Fine owed by George Washington for overdue library books now $300,000

Photograph: Getty Images

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Published by: www.guardian.co.uk - Sunday April 18th, 2010

By: Ed Pilkington in New York

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First President of the U.S. failed to return two volumes borrowed in 1789 from the New York Society Library.

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The first president of the US failed to return a volume of Commons debates and a law book he had borrowed in 1789 in New York.

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Founder of a nation, trouncer of the English, God-fearing family man: all in all, George Washington has enjoyed a pretty decent reputation. Until now, that is.

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The hero who crossed the Delaware River may not have been quite so squeaky clean when it came to borrowing library books.

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The New York Society Library, the city's only lender of books at the time of Washington's Presidency, has revealed that the First American President took out two volumes and pointedly failed to return them.

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At today's prices, adjusted for inflation, he would face a late fine of $ 300,000.

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The library's leadgers show that Washington took out the books on October 5th, 1789, some five months into his presidency at a time when New York was still the Capital. They were an essay on international affairs called Law of Nations and the twelfth volume of a 14-volume collection of debates from the English House of Commons.

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The ledger simply referred to the borrower as "President" in quill pen, and had no return date.

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Sure enough, when the librarians checked their holdings they found all 14 volumes of the Commons debates bar volume 12.

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Under the rules of the library, the books should have been handed back by November 2nd, that same year, and their borrower and presumably his descendants have been liable to fines of a few cents a day ever since.

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Other prominent borrowers who used the collection did not appear to have the same problems with returning titles.

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The first treasury secretary, Alexander Hamilton, the first chief justice, John Jay, and Thomas Jefferson's vice-president, Aaron Burr, are all listed on the Ledger under both borrowing and return dates.

"We're not actively pursuing the overdue fines," the head librarian Mark Bartlett said. "But we would be very happy if we were able to get the books back."

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VOCABULARY

Fine: noun - an amount of money that has to be paid as a punishment for not obeying a rule or a law.

Overdue: adjective - not done or happening when expected or when needed; late.

Trouncer: noun - derivative from the verb to trounce which means: to defeat a competitor by a large amount.

All in all: Idiomatic expression - considering all the different parts of a situation together

Has enjoyed: Present Perfect of the verb "to enjoy" - to get pleasure from something.

Squeaky: Adjective -completely clean / Someone who is squeakly clean is completely good and honest and never does anythig bad.

took out: Past Simple of the verb "to take out" - withdraw: remove (a commodity) from (a supply source)

Pointedly: Adverb - in a very obvious way

Late Fine: Overdue fine (for fine see definition above)

Ledgers: noun - a book in which things are regularly recorded, especially business activities and money received or paid

Essay: noun - a short piece of writing on a particular subject, especially one done by student as a part of the work for a course.

quill pen: noun - a pen made from a bird's feather, used in the past

have been liable: Present Perfect Tense of "be liable" - be responsible

Prominent: Adjective - very well known and important

Treasury Secretary: Secretário do Tesouro (easily explained in Portuguese)

Pursuing: Gerund of the Verb "to Pursue" - If you pursue a plan, activity or situation, you try to do it or achieve it, usually over a long period of time.