Title CUssLC..L±J... Imprint Book .:, r. (St0rg^ H^akirgB €xii kx Bont)^txn ^btrratbn. Iroaetritrgs oi i)gt %xnBkt$. pr, ^taxQZ ^eatotrjj's 6xft im ^mtl^txn ^MtRtmt Mxattt^m^B of the Cmstos, r e-^L-'^T?-'-^^ .^,-^ui^-<^ 6 (V^. vx-c- -/-'• > y Georg-e W. Pease, & Co., Printers, 226 1-2 Essex St., Salem, Mass. \ '\ IE. GEOEGfE PEABODY'S 6IET FOE SODTHEEN EDUCATION. To Hon. Egbert C, Winthrop, of Massachusetts ; Hon. Hamilton Fish, of New York ; Eight Eev. Charles P. McIlvaine, of Ohio ; General U. S. Grant, of the United States Army ; Hon. William C. Eives, of Virginia ; Hon. John H. Clifford, of Massachusetts ; Hon. "William Aiken, of South Carohna ; William M. EvARTS, Esq., of New York ; Hon. William A- Graham, of North Carolina ; Charles Macalester, of Pennsylvania; George W. Eiggs, Esq., of Washington ; Samuel Wetmore, Esq., of New York ; Edward A. Bradford, Esq., of Louisiana ; George N. Eaton, Esq., of Maryland ; and George Peabody EusSELL, Esq., of Massachusetts. Gentlemen : I beg to address you on a subject which occupied my mind long before I left England, and in regard to which, one at least, of you (the Hon. Mr. Winthrop, the distinguished and valued friend to whom I am so much indebted for cordial sympathy, careful consideration, and wise counsel in this matter,) will remember that, I consulted him immediately upon my arrival in May last, I refer to the educational needs of those portions of our beloved and common country which have suifered from the destructive ravages, and the not less disastrous consequences of civil war. With my advancing years my attachment to my native land has but become more devoted. My hope and faith in its successful and glorious future have grown brighter and stronger, and now, looking forward beyond my stay on earth, as may be permitted to one who has passed the limit of three score and ten years, I see our country united and iDros- perous, emerging from the clouds which still surround her, taking a higher rank among the nations, and becoming richer and more powerful than ever before. But to make her prosperity more than suj)erficial, her moral and intellectual develop- ment should keep pace with her material growth, and in those portions of our nation to which I have referred, the urgent and pressing physical needs of an almost impoverished people must for some years preclude them from making, by unaided effort, such advances in education, and such progress in the diffusion of knowledge among all classes, as every lover of his country must earnestly desire. I feel most deeply, therefore, that it is the duty and privilege of the more favored and 2 IJfSTRUMENT OF TRUST- wealthy portions of our nation to assist those who are less fortunate, and, with the wish to discharge so far as I may be able my own responsibility in this matter, as well as to gratify my desire to aid those to whom I am bound by so many ties of attachment and regard, I give to you, gentlemen, most of whom 'have been my personal and especial friends, the sum of one million of dollars, to be by you and your successors held in trust, and the income thereof used and applied in your discretion for the promotion and encouragement of intel- lectual, moral, or industrial education among the young of the more destitute portions of the Southern and Southwestern States of our Union ; my purpose being that the benefits intended shall be distributed among the entire population, without other distinction than their needs and the opportunities of usefulness to them. Besides the income thus derived, I give to you permission to use from the principal sum, within the next two years, an amount not exceeding forty per cent. In addition to this gift I place in your hands bonds of the State of Mississippi, issued to the Planters' Bank, and commonly known as Planters' Bank bonds, amounting, with interest, to about eleven hundred ijtiousand dollars, the amount realized by you from which is to be added to and used for the purposes of this trust. These bonds were originally issued in payment for stock in that Bank held by the State, and amounted in all to only two millions of dollars. For many years the State received lai'ge dividends from that Bank over and above the interest on these bonds. The State paid the interest without interruption till 1840, since which no interest has been paid, except a payment of about one hundred thousand dollars, which was found in the treasury applicable to the payment of the coupons, and paid b.y a mandamus of the Supreme Court. The validity of these bonds has never been questioned, and they must not be confounded with another