Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1897-04-13
YORKTOWN MANUSCRIPTS,
Papers That Relate to the Siege and
Surrencler


Curiously enough, after 115 wears,
a collection of manuscripts relating TO
the siege of Yorktown has recently
turned up in Paris. These comprise
a contemporary copy Of Count de
hochcm5cea's oy'a diary. fTcn the
time the French armies left the Hud-
son, the 18th of August, to the sur
render of Yorktown, on the 18th of
October, 1881. Accompanying this,
written by different hand. but in
closed in the same cover, is diary of
the siege by one of the engineer Off
GERS, and most beautfully-executed
manuscript map in colors Of York
town and vicinity
The siege and surrender of York
town were one of the most important
events in the history of America.
Many accounts, by different eye
witnesses are eytant, manuscript and
printed, perhaps the most valuable
of all being the diary of George
Washington, the original manuscript
of which is in the state department
at Washington. After Washington,
perhaps the most trustworthy account
would be that of Count de Rocham-
beau. 1t is known that he was very
careful to keep copies of his CORE
spondence, both for himself and for
the department of war in France, but |
his diary of the Yorktown campaign |
was never published until it was in
cluded in Doniol's great compilation
of documents relating to the gaining
of Americana independence, published |
nbout ten years ago, under the aus
pices of the French government, and |
even to this day it has never been
printed, except greatly abridged, in
English A small part of it appeared |
in the Gazette dc France, a few days
after the news of the surrender
reached Paris, and this abridgement |
was translated and published in Eng
dish in the Pennsylvania Gazette and
an Almon's Remembrancer shortly
after.
The day after the surrender Roch-
ambeau sent a copy Of his Journal by
the hand Of the Duke de Lauzun to
the French minister of war, Segur,
and week later duplicate dispatches
were sent in another ship, Count dc
Deux-Ponts being the bearer. These
two officers had shown the most cour-
age in the siege, and were thus re-
warded. The existence is not known
OF either of these original dispatches.
A copy of Rochambeau's journal is
an the French archives in Paris, and
another, Rochambeau's own, proba-
bly,, is in the library of the depart
ment of state in Washington, pro-
cured with the Rochambeau papers,
bought by the United States govern
ment from the heirs of Count de |
Rochambeau. 1t may be, and, indeed, |
ut seems quite probable, that this
series of manuscripts which has been
recently discovered, and which has
been secured by Messrs. Dodd, Mead
* Co, of New York city, are the
original papers, which we're carried
over by Count de Deux-Ponts. They
are net, however, in his autograph,
but in that of some unknown per-
son, probably clerk.
The map which accompanies these
two manuscripts is on large scale,
and most beautifully drawn by an ex-
pert, no doubt one of the French en-
gineers, and it seems probable that !
at was drawn to accompany official {
to the French government.
There is no duplicate of it among
the many maps in the Rochambeau ,
collection.-St Louis Republic.