Thomas Jefferson to Wythe, 13 January 1796
"Thomas Jefferson to Wythe, 13 January 1796, c. 2." Image from the Library of Congress, The Thomas Jefferson Papers.
Jefferson wrote two nearly identical versions of these lists for George Wythe, and himself (see side-by-side comparison), rewriting his original letter, with amendments. He used a copying press to transfer damp ink from the originals to make copies for his own records. It is presumed he sent Wythe the original of the rewrite. The amended original appears to have been sent to James Madison, who was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates in 1796.
The lists of Virginia public laws and acts of assembly were printed in a broadside which was distributed to members of the House of Delegates.[1] The lists were later printed in the Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Virginia (December 1800), appended by a statement from George Wythe, John Brown, John Marshall, Bushrod Washington, and John Wickham:
THE persons appointed, by an act of the last session, to superintend an edition of all legislative acts concerning lands, having perused the foregoing letter, written in answer to an application to the author for his copies of the acts, more compleat than any which can be elsewhere procured, and supposing that the General Assembly, upon reconsideration of the subject, might wish to enlarge the work, declined entering upon the business, until the sentiments of that honorable body shall be known.
Richmond, November, 1796
The transcription below is based on the (somewhat more legible) copy of the original, prior to Jefferson's amendments.
Contents
Letter text, 13 January 1796
Page 1
A Statement of the Volumes of the Laws of Virginia, Manuscript & Printed in my possession.
M.S. marked A. given me by the late Peyton Randolph. It had belonged to his father John Randolph who had collected papers with a view to unite the history: Virginia it is attested by R. Hickman, & contains the acts of 1622/4 Mans. 35 acts.
M.S. marked <43> purchased of the [exs?] of the late Peyton Randolph, having been among the collection of S. John Randolph from the resemblance of the mark to some I have for [...] in the Secretary's office, I suspect that is an original [?] owned by S. John Randolph. It contains the laws from 1629 To 1633.
Marked [?] purchased from the adms of Col. Richard [Roland?] [?] it [?] laws from 1639 to 1667.
M.S. marked D. purchased from the office of Col. Richard [Roland?] law? It contains laws from 1642-3 to 1651/2.
M.S. copies by myself of the laws of 1660/2 Mar. 23.
M.S. from the Charles City office to which it belonged probably I found it in Lorton's tavern brought in to be used for waste paper. much had been already cut off for thread papers and other uses. [?] the then clerk very readily gave it to me, as also another hereafter mentioned. It still contains from chap. 31 of the session of 1664 to 1782.
M.S. marked B purchased of the execs of the late Peyton Randolph. Part of S. John Randolph's collection. It contains laws from 1662 to 1697.
M.S. appendix to a copy of Pervis's collection from the Westover library given by the late Col. W. [Byrd?] to mr Wayles, whose library came to me, [?].
M.S. from the Charles City office, given to me by Debnam as above mentioned, it contains from c. 2. To c. 53 of the laws of 1705.
M.S. given me by the present John Page of Rosewell. It had belonged to Mr. Page his grandfather, who was one of the commissioners of 1705 for revising the laws, & was probably furnished with this copy for that work.
The above is an exact statement of my M.S. collection, as I left it when I went to Europe. During my absence the whole were borrowed from my library. After using balloted about by [?] and lying some years under a joile of [?] a [?] New York and supposed last, they were returned to me at Philadelphia, without the volume makes <43> which therefore suppose is lost. If in the laws of the [?] session of 1629 1630 [?] are gone for ever, as they exist in no other book.Printed laws
Pervis's collection & his forms the 1st vol. of my collection of the Printed laws of Virginia.
Revisal of 1732 this forms the 2d. vol.
Revisal of 1748 this is vol. the 3d.
Revisal of 1768 this is vol. the 4th.
Fugitive sheets of the laws of particular sessions bound together from 1734 to 1772. Making vol. 5th.
2- . . . . . . . . . . upon 1775 to 1783 making vol the 6th
Revisal of 1783 by the Chancellors making vol. 7th
Revisal of the 1794 making vol. the 8th
Th. Jefferson
Jan. 13. 1796.
Side-by-side comparison
- Thomas Jefferson to George Wythe, 13 January 1796. “A Statement of the Volumes of the Laws of Virginia, Manuscript and Printed in My Possession.”
Jefferson's press copy, 1 (original).
Image from the The Thomas Jefferson Papers, Library of Congress.
Jefferson's original (with amendments).
Image from the The James Madison Papers, Library of Congress.
Jefferson's press copy, 2 (rewritten).
Image from the The Thomas Jefferson Papers, Library of Congress.
Page 2
A statement of the particular acts of the assembly of Virginia, in my possession either M.S. or Printed, and of those not in my possession & presumed to be lost.
- Thomas Jefferson to George Wythe, 13 January 1796. “A Statement of the Particular Acts of the Assembly of Virginia, in My Possession.”
Jefferson's press copy, 1 (original).
Image from the The Thomas Jefferson Papers, Library of Congress.
Jefferson's original (with amendments).
Image from the The James Madison Papers, Library of Congress.
Jefferson's press copy, 2 (rewritten).
Image from the The Thomas Jefferson Papers, Library of Congress.
References
- ↑ John Catanzariti, ed. The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 28, 1 January 1794 – 29 February 1796, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000), 585.
External links
- Enclosure: Statement of the Laws of Virginia, Founders Online, National Archives.