issue of bonds male by the State to the Union Bank, the recognition of which has been a subject of controversy with a portion of the population of Mississippi. Various acts of the Legislature, viz.: of February 28, 1842; February 23, 1844 ; February 16, 1846 ; February 28, 1846 ; March 4, 1848, and the highest judicial tribunal of the State have confirmed their validity, and I have no doubt that at an early day such legislation will be had as to make these bonds available in increasing the usefulness of the present trust. Mississippi, though now depressed, is rich in agricultural resources, and cannot long disregard the moral obligation resting upon her to make provision for their payment. In confirmation of what I have said in regard to the legislative and judicial action concerning the State bonds issued to the Planters' Bank, I herewith place in your hands the documents marked A. The details and organization of the trust I leave with you, only requesting that Mr. Winthrop may be Chairman, and Governor Fish and Bishop Mcllvaine Vice-Chairmen of your body ; and I give to you power to make all necessary by-laws and regulations, to obtain an act of incorporation, if any shall lie found expedient, to provide for the expenses INSTRUMENT OF TRUST. 3 of the trustees and of any agents appointed by them ; and generally, to do all such acts as may be necessary for carrying out the provisions of this trust. All vacancies occurring in your number by death, resignation, or otherwise, shall be filled by your election, as soon as conveniently may be, and having in view an equality of representation so far as regards the Northern and Southern States. I furthermore give to you the power, in case two-thirds of the trustees shall at any time, after the lapse of thirty years, deem it expedient, to close this trust, and of the funds which at that time shall be in the hands of yourselves and your successors, to distribute not less than two-thirds among such educational or literary institutions, or for such educa- tional purposes as they may determine, in the States for whose benefit the income is now appointed to be used. The remainder may be distributed by the trustees for educational or literary purposes wherever they may deem it expedient. In making this gift I am aware that the fund derived from it can but aid the States which I wish to benefit in their own exertions to diffase the blessings of education and morality. But if this endowment shall encourage those now anxious for the light of knowledge, and stimulate to new efforts the many good and noble men who cherish the high purpose of placing our great country foremost, not only in power, but in the intelli- gence and virtue of her citizens, it will have accomplished all that I can hope. With reverent recognition of the need of the blessing of Almighty God upon this gift, and with the fervent prayer that, under His guidance, youi: counsels may be directed for the highest go©d of present and future generations in our beloved country, I am, gentlemen, with great respect, your humble servant, GEORGE PEABODY. Washington, Eeb. 7, 1867. On the receipt of the foregoing letter by the Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, the Trustees present in Washington were called upon by him to meet on February 8th, and the letter having been laid before them, the following resolutions, moved by Bishop Mcllvaine and seconded by Gov. Aiken, were unanimously adopted : — RESOLUTIONS. Wliereas ; Our coimtryman and friend George Peabody, has, in a letter just com- municated to the undersigned, made known his determination, out of a grateful sense of the manifold goodness with which God has prospered his life, and of an earnest desire to pro- 4 RESOLUTIONS. mote the best interests of his fellow citizens, to devote a munificent donation of property for certain most wise and beneficent uses indicated in said letter, and has requested us to take in trust the charge and management of the same, therefore ' Besolvecl, That the undersigned, being the Trustees assembled in Washington, deeply sensible of the honor conferred on them by a trust of such eminent importance and respon- sibility, and realizing their dependence upon the guidance and blessing of God to be enabled to discharge its duties with such wisdom and faithfulness as may best secure the benevolent designs of the giver, do hereby accept the oflSce of Trustees of the same, and promise our best exertions in its behalf. Besolved, That we hereby express to Mr Peabody our grateful appreciation of the enlarged and unprecedented generosity which, after having