TWENTY-NINTH CONGRESS, 1845-47. 



-next after the passage of this act, and they shall then fix on the times for 

 reo-ular meetings of the board ; and on application of any three of the man- 

 ao?rs to the superintendent of the said institution, it shall be his duty to 

 appoint a special meeting of the board, of which he shall give notice by 

 letter to each of the members ; -and at any meeting of the board of man- 

 ao-ers five shall constitute a quorum to do business. And each member ot 

 the board of managers shall be paid his necessary traveling and other actual 

 expenses in attending meetings of the board, which shall be audited and 

 recorded by the superintendent of the institution ; but his service as mana- 

 ger shall be gratuitous. And whenever money is require.! for the payment 

 of the debts or performance of the contracts of the institution, incurred or 

 entered into in conformity with the provisions of this act, or for making 

 the purchases and executing the objects authorized by this act, the superin- 

 tendent or the managers, or any three thereof, may certify to the president 

 of the board that such sum of money is required ; whereupon, he shall sub- 

 mit the same to a committee of three of the managers, appointed for 

 purpose, for examination and approval ; and upon such exaimnatic 

 approval, he shall certify the same to the proper officer of the Treasury for 

 payment And the said board shall make all needful rules, regulations and 

 bv-laws 'for the government of the institution and the persons employed 

 therein, 'and shall submit to Congress, at each session thereof, a report 

 the operations, expenditures, and condition of the insti 



And be it further enacted, That, so soon as the board of managers shall 

 be reo-ularly and legally organized, it shall be their duty to cause to be pub- 

 shed forth > spafe & on & e year,' in such of the most widely circulated 

 newspapers in the United States and in Europe, as they may deem best, the 

 Xysuitable reward, or prizes for the best written ^*~<W! 

 the most practical and useful which the majority of said board sha 11 deter- 

 mine upon And when, after a decision upon the relative merits 

 Sffercn ^essavs, they determine to which the prize shall be awarded on h 

 several subjects it shall be their duty to have as many copies of each of the 

 eslayf pr ntefa's they may deem best, to be distributed to the Governors of 

 the Sveral States ; to the several incorporated literary "^^^ 

 European institutions as they may choose i^* e *^^ to | ^^? 

 throughout the United States, by the members of Congress , thus f J 1"^ 

 in the letter and spirit, the wise and comprehensive intentions of the c 

 for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among in 



Mr OWEN desired to say a few words in reply to the gen- 

 tleman from Vermont, [Mr. MARSH,] and the gentleman 

 from Louisiana, [Mr. MORSE.] The gentleman from Loi 

 isiana had already given the most important item in rep y 

 to the gentleman from Vermont-namely that we had no 

 riffht to run counter to what might clearly seem to be the 

 intention of Mr. Smithson. This fund was not ours; ^ 

 was intrusted to us for a special purpose,; and unless we 

 could believe that he would desire, if living, the establ 

 ment of a library, the money ought not to be so appropri- 



ated. 



1 This bill had been framed in a spirit of com P r ? n ^ e - ftr ^ 

 original Senate bill of the last session appropriated $o 

 for this obiect The gentleman from Vermont, Mr. Oweq 

 be ie^d prosed twenty thousand The bill proposed 

 a medinmlaram not exceeding ten thousand dollars 

 hoped the House would not go further. A gentleman ho 



