456 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1963 



paper were not adopted by the Convention, as its sentiments were 

 regarded as too radical by many of the delegates. 



Jefferson was next selected as an alternate delegate to the Conti- 

 nental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, and when a vacancy occurred 

 in the Virginia delegation he took his seat in that body for the first 

 time in June 1775. He quickly became a prominent member of the 

 Convention by reason of his earnestness, his capacity for hard work, 

 and his facility for expressing in writing his own ideas and the ideas 

 of others. Here, too, Jefferson became identified with the more radical 

 element of the Congress, and during that first year, some of the papers 

 he submitted were rejected by the Congress as being too anti-British 

 in tone to be acceptable while there was still a chance of reconciliation 

 with Great Britain. 



Following the i-esolution for independence, which was introduced in 

 Congress in June 1776 by Kichard Heniy Lee of Virginia, Thomas 

 Jefferson was appointed one of the committee of five to draw up a 

 declaration of independence. It was felt by the Congress that the bare 

 resolution of independence was not sufficient. The reasons for the 

 resolution must be set forth explicitly and must be presented in a 

 manner that would not only convince Americans but also would inspire 

 them to fight for that independence and maintain it. Moreover, the 

 facts must be explained to the other nations of the world, as the good 

 opinion of other countries might prove essential to the success of the 

 cause of American independence. 



Thomas Jefferson, already well known for the forcefulness of his 

 pen, was selected by the committee of five to draft the declaration. The 

 document that he wrote, though changed and corrected first by mem- 

 bers of the committee and later by the Congress as a whole, remains 

 essentiaDy Jefferson's own. It eloquently expresses his ideas of the 

 rights and grievances of the American Colonies, and his passionate 

 sincerity rings convincingly today. 



In 1775, when Thomas Jefferson first went to Philadelphia to attend 

 the Continental Congress, he lived for a short time at the home of 

 Benjamin Randolph, one of the most famous of the Philadelphia 

 cabinetmakers. 



Mr. Randolph had been an active supporter of the patriots in Phila- 

 delphia for several years; and undoubtedly his interest in the cause 

 of independence and in the Congress then meeting in Philadelphia 

 persuaded him to open his home to Thomas Jefferson for temporary 

 lodging. Also, he might have been influenced by a possible relation- 

 ship between himself and Jefferson, whose mother was Jane Randolph. 



Again, in May 1776, when Jefferson arrived for the Second Con- 

 tinental Congress, he stayed at Randolph's home for several weeks. 

 The account book of Thomas Jefferson for the year 1776 shows a pay- 



I 



