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SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION   716
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MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE 
BOARD OF REGENTS OF THE SMITSONIAN INSTITUTION
HELD DECEMBER 8, 1927.

PRESENT: 

Chief Justice William E. Taft, Chancellor, in the chair;
Senator Reed Smoot;
Senator Woodbridge N. Ferris;
Senator Joseph T. Robinson;
Representative Albert Johnson;
Representative R. Walton Moore;
Representative Walter H. Newton;
Mr. Frederic A. Delano;  and the
Acting Secretary, Dr. Charles G. Abbot.
Dr. Alexander Wetmore, Assistant Secretary, was also present, as was also Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh.

PRESENTATION OF THE LANGLEY GOLD MEDAL TO COL. CHARLES A. LINDBERGH.

The Chancellor said:

"Colonel Lindbergh:  The Langley Medal was established in memory of the third Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, Samuel Pierpont Langley.  During the last fifteen years of his life, Dr. Langley's primary interest was in making possible man's flight.  In this research he conducted active experiments on the lift and drift of planes, properties of curved surfaces, constructed large steam-driven models as early as 1896, which flew long distances, and finally he attempted to construct a man-carrying machine, which although wrecked in the two trials which it had during his lifetime, was afterwards flown successfully, with additional weight.  In the course of his experiments he and his colleague, Mr. Manly, developed the light gasoline engine, without which the present day flights would be impossible.

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