MEMOIRS OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 777 



exposition of the reasons for the several provisions proposed 

 by the bill. I proposed also that when it should become 

 necessary I should ask the permission of the House to employ 

 a clerk, and to employ George Sweeney ; and that when the 

 report was ready I shall call another meeting of the com- 

 mittee ; all of which was agreed to unai voce. 



FEBRUARY 8, 1840. 



I inquired of the Secretary of the Treasury what was the 

 present condition of the Smithsonian fund. He said the 

 interest upon the Arkansas and Michigan bonds had been 

 regularly paid, and reinvested in Michigan bonds, which 

 .had been purchased at seventjvfive per cent. He said the 

 Secretaries of War and of the Navy had been much annoyed 

 to obtain payment of the interest, to enable them to pay the 

 Indian annuities and navy pensions. 



FEBRUARY 20, 1840. 



I finished this morning the draft of a report on the Smith- 

 sonian Bequest bill, to be submitted to the committee, and 

 left it with Mr. D. D. Barnard, at his lodgings. I have re- 

 quested him to read it, and to suggest any alterations, addi- 

 tions, or omissions which may occur to him as advisable, 

 before I presented it to the committee. 



FEBRUARY 26, 1840. 



The Smithsonian Bequest Bill Committee met at the 

 chamber of the Committee of Manufactures, at ten o'clock. 

 Present, Adams, Shepard, Garland, Barnard, Corwin, and 

 Lewis; absent, Ogle, Smith of Maine, arid Campbell of 

 South Carolina, who is sick, confined to his chamber, and 

 was not notified. I presented my report, of which I briefly 

 stated the contents. The committee authorized me to pre- 

 sent it to the House, and move it be printed. The addi- 

 tional sections and the estimates were read, and authority 

 was given me to report them with the bill ; also the mes- 

 sages of 6th and 7th December, 1838, and any other docu- 

 ment, at my discretion. 



Dixon H. Lewis proposed to report a counter-project for 

 the establishment of an agricultural school on Fleisehmanrrs 

 plan. It was agreed that he should present to the House 

 his counter-project at his leisure, and that it should also be 

 printed. Lewis declared his aversion to the acceptance of 

 the bequest, which he said only gave trouble to Congress, 

 by diverting their attention and consuming their time upon 

 subjects not suitable for their legislation. He asked again 



