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.
George Wythe wrote to Thomas Jefferson on January 1, 1796, requesting his help in obtaining copies of Virginia laws pertaining to land, for the Virginia Assembly, who had recently voted to have them published:
The general assembly, at their late session, enacted that a collection of the laws public and private, relative to lands, shall be printed, those who are appointed to perform the work, despair of doing it, without your aid. If you will permit your copies to be sent hither, I will be answerable for their restitution in the same order & when they shall be received. Be so good as let me know, if the copies may be obtained. In what manner they may be forwarded, with least inconvenience.[1]
Jefferson created an inventory of all the public laws and acts he owned (either in print, or in manuscript), and made copies of the lists for Wythe and for himself (see side-by-side comparison). He used a copying press to transfer damp ink from the originals to make copies for his own records. In the process, he amended his original letter, and rewrote a new copy (and pressed copies of that). 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.[2] The lists were later printed in the Journal of the Senate of the Commonwealth of Virginia (December 19, 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
Jefferson's collection of laws was brought up again in 1806, three months after Wythe's death, when the Richmond Enquirer pressed the legislature to print Virginia's public laws.[3]
The transcription below is based on the (somewhat more legible) copy of the original, prior to Jefferson's amendments.
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 of page 1
- 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.
1619, June, the first session of assembly ever held in Virginia lost, 1620 May lost. 1622 lost. 1623/4 March 5, I have in MS. 1626 lost. 1629 Oct. 16. I have in ms. 1630 March 24. I have in ms. 1631 Feb. 21. I have in ms. 1632 Sept. 4. 60 acts. I have in ms. 1633/4 Feb. 1. 6 acts in ms. 1638 Aug. 21. 16 acts in ms. 1639 Jan. 5. in ms. 1642 April 1. the 21st & 22d acts in ms. 1643/4 March 2. a revisal I have in ms. 1644 Oct. 1. in ms. 1645 Feb. 17. in ms. 1645 Nov. 20. in ms. 1646 Oct. 5. in ms. 1647 Oct. 5. in ms. 1648 Oct. 12. in ms. 1649 Oct. 10. in ms. 1652 April 26. in ms Nov. 25. in ms 1653 July 5. in ms 1654 Nov. 25. in ms 1655 March in ms 1656 March 10. in ms 1656 Dec. 1. in ms (?) 1658 March 12. a revisal in ms 1659 March 1. in ms 1660 March 13. in ms 1660 Oct. 11. in ms 1661 March 23. in ms 1661/2 March 23. Chap 1, to 138, inclusive p (?) 1662 Dec. 2. or 23 Chap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 15 17 18 21 23 p 14 16 19 20 22 in ms. 1663 Sept. 10. Chap 1 2 4 7 8 9 10 11 14 16 17 p 3 5 6 12 13 15 18 in ms 1664 Sept. 20. 9 acts p 1665 Oct. 10. Chap 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 p 4 10 in ms
Side-by-side comparison of page 2
- 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.
Page 3
1666 June 5. Chap 2 3 4 p 1 ms Oct. 23. Chap 1 2 3 5 6 7 9 10 11 12 13 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 p 4 8 14 in ms 1667 Sept. 3. Chap 1 2 3 4 5 p 5 6 7 in ms 1668 Sept. 17. Chap 1 to 9 p 1669 Oct. 8. (?) Chap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 12 p 11 in ms. 1671 Sept. 20. Chap 1 4 5 6 p 2 3 7 in ms. 1672 Sept. 21. Chap 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 9 10 p 6 11 in ms. 1673 Oct. 20. Chap 1 to 5 p 6 7 in ms 1674 Sept. 21. Chap 1 3 4 6 7 p 2 5 8 9 10 in ms. 1676 March 7. Chap 3 p 1 2 4 in ms 1676 June 5. Chap 1 to 20 in ms 1677 Feb. 20. (?) Chap 4 6 7 8 9 10 11 13 14 16 17 20 p 1 2 3 5 12 15 18 19 in ms. 1677 Oct. 10. Chap. 1 2 3 4 5 8 9 11 12 printed, 6 7 in ms. 1679 April 25. Chap. 1 to 9 p. 10 11 in ms. 1680 June 8. Chap. 1 to 17 p. 1682 Nov. 10. Chap 1 to 13 p. 1684 April 16. Chap. 2 p. 1 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 in ms 86 Oct. 20. Chap. 1 to 11 in ms. 1691 April 16. Chap. 12 p. 1 to 11 & from 13 to 21 in ms. 1692 April 1. Chap. 1 to 7 in ms. March 2. Chap. 1 to 7 in ms. 1693 Oct. 10. Chap. 1 to 5 in ms. 1695 April 18. Chap. 1 to 6 in ms. 1696 Sept. 21. Chap. 1 to 14 in ms. 1697 Oct. 21. Chap. 1 in ms. 1698 Sept. 23. no law past at this session. 1699 April. 27. Chap. 1 to 16 in ms. 1700 Dec. 5. Chap. 1 to 4 in ms 1701 Aug. 6. Chap 1 to 5 (?) in ms
Side-by-side comparison of page 3
- 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.
