636 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUHEUM, 1891. 



It is now evident that but for his conserviitive policy the history of 

 tlic Institution would have been conll)a^ati^ ely insiguificaut. 



In tlic liglit of subsequent events, it is safe to assert that, in all prob- 

 ability, had the Smithsonian Institution taken charge of the "National 

 JNIuseunr'' in the nuiuner proposed in 1840, the result would have been 

 e\en more detrimental to the Museum than to the Institution, 



It did not seem so at the time, however, and for ten years the course 

 oi' \\w Institution was under the subject of criticism of a very serious 

 kind. 



It is of course not essential to review at length the discussions which 

 look place within the first ten years between the officers of the Institu 

 tion, in the uieetings of the Regents, in Cougress, and in the public 

 journals, as to the authority of the Board of Regeuts and the Secretary 

 to deviate from a strict interpretation of the act of incorporation, which 

 was presumed to embody the will of Congi-ess. There was a party Avho 

 was of the oj)inion that a large part of the income should be de\oted 

 to the accumulafion of a great general library, and who fought boldly in 

 defense of this project. The conflict culminatcfl in 1S5(), with the (lis 

 missal of the librarian by I*rof. Henry, a. Congressional investigation, 

 and the resignation of two of the most active Itegents. The Board u])- 

 held the Secretary, and successfully maintaiiu^d both in Fbmse and 

 Senate the position tliat they as trustees of the Smitlison bc(pu'st -were 

 not amenable to the advice or instructions of ('(Uigress, and were the 

 only authorities qualitled to intcr[)ret the meaning of the act of incor- 

 l)orati(m and the intention of Smitlison, tlie founder. 



The immediate cause of tliis final outbreak was the repeal in 1850 of 

 the resolution ]>assed in 184(5 dividing the income of the Institution into 

 two nearly <Mpial jiarts for two si)ecific objects, the advocates of a great 

 library being of the o])inion that the spirit of this resolution had mtt 

 been regarded. 



The resignation of Seiuitor Choate and Mr. Meachain, and the un- 

 qualified indorsement of the Secretary l>y the other memlxMs of the 

 Board greatly strengtlu'iu'd his ])()sition. and enabled him to cojm^ in(ne 

 successfully with the (piestion of the admission of the (rovernment 

 museum to the Smithsonian l)uildings, for the transfer pro\i(l(Ml tor in 

 184(} had not u]) to 18r)G been definitely arranged for. 



The histcny of the treatment of this matter is veiy important, since 

 it leads uj) to the origin of the i)resent lelationship existing between the 

 (rOvernment, the Kational Museum, and the Smitiisonian Institution. 



The delay in the com|)letion of the Smithsonian building afforded to 

 the Regents an oi)i)ortunity for a gradual de\-elo]»nn'nt of th<' ]>lan ot 

 organization. Until the building should have been furnislied the reso- 

 lution giving half of the income to library and museum was not. obli- 

 gatory, nor was it ])ossil»le for the custody of the (lovernment museum 

 to be finally fransferied, 



