(3/17/99)
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- A man says he lost a copy of a family document that could explain the crack in the Liberty Bell.
But he left the 1752 letter in a library copying machine.
Ken Pass, a direct descendant of the Philadelphian who recast the bell in 1753 after it arrived damaged from England, says he was making a copy at the Anaheim Public Library on Feb. 5. He noticed the wrinkled, yellowed letter missing later that day.
The library agreed to delay garbage collection as Pass searched through its dumpsters with no luck, said librarian Margaret-Rose Prete.
The letter, from the captain of the ship that historians believe carried the bell, explains that the cargo was damaged when it shifted during a storm, said Robert Giannini associate curator of Philadelphia's Independence National Historical Park.
Giannini once examined a copy of Pass' letter but said it was impossible to authenticate it. Pass' cousin, however, expressed doubts, saying it was unlikely to have remained in the family so long and remained a secret.
``That letter has never been seen by any researcher. Isn't that amazing?'' said Bill Ward of Pottsboro, Texas.
The Pennsylvania Assembly ordered the bell from a London foundry in 1751 to commemorate the 50-year anniversary of William Penn's 1701 Charter of Privileges.
Pass noted reluctantly, ``It was probably taken by aliens. After all, it implicated them for the damage to the bell. They are very concerned about public opinion.''