The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-04-10

which it was the capital, was the heady,
high-minded county where the first dec
iaration of independence was made, and
his lordshlp, from uncomfortable expert
ence, soon pronounced Charlotte the "Hor-
nets Nest of North Carolina"
President Andrew jackson also gave this
testimonial. Upon the visit of u Mr.. Bre-
ward Q1insman of the signer), 10 the Her
mltage, in 1928, he said: you know 1
liV ed in Mecklenburg in my youth, and l
nave always taken a special interest In
that region ana its early history. / have
IN the opposite room copy of the Neck
lenDurg declaration of independence, franz
ed and hung up, and think IL well worthy
OF the position" He then ted the way
INTO the room and pointed out copy CT
the declaration, with the signatures at
taehed, printed on satin and in gilt
frame. He said the authorship was al
ways attributed 10 Dr. Ephraim Brevard,
and no allusion was made to any doub,
ever having been expressed as to the au-
tenticity of the document. Gen. Jackson
onquesiionably treated the incident as a
well known fact in the history of that re-
slon of country the memory of which
he desired to perpetuate.
Moreover, certificates are in existence
from number of the signers and spec
tators themselves, among them Isaac AL
eXander, John Davidson, Joseph Graham
- NNiANASs 4heiJ JOun DdNluSOD c6HtlUS6.
am confident that the declaration of
independence by the people of Mecklcn-
Durg was made public at least twelve
months before that of the Congress of the
United States" But perhaps the most
| convincing certificate is that of Capt
James Jack who was the bearer of the
proceedings TO Congress. He says: "I set
1 out the following month June) from Char
| Iotte To Philadelphia, and delivered the
declaration of independence of May, 1915,
! 10 Richard Caswen and William Hooper,
| the delegates from North Carolina. / am
| now in the SSth year of my age and Ie-
| siding in the county of Ebert in the state
| OF Georgia. was in the revolutionary
war from the commencement to the close"
| This certificate is dated 18th December,
1919, in presence of Job Weston, c. 9. O.,
and James Oliver, alto. at law" Capt
Jack was brave, energetic patriot, and
ready TO engage in any duty having for
Its object the welfare and independence
of his country, He rode all the way to
Philadelphia on horseback, that being the
only mode of express" In those primitive
! days.
The first documentary reference to the
Meckienburg declaration,after its adoption
was an amusing poem written by Adam
BreVard, brother of DR.. Ephraim Bre-
ward, in less than two years after the
meeting Of the general committee" in
| Charlotte. The genuineness of this pro-
duction is vouched for by Hon. Lyman
Draper on page 12O of his manuscript work
on the Mecklenburg declaration, and also
by Wheeler, and by Gov Swain, in whose
| possession the poem was at the time of
! his DEATH 'grhe date OF the poem is 18th
| March, III, extends through $50 lines and
| as of unquestionabfe authenticity" so
wrote Gov, Swain to Hon. George Ban
croft on March is, 1858. 1t opens as fol-
| lows:
THE MECKLENBURG CENSOR.
when Mecklenburg's fantastic rabble
| Renowned for censure, scold and gabbe
In Charlotte met in giddy council
! To lay the constitutions ground-sill
BY choosing men both learned and wise,
| Who clearly could with half shut eyes
See millstones through, or spy a plot
| Whether existed such or not;
| Who always could at noon define
! Whether the sun or moon did shine,
! And by philosophy tell whether
| Ii was dark or sunny weather;
| And sometimes when their wits were nice
Could well distinguish men from mice;
First to withdraw from British trust,
In Congress they the very first
| Their independence did declare"
To return to the coincidence in the lam
| guage of the two declarations (Mecklen-
burg and nationaD Gov. Graham says: 1T
is not very strange that men who think
alike should speak alike upon the same
subject, more especially when heightened
patriotic feeling seeks for utterance. No
nation of people ever went to war without
in fact stalking up their lives, fortunes and
honor, and the sentiments embodied by
| Mr. Jefferson were not peculiar to himself,
but adapted by him as expressive of the
common language of that eventful period.
Mr.. Jefferson's love of country was not
bounded by the confines of Virginia, and
il is no discredit to his memory that her in
stitutions, her heroes. and her statesmen
| occupied the first place in his affections.
She was emphatically the mother of great
men-'his own, his native land'-and it is
no matter of surprise that he should be
unwilling, without the most ample proof,
to transfer the brightest page in her his
tory to emblazon the records of sister
state.
So, with the utmost Difference for the
sage of Monticello, and all other doubling
| Thomases, we believe and are prepared to
claim before all the world, that our Neck
lenburg declaration of independence is
neither spurious" or quiz" but a COR
! roborated fact verified by a phalanx of i'm
disputable authority-to say nothing of ira
diticp In addition to the distinguished
names already quoted such men of note
| as JuuSS FRANCIS Manner Martin, Jose oh
Seawell Jones, John Fl. Wheeler, Rev Drs.
Caruther Foote of Virginia, A. T. Smythe
of South Carolina, Francis l.. Hawks, LII.
D., of the Episcopal Church. etc, have
championed the cause of the Mecklenburg
| declaration.
The annual celebrations of the day that
| have for scores of years been observed
also attest its truth. and many have been
the orators from our own and sister states
who have, with glowing eloquence, pro
claimed the glorious history of the proud
est day in the annals of the Old North
stale. It has long been enshrined in the
hearts of the people, not only in Mecklen-
burg, but in the whole state.
Lord CORVALLIS, having dubbed our val
FAINT little town the hornets nest" of
North Carolina, we stil cling to the an
pellation, and have adopted the hornets
nest as onr coat of arms. In every cele-
bration the hornets nest is conspicuous.
and one of our finest military companies
bears the name of the Hornets Nest
Rifiemen,'' while they are Familiarity known
as 1.-The Hornets"
Some years ago, In order to preserve
them from oblivion, the historic spots in