The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-07-05
THE LIBERTY CHARTER
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE M
LONGER EXPOSED TO VIEW.
Age Was Found co Sc whitening the
Famous Parchment and Ii II Now
Sealed I'm Glass and Guarded.

Washington Letter In Baltimore Herald.
Did you ever see the Declaration of Inee-
pendence-the original manuscript? II you
have not you probably never will. for now
II lies in the archives of the State Depart
ment. encased in glass and locked in a
steel vault Unless you have some extraor-
binary reason for viewing II, the custodian
VIII not show IL TO you. To be sure. faith
full reproduction of the famous document
hangs in an upright glass case in the show
room OF the State Department. This room
is part or the library, aud many valuable
historic relics are on view there. Three and
half years ago the original Declaration
hung in the case where the fac-simile ap-
pears to-day. A short time before il had
been proposed to take ii to the worlds fair
at Chicago. The managers of the fair were
extremely anxious to secure II; there was
even talk OF shipping 1t in special car I'M
! der guard of squad OF United States regu-
lars. but the secretary of state would not
consent. 1t was within his discretion to let
any Of the state papers go to Chicago. and
| he did send some very precious manuscripts
there but the Declaration, he said, had
| too great a value to be subjected to auy
| risk.
~~~0~~-~F0@@
/ ination of the document. 1t is on parch-
| ment, which does not deteriorate much
| with the lapse of time. but the librarian
! reported that the ink, which had been ex-
posed to bright light for many years showed
| signs of fading. So in February, 1894 the
parchment was taken from its frame put
between sheets of glass. sealed In hermet-
ically, slowed away in the steel vault, and
there it lies. beside the original of the Com
stitution OF the United States and the ap-
peal of the colonists TO King George. The
copy answers all ordinary purposes and, as
| the text OF the Declaration has been verified
and reproduced again and again, there Is no
longer any real need to consult the original.
| 1t Is taken out only at long intervals 10 be
shown TO some distinguished visitor.
The Declaration of Independence Is but
one OF many original manuscripts of great
| value belonging to the State Department.
| Some OF these manuscripts, of course, are
| priceless. millionaire collector would give
| a fortune TO own the Declaration OF indie
1 pendence, and think he was getting IL CHEAP.
| The manuscript of the Constitution, too is
| priceless Many of the other documents.
| however. have a measurable money value
| In fact. some of them were purchased by the
| government. Among the most important
| papers are the records of the Continental
Congress which have always belonged to the
/ government. They were transferred TO the
State Department by an act passed Sept.
| would probably be worth 10000 IL they
| could be put on the market.
| SPARKS COLLECTION.
In 1884 and 1Sl9 Congress bought the
Sparks collection of washingtoniana. The
two appropriations made for the pur-
pose aggregate $4,000, and the papers
would be cheap at many times that
sum. to-day. Half a century ago coll
lectors of manuscripts were few, and the
government met with little competition in
bidding for the Sparks collection.
Il In
offered to the government by his family. and
it was purchased for $4,000 Later I'm the
| same year $1,000 was appropriated for the
| purchase Of Jeffersons papers and a ike
abount for Hamilton's. In the year follow
other appropriation was made by Congress
Tor similar purpose until 1882 when Henry
| stevens of London, offered for sale a col
| lection of Franklin's papers, and the gov
eminent paid $4,000 for them
AS an evidence OF the cEespness Of the
| FRANKLIN with the Washington papers shows
| mat the government paid $500 for thirty
sss Toumes IN the one case and $4,000 for
I $50 volumes in the other. But this is not con-
elusive for the Franklin volumes contain
many more manuscripts than the Washing
| ton volumes The earlier collectors of manu-
| scripts scattered them through many VOL
| umes For several years past the librarian
OF me State Department has been busy con-
| view TO putting it all in fifty volumes In
| us original form Ii was larger than all the
otner COLLECTIONS put together. emitting the
| records or the Continental Congress The
| whole number of volumes of manuscripts
| was ga. and OF these 800 contained the Com
| gressional records.
| All these documents with the axca,tto,,
| Oh the three already named as being i'm
ine steel vault are kept i'm cases i'm the
| library. mink of keeping "A million dol
lars worth of papers which could not
| possibly be replaced in a wooden case
bbe pen nd glass doors! Yet the department
| scripts. In fact with the exception OF
such unique. rarity as the great dia-
mond Of the Nizam of Hyderabad, which
| was reported as stolen recently. nothing
| In the form of property would be so
certain o. Identification If offered for
| sale as one OF these documents. They
| have this further advantage, the diamond
| might possibly be broken up and sold piece
meal without Identification, while the manu-
| scripts could be identified line by line and
| word for word, even IL each were torn in
fragments. The State Department has a
most important of them were copied and
published by order Of Congress some years
CLERKS TURN THIEVES.
Yet not long ago. two young clerks OF
the Library of Congress stole from the r.
brary some OF the valuable manuscripts
which belonged to the Toner collection.
They were offered to collectors in New
York, and some of them were sold to W. r.
| Havemeyer; but the dealers who handled
them suspected that they belonged to the
government and notified the authorities.
This brought about an investigation. which
resulted in the apprehension of,the thieves.
| The same thing would happen IL any Of the
| documents in the State Department were
stolen. For this reason the clerks who
have occasion to handle the papers are
| trusted almost implicitly From the van
dial visitor the manuscripts are protected
by Waterman, who sits In the library
| during business hours and by other
watchmen who patrol the halls at half
| hour intervals when the department Is
| closed.
None of these documents can be taken
away without a special order from the
secretary OF state. In fact, none OF the
manuscripts have left the department
building since its completion. except In 1893
when some Of them were shipped TO the
Two manuscript volumes, however. were
| taken TO Philadelphia by the foreman In
charge OF the work Of restoring the docu-
| ments. There they were "inlaid' by ex-
perts. whose business is the restoration Of
| manuscripts which have become ragged
through age and wear. These two docu-
ments were Washington's school and copy
book and his diary. The 'inlaying" consist
ed In sketching the outline OF each page on a
| sheet Of heavy paper, cutting out all the
paper within this outline except a very mar
row margin. splitting the paper TO the
depth OF this margin and gluing the edges
of the paper into the split edge Of the frame.
BY this process both sides of each page
were left exposed and the. pages were