New-York tribune., 1891-05-15
JOHN DICKINSON.
NEGLECTED PATRIOT.

torical Society Of Pennsylvania. BY Charles j.
Stiile, LII d. svo Qp. xL' aS'. fhiiaaeiphia'
J. b. Lnpincot Company.
The comparative neglect which has befallen the
memory Of John Dickinson is not altogether unin-
telgibe regards the Nation at large. but 1t GER
ainly is singular that the State Of Pennsylvania which
he served so long and WELL should have waited untii
Row to DO something toward his rehabilitation. Dr.
stiile very frankly declares that "perhaps one reason
for this neglect may be found expressed In the re-
proachful words of the late Horace Bnney, man VINO
fled the measure Of his country's famc as he dld
that of the city Of his birth, and who when referring
to the attitude of Philadelphia to her great men. says
aShe has been hitherto and perhaps immemonaiy' ih
different nsensibie 10 the abilities OF her sons WHO
have gained their first public consideration elsewhere
She Is wanting In civic personality, or what Is per-
haps better phrase for the thought family unity or
identity. She does not take and she never has
taken, satisfaction In habtuaIiy honoring her dis
tngushed mcn as her men. as men OF her own famiy'
1t Is the city that is referred TO as distinguished per-
haps from the rest Of the State she has never done
10 In the fnoe Of the world, Charleston has done To-
rs Richmond has done It, as Baltimore has done It, as
NcwYork has done It, o, al least did II in former
times and as Boston has done It, and would do 1t for
sver She is Indifferent to her own sons than shs
Is to strangers The Historical Society Of Pcnnsy[
vana however, has determined to remove the grounds
for this reproach In one case at least and the memoir
before us prepared to accompany the first really full
published In 1901, under his own supervision, was
very detective, and though during the ninety years
which have interviewed many valuable papers have
been scattered lost the new collection VIII. 1t Is
contain much material inaccessible to the
public hitherto.
The purpose of Dr. stille has been twofold First
he has aimed at presenting fullength portrait Of his
subject such has not existed so far and, second
he has sought to remove false and injurious i'm
pressions regarding Dcknson's public conduct; i'm
@Onr
their material from the mouths of the statesman's
bittcrest enemies. AS regards the main charges
brought against him, all of which are embodied in
the letters of Valerius the "Vindcatonn which Dick
inson wrote at the time furnishes full and conclusive
answer. 1t was, however, very necessary that the
whole OF the surrounding circumstances should be set
forth authortavey, and that the true character OF
the vaIerius letters. above all, should be exposed
The present generation may not be ehicaly superior
TO that In which Dickinson lived, but II is at least
80 much advanced that 10 would not condemn a dog
upon evidence of the kind brought against that dis
tinguished man. Yet it is ON injustice TO his own
contemporaries to imply that they condemned him
on such evidence. AS matter Of fact they heard
the evidence but they attached no weight to It,
and the best proof Of this is that they elected MIN
TO the highest Office In the State while the venomous
letters OF his anonymous defamer were still Issuing
from the press.
There are two principal counts in the Indictment
in both. He is denounced for having opposed the
Issue OF the Declaration Of Independence and further
for having deserted his country by withdrawing from
the Continental Army, in which he held commission
as colonel The first count is very easily disposed
of now, but over hundred years ago mems passions
were inhamed to such pitch that few were able to
reason calmly to do equity in their political udg
ments John Dickinson did oppose the Declaration
OF Independence and the ground thai its issue was
premature But in taking this position he was
thoroughly consistent with himself and was certainly
well within his rights. His patriotism could not be
called in question by deliberate suppression and
perverson Of the truth and the facts. DIR. Stlle
finds no difficulty in establishing this conclusivcly.
John Dickinson by temperament cautious and
conservative. His legal training had prepared him
TO estimate public events from the constitutional
point of view. During the controversies which
heralded the Revolution he thus inevitably took his
stand upon precedent and law and was not in sympathy
with the wild, vague and irrational school whose
writers rested their arguments upon an imaginary and
non-existent Hgment called "natural equities" This
school, Dr. Stlc points out with proper emphasis
for tho exposition is essential to apprehension Of the
situaton-was largely recruited from the ranks of the
NewEngland clergy. This class had so long ruled
New England that 1t could not willingly rellnquish
its authority. Ignorant Of law, 1t had grounded its
claims upon its right TO interpret and apply the
Scriptures. Its aim was TO govern theoretically
and to this end 1t taught that magistrates needed ne
knowledge Of the law, but that they to be
guided In all difficulties by the advice Of the clergy
which advice In turn rested upon the word Of God
According to this doctrine, study OF the constitution
quito unnecessary, and in It's place substituted
the phantom of natural equities, which derived
from the new philosophy Of Rousseau.
Dickinson being a really sound lawyer-lIaving re
ceived his legal tlalnng In tho London Inns o.
Court-coud not accept the ecclesiastical views
which, moreover. must plainly be ineffective wher
brought In contact with the arguments of the British
Crown lawyers. The colonial masses however, wert
quite incompetent to form judgment in the premises
Whatever sounded well was plausible to them, and
the wagner an argument the ii appealed to the
unframed intelligences So the loose and iITatona
side Of the controversy found plenty Of supporters
and 1t was left for men like John Dickinson, whC
understood the situation and who perceived the veal
points In the for the Crown, to enlighten TIN
colonies TO the true nature of the rights attacked
and of the abuses attempted This important service
Dickinson performed In his famous Farmers Letters
the publication Of which probably Gid more than al
else to open the popular mind and to dissipato th
clouds Of sophistication with which ignorant coun
sellors had befogged and confused the whole matte
in issue. Had he done nothing else, the writing o
these letters would have entitled him TO an mportan
place in American history but he did very much more
HIS course opposition TO the Stamp Act exercised
great influence. In the Continental Congress he oc
cupied q leading place lie it was who drew up tf
famous Declaration Of the Causes Of Taking VI
Arms, WHICH was lOr d ulnt ueOilDcu Vo JCHerSOu
The attitude which he assumed upon the Declaration
OF Independence is doubt in part attributable b
his natural conservatism, but still moro to tho pc
cular relations of Pennsylvania.
DR.. stille has shown very clearly that the pre-
vaing opinion in that province was for long tim
against the destruction of the Proprietary Govern
ment and that the change to approval Of independ
ence was In a large measure forced upon reluctan
people by the adoption Of extralegal measures neve
really ratified by the public. Where Dickinson erc
was In being too optimistic. lie continued to DC
lieve reconciliation compromise possible long aftc
II had ceased to be so; and this was because he ha
too much confidence in the equity and justice Of tn
English Government and Crown. In refusing 10 az
prove the issue Of the Declaration of Independence
however he represented the then dominant view G