Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-04-27

Presbyterian pa"son who was so prominent
in the Continental Congress.
For other reasons than those advanced
by Dr. Hamlin the statue of Gen. Mcclellan
was located farther Up Connecticut avenue,
and soon that change was determined
upon he and Gen. Foster took steps to raise
funds for a Nitherspoon monument. No
public appeal was made for funds, but SeV-
eral wealthy members of the Presbyterian
denomination were invited TO subscribe
thousand dollars each. and Mrs. John Hay,
Mrs. Stanley Matthews. John W. Foster.
f. Southland Parker and Senator Eikins of
Washington, Representative William b. Nc
kiney of Illinois, John Wanamaker and
John II. Converse of Philadelphia. Andrew
Carnegie and Morris X. Jcssup of New
York, Thomas Morrison and Alexander r.
Peacock of Philadelphia and John Farwell
of Chicago responded promptly. Two other
subscriptions of the same amount, one of
them by lady. were made anony mOusly,
which brings the fund in hand up to the
amount of $1,000 1t is the intention to
raise 81, $50 more. The funds have been de-
posted in the National Metropolitan Bank
of Washington. where they will draw in
terest until Congress has given permission
to place the Statue upon the triangular res
erVation in front of the Church of the Cove
nant, and bronze figure can be designed
and cast. There is already a heroic statue
of Witherspoon in Paramount Par: at Phil
adelphia. The artist for the Washington
statue has not yet been selected, but the
trustees of the fund. Gen. Foster, Mr. Car
negie. Mr.. Jessup and others are now in
conference with several artists
Witherspoon' Patriotism.
There is no statue of my sgner of the
Declaration of independence in Washing
ton, and there is no more worthy subject
for such an honor than John Witherspoon
He was not the only clergyman among the
siSners, but he. with the exception of
+ rankin. Adams and Jefferson. I'M
Il .,,Ilt allI ha mo- inf tlnl Saf
member of that body. He always wore the
distinctive garb of hi profession, frequent
~ officiated at morn ng prayer in the abb
sence of other chaplainS. and sometimes
preached from the DulpitS of the Presby-
terrain churches of PhilGdel phia. Franklin,
Adams and jefferson were members of the
Congress for short period only, and then
went TO other duties. Nitherspoon remain
ed throughout all /. trying period up to
the close Of the war. and II journals show
his activity and usefulness. He served on
the most important committees, first on
that of ways and means: when FRANKLIN
was scat to Paris. took the lattcr's place
on the secret committee of war, and was
chairman of the committee on foreign at
fairs In the latter position ne drafted the
instructions to the diplomatic representa-
tives of the colonies in Europe and pre-
pared the instructions for the plenipoten-
tiaries who concluded peace with Great
Britain. The original manuscript of those
instructions has recently been discovered
and through the energy of Mr. Wortkington
Ford chief of the cl".zion of manuscripts
in the Library of Congress, it is now de-
posted in that building among other i'm
portant papers relating to the early history
of the United States.
John Witherspoon IS a Scotchman,
which may account in some measure for
the great interest Mr. Andrew Carnegie is
taking in the effort to erect the memorial.
In his recent speech at the presen tation of
the three million dollar lake which
Gently dug at his expense for the bene-
fit of the students at Princeton, Mr.. Car
negie pronounced a glowing eulogy upon
John Witherspoon, and quoted Horace Wal
poles declaration in parliament that the
American colonies had run away with
PRESBYTERIAN ministe-. AT the close of
the war a British officer visiting Princeton
wrote of Witherspoon as this political
frebrand who perhaps, haC not less share
in the revolution than Washington HIM
self"
of Unusual Ability.
Witherspoon was the son of Presbyteri-
an country parson and lneal descendant
of John Knox. He entered the University
of Edinburgh at fourteen, and was ordained
as a minister at twenty-one. For fifteen
years he was pastor of the Presbyterian
church at Paisley, in Scotland. where his
ability and strength of character made him
a recognized leader in that denomination,
and before he was thirty years old he was
made a doctor of divinity by the University
of Aberdeen. He inherited a Calvinistic
creed from John Knox and his own father,
but was quite broad in his views. Shortly
after his ordination he published an anony-
NOUS book on theological questions which
created a sensation and controversy. Two
years later he published another volume,
announcing himself the author of the first
and stoutly defending its doctrines.
Throughout his life he was voluminons
writer. His works have been published In
nine large volumes, both in Scotland and
in the United States. The first edition APP
peared in New York and Edinburgh in
1904 His biography has been twice writ
ten, the most complete and thorough hav-
ing been published within the last few