As president of that

of the Committee of Safety, and in August he became its vice president, and in November of the same year was elected its presiding officer. body, he issued circulars full of patriotism, in one of which he said: "We therefore entreat you by the most sacred of all bonds, the love of virtue, of liberty, of your country, to forget every distinction, and unite as one man in this time of extreme danger. Let us defend ourselves like men determined to be free."

In March, 1776, he was elected a member of the Assembly from Philadelphia, and later he became a member. of the convention that met July 15, 1776, to frame the first constitution of the State of Pennsylvania. He served on many important committees, and was a member of the Board of War for the State. On January 14, 1777, he was unanimously elected the first State treasurer of Pennsylvania, to which office he was annually elected for twelve years. On October 13, 1777, the Council of Safety was formed, and he was elected one of its members.

In 1779 Rittenhouse was appointed the first professor of astronomy in the University of Pennsylvania, which position he held until 1782. In 1780 he was appointed trustee of the loan office, in addition to the State treasurer's office, which position he filled for ten years.

When the disputes between Pennsylvania and Virginia arose regarding the boundary line, and the settlers came to blows, and war was threatened, David Rittenhouse was appointed one of three commissioners from Pennsylvania to adjust the line. After erecting an observatory at Wilmington, and while waiting for the Virginia committee, he made some sixty observations of eclipses of the moons of

Jupiter. The Virginia survey was duly ratified by the General Assembly in November, 1779, and was one of the most important ever undertaken by him; and his skill permanently settled, in 1784, what might have been a serious misunderstanding between two powerful States.

The first appointment David Rittenhouse held under the Federal Constitution was that of a commissioner to organize the Bank of the United States and receive subscriptions for it. Upon the establishment of a mint at Philadelphia, Washington appointed him its first director April 14, 1792. He accepted this position only at the earnest solicitation of Jefferson and Hamilton. Owing to his knowledge of delicate machinery, as well as of coin, he was preeminently qualified for the duties of the office.

For years David Rittenhouse was an active member of the American Philosophical Society. In 1771 he was elected one of the secretaries of the society, and in 1790 he became one of its vice presidents. On the death of Dr. Franklin he succeeded to the office of president, January, 1791, which office he held until his death, when he was succeeded by Thomas Jefferson. From 1780 to 1796 he contributed to the society for publication nearly a score of papers on scientific subjects. The most elaborate of all these papers was "An Oration on Astronomy" delivered. before the society February 24, 1775. This paper was inscribed and dedicated to the delegates assembled in Congress from all the thirteen colonies.

Although denied in youth the advantages of a collegiate education, Rittenhouse's discoveries and inventions earned for him honorary degrees from the leading institutions of England and America. In 1767 the College of Philadel

STO. OF PHIL. - IO

phia bestowed upon him the honorary degree of Master of Arts. In 1772 he was honored with the degree of M.A. from Princeton College, and in 1789 he received the degree of LL.D. from the same institution. In 1782 the Academy of Arts and Sciences of Boston elected him a fellowmember. In 1784 the College of William and Mary gave him the honorary degree of M.A. In 1795 the Royal Society of London elected him a member of that distinguished body.

In personal appearance, David Rittenhouse was tall, slender, and active, with a benign and intelligent countenance. His gentle disposition and modest manners secured him firm friends. There was in his nature a touch of the poet and artist. He was in close sympathy with the woes of mankind, and in respect to their sufferings he was as tender as a child. He was opposed to capital punishment, which he called "judicial murder," and was active in securing the rights, liberty, and happiness of the American people. To do good silently, and to be useful to the community and public, seem to have been his object in life. As he sank to his final rest, Sunday, June 26, 1796, he thanked the physician for his care, and in reply to the question if he felt comfortable, answered: "Yes; you have made the way to God easier." His remains were deposited in a tomb on his own grounds, at the corner of Seventh and Arch streets. Subsequently they were removed to the old Pine Street Presbyterian churchyard, and on January 18, 1878, they were removed to North Laurel Hill Cemetery.

CAR

rear of the south side of Chestnut Street, between Third and Fourth streets, Philadelphia, is famous as the meeting place of the first Continental Congress, and as such is dear to the hearts of the American people.

Carpenters' Hall was erected and owned by the Carpenters' Company, an organization of master carpenters, instituted in 1724. Their object was to erect a building where instruction might be obtained in the science of architecture, and to assist such of the members as should

be in need of support, and the widows and minor children of such members. It was also their intention to found a library for the use of the society. In 1734 James Porteus bequeathed his collection of books to them, and the first book for the library was purchased in 1736. In 1752 another company having a similar object applied for admission. In 1763 the erection of a hall was taken into consideration, and a committee appointed to choose a site. Five years later a lot was selected on Chestnut Street, between Third and Fourth streets, which lot was purchased on a ground rent deed, requiring an annual payment of one hundred and seventy-six Spanish dollars. The company sold off a portion of the front, reserving an entrance called Carpenters' Court, and in January, 1770, the erection of Carpenters' Hall began. In this same year the "Friendship Carpenters' Company" requested permission to join the original company. The following year (1771) Carpenters' Hall was occupied, although it remained unfinished until 1792. The Philadelphia Library Company removed their library in 1773 from the Statehouse to Carpenters' Hall, where it remained seventeen years. Here also a conference of deputies from the several counties in the province met July 15, 1774, to elect delegates to attend the general Congress. On September 5 of the same year, that noted body of men known as the first Continental Congress convened, and "Within these walls Henry, Hancock, and Adams inspired the delegates of the colonies with nerve and sinew for the toils of war resulting in National Independence."

The Pennsylvania "Committee of Correspondence" had their headquarters here for some time. This body of men