The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1867-07-19

igood right arm ! will support an,
defend the until ink shall dry up
pen grow dull, purse waste away
tongue become stiff, and the goo,
right arm shall cease its motions 70
e lever.
o. Ladies and gentlemen, please ex
r cuse these personal illusions, as the,
appear to me appropriate under til
Il circumstances, and now let us ad
; dress ourselves to something of NOR,
general interest.
, The civilization, history and insti
tutions of this country can never b
intelligently read and clearly under
! stood without bearing in mind tn
= character and history of the founder
e of our nation. These founders wer,
not those whom We commonly cal
the Revolutionary fathers; but tn
b Pilgrim faihersi And who were th.
4 Pilgrim fathers? They were emi
lgrants from England, subjects OF th'
British government, and dissenter
from the established church of Eng
land. They were banished from
{ England because they hated and de
nounced civil tyranny, and they were
/ dissenters from the established churcl
because they hated religious corrup-
tion and ecclesiastical oppression
On being banished from England
they went to Leyden, Holland, where
they lived about ten years, but not
finding sufficient scope and facilities
for their development and improve
ment, they resolved on emigratins
to the free, broad and uncultivateC
continent of America, and in carrying
out this resolution, they landed Oh
+, Plymouth Rock, Dee. 70, l62O.
And now bear in mind that the
chief elements in the character of the
Pilgrim fathers were hatred of op-
lpressiOn and love of liberty. Fol-
the purpose of escaping the one and
gaining the other, they abandoned
home, and friends, and native land;
braved the storms and dangers oi
the sea, and began life anew, in 8
wild and almost unexplored CONT
nent.
And now, mark you, these Pilgrim
fathers were not the dreg5, but the
very cream of European society; or,
to use the language Of another, "Eu-
rope sitted her finest wheat to SOW
this American soil. Her hills and
dales were again and again ransack-
ed, to collect the choice -few who
should found a new state and plant
a new church. The Pilgrims were
the best men, selected from the best
portion of the best nation on the face
OF the earth" God in History.
With these facts before us We can
readily determine what would he
the children of such parents. IIa-
tired of oppression and love of liberty
their children nursed from their
mothers in infancy, and inhaled the
same from the very breath and ear
liest teachings of their fathers. What
then could be expected of such chill
dren than that when an attempt
should be made to fasten upon their
necks the yoke which their fathers
had cast off and taught them to hate.
that they also would spurn it and
.pledge their lives, their fortunes
and their sacred honor" to "strike
for God and liberty?" Such were
the Pilgrim fathers and their children;
men who hated oppression and loved
| liberty: founded schools, colleges
and churches; fostered freedom, dis
seminsted intelligence, promoted the
interests of religion, knew the rights
of man, and "knowing, dare main
tain them"
To even think Of depressing such
people was the essence of folly, and
yet OF such folly England was guilty
when she was old enough to know bet
ter. Becoming jealous of the Colo
nisrs, the British government began
20 levy unjust taxes upon them, and
they, rather than openly resist tie
law, resorted TO the smuggling OF
goods on which unjust duties had
been imposed. In 1868 bill WAS
passed in the british Parliament i'm
posing duties on indigo, coffee, silk,
etc, which duties were so high as
almost TO prohibit trade, and yet
said duties were to he paid in gold
and silver. During the same session
of Parliament another bill was pass
ed, declaring the paper money issued
by the authority of the Colonial Leg
islatures not to be legal tender in
payment of debts. 1t was the
Egyption policy over again, increas-
ing the tole of brick demanded,
and withholding the straw with
which to make them.
In March %, 1868, the memorable
Stamp Act was passed, and patience
in the Colonists ceased TO be vir-
tue. The volcano began to heave,
and then it burst forth like mighty
thunder. In debate on a resolution
introduced into the Virginia Assem-
bly, on the stamp Act, Patrick Henry
uttered his immortal exclamation,
Caesar had his Brutus! Charles the
First his Cromwell and George the
Third may profit by their example !!
If this be treason, make the most OF
litr'
The arrival of the first cargo of
stamped paper was the signal for an
aut- break, and Boston was the center
OF tumult. The stamp master, An
drew Oliver, was hung in in effigy,
=! and compelled to resign his Office,
and the residences of Hutchinson,
I Lieutenant Governor, and HallOwell,
comptroller of customs, were razed
to the ground. "The first of Novem-
ber was the day appointed sor begin
ming the distribution of stamps and
the whole county was intensely ex-
cited on that memorable day. AT
Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the bells
were tOlled to denote the death OF
liberty, and all che friends were in
vited to the funeral. A decorated
coffin was borne to the State House,
and inscribed, Liberty, aged 145
years" Minute guns were fired
while the coffin was lowered into the
J grave, and then funeral Grafton was
t pronounced over the deceased friend
Of the people. After the oration it
was thought, by some present, that
there were symptoms of life still left
in the body, consequently it was i'm
/ metiately disintered, and the inscrip.
( tion on the coffin lid was changed to
4 Liberty Revived" The bells now
lrano q merry neal and hone again