Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-07-03
DECLARATION NOT SIGNED
ON THE FOURTH OF JULY
Names Were Affixed Between August
2, 1870, and January
IL, 1777.
ORIGIN OF THE DOCUMENT
Graves OF Fifty-Six Distinguished
Early American 5 Being Located.
Memorial Volume Giving Biogra-
ply of Each Now in Preparation.

States of tho Union, together with
Porto Rico. Hawaii and Alaska will
celebrate July as Independence Day,
1t is interesting to note how this ma
ton wide holiday came TO be ccle-
hrated, and what it should signify to
all Americans.
July is holiday commern-
Grating tho birthday OF the nation. for
that date. In 1915. the Continental
Congress of tho thirteen colonies OF
America adopted tho Declaration OF In
dependence. which proclaimed them
FREQ and Independent states. absolved
from all allegiance to the British
crown. The original OF this birth GER
tiHcatc," written by hand parch-
ment, and now much worn and faded,
is preserved carefully in air-tight
and light-proof case in the library Of
the Department OF state. Only fac
SMILES arc exhibited today, the oriGi-
nal being far too precious a document
10 risk In the light and air.
facsimile Of the Declaration is on
exhibition in the division Of history
In the older building Of tho National
Museum at Washington, where there
also arc preserved personal relics and
rnemcntos OF several Of tho members
OF the Second Continental Congress
who signed this great resolution.
LEES RI;SOLCTION
OFFERED on JUNE :. 1870
Tho history Of the origin and draft
ing Of the Declaration is Of consider
ablo interest. In the Second Contin-
entail Congress, which was meeting in
Philadelphia, Richard Henry Lee OF
Virginia, on June I. 177G. introduced
the following resolution, which was
seconded by John Adams
"Rcsolver, That these United States
colonies are. and OF right ought To be,
free and Independent Statee; that they
- arc absolvcd from all allegiance TO the
British crown. and that all political
connection between them ard the state
OF Great Britain is. and ought 20 be-
totally dissolved.
That it is cxpedieut forthwith to
take the most ehcctunl measures for
forming foreign alliances.
That plan of confederation b.
prepared and transmitted to the re-
spective Colonies for their appr0ba-
ton"
Consideration of this resolution was
postponed, and on Juno ! Thomas .Iof-
ferson. John Adams, Benjamin Frank
I'm. Roger sherman ana Il. r. Living
.ton were appointed d committee 20
prepare declaration, I" serve as q
preamble TO this independence resolu-
ton. This committee. known AS the
jefferson committee, submitted draft
of the declaration on June 2s, which
was laid on the table for later con-
alteration. On July ], Congress, sit
ting as a committee OF the whole 10
consider the resolution respecting in
dependence. agreed thereto. and report
ed il to Congress.
on July tho resolution itself was
adopted by Congress. and the dcc!ara-
tion was considered by tho commit
toe Of tho whole. being again taken
up the ncrt day. July 3.
COMMITTEE or WHOLE
ADOPTS RESOLUTION
On July the declaration, which in
cludcd tho first paragraph OF the rcso-
luton, was agreed TO by the commit
tee OF the whole, reported 10 Congress.
and adopted. Tho independence Of the
United Colonies thus was declared. and
thcTonpon Congress Immediately or
dcrcd that the declaration be authcn-
ticated and p<ntcd under the super
vision Of the committee previously APP
pointed to prepare il, and that copies
thereof be distributed to all State as
semblies and to the commanding Of
ficers OF the army.
In accordance with the above order,
the declaration was issued as n print
ed broadside on July q, with the head
ing: In Congress, July I. 1876. y
declaration by the Representatives OF
tho United States of America IN gen
cral Congress assembled" Il bore the
name IN print OF John Hancock. pres-
dent OF tho Congress, and was attcstcd
by Secretary Charles Thomson bus
On July la II was resolved in Con-
gross:
That tho declaration passed the 4th.
be fairly enErossed on parchment, with
the title and stile tstylc) Of The unan-
nous declaration OF the thirteen
United states OF America. and that
the same. when cnerosscd. be iGncd
by every member of Congress
It could not have been headed "unan-
imous" on July 4, for the New York
al afno hoI han hTr
lied to agree to It, and it was not until
July Is that 1t was announced in the
Continental Congress that the Assem-
bly, OF New York had approved the
declaration, and thus made it unani-
nous.
On August ., 177G, the Declaration of
Independence, being engrossed and
compared. was signed by the mem
hers. those who were not present on
August 2 aff1Xing their signatures AZ
later dates. all but ono signing before
January Is, 1777.
ALL NOT PRESENT
on FOURTH OF july
1t has been ascertained that of the
ffty-siS signers, more than onc-fourth
, were not present on July 1, I776. and
seven OF thom-Thornton, Williams.
Rush, Clymer, Smith, Taylor and Ross
were not members on that date. On
the other hand. seven members on that
date-George Clinton, John Alsop. Il. II.
willing, Charles Humphreys and John
RoEers-had not tho privilege OF be-
coming sgners, for the membership of
all but one had ceased prior 10 Au-
gust 2.
Tho first official news of tho declara-
ton bearing the names of the signcrs
was printed as n broadslGc in Balti-
more under the resolution Of January
IS, 1777, ordering that copies be sent to
each OF the United States. There are
only four copies of this issue now
known to exist, one of which IS in the
Library Of Congress, at Washington.
1t is authenticated in writing by John
Hancock, as president OF tho Congress,
and attested by Secretary Thomson.
Contrary to popular opinion, there
fore, II is seen that the declaration
was not signed on July H. the day it
passed, but between August 2, 1916, |
and January IS. 1877, after It had been |
ongrossed and compared, and then only
by f1fty-hve membors, all of whom