Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1826-10-13

! WdshWgton's FdyetceH .address--The His
torical Society Of Pennsylvania have issued Par,
I'd OF the LIST vol. of their Memoirs. The frs,
pages consist OF series of papers relative to the
Faiedlctory Address of President WAsHiNGroN
IN winch II Is aoundanly, conclusively proved tina,
ne was The real author of that compositon--a facl
wnch. 10 the eyes of some persons, had been in
voIved IN doubt, by the discovery of an amended
| copy In the handwriting of General HAMILror
! the venerable JOHN JAY bears the following tes-
timony on the subject:
Some time before the address appeared. Co
lionel afterwards GENERALLY Hamilton informed me
tnst ne had received letter from President Wash
ington, and with it the draft ola Farewell Address,
winch The President had prepared, and on which
ne requested our opinion He then proposed tina,
we should nix on day for an interview at nv
mouse on the subject A day was accordingly APP
pointed, and on that day Col. Hamilton attended.
ne observed to me in words to this effect, that,
ai'er having read and examined the draft, il ap-
peared to him to be susceptible of improv ement -
| ihat he thought the easiest and best way was to
ieave the draft untouched and in its fair state and
to write the whole over with such amendments.
| alterations, and corrections, as he thought were
advisable, and that he had done so; he then pro-
posed 10 read II, and 10 make it the subject of our
consideration. This being agreed to, he read il.
ana we proceeded deliberately TO discuss and con-
s'uer ~, paragraph by paragraph, until the whole
| d..
ments Were made during the interview, but none of
much Importance
| Although this business had not been hastily
despatched, yet, aware OF the consequence of such
paper, suggested The giving further critical
examination; but he declined it, saying he was
pressed Tor time, and was anxious 10 return the
draft to the President without delay
| " IL afterwards occurred TO me that certain
proposition was expressed in terms too general
and unqualified; and limited it in letter to the
PRESIDENT. As the business took The course above
mentioned, recurrence TO the draft was unneces-
sary, audit was not read There was th, adyan-
tase IN the course pursued the draft remained as
deiicacy required fair and obseured by inter
nheauons, &c by comparing it with the paper
sent WIN 1t, he would Immediately observe the
particular cancellations and corrections that were
proposed, and would find them standing in their
intended places Hence he was enabled to re-
view, and 20 decide on the whole matter, With
much greater clearness and facility than if he had
received them in separate and detached notes. and
with detailed references to the pages and lines,
where they were advised to be introduced -
Proof equally decisive is supplied in letter
from Mr.. ID. Z. CLAYPo0LE, who, as editor of
the American Daily Advertiser the paper in
which the Address first appeared received the
autograph from Washington, which he still retains.
and thus describes:
- The manuscript copy consists of 80 pages of
quaito letter paper, sewed together as book and
with many alterations; as, in some places, whole
paragraphs are erased, and sfhers substituted, in
others, many lines struck out; in others, senten
ces and words erased. and others nterlined in their
stead. The tenth, eleventh, and sixteenth pages
are almost entirely expunged, saving only few
INES; and one halt OF the 3lst page also efaced
a critical examination will show that the whole
IRON the first TO the last, with all its numerous
corrections, was the work of the same hand; and
can confidently affirm, that no other pen ever
touched the manuscript in my possession j.
than that OF the great and good man whose sigma
ture il bears. NM Hoo