308 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1891. 



it makes, than from the fact that it justifies the Secretaries of War 

 and of the Navy in transferring collections in their possession to the 

 Institution, 



On the 1st of January, 1842, a letter was written by a committee of 

 the National Institution to the Secretaries of War and the Navy. 



In February, 1842, another important paper was presented to the 

 Institution by the same committee — important as marking the beginning 

 of the system of exchanges and distribution of duplicates which had 

 for nearly forty years been so important a feature of the work of the 

 National Institution.* 



With the exception of the papers already alluded to, which had refer- 

 ence to the relation of the society to the Government, and to the Smith- 

 sonian bequest, the bulletin of proceedings from this time on contained 

 little more than the record of the receipt of donations of specimens 

 and of letters asking information or proifering advice. The society 

 retained the control of the exploring expedition collections, and in June, 

 1842, Lieut. Wilkes having returned to Washington, he, at three suc- 

 cessive meetings of the Institute, gave a history of his voyage and 

 its results. He was at first subjected to some opposition, and nntil 

 after a court-martial, held in New York in August, seems to have been 

 divsposed to say very little. He, however, wrote, under date of July 10, 

 1842, a lettert to Senator Preston, in which he indignantly protested 

 against the manner in which his officers and men had been received on 

 their return. 



When he was restored to favor and influence he at once took steps to 

 gain control of the (iollections made by his squadron, provisionally nnder 

 the charge of the National Institution, with results to be studied later. 



* This is priutetl iu Note A from tlie MS. report iu the archives of the National Mu- 

 seum. 



t This letter, now in the archives of tlie Museum and never published, is of so much 

 interest historically, that after the lapse of nearly fifty years it is printed, iu the 

 certainty that its harsh significance has all vanished. 



Washington City, 16th July, 1S42. 



My Dear Sir : Agreeably to your desire, I hasten to give you the information rela- 

 tive to the remaining duties of the expedition, and that are ahsolutehj necessary to 

 carry out the intention of Congress in passing the act authorizing the expedition, 

 viz, "for the pronu)tion of the great interests of connnerco and navigation, and to 

 extend the bounds of science and promote the ac(inisition of knowledge." 



For the accomplishment of these great objects, there was recjuired persons to attend 

 to the different departments of science, and the follownig was the organization which 

 I proposed, and was adopted by the Government, and the most economical one that 

 could have been arranged to carry out the great view intended, and that the accom- 

 modations of the fossils would permit, viz: 



The department of astronomy, hydrography, magnetisu), meteorology, and physics, 

 including the experiments with the invariable pendulum, was confided to myself 

 with the officers under my command as assistant. Besides the above I was charged 

 with the history or narrative of the voyage. 



This at tmce greatly reduced the scientific corps which had been organized, viz, 

 from 23 to 9. I felt the Navy was justly entitled to all tliese departments, embraced 

 as they were Avithln tlu' limits (u- scope of the profession, and that they ought not to 

 be aftiiehed to sucli an undertaking to act as the "hewers of wood and drawers of 

 water," as was tbe casc^ in its original organization. 



Charles Pickering, natJiralist;' Titian R. Peale, philologist; Horatio Hale, geolo- 

 gist; .James 1). Dana, l)otanist; William Rich, horticulturist and assistant; William 

 Brackeuridge, botanist; Joseph Drayton, artist; Alfred Agate, artist ; J.G.Anthony, 



VP, 



