator from Maryland that the best book 

 we have ever had says that whenever we have learned our own igno- 

 rance we are nearest wisdom. 



Mr. W. P. Fessenden. I wish to correct an error into which my 

 friend from Pennsylvania has fallen; and I think my friend from New 

 Hampshire also is troubled with the same difBculty. This is not 

 anything paid to the Smithsonian Institution. It is not in aid of their 

 fund. It has nothing to do with anything connected with that Insti- 

 tution in any shape or form. They do not call upon us for anj'^thing 

 connected properh^ with the Institution, to render them any aid in any 

 shape. The simple matter is this: We have a large collection of this 

 material, coming from several exploring expeditions. It was all 

 placed at the Patent Office, or under the charge of the Secretar}^ of the 

 Interior. There was nobody to take care of it; there was nobody to 

 arrange it; nobody to do anything with regard to it; it was turning 

 out to be utterly useless, of no good to the Government; and we 

 imposed the burden on the Smithsonian Institution. We decreed that 

 it should be sent there and should be examined there. 



Mr. J. M. Mason. Against their will. 



Mr. Fessenden. And against their will. They did not ask it. It 

 was a burden we imposed upon them; and having sent it there, we 

 have made an appropriation, heretofore, merely of enough to preserve 

 what was necessary to be preserved, and to pa}^ the salary of a person 

 who v/as to take charge of it, fix the room and take care of it — $4,000, 

 I think, each year; and it was found, on a careful examination {I was 

 on the committee when it was first made), to be a reasonable provision. 



Now, sir, there is a ver}^ large number of these duplicates, and it is 

 proposed that those also shall be arranged by these persons; and after 

 they are arranged, and it is found distinctly what is best to keep, tlie 

 rest shall be distributed among the institutions of the country. It is 

 not for the benefit of the Smithsonian Institution, but for the benefit 

 of the institutions of the country. We called on them to do the work; 

 and gentlemen get up here and argue that we should compel them to 



