Show EV 6 VW IF mow n 9 t W WS of OT vl W I 1 res alsi ah d nit I 1 K J 4 f by ELMO SCOTT WATSON OU may be one of those y americans so well versed in the history of your country that you can name nil of the e presidents eil dents of the united states in the order of their administrations rations end and can tell something about each one of them but bui it if some one olie suld to you what do you know about the following presidents of the united states john ilo finnson ellas 13 Boud luor john hancock ancock JH nathaniel gorham and david ja B Atchi atchison sou probably exclaim why they never were presidents of the united Stat states eol I 1 and therein you might be wrong for there are those who say that thai th those ose five men should be included in the list of our presidents even though such a statement would have to 6 b be 0 made with mith certain qualifications 1 in the case of the first four their right to be known ns as president Is based upon alie the following facts wh which jab have to dewith tile the evolution of the office of pr president e aid C ut of the ulli united ted states v the first continental cong congress ess met y in philadelphia september 5 1774 1 oad the delegates to it elected randolph of virginia cut but he fiti was wait only eniy 0 o congress not president of tb the united states State vior for there was then no united states afi alis e second gacond continental congress met in philadelphia may 10 1775 and john hancock of massachusetts was elected president but lie top was president preil dent only of cf the congress oz ress then on august 2 ai 1770 the delegates delegat ba to tills congress plied sped the declaration of Illde independence pVn akl 6 which brought into bel being 11 g the united ted states spates of america but they were united states sin tea more anore in name than in ili actual fact of oan a strong well organized government g ov ern ment in ii 77 a pl plan anfor for ih ithe e union of tile the elates was tea proposed and within 15 months twelve of the states had to form the new nation in e with a proposed plan olin drawn up under tile tl e name nam of the articles of confederation the onty only stacie state which opposed it at that time was bas maryland aryland ll under the original articles of confederation each of the states made claims to extensive western lands I 1 john hanson and daniel carrolli carroll of the maryland delegation refused to enter the new country under the above existing con conditions dittens and hanson suggested the alternate plan Alft maryland riland offered to give up forever its claim to western tern lands and to sign over its ita territories ri to the federal government if the other r states would follow suit one by one they fell into line and finally nally fl on march 1 3 there was adopted a constitution called the articles ot of and perpetual unton union between the states I 1 however the confederation thus formed had no executive officer no judiciary and the sole eole governmental body was a single house of congress made up of delegates elected by the legIsla legislatures of the states on november Novem bei 15 1781 john clanson was elected president of the congress tits his formal title being president of the united states in congress assembled thus the title president of the united came into heing being and 11 ansons sons to be included in the th e list of our presidents rests upon that fact that be cot n ot only presided over or er congro a but w was asin in fact as well as in came the count rys chief executive it Is also assorted asserted by hanson proponents chief of whom Is seymour wemyss smith editor of the financial digest of new york city who has striven for ahr three ee yea years irs to biti ft in national recognition for hnnson hanson and who Is planning to carry his fits light to the floor of the united states senate that eanson banson rather than george washing f 6 tou ton was the first president of tile the united states in prof proof of ili his assertion mr ali smith offers tile the following facts on november 21 1781 the congressional committee an on arrangement of the Pres presidents identa house consisting of joseph eph montgomery samuel osgood tind and E edmund dmund randolph andolph ll introduced the following resolution in congress resolved He lle solved that tie the attendants of the presidents house consist boist of one ona and uch tuch others IB as may be found necessary not exceeding eight A residence hid been a few days previously as president ivansons II ansons haye the steward was wab required to dellver an accod accounting of expenses to the presidents secretary each month and the president was wag authorized by a resolution to draw on the public treasury for the proper amount I 1 on november 28 1781 gen george washington was summoned before con congress greek and officially thank RA by president biamon tor for hla his victory at yorktown A A mr president replied to President hanson 1 I feak very bly the favorable favor ablo of can c n grea areas expressed by your excel excellency lincy this resh fresh p proof roo of their approbation cannot falloff all t making a deep impression upon me and raj my study shall be to deserve a continuance of it in the meantime before washington became the first president derit wider under the constitution the ha united states had find three other presidents under the articles of confederation WN in N 0 01 1 vember 1782 