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Omitted Chapters Of History Disclosed In The Life And Papers Of Edmund Randolph - Governor Of Virginia - First Attorney-General United States - Secretary Of State
Omitted Chapters Of History Disclosed In The Life And Papers Of Edmund Randolph Governor Of Virginia First AttorneyGeneral United States Secretary Of State Author:Moncure Daniel Conway CONTENTS. Page PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . v Chapter I.-THE RANDOLPHS . . . . . . . I 11.- A CHILD O F THE REVOLUTIO N . . . 14 111.-IN WASHINGTONFASM ILY . . . . . 23 1V.-THE VIRGINICAO NVENTIO OF N 1776 . , . 28 TUTION . . . . . . . . 1 0 3 XII1.-THEINTERREGNUM . . . . . I I XIV.-LAUNCHING T HE CONSTITUTIO . N . . . I23 XV.-RES ANGUSTAM ILIT... more »I E . . . . . I32 XV1.-THE FIRSTA TTORNEY-GENER . A L . . I39 XVI1.-THE FOUNDIN O G F RELIGIOUFSR EEDOM . . 156 iv CONTENTS Chapter Page XXVII1.-REVELATIONS F RO I E NGLISHA RCHIVES . . 290 XX1X.-A SUSPENDEDSW ORD . . . . . . 305 XXX.- PR CIEUSECSO NFESSION . S . . , . . 311 XXX1.-THE OVERTURE S . . . , . . 317 XXXI1.-MR. WOLCOTT . . . . . . . 326 XXXII1.-COL. PICKERING . . . . . . . 335 XXX1V.-WASHINGTON I N JUDGMEN . T . . . . 346 XXXV.-GERMANICUS IN EXILE . . . , . . 358 XXXV1.-THE FICTITIOUDSE FAULT . . . . . 370 XXXVI1.-A LAST TRIBUTE T O WASHINGTON . . . 378 XXXVIII.-THE BRAVE HEART BROKEN . . . . 384 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . 395 PREFACE. IN a room of the Virginia Historical Society there is a portrait so blurred that the face is repulsive. It is the alleged portrait of a man described by his contemporary, William Wirt, as of a figure large and portly his features uncommonly fine his dark eyes and his whole countenance lighted up with an expression of the most conciliatory sensibility his attitudes dignified and commanding his gesture graceful and easy his voice perfect harmony and his whole manner that of an accomplished and engaging gentleman. The portrait at Richmond, repudiated when painted, suffered all manner of ill usage and its fate resembles that of the man for whom its dauber meant it,-Edmund Randolph. Painted by partisanship as he was not, his name has been marred by every prejudice, and his fame left to his country in conventionalized disfigurement. The Centenary of our Constitution has already brought a gallery of fresh historical portraits of its leading framers, but one panel, like that of Falieri at Venice, is vacant there is no portraiture of the statesman to whom the initiation and ratification of the Constitution were especially due, except a blackened effigy hung up by enemies in a moment of partisan passion. This traditional effigy of Edmund Randolph I have examined by the light of facts and documents to which historians appear to have had no access, with growing conviction that the nation knows little of a very interesting figure of its early history. - The true portraiture, personal and political, might have been given in small compass but behind the vacant panel have been found facts and documents of wider scope. The more important of these have for many years been slumbering in families with Y vi PREFA CE. S which I have a certain intimacy. These suggested the probable existence of others, which I have sought in many States and cities, including those of Europe. The result has been an accumulation of unpublished material, the reduction of which to the dimension of this volume has been the hard part of my task. Of course the elucidation of these papers has required occasional citation of others already published. The historical student of our near future will, let us hope, be able to express gratitude to his government for the Bureau of Manuscripts, connected with its history, proposed by the Congressional Library Committee 1888. My own gratitude remembers the fact that our national negligence has some offset in the enterprise and liberality of our great private collectors...« less