bestowed upon the poor of the City of London a bounty that drew forth the admiration of Europe, and after having exceeded the same in his recent return to his native land, in benefactions to institutions of learnino- and education, in the Middle and Eastern States of the Union, has now crowned the whole with this last deed of patriotism and loving kindness, so eminently calculated to bind together the several parts of our beloved country in the bonds of mutual well-doing and regard. Besolved, That we express to Mr. Peabody our respectful and aflFectionate prayer that, in the gracious providence of our Heavenly Father, his valuable life may be long spared to witness the success of his benevolent contributions to the happiness of his fellow- citizens in all parts of his native and beloved land, and that many of those whom God has blessed with large possessions may be induced to follow his example of wise and noble employment of wealth for the good of man and the glory of God. ROBEET C. WINTHROP, CHARLES P. McILYAIi^E, U. S. GRANT, Gen. U. S. A., WILLIAM AIKEI^, WILLIAM M. EVARTS, C. MACALESTER, GEORGE W. RIGGS, SAMUEL WETMORE, GEORGE I^. EATOK, GEO. PEABODY RUSSELL. REPORT OF TRUSTEES. REPORT. At a meeting of the Trustees of this Fund, held in the City of New York on the 19th of March, 1867, and continued on the 20th, 21st and 22d, at which Avere present Hon, Egbert C. Winthrop, of Massachusetts ; Hon. Hamilton Pish, of Kew York ; Right Rev. Charles P. McIlvaine, of Ohio ; General TJ. S. Grant, of the United States Army ; Admiral D. G. Parragut, of the United States Navy ; Hon. William C. Rives, of Virginia ; Hon. John H. Clifford, of Massachusetts ; Hon. William Aiken, of South Carolina ; William M. Evarts, Esq., of New York ; Hon. William A. Graham, of North Carolina ; Charles Macalester, Esq., of Pennsylvania ; George W. Riggs, Esq., of Washington ; Samuel Wetmore, Esq., of New York ; George N. Eaton, Esq., of Maryland, and George Peabody Russell, Esq., of Massachusetts, the proceedings were as follows : Immediately after the reading by the Secretary of the record of the original organiza- tion at Washington, the Chairman, Mr. Winthrop, stated that the name of Admiral Parragut was on the original list of Trustees designated by Mr. Peabody, that owing to some misapprehension it was omitted in the publication of that list, and that Mr. Peabody, with the cordial assent of Admiral Parragut, flesired that it should now be restored ; whereupon, on motion of the Hon. Wm. A. Graham, of North Carolina, seconded by General Grant, it was unanimously voted that the name of Admiral Parragut be placed upon the roll of Trustees in the order originally inteni^ed. The Chairman announced that he had received, on the 4th of March, orders from Mr. Peabody for bonds covering the whole amount of his munificent gift, and these orders were thereupon referred to the Pinance Committee. After a full discussion of the subject committed to them, during which the views of the Pounder of the Trust were distinctly explained, and a full report by Mr. Eaton, of Maryland, had been read and considered, the following report and resolutions, by Bishop Mcllvaine, of Ohio, from the Committee on Investigation and Inquiry, were unanimously adopted : The Committee of Inquiry, having carefully considered the important matters referred to them, beg leave respectfully to report the following resolutions : 6 REPORT OF TRUSTEES. 1. Eesolved, That, - for the present, the iDromotion of Primary or Common School Education, by such means or agencies as now exist or may need to be created, be the lead- ing object of the Board, in the use of the fund placed at its disposal. 2. Eesolved, That in aid of the above general design, and as promotive of the same, the Board will have in view the furtherance of Kormal School Education for the prepara- tion of teachsrs, as well by the endowment of scholarships in existing Southern institutions as by the establishing of Kormal Schools, and the aiding of such Normal Schools as may now be in operation in the Southern and Southwestern States, including such measures as may be feasible and as experience may show to be expedient, for the promotion of education in the application of science to the industrial pursuits of human life. 3. Besolved, That a General Agent of the highest qualifications be appointed by the Board, to whom shall be entrusted, under an Executive Committee, the whole charge of carrying out the designs of Mr. Peabody in his great gift, under such resolutions and instructions as the Board shall from time to time adopt. 