words, to form an establishment similar to that of the British Museum. The whole income devoted to this object would be entirely inadequate. The portion of the main building appropriated to the museum consists of a single room, two hundred feet long by fifty feet wide. This space may be entirely filled in the course of three years, without the purchase of a single article, if the means be adopted which present themselves at the seat of government for making collections. But when this space is filled, the accumulation of specimens must cease, or an addition be made to the building, which, to harmonize with the present edifice, would involve a large expenditure. The question then arises, from what source is this money to be obtained? It cannot be derived from the annual income of the capital, for this would cripple the more important operations. It may be said that Congress will furnish the means; but this is relying on a very uncertain source, and the policy of applying to Congress for any aid is doubtful.

Furthermore, a promiscuous collection, embracing full sets of the objects above specified, is unnecessary in carrying out the plan of organization of the Institution.

For example, the organic remains brought from the upper Missouri by Culbertson, have been examined and reported on by Dr. Leidy, of Philadelphia, in that city; and the plants from California and Mexico have been referred to Dr. Torrey at Princeton, and to Dr. Gray at Cambridge. In this way, not only has the learning of these gentlemen been brought into requisition, but also their special cabinets rendered subservient to our use. The co-operation of the learning and talent, as well as the use of the libraries and collections of the whole country, is an essential feature of the plan, and ought not to be lost sight of.

I would, however, distinctly disavow the intention of underrating the importance of collections in themselves. On the contrary, it ought to be the duty of the Smithsonian Institution to point out the means by which they may be made, and to aid in the work, to the extent of its ability, by embracing all opportunities which may offer for procuring specimens for distribution, and by facilitating exchange and assisting explorations.

Though the formation of a general collection is neither within the means nor the province of the Institution, it is an object which ought to engage the attention of Congress. A general museum appears to be a necessary establishment at the seat of government of every civilized nation. The navy, the army, and the whole corps of commercial and diplomatic agents in foreign countries, all consider it their duty to send to the seat of government of their own nation every object which may serve to improve or to interest the people. Indeed the government of the United States has already formed the nucleus of such a museum in the collections now in the Patent Office. An establishment of this kind can only be supported by government; and the proposition ought never to be encouraged of putting this duty on the limited, though liberal bequest of a foreigner. The Smithsonian Institution will readily take the supervision of an establishment of this kind, and give plans for its organization and arrangement, provided it be requested to do so, and the means for effecting the object be liberally supplied.

I make these remarks with reference to the collections, because I

am fully impressed with the fact that the tendency of the Institution will be to a statical condition, in which the income will be absorbed in the support and accommodation of objects of a doubtful or contingent value. There is even danger in receiving donations from individuals. The articles may be valuable in part, but may consist also of much which the Institution cannot well afford to keep. Besides this, it is extremely difficult to discharge, acceptably, the duty of the curator of property thus acquired. Since the house-room and the income of the Institution for the accommodation and support of collections are limited, great care must be exercised in the choice of the articles, and preference given to those which are of importance in determining problems of interest, and which give promise of the ready production of new and interesting results.

For a detailed account of the additions to the museum during the past year, and the present state of the collections, I must refer to Professor Baird's report herewith presented.

In an appendix to this will be found a list of the donations, with the names of the donors alphabetically arranged. These consist principally of specimens not generally found in other collections; and though they may not be very attractive to ordinary visitors, the student of natural history will find in them much of interest.

The circular prepared by Professor Baird, describing the method of collecting and preparing specimens, and indicating objects especially desirable, has proved effective in procuring important contributions.

Among the objects which should be collected and preserved with care, are the remains of the specimens of the arts of the aboriginal inhabitants of this country, the contents of mounds, and the stone implements found on the surface of the earth. The implements and industrial products of the present tribes of Indians should also be gathered as the materials for the advance of the new and interesting science of ethnology. Of the contents of mounds, but a limited amount of specimens exist; and as these are not, like the spontaneous productions of nature, constantly in the process of reproduction, every article should be diligently sought for, and carefully preserved. Some additions have been made to the collections in this line.

The museum of natural history, besides plants and minerals, numbers eighteen hundred and fifty jars, containing specimens in spirits of mammalia, reptiles, fishes, articulata, mollusca, and radiata, amounting in all to twenty-five hundred species. Besides these, there are about nine hundred specimens of skulls and skeletons, and three thousand of skins of European and American birds.

Lectures.

In accordance with the suggestion contained in the act of incorporation of the Institution, courses of lectures have been given during the past year in the lecture-room of the Smithsonian building, and the reports of these lectures are generally copied in the public papers throughout the Union. Though the plan of diffusing knowledge by means of lectures is too restricted in its influence to meet fully the liberal views of the Smithsonian bequest, yet there is no place in the

United States where such means will have a tendency to affect more minds and do more good than in the city of Washington. Persons from all parts of the country assemble here during the sessions of Congress. It was supposed, at first, that the interest in these lectures would soon die away; but the experience of three years has indicated no tendency of this kind. This is in part owing to the constant influx of strangers and change of inhabitants. Besides this, there is in this city, in proportion to the whole number of inhabitants, a large number of intelligent persons, with moderate salaries, who gladly avail themselves of the means of improvement offered by the gratuitous lectures of the Institution.

