PREFACE. VII 



After a copy of the " Will " of Smithson, the whole of the corres- 

 pondence resulting from it is given ; the announcement of the be- 

 quest made to the Department of State by Mr. Vail, our Charge 

 d' Affaires at London ; the appointment of Hon. Richard Rush as 

 special agent of the United States to obtain the money, and all 

 his letters while engaged in this business, in 1836, 1837, 1838; the 

 opinions of the English solicitors ; the decision of the Court of 

 Chancery ; the bill of costs of the suit ; a schedule of the per- 

 sonal effects of Smithson, and an account of Mr. Rush's financial 

 transactions. 



The particulars are then given of the residuary legacy, or that 

 part of the bequest left in England by Mr. Rush as the principal 

 of an annuity to the mother of the nephew of Smithson ; the steps 

 taken by the Institution to procure this money in 1863, and how it 

 was disposed of by act of Congress in 1867. 



Then follows a reprint from the Congressional Globe and Record 

 of all the legislation relative to the bequest or to the Smithsonian 

 Institution from 1835 to 1878, the proceedings in the Senate and 

 in the House of Representatives being given in order from the 

 24th to the 44th Congress. The parts of this section of the work 

 of most general interest will be the debate on the propriety of the 

 Government accepting the bequest and the discussions and reports 

 on the various plans proposed for organizing the Institution. 



The memorials and plans presented to Congress are printed in 

 full so that a better understanding can be had of what our legis- 

 lators had before them in considering the subject. 



The history of the investment of the fund by order of Congress 

 in State stocks, and of the financial management required in con- 

 sequence, forms a large part of the volume, and is given in detail 

 for the first time. 



The account of the controversy which arose as to the manage- 

 ment of the Institution, the appointment of a committee of investi- 

 gation by the House of Representatives, the two reports of that 

 committee, the debates in Congress and the final disposition of the 

 matter, occupy considerable space. 