4. Resolved, That the Rev. Dr. Sears, President of Brown University, Ehode Island, be appointed the General Agent of the Board, upon such terms as may be arranged by the Finance- Committee. 6. Eesolved, That an Executive Committee of five Trustees be appointed by the Chairman at each annual meeting of the Board, to whom shall be entrusted, in connection with the General Agent, the carrying out of such resolutions and plans as the Board shall from time to time adopt. 6. Besolved, That the next annual meeting of the Board be held in the City of New York on the Third Tuesday in June, 1868, and that in the meantime the Chairman be au- thorized to call meetings at such times and places as the Executive Committee may direct. All of which is respectfully submitted. CHARLES P. McILYAINE, Chairman. After further discussion, the following resolution offered by Mr. Evarts, of New York, was adopted: ' Resolved, That this Board will hold a meeting in the City of Richmond, on the third Tuesday of January next. In accordance with one of the foregoing resolutions, the Chairman announced the Executive Committee, as follows : EXECUTIVE COJUyilTTEE. Rt. Rev. C. P. McIlvaine of Ohio (Cincinnati); Hon. Wm. Aiken of South Carolina (Charleston); Wm. M. Evarts, Esq. of New York (New York City); Hon. Wm. A. Graham of North Carolina (Hillsborough); George N. Eaton, Esq. of Maryland (Baltimore). It was then voted that the Chairman of the Board be ex officio a member of the REPORT OF TRUSTEES. 7 Executive Committee, and that the Secretary of the Board be ex officio Secretary of that Committee. Gov. Clifford, from a Committee appointed on the subjects of legal organization, custody of funds, and choice of Treasurer, made the following report : ACT OF IlSrCORPORATIOISr. The Committee respectfully recommend the adoption of the following resolutions ,: Besolved, That Gov. Fish and Mr. EVxVRTS be authorized and requested to procure from the Legislature of the State of Kew York an Act of Incorporation, the trustees to constitute the body of corporators, with power to appoint their successors, under the name of "The Trustees of the Peabody Education Fund," and with authority to admin- ister the fund according to such by-laws and regulations as may be adopted by the corporation. Besolved, That when such Act shall be obtained and accepted, the funds be transferred to the corporation by the committee having them in charge. Besolved, That a Treasurer be elected who shall be a member of the Board, with authority to make such arrangements, in concurrence with the Finance Committee, for the safe keeping and disbursement of the income of the Fund, as in their judgment may be deemed expedient. These resolutions having been adopted, SAMiJEij Wetmore, Esq., of New York, was elected Treasurer. . The Finance Committee had been previously apijointed by the Chair, as follows : finance committee. Hon. Hamilton Fish, of Kew York ; Charles Macalester, Esq., of Pennsylvania ; Hon. John H. Clifford, of Massachusetts ; George W. Kiggs, Esq., of Washington ; Samuel Wetmore, Esq., of J^ew York. The Chairman and other members having presented a large number of applications from various institutions and individuals in the Southern and South- Western States for aid from the trustees, it was voted that these and other similar j^apers be referred to the general agent. LETTER of EXPLANATION FROM MR. PEABODY. The following letter of explanation, supplementary to the original letter of trust, was received from Mr. Peabody, (who, at the invitation of the Trustees, had been present during a considerable part of the proceedings,) and ordered to be entered on the records : 8 EEPORT OF TRUSTEES. To Hon. Egbert C. Wintheop ; Hon. HAMiLTOisr Tish ; Et. Eev. Charles P. MclLVAiNB ; General U. S. Grant ; Admiral D. G. Farragut ; Hon. Wm. C. EiVES ; Hon. John H. Clifford ; Hon. Wm. Aiken ; Hon. Wm. A. Graham ; W. M. EvARTS, Esq. ; Charles Macalester, Esq. ; Geo. W. Eiggs, Esq. ; Samuel Wetmore, Esq. ; Edward A. Bradford, Esq. ; George N. Eaton, Esq. ; and George Peabody Eussell, Esq. : Gentlemen: Understanding that a doubt has been expressed in regard to my intentions and instructions on the subject of the distribution of the fund entrusted to your care for the purpose of education in the Southern and Southwestern States, I desire ' distinctly to say to you, that my design was to leave an absolute discretion to the Board of Trustees, as to the localities in which the funds should from time to time be expended, I hope that all the States included in that part of our country which is suffering from the results of the recent war, may, sooner