Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1897-10-07
YORKTOWN MANUSCRIPTS.
Papers That Relate to the Siege and Sur
render Of the Town.

Papers That Relate to the Siege and Sur
render of the Town.
Ouriously enough, after Ito years,
collection of manuscripts relating to
the siege of Yorktown has recently
turned up in Paris, These comprise
contemporary copy of Count de 10
chambeau' own diary from the time the
French armies left the Hudson, the 10th
Of August, to the surrender Of York
town, on the 10th of October, 1881. Ac-
companying this, written by different
hand, but inclosed in the same cover,
is a diary of the siege by one OF the en-
gineer officers and most beautifully
executed manuscript map in colors OF
Yorktown and vicinity.
The siege and surrender of Yorktown
were one Of the most important events
in the history Of America. Many ao-
counts by different eyewitnesses are ex-
tant, manuscript and printed, perhaps
the most valuable of all being the diary
Of George Washington, the original
manuscript of which is at the state de-
partment at Washington. After Wash
ington, perhaps the most trustworthy
account would be that OF Count dc
Rochambeau. It is known that he was
very careful to keep copies Of his cor
respondence, both for himself and for thu
department of war in France, but hi
diary Of the Yorktown campaign wa
never published until it was included
in Doniol's great compilation OF docu
ments relating to the gaining OF Amer
lean independence, published about tel
years ago, under the auspices OF tn
French government, and even to this da.
it has never been printed, except greati
abridged, in English. A small part OF
appeared in the Gazette de France
few days after the news of the surrende
reached Paris, and this abridgmen
was translated and published in Englls
in the Pennsylvania Gazette and in A
mons Remembrancer shortly after.
The day after the surrender Rochan
beau sent copy Of his journal by tn
hand of the Duke de Lauzun to tt
French minister of war, Segur, and
week later duplicate dispatches wei
| S6uG III duUtuCl snip, oAO ONAo
Deux-Ponts being the bearer. These tW
officers had shown the most courage
the siege and were thus rewarded. III
existence is not known of either OF the
4 original dispatches.
A copy of Rochambeau's journal Is
! the French archives in Paris, and a
other, Rochambeau's own, probably,
in the library of the department OF sta
in Washington, procured with the r
chambeau papers bought by the Unit
States government from the heirs
] Count de Rochambeau. It may be, an
indeed, it seems quite probable, tn
l this series of manuscripts which b
l been recently discovered and which b
j been secured by Messrs. Dodd, Mead
. Co. of New York city are the origin
= papers which were carried over
- Count de Deux-Ponts. They are NJ
ur however, in his autograph, but in tt
al of some unknown person, probably
p clerk.
+, The map which accompanies tn
or two manuscripts is on large scale
most beautifully drawn by an expe
no doubt one Of the French enginee
and it seems probable that it was ORA
to accompany official dispatches to
French government. There is no duI
or cate Of it among the many maps in
Try Rochambeau collection. st. Louis
~ m hlic