โ Scribed by Henry B. Allen
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
The monthly meeting of The Franklin Institute was held on April 20, 1949, in the Lecture Hall of the Institute in conjunction with the celebration of the 125th Anniversary of the Founding of The Franklin Institute and the 200th Anniversary of Franklin's Electrical Experiments.
The meeting convened at 8:15 and was called to order by the President, Mr. Richard T. Nalle, who extended the Institute's welcome to all in attendance. He also extended sincere thanks on behalf of the Board of Managers to the organizations who furnished special exhibits in our Museum for the Anniversary occasion. They were the Electrical Association of Philadelphia, the United States Navy, and the Bell Telephone Company of Pennsylvania. The President acknowledged with thanks the efforts of all members of the Board of Managers and the Institute staff members who had contributed time and labor to make this celebration a memorable one.
The President asked the Secretary, Dr. H. B. Allen, to announce the gifts recently received by the Institute.
The first gift, a picture by the Association of Prisoners of War of Verdun, was presented through the good efforts of Miss Florence Sibley, who had been interned in Verdun by the Germans during the last war. Miss Sibtey, a member of the Institute and an officer of the French Legion of Honor, was called upon to say a few words. She explained the symbolic picture which represented France's liberation by American tanks in the first world war. This picture came to America on the French "Merci"train and was displayed during the meeting. Miss Sibley expressed the delight of the Association of Prisoners of War of Verdun that the picture was so well received by The Franklin Institute and hoped it would act as an "emblem in the relationship between our countries."
The second gift, Benjamin Franklin's Will of 1757, was presented to the Institute by Mrs. Mary Curtis Zimbalist in honor of her father. The Secretary called upon Mrs. Zimbalist for formal presentation of the Will.
Mrs. Zimbalist described the circumstances under which itbecame possible to procure the original holographic will of Benjamin Franklin and said that upon reading the last paragraph of it, she was so impressed by the spiritual thoughts expressed in it that she could not resist purchasing it. Knowing her father's real appreciation and interest in Dr. Franklin and in The Franklin Institute, Mrs. Zimbalist felt it a privilege to present it to the Institute.
The Honorable George Wharton Pepper was asked to accept officially the Will on behalf of The Franklin Institute. Mr. Pepper graciously accepted this gift in a talk that brought delight to all his listeners. His remarks will be later published in the JOVRNAL.
Mr. James H. Robins, President of The American Pulley Company and a member of the Board of Managers, was the speaker of tile evening, presenting a paper on "The Storyof The Franklin Institute." This interesting and informative talk will be published in full in a later issue of the JOURNAL, as will the entire proceedings of the meetirig.
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