or later, according to their needs, receive more or less of the benefit of the fund. But it was not my design to bind my trustees to distribute the benefits of the fund upon any measure or proportion among the States, or to create any claim on the part of any State to any distributive share. Still less did I design to subject the trustees, collectively or individually, to any responsibility to those intended to be benefitted, or to any individual responsibility of any sort, for the management of the fund committed to them. I have entire confidence that they will discharge the trust with wisdom, equity, and fidelity, and I leave all the details of management to their own discretion. -» "With great respect, your humble servant, GEOEGE PEABODY. Kew York, March 20, 1867. THE GENERAL AGENT. During the last two days of the meeting the Eev. Dr. Sears (who had been invited by telegraph to assist in the deliberations of the Board, and had kindly come on from Provi- dence for that purpose) was present, and expressed his hearty interest in the great work which had been undertaken, his earnest desire to aid the Trustees in any way in his power and presented his general views in regard to the best course to be adopted. He withheld, however, any positive acceptance of his appointment for further deliberation. thanks to MR. PEABODY. The following resolutions were then ofiered by Governor Aiken, and, after remarks by Bishop Mcllvaine, Hon. "William C. Eives, and Governor Graham, by whom they were seconded, were unanimously adopted : KEPORT OF TRUSTEES. 9 Besolved, That we tender to our distinguished and noble friend, Mr. Peabody, our sincere thanks for his munificent hospitality to us daring our sittings, while organizing the Board, both in Washington and Kew York. Besolved, That we consider our appointments as Trustees of this grand charity as a very high honor, and one which we acknowledge most cordially. Resolved, That our friend, being about to leave his native land for England, we hope that a kind Providence will take him under its guidance and protection, and return him once more to us. We trust he will then be able to see the fruits of the good work of his great charity and remarkable wisdom. Besohed, That the Chairman communicate the foregoing resolutions to Mr. Peabody after the banquet this evening. A prayer by Bishop Mcllvaine, invoking the Divine blessing upon the work Avhich had thus been entered upon, closed the proceedings of the Trustees, and they adjourned without day. EGBERT C. WI:N^THE0P, Chairman Boaixl of Trustees. George Peabody Russell, Secretary. OR<^ANIZATION UNDER ACT OF INCORPORATION. A meeting of the Trustees, called by the Chairman and Executive Committee, was held in the City of Kew York, on May 28th, 1867. Mr. Evarts, from the Committee on Incorporation, reported that in response to the application made by the Board to the Legislature of the State of Xew York, the Senate and Assembly of the said State had on the 12th of April, 1867, passed the following Act. AX ACT TO IlSrCORPORATE THE TRUSTEES OF THE PEABODY EDUCATIOK FUND. Whereas Robert C. Winthrop, of Massachusetts, Hamilton Pish, of Kew York, Charles P. McIlvaixe, of Ohio, Ulysses S. Grant, General of the Army of the United States, David G. Parraout, Admiral of the Kavy of the United States, William C. Rives, of Yirginia, John H, Clifford, of Massachusetts, William Aiken, of South Carolina, William M. Evarts, of I^ew York^ William A. Graham, 10 ORGANIZATION UNDER ACT OF INCORPORATION. of IsTorth Carolina, Charles Macalester, of Pennsj-lvaiiia, George "VV. Eiggs, of Washington, Samuel Wetmore, of ISTew York, Edward A. Bradford, of Louisiana, George IN". Eaton, of Maryland, and George Peabody Eussell, of Massachusetts, have by their Memorial, represented to the Legislature of the State of New York, among other things, that George Peabody, a citizen of the United States, resident in London, in the Kingdom of Great Britain, did address to them the said Memorialists, a letter under date of Washington, February 7, 1867, of which the following is a copy : (See page 1.) That upon the receipt of the said letter, so many of the memorialists as were at the time in the city of Washington, met together in the said city, on the 8th day of February 1867, and unanimously adopted the following resolutions : (See page 3.) which were afterwards duly communicated to the said George Peabody. That afterwards the said George Peabody, addressed to the memorialists another letter, under date of March 20th, 1867, of which the following is a copy : (See page 7.) That all the memorialists have