hanson retired from tilt the presidency and died the following year on Nov november embee 1 4 1782 ellas elias cpu boil donot ot of new jersey who had served as a delegat delo gati eto io congress fron from 1778 to 1779 and had again been chosen in 1781 was chasen Pies president ident of th the e united states ingoing in congress ress issem dissembled assembled bled and become became the chief executive of the antt notion As such he issued the proc proclamation announcing the end of the Reio revolution lution on april 30 10 1783 end another announcing the signing of the treaty of pence peace on september 3 ellas elias boudi Kond 1 not inot has bus also been called tile the first pre president of the united states hta his right to that title being based apoi the fact that it was not until england had signed the treaty of pence peace and thus acknowledged the independence de of her fiel former col colonies colon onles lei that the free find independent united states of american actually existed in 1785 the sent seat of government was changed to new york tork city and john hancock of massachusetts was elected president owing to ill health healt li however lie he did not actively serve in that hat position and on en may 29 1786 he fie resigned so another president was chosen nathaniel gorham of massachusetts chu cla isetts ou oil may alay 14 1787 a convention of delegates from fill all states except ithone island met in philadelphia no to form forin ai a more perfect union and after a stormy session dessl on of four months adopted a new constitution it provided for a new method of chop choosing a president and under its provisions an election was held in which george washington of virginia was unanimously elected president from contemporary y documents it Is evident that the chief executive of the notion nation was referred to then as n the 1 resident president I of the alie united states under the new constitution whereas reits before beffre that metal had find been called tile the president of the united states in congress assembled later that portion of the title under the lie now new constitution was omitted as being too cumbersome and there after lie was referred to agthe as the president of the united states in view of these facts it ii seems that john hanson ellas elias boudinot Boud bint john hallcock and nathaniel gorlian are its as mud much entitled to being calle dIlly ident of the united states ns ng are tiny any of the men me i from george washington to herbert hoover who have bave borne that title and that in listi listing ngou our r presidents we should divide them into two classes those who held office under tile the Article ai tides pt of confederation and those who have hae held office under the constitution the right of david U B atchason Atch lson of missouri to be included in our bur list of presidents Is a fertile subject for dispute ile Is called president for 9 a tny and the whole question question of whether or not he actually was nas president depp depends rids upon whether or not a man n can be president without taking the oath of office or actively the affairs of the nation presidency came about in tills w ivay ayi T march 4 1849 came watne on sanday president dei rd James i K N alk folks s term of office expired march 5 8 1849 and his ids successor za chary taylor should have been inaugurated on marcej 4 but barcli alarea lar cli 4 ial 1819 came on sunday and taylor di did d not take the oath oll office until monday SIon day march aar ch 6 5 1819 on march 3 george al dallas vice president under polk announced in the senate over which lie he was presiding the ithe close of my plat term being near at hand ban I 1 conform form to an established ed and convenient practice by withdrawing from the de liberations libe rations of this body on tile the motion moi mei t I 1 on of senator benton of missouri tits hla colleague senator david B atcho son was appointed president derst of the senate pro tem since the terms of president polk and vice president dallas expired on march 3 and the term of preal president dent elect taylor did not begin until march 5 when he was inaugurated it Is contended that david B atchison Atch lson was president of the united states for one day sunday march 4 1840 1849 even though he never took the oath of office the biographical congressional directory 1774 1911 nu an official al senate document backs back sup up that claim although some historians contend that taylor was president de facto on sunday even though lie he was not sworn in and that atchison Atch lson was not sworn in as president and never pretended to exercise any duty or prerogative of 0 the office oell ce dut but the state of missouri honors li linas the only missourian who has so far served ns as president of the united states and on october 27 of last year it paid tribute tofts to KS president deni for a day when a memorial statue of atchison Atch lson was dedicated nt platts burp burg mo with impressive ceremonies at which the governor of missouri was the prin tApal speaker ile he Is further remembered in his homo home state by a county which la Is named for him and massouris Mis souris sister state kansas has a city which hears bears his name dame although it Is more famous because it Is the homo town of a famous country editor rd kd howe of the atchison Atch lson globe gibbe than it Is because it was named for a prest president for a day |