Page 4
1702 May 30. Chap 1 3 lost Aug 11. Chap 1 A part of it in ms 2 3 4 lost 1703 March 19. no act passed 1704 April 20. Chap 1 to 11 lost 1705 April 18. Chap 1 to 4 lost Oct. 25. Chap 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 10 12 13 14 15 17 19 20 22 23 25 27 28 29 30 32 33 35 38 39 40 41 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 52 58 p 1705 Oct 25 Chap 4 11 16 18 21 24 28 31 34 36 37 42 51 53 in ms 1 5 (?) lost 1710 Oct 25 Chap 3 4 5 8 11 12 13 14 p 1 2 6 7 9 10 15 16 17 in ms 1711 Nov 7 Chap 2 3 p 1 in ms Here the MSS end. MS end 4 5 lost 1712 Oct 22 Chap 4 5 p. 1 2 3 6 7 lost 1713 Nov. 5 Chap 3 4 6 7 8 printed—1 2 5 9 10 11 12 lost 1715 Aug. 3 Chap 1 2 3 lost 1718 April 23 Chap 1 3—the substance print- ed in Beverley's abridgment, 2 4 lost Nov 11 Chap 1 2 lost 1720 Nov 2 Chap 3 4 5 6 7 8 printed—1 2 substance in Beverly's abridgment, 9 to 18 lost 1722 May 9 (?) Chap 1 to 3, 6 to 9 printed—4 5 and 10 to 16 lost 1723 May 9 Chap 2 4 8 10 printed—1 3 5 (?) 6 7 9 11 to 15 lost 1726 May 12 Chap 1 2 3 4 6 7 8 printed—5 9 (?) to 14 lost 1727 Feb 1 Chap 3 5 to 14 printed—1 2 4 15 to 22 lost 1730 May 21 Chap 1 to 15 printed—20 to 29 lost 1732 May 18 Chap 1 to 20 printed—21 to 35 lost Here begins my collection of the Fugitive sheets of Laws printed for each session
1734 Aug. 22. 31. Acts. Printed. 1736 Aug. 5. 25. Acts. Printed. 1738 Nov. 1. 25. Acts. Printed. 1740 May 22. 15. Acts. Printed. Aug. 1. 1. Act. Printed.
Side-by-side comparison of page 4
- 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.
Page 5
1742 May 6. 33. Acts. Printed. 1744 Sept. 4. 46. Acts. Printed. 1745 Feb. 23. 30. Acts. Printed. 1746 July 11. 2. Acts. Printed. 1747 March 30. 5. Acts. Printed. 1748 Oct. 27. Chap. 1 to 55 57 77 printed 56 58 to 76 78 to 89 lost. 1752 Feb. 27. 55. Acts. Printed. 1753 Nov. 1. 28. Acts. Printed. 1754 Feb. 14. 3. Acts. Printed. Aug. 22. 3. Acts. Printed. Oct. 17. 7. Acts. Printed. 1755 May 1. 24. Acts. Printed. Aug. 5. 8. Acts. Printed. Oct. 27. 6. Acts. Printed. 1756 March 25. 13. Acts. Printed. Sept. 20. 3. Acts. Printed. 1757 April 14. 30. Acts. Printed. 1758 March 30. 2. Acts. Printed. Sept. 14. 13. Acts. Printed. Nov. 9. 1. Act. Printed. 1759 Feb. 22. 31. Acts. Printed. Nov. 1. 6. Acts. Printed. 1760 March 4. 3. Acts. Printed. May 19. Printed. Oct. 6. 4. Acts. Printed. 1761 March 5. 31. Acts. Printed. Nov. 3. 13. Acts. Printed. 1762 Jan. 14. 3. Acts. Printed. March 30. 7. Acts. Printed. Nov. 2. 44. Acts. Printed. 1763 May 13. 13. Acts. Printed. 1764 Jan. 12. 13. Acts. Printed. Oct. 30. 54. Acts. Printed. 1766 Nov. 6. 61. Acts. Printed. 1768 March 31. 7. Acts. Printed. 1769 May 8. a Convention. no act passed. Nov. 7. 89. Acts. Printed. 1771 July 11. 4. Acts. Printed. 1772 Feb. 10. 68. Acts. Printed. 1773 March 4. 16. Acts Lost from my collection. 1774 May 5. dissolved before any act passed. 1775 June 1. the last assembly under the Royal government, it was discontinued by not meeting on its own adjournment, without having passed any law.
Side-by-side comparison of page 5
- 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.
Page 6
CONVENTIONS. 75 July 17. Ordinances. Printed. Dec. Ordinances. Printed. 76 May 5. Ordinances. Printed. ASSEMBLIES. Oct. 7. Acts. Printed. 77 May 5. Acts. Printed. Oct. 20. Acts. Printed. 78 May 4. Acts. Printed. Oct. 5. Acts. Printed. 79 May 5. Acts. Printed. Oct. 4. Acts. Printed. 80 May 1. Acts. Printed. Oct. 16. Acts. Printed. 81 March 1. Acts. Printed. May 7. Acts. Printed. Nov. 5. Acts. Printed. 82 May 6. Acts. Printed. 83 May 5. Acts. Printed. Oct. 20. Acts. Printed. Note that the terms 'Printed' or 'in M.S.' mean that I have the laws Printed or in MS.
Side-byside comparison of page 6
- 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
- ↑ Wythe to Thomas Jefferson, 1 January 1796, The Thomas Jefferson Papers, Library of Congress.
- ↑ John Catanzariti, ed., The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 28, 1 January 1794 -29 February 1796, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000), 585.
- ↑ The Enquirer (Richmond, VA), "Respectfully Dedicated to the Legislature of Virginia," September 2, 1806, 4.
External links
- Enclosure: Statement of the Laws of Virginia, Founders Online, National Archives.
