126 EIGHTH ANNUAL REPORT OF 



be evident, when it is recollected that the money was not absolutely- 

 given to the United States, but intrusted to it for a special object, namely — 

 the establishment of an institution for the benefit of men, to bear the 

 name of the donor, and consequently to reflect upon his memory the 

 honor of all the good which may be accomplished by means of .the 

 bequest. The operations of the Smithsonian Institution ought, there- 

 fore, to be mingled as little as possible with those of the government, 

 and its funds should be applied exclusively and faithfully to the increase 

 and diffusion of knowledge among men. 



That the bequest is intended for the benefit of men in general, and 

 that its influence ought not to be restricted to a single district, or even 

 nation, may be inferred not only from the words of the will, but also 

 from the character of Smithson himself; and I beg leave to quote, from 

 a scrap of paper in his own hand, the following sentiment bearing on 

 this point : " The man of science has no country ; the world is his 

 countiy — all men his countrymen." The origin of the funds, the be- 

 quest of a foreigner, should also preclude the adoption of a plan which 

 does not, in the words of Mr. Adams, "spread the benefits to be de- 

 rived from the Institution not only over the whole surface of this Union, 

 but throughout the civilized world." " Mr. Smithson's reason for fixing 

 the seat of his Institution at Washington obviously was, that there is the 

 seat of government of the United States, and there the Congress by 

 whose legislation, and the Executive through whose agency, the trust 

 committed to the honor, intelligence, and good faith of the nation, is to 

 be fulfilled." The centre of operations being permanently fixed at 

 Washington, the character of this city for literature and science will be 

 the more highly exalted in proportion as the influence of the Institution 

 is more widely diffused. 



That the terms increase and diffusion of knowledge are logically dis- 

 tinct, and should be literally interpreted with reference to the will, must 

 be evident when we reflect that they are used in a definite sense, and 

 not as mere synonymies, by all who are engaged in the pursuits to 

 which Smithson devoted his life. In England there are two classes of 

 institutions founded on the two ideas conveyed by these terms. The 

 Royal Society, the Astronomical, the Geological, the Statistical, the 

 Antiquarian Societies, all have for their object the increase of knowledge ; 

 while the London Institution, the Mechanics' Institution, the Surry In- 

 stitution, the Society for the Diffusion of Religious Knowledge, the So- 

 ciety for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, are all intended to diffuse 

 or disseminate knowledge among men. In our own country, also, the 

 same distinction is observed in the use of the terms by men of science. 

 Our colleges, academies, and common schools, are recognised as insti- 

 tutions partially intended for the diffusion of knowledge; while the ex- 

 press object of some of our scientific societies is the promotion of the 

 discovery of new truths. 



The will makes no restriction in favor of any particular kind of 

 knowledge ; though propositions have been frequently made for devot- 

 ing the funds exclusively to the promotion of certain branches of science 

 having more immediate application to the practical arts of life, and the 

 adoption of these propositions has been urged on the ground of the con- 

 formity of such objects to the pursuits of Smithson ; but an examination 



