Show declaration first in in its effect on mankind thomas jefferson wrote the declaration ot of independence ina in a house that formerly stood at the south southwest ivest corner of seventh and market streets philadelphia the site now occupied by the penn national bank it would be no straining for effect to assert in view of the almost universal acceptance cep tance of the philosophy and principles contained in that great paper that in time to come the site will be regarded as the most historic in the world no manifesto ever issued by a people has had the tar far reaching effects of the declaration adopted in philadelphia by the continental congress on july 4 1770 1776 beyond all doubt jefferson was the most widely read man in the continental congress lie he came to philadelphia with the reputation of a writer of state papers that had the right thought and more papers that were brilliant with ringing sentences jefferson on daily read in greek latin french and italian as well as in english the works of the greatest philosophers historians and commentators this circumstance accounts tor for the tha presence in the declaration of one ona of 0 the most lingering phrases that has been incorporated in any of our state papers sas the lie milwaukee journal who does not recall the phrase these colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent sta states tesI professor dunning of coln columbia abla university some years ago began a hurit hunt to establish its genealogy and managed to trace it hack back to the time of pope boniface VIII whom he found writing to philip the fair of 0 france about IWO 1300 that tile the french red lied when they in their pride de said they had no superior for of right they were and ought to be subject to the roman king and the emperor dr james sullivan in his study the antecedents of the beclar declaration atlon of independence has shown thit that three of the ideas in the historic document were known to the world by ciceris Cic eros time 43 E D C these were he states first the conscious instituting of government by men held by the sophists Sophis ts and the epicureans Epicure ans second the equality of men an idea advanced by bv the tha stoics and third the idea of natural rights developed by cicero but it was in the alie declaration written by jefferson that these ideas were first combined |