1847-40. 493 



institution to a higher point in public estimation than any 

 which it has ever yet attained. 



Mr. HILLIARD rose, as a member of the Board of "Regents 

 in this House, to make no opposition to the amendment of 

 the gentleman from Tennessee, if it should be the deliber- 

 ate opinion of the House that such a committee should be 

 appointed. But he wished the House to mark the spirit in 

 which the motion was made. When the report was brought 

 forward by him (Mr. Hilliard) from the Board of Regents 

 of the Smithsonian Institution, at the last session of Con- 

 gress, and a motion was made to print it, the gentleman 

 from Tennessee was the very one who interposed his objec- 

 tion to the printing. They had been reproached with not 

 being willing to exhibit their doings to the country. It had 

 been said that there had been improper expenditures of 

 money, an indiscreet distribution of funds authorized by 

 them. Here was an ample report setting forth all the facts, 

 making everything plain; and when he had moved the 

 printing of the report, for the information of the country, 

 to his amazement that very gentleman objected to the 

 printing, on the simple ground of expense. But now the 

 gentleman came forward with a proposition to form a stand- 

 ing committee whose business it should be to supervise the 

 action of the three members of this House and the three 

 members of the Senate who were already charged with 

 directing the affairs of this institution. He should offer no 

 objections to the proposition ; he left it to the taste and 

 judgment of the House. For one, he gave way, and yielded 

 any objections which he had hitherto offered to the propo- 

 sition. 



Mr. JOHNSON, of Tennessee, said the gentleman from Al- 

 abama seemed to have stepped off upon the wrong track 

 when he said that the simple objection which he (Mr. John- 

 son) had had to the printing at the last session of Congress 

 was that; it would involve an expenditure of money. 



Mr. HILLIARD (in his seat) said he had so understood it. 



Mr. JOHNSON continued. The gentleman from Alabama 

 had wholly misconceived his opposition to the printing of 

 this report at the last session of Congress. It would be re- 

 membered by the gentleman from Alabama, and by the 

 whole House, that he (Mr. Johnson) was striving the whole 

 session, that he had made effort after effort to procure the 

 appointment of a committee before this report should be 

 printed, that they might ascertain whether this was the 

 report which should be printed or not. This was the objec- 

 tion he had to the printing of the report. He wanted it 



