Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-02
Half Million Photostatic Rec.
ords Collected by DR.. S. F.
Bemis in Two Years.
Documents Throw Much New
Light on Early Events in
Founding Nation.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

6emlS, professor OF history at George
Washington University, who has Just
returned to Washington after two years
labor in the state archives and libraries
Of England. France, Holland, Germany
Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Italy
Austria and Russia.
DR.. Bemis was director Of the Euro
! pean mission of the Library Of Con-
greSs, financed by John D. Rockefeller
| jr., to make available to historical re-
search workers in the United States
the great quantity Of widely scattered
material necessary In reconstructing an
adequate picture of the growth of the
The documents include diplomatic
correspondence between agents In the
United States and their home govern
/ ments, immigration records of European
ports, military and naval papers, rec
ords of missionary and propaganda So
| cietieS and numerous letters from indi-
viduals. Much of the material still Is
unexpected and for years to come will
! furnish a wealth of information to stu
dents Of specific phases OF American
! development.
Finds Much Material.
! DR.. BemiS, Pulitzer prize winner in
| American history and a recognized au-
| thority on the diplomatic history Of the
country, encountered nearly everywhere
on the continent masses Of unpublished
material. While this has been gener-
! ally available In the past to American
! students i has been necessary for them
! to 60 to Europe, locate it for themselves,
comply with the requirements of differ
ent countries and private owners for
examining it, examine great many lr-
! relevant documents and handle papers
/ often very fragile and difficult to read,
| because of the stains of years.
Much Of the material deals with revo-
lutionary and personal---very. history.
| From the British records Office DR..
Bemis secured more than 1000 photo
! stats Of the correspondence Of Gen.
Gage, the British commander in the
| colonies at the outbreak of the Revolu-
ton, including his reports between 1853
and ITS to the cabinet, the treasury.
the judge advocate general, the pay
! master of the army and the Indian de-
partment. The Gage papers are expect
ed to throw much light on side of the
Revolution which has been little I'M
! derstood. as seen through the eyes of
| one of the chief actors. Gage made
copies Of nearly all his letters.
Diplomatic Correspondence.
| Bemis also secured in London photo
| stats of the dispatches and instructions
| of the English diplomatic represent
atives in the United States through
| 1887. and also made duplicates for the
| Canadian government. The material
also includes AZ volumes of West Flor
| ida papers, with all the legislative acts
and minutes of the Council and As
| sembly of the colony.
Perhaps the most colorful of all the
British material is a mass Of papers
secured, with the cooperation Of Brit
iSh museum authorities, from libraries
of England, Scotland, Wales and Ire
land, dealing with the activities OF va
rious societies in the colonies. This
includes the papers of the Anti-Slavery
and AborigineS Protection Society and,
from the library of Trinity College,
Dublin, the papers of the Society for
the Propagation of the Gospel in For
! eign Parts. In this material are in
cluded the letters of the missionaries
who preceded the march of civilization
westward, making close observations on
the life of the Indians and OF the
pioneers.
the Gospel papers throw much new
light on the founding of Williamsburg,
va, and of William and Mary College,
Of particular interest at this time when
the old town is being restored to its
pre- Revolutionary condition with the
financial assistance of Mr.. Rockefeller.
$4,000 French Papers.
From the Paris archives and libraries
DR.. Bemis secured reproductions OF
nearly $4,000 papers, many OF them
dealing with the French and Indian
Wars. the French settlements IN Can
ada, reports of missionaries and much
correspondence on the French partlci-
patton in the American Revolution: II.
Bemis also explored six provincial IL
braries-at Lyons, Carpentras, Amen
Provence, Avignon, MarSeilles and Tou-
lon-for American historical material.
Perhaps the most valuable discovery
in France was the correspondence be
tween George Washington and the
Chevalier de Ia Luzerne, French Min
lister to the Colonies during the ReVoiu-
ton. with whom the American COM
mander conducted most Of his negotla-
lions for French military and naval
,, support.
Seldom has the desperate plight OF
the little Colonial Army been pictured
in darker colors than by Washington In
these hitherto unrecorded letters.
II need use no argument to convince
vour excellency," he writes on Septem-
Der -. 1880, "of the extremity to which
our affairs are tending. You are an
eyewitness to all our perple&ities and
all our wants. You know the danger
Gus consequences of leaving the enemy
in quiet possession of the Southern con-
quests, either for negotiations this Win
ter or for the continuance OF the war.
You know our inability to expel them
alone or perhaps even to stop their ca
reer."
Washington's Forces.
And on April 20, 1882, Washington
wrote to De la Luzerne: 1T will be
scarcely necessary to inform you that
our military establishment for the pres
emit wear consists of four regiments Of
artillery. four legislative and two parti-
Fan corps and so regiments Of infantry.
besides the corps of ihvalids. Congress
has called upon each State to compleat
its regiment to the establishment, the
AGGREGATE of which would amount to
AZ 3O8 men. exclusive of commissioned
officers. sergeants and musicians. The
present totality of the rank and file
amounts to 9146. I would not be
candid If I did not acknowledge that
I do not expect 1t to be increased by
recruits in the course of the campaign
to more than 10000 fit for duty In the
field"
In France DR.. Bemis secured also
photostats of the French diplomatic
correspondence in the United States
through the year 1914. There also are
hitherto unpublished letters from La
fayette. Jefferson, De Grasse and others.
In Holland photostats were secured
a. Observation-Disclosures of Tnltch dif1lO-