REPORT OF THE ORGANIZATION COMMITTEE OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION; With the Resolutions accompanying the same, and adopted by the Board of Regents. RESOLUTIONS APPOINTING A COMMITTEE ON ORGANIZATION AND REGARDING THE PRINTING AND DISPOSAL OF THEIR Report. The following resolutions were adopted by the Board of Regents: Resolved, That a committee of three be appointed by the Chancellor from the members of the Board, to digest a plan to carry out the provisions of the act to establish the Smithsonian Institution, and that they report the same to the next meeting of the Board. Whereupon, the Chancellor appointed Mr. Owen, Mr. Hilliard, and Mr. Bache, said committee. And on the 9th of September, 1846, it was further Resolved, That Mr. Choate and Mr. Pennybacker be added to the committee appointed yesterday to digest a plan to carry out the provisions of the act establishing the Smithsonian Institution. On the 1st of December, 1846, the Chairman of the Committee on Organization reported; and, on the 21st of December, the report, on motion of the chairman, was recommitted to the committee. On the 25th of January, 1847, the report as here presented, was made, and certain resolutions there with submitted; and the whole series of resolutions recommended by the Committee, and herein appended to the report, were finally adopted by the Board. They comprise the outline of an entire plan of organization, to carry out the provisions of the act establishing the Smithsonian Institution. And it was further Resolved, That, of this report, in such form as it may be ultimately adopted, five thousand copies be printed, under the direction of the Secretary; and that he be required to transmit a copy of the same to each of the principal scientific and literary societies, both in this and in other countries; and also to such individuals of scientific or literary reputation as he may judge likely to find interest in the proceedings of the institution. Resolved, That ten copies of the report accompanying these resolutions be furnished each member of the Senate and House of Representatives, and that each member be respectfully requested to transmit these to newspapers and to individuals, in his district or elsewhere, who may be likely to take interest in the proceedings of the institution. REPORT OF COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS ON PLAN OF ORGANIZATION. "For the increase and diffusion of knowledge among were the words of Smithson's will-words used by a men " 930 man accustomed to the strict nomenclature of exact science. They inform us, that a plan of organization, to carry into effect the intention of the testator, must embrace two objects; one, the calling forth of new knowledge by original research; and the other, the dissemination of knowledge already in existence. Smithson's words, liberal and comprehensive, exclude no branch of human knowledge; nor is there any restrictive clause in the charter under which we act. That charter indicates a few items, chiefly relating to one of the above objects, and leaves the rest of the plan, under the general provision of the bequest, to the discretion of the Board. First. It sets forth, as one of the objects of the institution, a library that shall contain valuable works in all departments of human knowledge. Second. It requires that there be provided in the buildings of the institution a hall or halls suitable for a museum capable of containing, on a liberal scale, collections of natural history, including geology and mineralogy, and objects of foreign and curious research; the large collection now in the Patent Office being transferred to the institution. Third. It requires that there be included in said building a chemical laboratory. Fourth. The building is to contain, also, "the necessary lecture rooms." And, Fifth. A gallery of art. These items, with the exception perhaps of the laboratory, relate to the diffusion of knowledge only. They render necessary an annual appropriation to collect and support a library; another to maintain a museum; and indicate an intention, that a portion of the annual interest should be applied to the advancement of physical science and the arts, in part by lectures. But, after enumerating these items, the framers of the charter added a clause of plenary powers, authorizing the Board, as to all funds not required for the above special purposes, to make of them "such disposal as they shall deem best suited for the promotion of the purpose of the testator.' In obedience to the requirements of the charter, which leaves little discretion in regard to the extent of accomodations to be provided, your committee recommend, that there be included in the building a museum of liberal size, fitted up to receive the collections destined for the institution; and that library room sufficient for a hundred thousand volumes be provided. They further recommend, that the lecture rooms required by the act shall not exceed two in number, of which one of small size should adjoin the laboratory, and another might be large enough to receive an audience of a thousand persons.* As important as the cabinets of natural history, by the charter required to be included in the museum, your committee regard its ethnological portion, including all collections that may supply items in the physical history of our species, and illustrate the manners, customs, religions, and progressive advance of the various nations of the world: as for example, collections of skulls, skeletons, portraits, dresses, implements, weapons, idols, antiquities, of the various races of man. In the accumulation of these collections, the institution has at command great facilities. The collections of the exploring expedition, which already belong to its museum, furnish an ample commencement, especially as regards Polynesia. Through the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and the various agencies under his control, the North American race can be reached; and, at small expense, the collection of Indian curiosities already begun at the Patent Office may be rapidly extended. So, through our army and navy officers, and our consuls in foreign nations, European and South American collections (the latter so recently enriched by modern discovery) might be gradually brought together. In this connection your committee recommend the passage