[MANUSCRIPT RESOLUTION SIGNED BY SECRETARY OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, CHARLES THOMSON, PROPOSING FRANKING PRIVILEGES FOR MEMBERS OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION].

[Continental Congress]: Thomson, Charles:

Published by [Philadelphia]. April 23, 1787.

About this Item

An important manuscript document proposing franking privileges for members of the upcoming Constitutional Convention, signed in his own hand by Charles Thomson as Secretary of the Continental Congress. The brief document states: "Resolved - That the privilege of sending and receiving letters and packets free of postage be extended to the Members of the Convention to be held in Philadelphia on the second Monday in May next, in the same manner as is allowed to the Members of Congress." Records of the Continental Congress show that this resolution was made by Edward Carrington of Virginia, and seconded by William Samuel Johnson of Connecticut. While this may seem like a minor privilege considering the relatively low costs of modern postage, not only was mail service a much greater undertaking in the 18th century, this resolution suggests that Congress understood that the forthcoming Constitutional Convention would not only be a significant event, but a lengthy one as well. Franking privileges would allow for lengthier and more substantive debates during the Convention, with delegates able to communicate more easily with officials in their home states. The convention did, in fact, result in a new system of government and, ultimately, the United States Constitution. Notably, it was only known as the "Constitutional" Convention after the fact; contemporaries referred to it as the Federal Convention, the Philadelphia Convention, or the Grand Convention at Philadelphia. Franking privileges date from 1660, when the English Parliament established the General Post Office, and exempted members of Parliament from postage. In the United States franking privileges accompanied calls for independence, with the first privileges being approved by the Continental Congress for its members in 1775. They were then approved for members of the Convention, and then the first U.S. Congress passed a franking law during its first session in 1789, which has continued for federal legislators to the present day, despite occasional review and regulation. Charles Thomson (1729 1824) immigrated to America from his native Ireland in 1739. On recommendation of Benjamin Franklin, he served as a tutor at the College of Pennsylvania (later the University of Pennsylvania). He later left teaching for business, in which he prospered. "Because of his reputation for fairness and integrity, he was chosen by the Indians to keep their record of proceedings at the treaty of Easton (1757), and in the following year he was adopted into the Delaware tribe, with a name meaning 'man who tells the truth'" - DAB. He was an early and ardent supporter of the Revolution and was unanimously elected Secretary to the Continental Congress, serving in that post from 1774 to 1789. Thomson "was the very man in Philadelphia with whom John Adams, busily probing the minds of all and sundry on the vital questions involved, would wish to have, as he did have, 'much conversation.' 'This Charles Thomson,' Adams wrote, 'is the Sam Adams of Philadelphia, the life of the cause of liberty, they say'" (DAB). A small but vital document in the development of the Constitution, by the man who literally documented the birth of the United States. This manuscript was acquired by H. Richard Dietrich at auction in 1970, and has remained in the Dietrich American Foundation since. JOURNALS OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, April 23, 1787. [1]p. on folded folio sheet, docketed on verso of integral blank. Old folds, very small separation at center of horizontal fold on blank, else fine.

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: [MANUSCRIPT RESOLUTION SIGNED BY SECRETARY OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, CHARLES THOMSON, PROPOSING FRANKING PRIVILEGES FOR MEMBERS OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION].
• Publisher: [Philadelphia]. April 23, 1787.