Wythe to James Madison, February 1785
In early 1785, George Wythe wrote to James Madison, enclosing an honorary LL.D. (Legum Doctor, or Doctor of Laws) from the College of William & Mary, in Williamsburg, Virginia.[1] Wythe mentions that honorary degrees have previously been accorded to Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, David Rittenhouse,[2] Edmund Randolph, and John Page.
The text of this letter, and Madison's reply in April, are reproduced in William C. Rives' History of the Life and Times of James Madison (1868-1873), but the letter itself and Madison's diploma seem to have been lost.[3]
Letter text, February, 1785
Page 1
Williamsburg, February, 1785
I have the pleasure, sir, to forward to you the testimony, herewith enclosed, of our university. Distinctions of this kind will, I am persuaded, be not unacceptable, whilst we continue to bestow them on such men as Franklin, Jefferson, Rittenhouse, E. Randolph, John Page of Rosewell, &c, &c. Cæteraque extra animum, in the diploma, which may perhaps appear an obscure expression, is used by Tacitus, in the sense here intended, to signify those things which contribute not to the improvement of the mind.[4] Permit me to subscribe myself,
- Your friend,
- George Wythe
See also
References
- ↑ "Historical and Genealogical Notes," William & Mary Quarterly 22, no. 4 (April, 1914), 297-298.
- ↑ In 1784-1785, Rittenhouse, an astronomer and mathematician, had assisted in settling the border between Pennsylvania and Virginia.
- ↑ William C. Rives, History of the Life and Times of James Madison, vol. 2, (Boston: Little, Brown, 1870), 6. Letter not found: "To James Madison from George Wythe, February 1785," Founders Online, National Archives.
- ↑ The full quote from Tacitus' Hist. 4.5 is, "He followed those teachers of philosophy who hold nothing to be good but what is honourable, nothing evil but what is base, and who refuse to count either among things good or evil, power, rank, or indeed any thing not belonging to the mind."
External links
- "Honorary degree recipients," William & Mary Libraries, Special Collections Research Center.
- List of honorary degrees conferred by the College of William & Mary.
- Read this book in Google Books.
