Here is the story of the Declaration of Independence from its first faint stirrings in the minds of men to the celebrations which greeted it from state to state when it was finally passed. The story is told in the words of those who wrote it, words skillfully woven together into a dramatic narrative, then put in their historical setting by Henry Steele Commager.

Here we meet those bold and far-sighted men who made and won our independence: the youthful Thomas Jefferson, who drafted the document; John Adams, the "Atlas" of the debate; venerable Benjamin Franklin, who gave sage counsel; fiery Patrick Henry, who set men's hearts pounding with excitement; Thomas Paine, whose Common Sense converted the timid and the doubting. We watch these and other as they try to find some way out of the difficulties that hang over them. We listen to their discussions in the Continental Congress. We follow in detail the drafting of the Great Declaration. We ponder, with its authors, the meaning of the "self-evident truths" which it contains. We share John Adams' exultation when it is finally passed—Adams who "through all the gloom" saw "the rays of ravishing light and glory."

How the fundamental charter of our liberty came into being—one of the greatest stories of our country's past—is told here by a distinguished historian and experienced writer for children.

The pen sketches and the reproductions of paintings and woodcuts complement the text material and supply the young reader with a unique introduction to the art of the times.

From the dust jacket