

THIRTY-EIGHTH CONGRESS, 1863-65. 701. 



were enabled to cheat their creditors, and by which the Gov- 

 ernment never got anything, and never will. But what par- 

 ticularly gratifies me is this : that while they were willing 

 to make a law, and it is a standing law now, to enable indi- 

 viduals to cheat their creditors by paying them off in money 

 at half price, they are ashamed to do it on their own account, 

 and will not do any such thing ; and I hope they never will. 

 [Laughter.] 



Mr. DAVIS. Mr. President, I think there is a higher obli- 

 gation to keep this bequest at its original amount than any 

 legal obligation. Srnithson was a natural son of the Duke 

 of Northumberland. He made a declaration in connection 

 with this bequest that he would render his name more famous 

 than that of the illustrious house to which he was allied. He 

 executed a will, in which he bestowed the whole of his estate 

 upon the United States, in trust, to establish, as the honorable 

 Senator from Illinois has just read, an institution to be located 

 in the city of Washington for the increase and diffusion of 

 knowledge among men. That was the highest testimony 

 that that individual could have rendered to the Government 

 of the United States, or to the United States themselves. 

 Although allied to an illustrious house, he gave all that he 

 had of worldly property to our country and to our Govern- 

 ment, for the purpose of founding an institution for the in- 

 crease and diffusion of knowledge. From the circumstances 

 under which the bequest was made, and the manner in which 

 its execution was assumed by our Government, in my judg- 

 ment, it creates a higher than a legal obligation that the 

 amount and value of this noble bequest shall not deteriorate 

 or be reduced in amount in the hands of those that he charged 

 with the execution of the trust. 



The honorable Senator from Illinois says, correctly no 

 doubt, that the reason why this application is now made at 

 this time is because of the misfortune that befell the Smith- 

 sonian Institution a few weeks since. That was in some 

 degree the fault of the United States Government. It had 

 property deposited for custody arid exhibition in the Interior 

 Department, which was directed by the officers of the Govern- 

 ment to be transferred to the Smithsonian Institution for 

 the same custody and for similar exhibition. This property 

 wus not properly attached to, or appended to, the Smithso- 

 nian Institution. The managers of that institution received 

 the custody and the possession of this property reluctantly, 

 and only because its custody had been imposed upon them 

 by the officials of the United States Government. The 

 proper arrangement of that property in one of its halls. 