accepted the trusts and assumed the duties imposed upon them by and under the terms of the said letters. That the said memorialists have received from the said George Peabody, the sum of one million of dollars and the bonds of the State of Mississippi commonly known as Planters' Bank bonds, amounting in principal and interest to about the further sum of eleven hundred thousand dollars, mentioned in the said letters. That an act of incorporation will greatly facilitate the performance of the duties of the memorialists in the administration of the said trust. That they have made choice of the State and City of New York as the place at which the business connected with their various duties can most conveniently and effectively be transacted, and from which their operations in distant parts of the country may be best directed. And have by the same memorial prayed that an Act of Iiicorporation may be passed into a law in the terms hereinafter contained. Now therefore^ For the purpose of administering and rendering effective the wise and benevolent i^urposes of George Peabody as disclosed in his letters contained in the preamble to this act according to the spirit and intent in which he has provided his munificent gift and directed its employment, The People of the State of New York represented in. Senate and Assembly, do enact as folloios : Section 1. Eobert C. Winthrop of Massachusetts, Hamilton Fish of New York, Charles P. Mc Ilvaine of Ohio, Ulysses S. Grant, General of the Army of the United States, David G. Farragut, Admiral of the Navy of the United States, William C. Eives of Virginia, John H. Cliflfbrd of Massachusetts, William Aiken of South Carolina, ORGANIZATION UNDER ACT OF INCORPORATION. 11 William M. Evarts of Kew York, William A. Graham of ISTorlh Carolina, Charles Macalester of Pennsylvania, George W. Eiggs of Washington, Samnel Wetmore of Kew York, Edward A. Bradford of Louisiana, George N. Eaton of Mai-yland, and George Peabody Eussell of Massachusetts, are hereby created a body politic and corporate;* by the niame and title of " The Trustees of the Peabody Education Eund," and by that name shall have perpetual succession; may sue and be sued and complain and defend in all courts; may make and use a Common Seal and alter the same at pleasure; may hold, manage, invest, collect, control, administer and dispose of the money and bonds given by the said George Peabody, in the letters hereinbefore set forth ; may appoint such Officers and Agents as the business of the Corporation may require and allow them a suitable compensation, and may make by-laws not inconsistent with any existing law for the management of its property, the regulation of its affairs, and the administration of the benevolent and charitable trust confided to it by the said George Peabody as aforesaid. Section 2. Kobert C. Winthrop, of Massachusetts, shall be the Chairman, and Hamilton Pish, of New York, and Charles P. Mcllvaine, of Ohio, shall be Vice Chairmen of the Corporation. All vacancies in the said offices or among the corporators shall be filled according to the terms of the said letters of the said George Peabody. Section 3. The Corporation created by this Act shall he subject to the provisions of Section Four of Title Three of Chapter Eighteen of the first part of the Eevised Statutes, and of no other Section of that Title. Section 4. This Act shall take effect immediately. On the reading of the above Act. it was unanimously Voted, That this Board of Trustees do gratefully acknowledge the promptness, courtesy and liberality, with which the Legislature of the State of New York have acceded to ^their request, and that said Board do hereby accept the Act of Incorporation. - The offices of Chairman and Vice Chairmen being provided for by the terms of the Act, the Trustees then elected Samuel Wetmore, of New York, their Treasurer, and George Peabody Eussell, of Massachusetts, their Secretary. The Chairman submitted a communication from Eev. B. Sears, D.D., accepting the office of General Agent, to which he had been appointed prior to the Act of Incorporation of the Trustees. Whereupon it was unanimously Voted, That the ai:)pointment of the General Agent and of the Executive Committee and Committee of Finance, and all other acts and doings of the Board, as recorded by the Secretary previous to said Incorporation, be and the same are hereby ratified and confirmed as the acts and doings of the Corporation. 