TWENTY-NINTH CONGKESS, 1845-1847. 351 



tution for the education of school teachers, of agricultural professors, 

 etc., to send out into the country. There was too great a tendency to 

 centralization in this Government already, in his opinion. The legit- 

 imate and appropriate sphere of this Government was to take care of 

 our concerns with foreign powers, leaving our domestic laws and reg- 

 ulations to be made by the State legislatures. Every measure of this 

 kind had the tendency to make the people throughout the country look 

 more to this great central power than to the State governments. 



He had not risen for the purpose of making a speech, but of sub- 

 mitting a few remarks in explanation of his amendment. 



Mr. WILLIAM SAWYER (Mr. Jones giving way) said the gentleman's 

 proposition, if he understood it aright, was to refund this mone}^ to 

 the heirs of Smithson. Now, he was well informed that Mr. Smithson 

 had no heirs whatever. And if such was the fact he wished to ask of 

 the gentleman how his amendment could be made operative. 



Mr. JONES replied that certainly, if he never had heirs, it would be 

 difficult to find them. But he understood that, though he had no 

 children, he had a brother, who was once in this country; and his 

 amendment proposed to refund this money to the heirs or next of kin 

 of James Smithson. 



In conclusion, he remarked that if his proposition failed and this 

 Smithsonian Institution was to be established, he should then be in 

 favor of handing over the State stocks, which were purchased by this 

 money, to the managers of the Institution, and of letting them con- 

 duct it independently of the Government. And, voting for this 

 proposition, all that related to the establishment of a body politic and 

 corporate he should also wish to have stricken out, for he would vote 

 for the establishment of no corporation by this Government. 



Mr. J. R. INGERSOLL expressed his favor for the general features of 

 the bill, but before entering upon the direct question he directed a few 

 remarks to the amendment of Mr. Jones, which he considered entirely 

 futile, as far as any idea of refunding the money to heirs was concerned, 

 inasmuch as it was ascertained beyond doubt that Mr. Smithson had 

 no heirs or next of kin. He had had one son [nephew], who died during 

 his minority, and thereupon this Government, as the residuary legatee, 

 came in possession of the property in legal form from the attorneys 

 in chancery of the executors of Mr. Smithson, at London. This 

 amendment if carried out into a law, therefore, would result in work- 

 ing a forfeiture of the funds to the British Government. But Mr. 

 Ingersoll contended that, as we had received it by solemn act of Con- 

 gress, and retained it for eight long years, it was now binding, on the 

 ground of faith, honor, and duty, to appropriate it in the manner 

 designed by the testator himself; and the iact that this fund had been 

 invested by the Treasurer of the United States, under direction of 

 Congress, in Arkansas stocks, did not affect this question in any 