of resolutions, asking the co-operation of certain public functionaries, and of the public generally, in furtherance of the above objects. Your committee are further of the opinion that, in the museum, if the funds of the institution permit, might judiciously be included various series of models illustrating the progress of some of the most useful inventions; such, for example, as the steam engine, from its earliest and rudest form to its present improved state; but this they propose only so far as it may not encroach on ground already covered by the numerous models in the Patent Office. Specimens of staple materials, of their gradual manu *The plan of building adopted by the Board, out of thirteen different designs submitted to them by various architects, is that of Mr. James Renwick, Jr., of New York. It comprises a museum 200 feet by 50; a library 90 feet by 50; a gallery of art 125 feet long; two lecture rooms, of which one is capable of containing an audience of 800 to 1000 persons; and the other is connected with the laboratory, together with several smaller rooms. The style selected is the later Norman, or rather Lombard, as it prevailed in the twelfth century chiefly in Germany, Normandy, and in Southern Europe, immediately preceding the introduction of the Gothic. facture, and of the finished products of manufactures and the arts, may also, you committee think, be usefully introduced. This would supply opportunity to examine samples of the best manufactured articles our country affords, and to judge her gradual progress in arts and manufactures. As chemistry was the favorite study of Smithson's life, of which a considerable portion was spent in his own laboratory, and as it is, without doubt, one of the most comprehensive and important of the natural sciences, your committee recommend that this department be fitted up in as complete a manner as modern science can suggest. And for the purpose of encouraging in the young men of our country original research in the same branch of science in which Smithson himself successfully labored, and inasmuch as many are now compelled, in order to complete their studies as practical chemists, to resort to Paris or Germany, your committee further recommend that there be included in the building a working laboratory, somewhat, perhaps, after the model of that instituted by one of the ablest of German chemists, the celebrated Liebig; to be opened under proper regulations and supervision, without charge, to those who may desire to institute experiments and prosecute researches for themselves in that science. The gallery of art, your committee think, should include both paintings and sculpture, as well as engravings and architectural designs; and it is desirable to have, in connection with it, one or more studios, in which young artists might copy without interruption, being admitted under such regulations as the board may prescribe. Your committee also think, that as the collection of paintings and sculpture will probably accumulate slowly, the room destined for a gallery of art might properly and usefully meanwhile be occupied, during the sessions of Congress, as an exhibition room for the works of artists generally; and the extent and general usefulness of such an exhibition might probably be increased, if an arrangement could be effected with the Academy of Design, the Arts-Union, the Artists' Fund Society, and other associations of similar character, so as to concentrate at the metropolis, for a certain portion of each winter, the best results of talent in the fine arts. The charter provides that the Secretary of the institution may, with the consent of the board, employ assistants; and the items above enumerated touching a library, museum, and laboratory, seem to demand, at the proper time, the appointment of not less than three such assistants: one as librarian, one as curator of the museum, and one as chemist. After a careful review of the means of the institution, and the annual demands upon it necessitated by the objects specially required in the charter, your committee are not prepared, with the present endowment only at command, to recommend a greater extension than these named of permanent offices requiring scientific or literary qualifications. And they think that the appointments of curator and chemist may be postponed until the time, or nearly the time, when the building is likely to be completed. In these various recommendations, your committee have been guided chiefly by the words and specific recommendations of the charter. They are of opinion, however, that the task assigned them would be ill performed if they stopped short here, and neglected to avail themselves of the authority, liberally, and wisely your committee think, conferred upon the Board, after providing for the above special objects to such extent as they may consider necessary and proper, to dispose of the remaining funds, annually accruing, in such manner as "they shall deem best suited for the promotion of the purpose of the testator." "Increase and diffusion of knowledge," your committee beg leave to repeat, was that purpose. How can knowledge be increased? By original research throughout its various fields; yielding, when successfully prosecuted, positive additions to the sum of what had theretofore been known. For this, there is no provision in the items specifically enumerated in the bill and above provided for, except, it may be, in the chemical department, where the chemist, or others engaging in experiment and investigation, may furnish actual contributions to the science of chemistry. But how may original researches generally be encouraged and called forth? First, by premiums, your committee think, annually offered for original papers on such subjects as may be selected; it being a strict condition, that each paper accepted and obtaining a premium, shall contain a specific addition to the sum of human knowledge, resting upon original investiga tions, and not mere unverified hypotheses. The accepted paper may be published in the successive numbers of transactions, which may be entitled "Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge." and which your committee recommend to be issued periodically or occasionally, as materials present themselves. The names of the competitors for premiums should, in all cases, remain unknown until the award is made. |