Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1855-06-02
WAsHINGTON NATIONAL MONUMENTS
EXPOSITION OF THE MANAGERS.
To the Members OF the Washington Ma
tionaI Monument Society through
out the United States.

To the Members OF the Washington Ma
tionaI Monument Society through
out the United States.
II has become the duty of the Board Of Man
ayers 10 inform you Of the causes which disturb
the discharge of the trust conided to them.
This society was established in the city of
Washington in the year 1888, for the purpose,
as stated in its constitution, of erecting great
National Monument TO the memory Of Washing
ton at the seat Of the Federal Government"
For this object the managers and their successors,
chosen under that constitution, solicited and OBJ
tanned funds from individuals, associations, and
public bodies in every part Of the Union, without
distinction of party, Of creed accepted offered
contributions from Indian tribes, and blocks of
marble, with suitable inscriptions, from countries
in the Old World |; and obtained from Congress
authority to build the monument on land be-
longing to the nation, at its metropolis Their
labors have been SO far successful that there, on
the fourth Of July, 1848, in the presence of the
representatives of the people and the States, and
of an assembled multitude, the corner stone Of
the Monument was laid The work, thus aus
piciously commenced, has been diligently prose-
cuted and at the close of the last season, the
collections had amounted to two hundred and
thirty thousand dollars, and the shaft of the monu
ment had reached the height of one hundred and
seventy feet. During the past summer the man
ayers felt it to be their duty to invoke the atten
ton of Congress to the history and prospects of
this pious work. Their memorial was referred
by the House of Representatives. to select com
mittee, of which the Hon. HENRY MAY, of Mary
land, was chairman. This committee, after a
careful examination of the subject, made a re-
port on the 22d of February last, emphatically
approving the conduct Of the managers, and re-
commenting that the sum of two hundred
thousand dollars should be subscribed by Con-
gress on behalf Of the people of the United States
to aid the funds Of the society" The recommen-
dalton was understood to have been acceptable to
the House; but action on it was interrupted by a
plot secretly contrived, and suddenly disclosed,
to reverse the principles which the society
had uniformly acted, and to degrade an enter
prise, sacred to patriotism and humanity, into an
instrument of party or sect. On the very day on
which the select committee made their suspicious
recommendation to the House of Representatives,
crowd Of persons assembled at the City Hall,
and there voted for seventeen individuals, named
in printed ticket, to be officers and managers of
this society. The only previous announcement
OF this proceeding, was notice signed "F. w.
Eckloff, Clerk, w. N. M. Society," and pub
lished on the evening of the 2lst of February, in
the american Organ and the Erening Star, and
on the morning of the 22d in the National Intel
igencer. On the Gath of February, in the last
named paper, the result of the election was pro-
claimed in the following publication
WAsHINGroN N. M. OFFICE
February %, 1856
The. Washington National Monument Society
met, according to the constitution Of said society
and to notices published in the newspapers of this
city, at their office, the Odd of February, 1855,
to elect the officers Of said society," and TO choose
thirteen members, who, with the officers, consti-
tute board Of managers. After being organized,
the society repaired to the council chamber and
proceeded to ballot Messrs F. A. Tucker, D. A.
Gardner, Charles Myers, Jackson Edmundson,
John d. Thompson, and John p White, acting
as tellers, who announced the following as the
result:
Whole number Of votes cast, 755, of which
,Vespasian Ellis, First Vice President, re-