SMITHSONIAN BEQUEST. 41 



I have the honor to remain, with great respect, your 

 obedient servant, 



RICHARD RUSH. 

 Hon. JOHN FORSYTH, Secretary of State. 



Clarke, Fynmore $> Fladgate to Richard Rush. 



43 CRAVEN STREET, August 18, 1837. 



DEAR SIR : The court having now risen for the long 

 -vacation, we deem it our duty to report to you briefly the 

 state of the cause to which the President of the United 

 States and Mr. Drurnmond are parties, instituted' for the 

 purpose of enabling the President to receive the legacy 

 -given by the will of Mr. Smithson. 



Pursuant to your constant instructions to bring the 

 matter to a termination with all practicable despatch, we 

 have been actively occupied in satisfying the inquiries di- 

 rected to be made by the decree of the 1st of February 

 last; and, although the master's report touching these in- 

 quires is not yet made, we have been so far successful as to 

 induce us to hope that we should satisfy him upon all 

 points, and obtain early in the next term, such a report as 

 will ensure the speedy receipt by you, on behalf of the 

 President, of the funds in question. 



You will remember that these inquiries were three-fold. 



1. As to Fitall, the annuitant under the will of Smithson. 



2. As to Hungerford's death, unmarried and without issue. 



3. As to the alleged claim of Madame de la Batut. 



On the first point we have no difficulty, having obtained 

 a certificate of the death of Fitall, whose annuity was paid 

 up to the time of his death, except only the last quarter, 

 which his widow will now receive. 



2. As to Hungerford's death without issue, we have 

 obtained a certificate of the death of one Henri de la Batut, 

 under which name we found that he had died ; and we 

 have also obtained a certificate, identifying de la Batut with 

 Henry James Hungerford. We have, as directed by the 

 decree, advertised in the newspapers here, in France, and 

 in Italy, touching any wife and children; and these adver- 

 itisements have produced no claimants. We have obtained 

 from France other confirmatory evidence on these points ; 

 amongst the rest, Monsieur de la Batut's statement, (which 



