Jefferson mentions that the crates of books have not been received yet, discusses some specific shipments, and warns Hilliard not to exceed his funds for buying books for the University.

Mentions ordering books for the schools of art and modern languages and ancient and modern history. Writes concerning courses in law at the University of Virginia and the need for books, especially Thomas' edition of Coke Littleton published not long since in London. it is the first book which will be put into the hands of our law Students, and will in fact be the elementary book of the school and is therefore the most essential and most immediately necessary... Notes that they will need to order the edition from London and gives a detailed description and how much it would cost. Also requests several other works.

Outstanding Academic Title, Choice, 2015 Winner, Ewell Newman Award of the American Historical Print Collectors Society, 2016 In 1849 the Smithsonian purchased the Marsh Collection of European engravings. Not only the first collection of any kind to be acquired by the new Institution, it was also the first public print collection in the nation, and it presented an important symbol of cultural authority. The prints formed part of the library of Vermont Congressman George Perkins Marsh (1801-1882), a member of the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents. The uncertainty of the Smithsonian's mission in the early years complicated its motivation for purchasing the collection, especially given Marsh’s position as a Regent in financial difficulty. After a serious fire in 1865, portions of the collection were deposited at the Library of Congress and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Efforts to reclaim it began in the 1880s, as a new generation of Smithsonian staff expanded the National Museum, but they achieved only mixed success. Through the story of the Marsh Collection, the book explores the cultural values attributed to prints in the 19th century, including their prominent role in expositions and their influence on visual culture at a time when collecting styles were moving from an individual’s private contemplation of artworks to wider public venues of exposition in museums and reception by multiple audiences. The history of this first Smithsonian collection enlivens an important stage in the development of American cultural identity and in the formation of the Smithsonian as a national institution.