As an evidence of the high appreciation of the advantages which these lectures afford the citizens of Washington, I may mention that the corporation of the city has ordered, since the last meeting of the board, a bridge to be constructed over the canal at Tenth street, for the special accommodation of those who attend the evening instruction given at the Institution. This bridge, with a well-drained and welllighted path across the public grounds, will afford a direct and comfortable approach to the building from a central point on Pennsylvania

avenue.

In my last Report I mentioned the fact that much complaint had been made through the public papers on account of the size of the lectureroom. It was the original intention of the Regents to construct a lecture-room in the main building, though, according to the plan proposed, the number of persons it would hold would scarcely have been greater than that now accommodated. This plan, however, was thought to be unsafe, because it was not proposed to make the interior fire-proof; but since an opposite course has been resolved upon, a large lectureroom may with safety be constructed in the main building, and the present lecture-room, having temporarily served the purpose, may be applied to other uses.

The proper construction of a lecture-room is, however, a problem of great difficulty, which in the present instance will be much enhanced by the form and peculiarities of the building. It must be well adapted to sight, to sound, to ventilation, and warming. A room might be constructed which would seat five thousand persons; but we know of none such, in every part of which an ordinary speaker can be distinctly heard. Too much must, therefore, not be expected with reference to the new lecture-room, though every endeavor will be made to render it as perfect as the conditions to which it is unavoidably subjected will allow.

The selection of the lecturers, and the arrangement of the courses, have been found, in some cases, an unpleasant and perplexing duty. The gentlemen invited, as a general rule, have been men of high standing, and have been chosen on account of their reputation and moral worth, rather than with reference to their proficiency in the art of rhetoric. It is not the aim of the Institution in these lectures merely to please the ear, but to impart important truths which may be valued for their own sake.

Many applications have been made for the use of the lecture-room of the Institution for pay lectures and exhibitions of a private character;

but these have in all cases been refused. The use of the room has, however, on several occasions been given to the faculty of Columbian College, and also for the meetings of the Teachers' Association of the District of Columbia. The organization of this association took place in the Smithsonian building in 1850, and its meetings have been regularly held in the lecture-room from that time to the present. It is believed that the spirit of the will of Smithson is properly consulted in giving encouragement and rendering facilities to these meetings. The association has been kept up with much spirit, and I am sure that much good has resulted from the organization. It has served to cherish a feeling of harmony among the teachers, and to awaken a spirit of improvement relative to education and general knowledge.

The following is a list of the titles of lectures given before the Institution during the last session of Congress, with the names of the gentlemen by whom they were delivered:

A course of six lectures on History as a science, and a single one on Poetry, by Dr. Samuel H. Cox, of Brooklyn, New York.

Two lectures on Induction and Association, by Dr. John Ludlow, Provost of the University of Pennsylvania.

A course of five lectures on Entomology, and one on the Alps, by Rev. Dr. John G. Morris, of Baltimore, Maryland.

Two lectures on the History and the Forms of the English Language, by Professor W. C. Fowler, of Amherst, Massachusetts.

One lecture on the Architecture of the Middle Ages, by Dr. A. H. Vinton, of Boston.

Two lectures by Professor S. S. Haldeman, of Columbia, Pennsylvania, on the Mechanism of Speech, and its bearing upon the natural history of the human race.

Two lectures on Geology, by Dr. Benjamin Silliman, sr., of Yale College, New Haven.

JOSEPH HENRY,

Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT

Of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, for the year 1852.

To the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution :

GENTLEMEN: The object of the Annual Report of the Secretary is not only to present to the Regents an account of the transactions of the period which elapses between their successive sessions, but also to make such suggestions as may be important to the future management of the affairs of the Institution, and to state such facts in reference to it as may be interesting to the public, or which may furnish a connected history of its transactions.

Since the beginning of the Institution no change has taken place in the policy originally adopted with reference to the system of active operations. The details of this plan were well considered, and its importance as the only means of properly carrying out the intention of the donor were fully understood at the first. The theory of the plan was expressed in a few propositions, which have been constantly kept in view, and acted upon as far as the law of Congress and other restrictions would permit.

This plan, although prosecuted under very unfavorable circumstances, has produced results such as to render the name of the Institution favorably known wherever science and literature are cultivated, and to connect it indissolubly with the history of the progress of knowledge in our times. As a proof of this we need only state the following facts: The Institution has promoted astronomy, by the aid furnished the researches which led to the discovery of the true orbit of the new planet Neptune, and the determination of the perturbations of this planet and the other bodies of the solar system, on account of their mutual attraction. It has also aided the same branch of science by furnishing instruments and other facilities to the Chilian expedition, under Lieut. Gilliss; and by preparing and publishing an ephemeris of Neptune, which has been adopted by all the astronomers of the world.

It has advanced geography, by providing the scientific traveller with annual lists of the occultations of the principal stars; by the moon, for the determination of longitude; by the preparation of tables for ascertaining heights with the barometer; and by the collection and publication of important facts relative to the topography of different parts of the country, particularly of the valley of the Mississippi.

It has established an extended system of meteorological investigation, consisting of several hundred intelligent observers, whoare daily noting the phases of the weather in every part of the continent of North America. It has imported standard instruments, constructed hundreds of compared thermometers, barometers, and psychrometers, and has furnished improved tables and directions for observing with these instruments the various changes of the atmosphere, as to temperature, pressure, moisture, &c. It has collected, and is collecting, from its