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Show "THE GREAT SEAL" ' Affixed Only to Papers Signed by the President. History of Its Development Down to the Present Time Franklin's Objection Ob-jection to the Eagle as the National Bird. Washington. Gaillard Hunt, chief of the division of manuscripts, has just completed a historical sketch of the Great Seal of the United States, the sketch telling of the various stages of development through which the seal went before the one now in use was finally- adopted. When the continental congress made the obverse of the great seal the national arms it intended that the device de-vice should pass into common use among the people, as the flag had done, and, like the flag, the arms at first met with general approval, which soon gave place to an acceptance of it as an emblem of the power and sovereignty sov-ereignty of the United States, which placed it above criticism. Not all the fathers of the republic, however, were pleased with the selection selec-tion of the eagle as the national emblem. em-blem. When the badge of the Order of the Society of the Cincinnati was made in France in 17S4 it was objected object-ed to by some because the displayed eagle resembled a turkey. "For my part," wrote Benjamin Franklin, January 26, 17S4, to his daughter, "I wish the bald eagle had not been chosen as the representative of our country; he does not get his living liv-ing honestly; you may have seen him perched on some dead tree, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches Gaiilard Hunt. the labor of the fishing hawk, and, when that diligent bird has at length taken a fish and is bearing it to his nest for the support of his mate and young ones, the bald eagle pursues him and takes it from him. With all this injustice he is never in good caste; but, like those among men who live by sharping and robbing, he Is generally poor and often very lousy. Besides, he is a rank coward; the little lit-tle kingbird, not bigger than a sparrow, spar-row, attacks him boldly and drives him out of the district. He Is therefore there-fore by no means a proper emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America, who have driven all the kingbirds from our country." The seal itself has, of course, a very limited use, which Is strictly guarded by law. The secretary of state is its custodian, bu even he has no authority authori-ty to affix it to any paper that does not bear the president's signature. In 1S03 Chief Justice Marshall, in delivering an opinion of 'the supreme court, used the following language relative rel-ative to the seal. It may be considered consid-ered applicable to all instruments to which the seal is affixed: "The signature (of the president) is a warrant for affixing the great seal to the commission, and the great seal is only to be affixed to an instrument which is complete. It attests, by an act supposed to be of public notoriety, the verity of the presidential signature. signa-ture. "It is never to be affixed till the commission is signed, because the signature sig-nature which gives force and effect to the commission is conclusive evidence that the appointment is made. "The commission being signed, the subsequent duty of the secretary of state is prescribed by law, and not to be guided by the will of the president. He is to affix the seal of the United States to the commission, and is to record it." At the present time the seal of the United States is affixed to the commissions com-missions of all cabinet officers and diplomatic and consular officers who are nominated by the president and confirmed by the senate; all ceremonious ceremo-nious communications from the president presi-dent to the heads of foreign governments; govern-ments; all treaties, conventions and formal agreements of the president with foreign powers; all proclama lions by the president; all exequators to foreign consular officers in the Uni ted States who are appointed by the heads of the governments which they represent; to warrants by the presi lent to receive persons surrendered by foreign governments under extra dition treaties, and to all miscella neous commissions of civil officers appointed ap-pointed by the president, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, whose appointments are not now es uecially directed by law to be signed nder a different seal. |