DS, signed “Th: Jefferson,” one page, 9.5 x 15, May 8, 1792. Official printing of a resolution passed by the Second Congress of the United States during its First Session, in full: "Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Secretary of the Treasury cause to be provided, for the use of several collectors in the United States, printed clearances, on the back whereof shall be printed an account of the methods, which have been found to answer for obtaining fresh, from salt water, and of constructing extempore stills, of such implements, as are generally on board of every vessel, with a recommendation, in all cases, where they shall have occasion to resort to this expedient for obtaining water, to publish the result of their trial in some gazette, on their return to the United States, or to communicate it for publication, to the office of the Secretary of State, in order that others may, by their success, be encouraged to make similar trials, and be benefitted by any improvements or new ideas, which may occur to them in practice." Imprinted at the conclusion with the names of Speaker Jonathan Trumbull, President Pro Tempore Richard Henry Lee, and President George Washington, and prominently signed below in ink by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. In fine condition, with some faint foxing, a minor fold split, and slight haloing to the signature due to the nature of the paper.
This interesting document relates to Rhode Island resident Jacob Isaacs’ efforts to interest Congress in a formula he had developed to obtain fresh water from salt water in a way that was practical, simple, and apparently inexpensive. At the time, Jefferson was promoting a bill for a national patent law, and because of his interest in the legislation and his scientific knowledge, Congress asked him to supervise tests based on this proposal. His subsequent ‘Report on Desalination of Sea Water’ mirrors the text of this resolution, most notably in the virtually identical concluding sentences. About a month after Jefferson affixed his signature to this Act of Congress, research shows that Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton wrote to ask him for a copy of his full report. Strangely, although this resolution was passed by the Second Congress and signed into law by President Washington, it appears to have not been acted upon.
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