The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1919-07-04

der the supervision Of the committee
previously appointed to prepare 1t, and
that copies thereof be distributed to
all state assemblies and to the conf
manding officers Of the army.
In accordance with the above or.
der, the Declaration was issued as a
printed broadside on July 5, with the
heading: 'In Congress, July a, 1776.
A Declaration by the Representatives
of the United States of America In
General Congress assembled" It
bore the name in print Of John Ham
cock, president Of the congress, and
was attested by Secretary Charles
Thomson, but bore no other names.
On July 10 it was resolved in con-
gress:
"That the Declaration passed on the
fourth be fairly engrossed on parch-
ment, with the title and stile (style)
Of The unanimous declaration of the
thirteen United States of America,
and that the same, when engrossed,
be signed by every member Of con-
gress."
1t could not have been headed
Unanimous" on July 4, for the New
York delegates had not then been au-
thorized to agree to 1t, and 1t was not
until July Is that it was announced
in the continental congress that the
assembly of New York had approved
the Declaration, and thus made it
unanimous.
On August 2, 1776, the Declaration
Of independence, being engrossed and
compared, was signed by the mem
bers; those who were not present on
August 2 affixing their signatures at
later dates, all but one signing before
January Is, 1777.
It has been ascertained that of the
f1fty-six signers, more than one-fourth
were not present on July 4, 1776, and
seven Of them-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 Al
sop, r. r. Livingston, Henry Wisner,
Thomas Willing, Charles Humphreys
and John Rogers-had not the prfvi-
lege of becoming "signers," for the
membership of all but one had ceased
prior to August 2.
The first official issue of the Dec
laration bearing the names of the
sfgners was printed as a broadside In
Baltimore under the resolution of
Too,,or,, 10 1777 ordar,pp thot oopfoa
be sent to each Of the United States.
There are only four copies of this is
sue now known to exist, one Of which
is in the library of congress at Wash
ington. 1t is authenticated in writing
by John Hancock as president Of con-
gress and attested by Secretary Thorn
son.
Contrary to popular opinion, there
fore, 1t is seen that the Declaration
was not signed on July 4, the day 1t
passed, but between August 2, 1776,
and January IS, 1777. after 1t had
been engrossed and compared, and
then only by 55 members, all of whom
were ordered to do so by the resolu-
ton passed July 10, 1776. The name
of Thomas Mexican. which does not
appear among the signers In the
printed copy, was added later-pos-
sbly not until 1881, making the fifty
sixth signer.
But little has ever been done to
perpetuate the memory of these 30
early Americans, only few of whom
are well-known,' but it is interesting
to know that the National Society Of
the Sons of American Revolution, in
cooperation with the Society of De-
scendants of the signers is locating
the graves of those patriots, and pre-
pairing a memorial volume to include
a biography of each individual.