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I shall not detain you with an examination of the untoward 29 sections of this Bill __suffice it to say that, it constitutes the President, Vice-President, Heads of Department, Attorney General, Chief Justice, and Mayor of Washington, the "Smithsonian Institution," virtute oficii. No duties are assigned to them, except that of appointing "honorary members" ad libitum. They have nothing more to do with the business of the Smithsonian Institute than the same number of gentlemen dwelling in Nova Zembla. The wisdom of constituting an Institute with no powers whatever, but to blow up the bubble to larger dimensions, will appear evident if we consider that the men thus incorporated are very men who are charged with all the cares of Government for the time being, and consequently would have no leisure to attend to them. The Bill then goes on to constitute the "Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution." This Board consists of the Vice-President, The Chief Justice, and the Mayor of Washington, three Senators, appointed by the President of the Senate, three members of the House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker, and Six others appointed by the joint resolution of the two Houses. The management of the Institution is entrusted to this body. It organization is wholy of a partizan character. There are only two members of the Board of Regents who are likely to belong to any other than the party in power. The officer in the unclear of that Board are just so many places added to government patronage; and the entire income of the fund may be considered as so much added to the spoils of the victors. The subordinate officers of the Smith-