River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1915-07-08

Facts About the Declaration of
independence.
SIGNING OF THE DOCUMENT.
The Last Name, Thomas Mexican, to
Go on the Precious Parchment Was
Not Appended Until 1781-The Meek
Ienburg and Maryland Declarations.

Of the ffty-six men who finally af-
fixed their signatures TO the Declare
ton of Independence, document that
beralded the birth of a nation, to the
lives, their fortunes and their sacred
honor, none was SO old as to be liza
BILE to a suspicion of senility and
few SO young that they might be &C
cused Of immaturity Of judgment.
Even John Hancock, rather a rowing
blade and none too stable in his per
sonal habits and predictions, was
thirty-nine years old when the general
congress met in independence hall.
Philadelphia. to sit in judgment upon
the wording of the historical document.
The oldest man in the assemblage
was Benjamin Franklin, then six
months past his SEVENTEEN birthday.
and the youngest was Thomas Lynch,
Jr., of South Carolina. who was born
Aug. 8, 1749, and was therefore a
month short of being twenty-seven
years old.
The first of the signers of the Dec
laration to die after the execution Of
the instrument was Button Gwinnett
of Georgia, who passed away on May
p Of the following year Charles Car
roll Of Carrollton, Md, lived the longest
after the memorable date. He remain
ed until Nov. ID, 1892.
James Smith Of Pennsylvania was
the only signer who lived to more adj
vanced age than Charles Carroll. He
was ninety-six years old when his life
ended on July IL, 1906. There were
three others who became nonagena-
rians-JOhn Adams of Massachusetts,
who passed away at ninety-one years;
William Ellery Of Rhode Island, at
ninety-three years, and Francis Lewis
of New York, at ninety-One years of
age The youngest to die was Arthur
Middleton Of South Carolina. who was
only forty-four years old at his demise
on Jan /, 1888.
OF the fifty-six signers but seven had
advanced past the age of sixty years
on July 4, 1776 Nine were between
fifty and sixty, there were nineteen
between forty and fifty, the same num-
Der, nineteen, between thirty and for
ty and two below the age of thirty
years. The average age was 1887
years.
But, contrary to popular belief, the
Declaration of Independence was not
signed on July A, 1776. AS matter of
fact, the last signature was not APP
pended until five years later, in 1871.
Thomas Mexican, member from Del
aware, who had been present on July
1. 1776, but absent with the army at
the general subscription of said instru-
ment" applied for permission to sign.
An act was then passed permitting him
to afflx his signature, and "he added
thereto the date of such subscription
Another delegate, Matthew Thornton
Of New Hampshire. who had been
present at neither the reading on July
nor at the later date Of general sub
scrption, presented his credentials on
Nov 4. 1776, and was permitted to
sign.
It was the first reading of the Dec
laration of Independence that occurred
on July 4, and the tentative draft pre-
scented by the committee previously ap-
pointed to draw up such a document
was approved by all the members pres
ent. No resolution was passed until
July TO- when it was Resolved. That
the declaratio passed on the 4th be
fairly engrossed on parchment, with
the title, ETC., and that the same, when
engrossed, be signed by every member
Of congress-" Two weeks later, the
engrossing having been duly accom-
pished. the members of congress then
present signed it.
Another fact in connection with the
Declaration of Independence which we
venerate is that it is neither the first
nor the only Declaration of 1ndepend-
ence from the rule of Great Britain
that was made in her North American
colonies
More than a year before the framing
of the document which we cherish. on
May 20, 1775, a convention was held
at Charlotte, n. G.. and an instrument
declaring freedom from the rule Of
Treat Britain was drawn up ana sign
ed This was the famous Mecklenburg
declaration. the original Of which was
unfortunately destroyed by fire in 1900
1t was reconstructed from memory,
and this copy" is still preserved.
But even before this the colonies
wrote a Declaration of Independence.
The patriots of Hartford county, Nd.
gathered themselves together at Har-
ford Town. which is now called Bush,
on March 20. 1775. On the same day
they prepared and signed a Declara-
ton of Independence, probably the first
one ever made by the colonies or any
part OF them. in formal. written form.
The document is still in existence
New York Sun.