In 1787 while Pinckney was in the full possession of his youthful power and fortune and all those things which give a man a prestige above his fellows, fate seems to have leaned forward and touched the instrument which was the supreme work of his life, the Draught of the Constitution of the United States--and to have set a seal upon the lips of every man who could testify as to its contents. If ever there was a paper of which it might be predicted that it would survive its time and be securely kept, that was the paper. The Convention was composed of the most orderly, caretaking and reputable of men, and the author of the draught was one of them. The command of the Convention was that its papers should be preserved. The papers were placed in the custody of the most scrupulous of men and by him transferred to the official guardianship of a department of the Government, and there we might expect to find the draught of Pinckney; but fate had touched the great State paper, and we find only that it had vanished mysteriously from the earth. * * * * * The following biographical sketch is by Mr. Wm. S. Elliott, of South Carolina, a grand nephew of Pinckney: "In the diploma, by which the degree of Doctor of Laws was conferred upon him by the University of Princeton, New Jersey, it is expressly declared, that it 'is conferred on account of high acquirements, learning and ability, and particularly for his distinguished services in Congress and the Federal Convention.' From 1787 to 1789, he was traveling on the Continent and on his return, was elected Governor of the State. While Governor, he was a delegate to, and made president of the State Convention for forming the Constitution. In 1791 he was chosen a second time, and in 1796 a third time, Governor of the State; in 1798 a Senator in Congress, where he remained until 1801, when Mr. Jefferson appointed him Minister Plenipotentiary to Spain, with power to treat for the purchase of Louisiana and Florida. On his return in 1806, he was a fourth time honored with the position of Governor of the State, and he is the only citizen who has been so frequently elevated to the executive chair. From this period he retired from public life, until in 1818, when he was elected under great party excitement to the United States House of Representatives by Charleston District, and he here closed his political life with his speech in opposition to the Missouri Compromise. "Family tradition and genealogical history are the very reverse of amber, which, itself a valuable substance, usually includes trifles; whereas, these trifles being in themselves very insignificant and trifling do, nevertheless, serve to perpetuate a great deal of what is rare and valuable in ancient manners, and to record many curious and minute facts, which could have been preserved and conveyed through no other medium.