12 COMMUNICATIONS. The Chainiian laid before the Board the following commmiications from Messrs. Appleton & Company and from Messrs. A. S. Barnes & Co., with the acknowledgements which he had returned to each, as follows : *■ No. 443 Broadway, March 23. To THE Board of Trustees of the Peabody Education Fund, Gentlemen : Profoundly impressed Avith the munificent gift of Mr. Peabody and the untold blessings which it will be the means of diffusing throughout the South and Southwest, and having been devoted for many years to the promotion of the educational interests of our country, we cannot refrain from asking your permission to participate in this noblest of all his noble charities. Munificent as Mr. Peabody's donation is, we feel that not only will the extensive and desolate field to which it is to be applied require it all, but that the co-operation of others who sympathize with the great object he has in view maj also be desirable. In fui-therance, therefore, of the end proposed by Mr. Peabody, the providing of educational facilities for destitute districts in the South, we beg to present to your Board 100,000 volumes on branches of elementary instruction, viz. : 25,000 copies of "Webster's Elementary Speller; 25,000 copies of The Webster Elementary Keader; 25,000 copies of Cornell's First Steps in Geography, 20,000 copies of Quackenbos's Primary Arithmetic; 5,000 copies of Quackenbos's First Book in Grammar. We send you hercAvith specimen copies of these works, and trust they will be commended to you not only by their intrinsic merits and adaptation to the work of primary instruction, but also by the fact that they are the most popular and widely used works on the branches of which they treat, and have been long known and cordially approved by teachers generally. We solicit your acceptance and distribution of these volumes, _and will deliver them to your order as may be needed. Bidding you God-speed in the great work to which you have been called, we remain, gentlemen, your obedient servants, D. APPLETON & CO. Fifth Avenue Hotel, Saturday Evening, March 23, 1867. } Messrs. D. Appleton & Co. Gentlemen: Your communication of this day, addressed to the Board of Trustees of the Peabody Education Fund, reached me a few hours since, together with the parcel of books to which it referred. The Trustees adjourned yesterday, after completing their preliminary arrangements, and unless some unexpected exigency should occur, they will not meet again until January COMMTJNICATIONS. 13 next. In the meantime they have entrusted the great work with which Mr. Peabody has charged them, to their general agent, under the supervision of an executive committee. I return to Boston on Monday morning, and shall lose no time in laying your com- munication before the committee, but some weeks or even months may elapse before any formal acknowledgment can be made of your most timely and generous offer. I am unwilling, however, that a day should pass without some expression of my deep sense of the noble spirit of your communication, and of the munificent gift which it announces. I thank you most sincerely, personally and officially, for this large and liberal contri- bution to the cause in which we are engaged. A hundred ^thousand volumes of such publications as you have so promptly placed at our disposal, and of some of which I know the value, cannot fail to furnish the most acceptable and important aid in the prosecution of Mr. Peabody's designs, and I am sure that I only anticipate the action of the Executive Committee, and of the whole Board of Trustees, in tendering to you, without delay, our grateful and hearty acknowledgments. Believe me, gentlemen, with great respect, your obliged and obedient servant, EOBEET C. WIJ^"THEOP, Chairman. P. S. Since writing the above I have found an opportunity to read your letter to Mr. Peabody himself, who listened to it with the warmest emotio^i of gratification and grati- tude. He enjoined it upon me to thank you most heartily, in his own name, for your noble ffift. New York, April 29, 1867. To THE Board of Trustees of the Peabody Education Fund : Gentlemen : — Having been for many years intimately connected with the educational interests of the South, we are desirous of expressing our appreciation of the noble charity which you represent. The Peabody Eund to encourage and aid common schools in these war-desolated States cannot fail of accomplishing a great and good work, the beneficent results of which as they will be exhibited in the future, not only of the stricken population of the South, but of the nation at large, seems almost incalculable. It is probable that the use of meritorious text books will prove a most effective agency toward the thorough accomplishment of Mr. Peabody's