that we shall agree to accept on behalf of the nation the great benefit thus to be bestowed upon the nation.
I hope that the Regents of the Smithsonian will feel warranted to close with the offer; for they are the national guardians of such a collection. If in their wisdom they do not see their way to accept the gift, I shall then be obliged to take some other method of endeavoring to prevent the loss to the United States Government, and therefore to the people of the United States, of one of the most valuable collections which any private individual has ever given to any people.
Sincerely yours,
Washington, D. C., December 15, 1905.
To the President:
Permit me to repeat my offer to bequeath my art collections to the Smithsonian Institution or to the United States Government, and also the sum of five hundred thousand dollars in money for the purpose of constructing a suitable building in which to house them, upon the following terms and conditions:
First. The sum of five hundred thousand dollars shall be paid by my executors to the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution or the United States Government promptly after my decease, and shall be used forthwith for the construction of a fireproof building connected with the National Museum, the construction of which has been recently authorized, or reasonably near thereto.
Second. The interior of this building shall be arranged with special regard for the convenience of students and others desirous of an opportunity for uninterrupted study. A suitable space shall be provided in which the Peacock Room shall be reerected complete. The whole interior arrangement of the building shall he agreed upon between the Regents of the Smithsonian Institution and myself within a reasonable time after the acceptance of this offer.
Third. The collections, with such additions thereto as shall be made during my lifetime, shall be delivered by my executors to the Regents immediately after the building is constructed and ready to receive them.
Fourth. The collections and the building shall be cared for and maintained perpetually by the Smithsonian Institution or the United States Government at its own expense.
Fifth. No addition or deduction shall be made to the collections after my death, and nothing else shall ever be exhibited with them, or in the same building, nor shall the said collections, or any part thereof, be removed at any time from the said building except when necessary for the purpose of making repairs or renovations in the building.
Sixth. No charge shall ever be made for admission to the building or for the privilege of examining or studying the collections.
Seventh. The collections and building shall always bear my name in some modest and appropriate form.
In lieu of the foregoing offer, I am willing, upon the conditions above expressed, to make a present conveyance of the title to said collections to the Institution or the Government, and a bequest of the sum of five hundred thousand dollars for the building, provided:
1. The collections shall remain in my possession during my life, and in the possession of my executors after my death until the completion of the building.
2. I shall have the right to make such additions to the collections as may seem to me advisable or necessary for the improvement of the collections, or any of them.
sm 1906———II
