Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1873-07-05

! unless suspended III their operation till his
assent should be obtained and, when SO
suspended, he has utterly neglected to at
tend to them. o-i,,,- f.t-,.,,'-,, ~. ,..., d..
lie has refused to pass othcrhws for the
accommodation of large districts of people,
unless those people would rolinquish the
right of representation in the legislature a
right inestinlabR to them and formidable
| to tyrants only, - ata -,,,a.-t1s..s r.
lie has called together Legislative bodies
at places unusual, uncomfortable and dis
tant from the depository of their public re-
cords, for The sole purpose of fatguipa
them into compliance with his measures.
lie has dissolved representative houses
repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firm
ness, his invasions on the rights of the peo-
pie. ,..,..
lie has refused, for long time after
! such dissolutions, to cause others to be
elected whereby the legislative powers, in
capable Of. annildlation, have returned to
the people at large for their exercise the
| State remaining, in the meantime, exposed
to all the dangers of invasion from without
and convulsions within.
lie has endeavored to prevent the popu-
lation of these States for that purpose OBJ
structing the laws for naturalization of fo-
reigners; refusing to pass others for their
migration hither, and raising the condi-
tons of new appropriations of lands.
He has obstructed the administration of
Justice, by refusing his assent to laws es-
tablishing Judiciary powers.
lie has made judges dependent on his will
alone, for the tenure of their offices, and
the amount and payment of their salaries.
lie has erected multitude of new Off
ces, and sent hither swarms of officers to
harass our people, and eat out their sub
stance.
lie has kept among us in times of peace,
standing armies without the consent of our
legislatures.
lie has affected to render the military in
dependent of, and superior to the civil
power. ..
lie has combined with others to subject
us to jurisdiction foreign to our constitu-
ton, and acknowledged by our laws CIV
ing his assent to their acts of pretended le
gislation.
For quartering large bodies of armed
troops among us. ...
For protecting them, by mock trial,
from punishment for any murders which
they should commit on the inhabitants of
these States.
For cutting off trade with all parts of the
world
For imposing taxes on us without our
consent. ...
For depriying us, in many cases, of the
benefit of trial by jury.
For transporting us beyond seas to DC
tried for pretended offences.
For abolishing the free system of Eng
lish laws in neighboring province, estab
fishing therein an arbitrary government,
and enlarging its boundaries so as to rem
der it at once an example and fit instru-
ment for introducing the same absolute rule
into these colonies :
For taking away our charters, abolishing
our most valuable laws, and altering fun
damentally, the forms of our government ::
For suspending our own legislatures and
declaring themselves invested with power
to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
lie has abdicated government here, by
declaring us out Of his protection, and
waglng war against us.
lie has plundcrcd our seas, ravaged our
| coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the
lives of our people.
lie is at this time transporting large ar
mics Of foreign mercenarics, TO complete
the works of death, desolation and tyranny
! already begun, with circumstances of cru
city and perlidy, scarcely paralelled in the
most barbarous ages and totally unworthy
the head of civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow citizens,
taken captive on the high seas, to bear
arms against their country, to become the
exeeutioners of their friends and brethren,
or to fall themselves by their hands.
He has excited domestic instructions
| against us, and has endcavored to bring on
the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merci-
less Indian sayages, whose known rule of
warfare is an undistinguished destruction
OF all ages, sexes and condit0Rs.
In every stage Of these expressions we
have petitioned for redress in the most
humble terms our repeated petitions have
been answered only by repeated injury.
A prince whose character is thus marked
by every act which may define a tyrant, is
unit to DC the ruler OF Il free people.
Nor have we been wanting in attention
to our British brethren. We have warned
them, from time to time, of attempts by
their legislection to extend an unwar ranta-
BILE jurisdiction over us. We have remind
ed them of the circumstances emigration
and settlement here. We have appealed
to their native justice and magnanimity,
and we have eoniured them by the ties OF
our com mon kindred 10 disayow these
usurpations, which would inevitably inter
rupt our connections and correspondence.
They too have been deaf to the voice OF
justice and of consanguinity. We must
therefore acQuiesce in the necessity which
announces our separation, and hold them
as we hold the rest of mankind, eaeplieS IA
ecdr-in peace, friends.
We, therefore, the representatives of the
United States Of America, in general Con-
gress assembled, appealing to the Supreme
Judge of the world for the rcclitude of our
intentions, do in the name and by the au'
thority Of the good people of these colonies,
soiemnly publish aud declare that these
United Colonies are, and of right ought to
be, free and independent States that they
are absolved from all allegiance 10 the
British crown, and that all political con.
nection between them and the State OF
Great Britain, is, and ought to be, totally
dissolved and that, rs free and indeprnd-
ent States, they have full power to levy
war, conclude peace, contract alliances, es-
tablish commerce, and to do all other acts
and things which independent States may
of right do. And for the support of this
declaration, with firm reliance on the
protection of Divine Providence, we mutu'
ally pledge to each other OUR LIVES Our
FORTUNES AND OUR SACRED HONOR.
join HANCOCK.