benevolent design. As we publish many which are considered such, we have selected from our list some of the most valuable, and ask the privilege of placing them in your hands for gratuitous distribution in connection with the fund of which you have charge, among the teachers and in the schools of the destitute South. Observing that the training of teachers (through the agency of Normal Schools and otherwise) is to be a prominent feature of your undertaking, we ofier you for this purpose \y 5000 volumes of the '' Teacher's Library," — a series of professional works designed for the efficient self-education of those who are in their turn to teach others — as follows : 500 volumes each of Page's Theory and Practice of Teaching; Welch's Manual of Object Lessons ; and Davies' Outlines of Mathematical Science. 250 volumes each of 14 COMMUNICATIONS. Government ; Fowle's Teachers Institute ; Bates' Method of Teachers Institutes ; De- Tocqueville's xlmerican Institutions ; Dwight's Higher Christian Education ; History of Education ; Manstield on American Education ; Mayhew on Universal Education ; North- end's Teacher's Assistant ; Northend's Teacher and Parent ; Eoot on School Amusements; and Stone's Teacher's Examiner. In addition to these we also ask that you will accept 25,000 volumes of school books for intermediate classes, embracing 6000 volumes each of The National Second Eeader ; Davies' Written Arithmetic ; Monteith's Second Book in Geography ; and Beer's Penman- ship. 3000 volumes Monteith's United States History. 500 volumes each of Eirst Book of Science ; Jarvis' Physiology and Health ; Peck's Ganot's Natural Philosophy ; and Smith & Martin's Book Keeping. Should your Board consent to undertake the distribution of these volumes, we shall hold ourselves in readiness to pack and ship the same in such quantities and to such points as you may designate. We further propose that should you find it advisable to use a greater number of our publications in the prosecution of your plans, we will donate for the benefit of this cause twenty-five per cent, of the usual wholesale price of the books needed. Hoping that our request will meet with your approval, and that we may have the pleasure of contributing in this way to the wants with which we deeply sympathise, we are, gentlemen, very respectfully, yours, A. S. BARNES & CO. Boston, 7th May, 1867. Messrs. A. S. Barnes & Co., Publishers, New York : Gentlemen : — Your communication of the 29th ult., addressed to the Trustees of the Peabody Education Fund, has been handed to me by our General Agent, the Eev. Dr. Sears. I shall take the greatest pleasure in laying it before the Board at their earliest meeting. I am unwilling, however, to postpone its acknowledgment so long, and hasten to assure you of the high value which I place upon your gift. Eive thousand volumes of your " Teacher's Library,'' and twenty-five thousand volumes of " school books for inter- mediate classes," make up a most munificent contribution to the cause of Southern education in which we are engaged. In connection with the noble gift of the Messrs. Appleton & Co., they will go far towards supplying the immediate demand for publications of this character, and will furnish an example which will not be forgotten as our work advances. Dr. Sears is well acquainted with the books you have so generously offered us, and unites with me in the highest appreciation of the gift. You will be glad to know, too, that your letter reached us in season to be communicated to Mr. Peabody, before he embarked for England on the 1st instant, and that he expressed the greatest gratification on hearing what you had offered. Believe me, gentlemen, with the highest respect and regard, Your obliged and obedient servant, ROBERT C. WINTHROP, Chairman. COMMUNICATIONS. 15 The General Agent also announced very liberal offers from Messrs. Cowperthwait & Co. of Philadelphia, and Sheldon & Co. of jSTew York. Eesolutions of thanks and grateful acknowledgement to Messrs. D. Appleton & Co., Messrs. A. S. Barnes & Co., Messrs. Sheldon & Co., and Messrs. Cowperthwait & Co., were thereupon passed by the Board. It was further announced that the Executive Committee had already made, and were about making specific appropriations of money in portions of Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and South Carolina, and that the General Agent would, early in July, make a journey on the business of the Trust, in Virginia and Tennessee. The Board then adjourned, to meet in Richmond on the third Tuesday of January, 1868, or sooner if called together by the Chairman.