Omaha daily bee., 1897-07-04
THE INMOR AL DECLARAIlON
Americas Charter Of Liberty an Il.egible
Document.
DUE TO CARELESS GUARDIANSHIP
The Autographs OF the Founders Of
TIA" Republic Ended B"p"nh the
Possibility of Rrstorntion--
Locked - I'm IA Safe.

The original Declaration of Independence.
Of which bancroft the hs.orIan, said that
It had "receIvcd renoRn more extended
than that Of any other state paper In ez-
lstencc," has faded aHay beyond the pos
s!bility of restoration. The names Of the
f!gnefs to This great charter 0. American
liberties are no longer Iegibie. Af:sr ll8
years Of careless guardianship, in various
custodies-durng the greater portion Of
which period it Was thJlghtlcssIy exposed
to destroying influences Of light and air and
needless handllug-nDw when the irreEara-
bic havoc IS done, ana the precious arcn.ye
has become hardly more than a blank and
wr.nkIei sheet Of parchment, sO.icitude FOR
its preservation has begun 70 be felt. and
at last 1t is cared for a. it should have been
cared ior years ago.
1t my privilege some time since. says
a writer In tho Washington star 10 see and
touch this precious document. II Is kept
! locked up In a steel safe In the library o!
the Department OF State. Il IS spread out
fiat in mahogany portfolio. made 10 slide
In and out Of the safe, and over It ls a
! sheet OF thick paper and a plate Of glass.
II IS now never exposed 10 the light, all!
is as Iitte exposed to the air as Is possible
without placing it in a vessel from which
the atmosphere has been exhausted.
THE FAMOUS DOCUMENT.
The document Is a single sheet Of parch
ment. thirty.siN lEches long and thi.ry-two
inches wide, and bears no scrolls or deco T.
tiJus such as ace seen upon many OF the
copies that are so common. The body Df the
writing having been eysuly and clearly writ
ten when the instrument "as engrgse-d has
faded evenly but it can hardly b. made yu-
while the signatures, which We're written
perhaps. with a different ink ana another
rg4v FnHa Larr ts -
them beng wholly gone and others partly so.
The heavy stoke OF the pen IN the j. o;
John Hancock bold autograph S sgil visible
but that is the only line that s distinct.
The history OF the origin OF this great
state paper is we'll known 10 most Americans
bur is always interesting The story OF the
varied and disastrous fortunes Of the docU-
ment itself during the past one hundred an
ei2hte years is l. - known. and Is -e . t-ll.
On the 26th OF June, lII6. 4 committee
Of which Thomas Jefferson was chairman.
Was appointed by the Continental CD.g-ess.
then sitting az Philadelphia 70 draft a dec
lIration setting forth the reasons why the
thirteen colonies should become independent
Cf England Jefferson Was requested by the
other members OF the committee 70 prepare
the draft, and his draft When Presented was
al once approved by a majority OF the com
mitttc few verbal alterations only being
suggested. On July . copy OF this draf- wds
laid before congress and, after hot debate
of three DAYS few sentences We're stricken
out, and the declaration was then adopted
~ ""s al ""'' 'Hss. e" "fo- '|' !D~."a Ut
~. 1o1tI I'sa' u"t 'us eng - .o,a .,
P''.hI'ns' Naa 10. f'efaI'H ana S'5"e@ uu'
august
curing 'ht hISt t"'A -FOUR ssafg ot rs
existence the declaration MAS preserved
sthoHs me aFeANTs OF Eav government al
fh'la"eiPh anu during A' or psll OF ira.
llht II MAS NhdouoltlR 'nAea n.y. AS 10
shows by the cracks .n the parchnrnt t0at
II must nave been follea Ios long PERIOD
and II Is known that sabselu nt 70 that time
II "as hung mp exposed % public gaze.
MAS BROUGHT TO WASHINGTON.
When IN the wear 1900 the national gov
ernmept Was trensfrrrel 10 WASHINGTON
IN. uscIarsfiop Was carried there uai de-
posted in the Department OF state waer-
1t remained for forty one years In the