[George Washington Presides over the First Meeting of the Society of the Cincinnati]. The Independent Gazetteer. Or, the Chronicle of Freedom. Philadelphia, [Pennsylvania]; Saturday, May 22, 1784. Printed by E. Oswald and D. Humphreys. Number 134. Four pages of a bifolium, 11.5" x 19.5". Unpaginated and printed in four columns. George Washington Presides over the First General Meeting of the Society of the Cincinnati, amending their year-old Institution. "Let us, then, prosecute with ardour what we have instituted in sincerity; let Heaven and our own consciences approve our conduct; let our actions be the best comment on our words; and let us leave a lesson to posterity, that the glory of soldiers cannot be comple[t]ed without acting well the part of citizens." Established May 13, 1783 as America's first Military Order, the Society of Cincinnati was initially composed of members of the Continental Army serving at the cantonment on the Hudson River. At the close of the Revolutionary War, these men established the Society as a tribute to the brotherhood that had been born of their time serving in battle together and to honor the freedom they had fought so hard for. The name honors an illustrious Roman General, Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus, who left his home and family twice in his life to lead the Roman Army to victory, and both times eschewed further honors; members of the Society sought to emulate Cincinnatus, both in war and peace. It was these same men who unanimously selected General George Washington as the leader of this fledgling country for his honor, valor, and wisdom displayed strongly in the course of the war in the spirit of their namesake hero. This issue of The Independent Gazetteer contains a report of the Society of Cincinnati's May 4, 1784 meeting in Philadelphia presided over by its president, George Washington. It was the first general meeting of the Society and lasted for two weeks. The coverage is extensive and spans nearly the entirety of page [2]. The report records the names of the attending delegates and their respective states, and features a circular order signed in type by Washington dated May 15, 1784. The Society had faced criticism in its first year of operation, including from Benjamin Franklin and Aedanus Burke, that accused the fraternity with seeking to establish a pseudo-American hereditary aristocracy. This was due to the Society' initial criteria for membership that limited its numbers to officers only and ordered membership passed down through primogeniture. Burke's popular pamphlet Considerations on the Society or Order of Cincinnati was particularly critical and argued that there was no place in this brand new republic for a nobility. Conscious of this criticism, the members met in May 1784 to amend the Institution. The circular addresses the situation, and reads, in part: "...In order that our conduct on this occasion may stand approved in the eyes of the world, that we may not incur the imputations of obstinacy...we beg leave to communicated the reasons on which we have acted...our designed, in some respects, have been misapprehended; as the instrument of our association was of necessity drawn up in a hasty manner, at an epocha [sic] as extraordinary as it will be memorable in the annals of mankind...and to give one more prod that the late officers of the American army have a claim to be reckoned among the most dutiful citizens, we have agreed that the following material alterations and amendments should take place; that the hereditary succession should be abolished, that all interference with political subjects should be done away, and that the funds should be placed under the immediate cognizance of the several Legislatures...Let us, then, prosecute with ardour what we have instituted in sincerity; let Heaven and our own consciences approve our conduct; let our actions be the best comment on our words; and let us leave a lesson to posterity, that the glory of soldiers cannot be compleaed [sic] without acting well the part of citizens." The circular is followed by the newly amended Institution's fourteen sections, among which established the offices of vice president, secretary, and assistant secretary, orders the Society will meet every three years, and establishes the gold bald eagle insignia. At this same order, Washington was reelected president, however it proved to be the last meeting he presided over in person. This issue is accompanied by a hand-colored engraving titled "Washington Resigning His Commission" published by G. P. Putnam. Condition: Extensive professional restoration throughout. Pages [2] and [3] reinforced with rice paper which repairs heavy edgewear, including several closed tears and the separation along the integral fold. Chipping with some losses at folds. Pencil annotation to upper margin of frontpage. Light scattered soiling. HID03101062020 © 2022 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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