The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1882-07-06


q grow brighter and stronger as tin
, counted off the years: gall mS
2 are created equal, they are endoWs
by their Creator with certain vi
alienable rights, that among the
{ are life, liberty and the pursuit
/ happiness"
The trial of self-gOvernment ma
proven so great q success, and the
fondest hopes seemed so posi-
bic to be realized that the
were unwilling longer 10 pa
tribute to useless royalty. AM
when England persisted ia taxation
which could not he borne, an,
spurned with contempt their peti
toes asking for relief, these bFav
men aIose in their might, and will
one accord answered Dack to thei
mother country. These colonies ar,
and Of right ought to b,
free and Independent States, anC
with this utterance, accompanied
! with a refusal o niger pay tribute
to King George and England comes
the crisis. Oppressive and insult.
ing measures We're passed by the
English Parliament, and when dis.
regarded by the colonists, British
troops were quartered upon our
shores to enforce obedience to the
mandates of royalty. Depredations
were committed, intimidation was
resorted to, but ali to no avail.
Our forefathers saw the black
dread storm cloud of war fast
gathering; its mutteriugs spoke no
uncertain language. And when it
seemed to envelope the whole land
within its dark and terrible shadow,
and was ready at any moment to
burst upon them they began to
gather ammunition and munitions
Of war, and as best they could pre-
pare for the result.
And as we stand here today look.
ing back upon those scenes, what a
picture is presented to us;on the one
hand we see the brilliant, We'll
organized, we'll equipped army of
England-comparatively speaking q
host backed by strong government
with inexhaustible resouTces-on
the other a handful Of men without
organization, without arms, except
as they could pick them up
here and there, without money.
Looking at 1T by the light
of these fact we can but exelaim
what an unequal contest, how hope
less the chances OF success. But
how true the sentiment that fell
from the lips Of the immortal Henry,
'EThe victory is not to the strong
alone but to the vigilant, the active,
the brave"
This was the situation Of affairs
when England ordered her troops
to at once destroy the stores of am.
munitiOn and supplies at Concord.
They attempted it, and on the 10Th
day of April, 1775, the guns of Lex
ingtOn called q new born nation to
regenerate the world. The rubicon
had been passed, there was now no
escape. To he defeated was but an
ignoRinOus death, to be victorious
was life and everlasting honor.
The principles for which they
and the sentiment, 'Give
US. liberty or give us DEATH" was to
them cloud by Gay and a pillar
Of fire by night, and by 1t they
were led from the field of Lexing-
ton, where cation was baptized in
the pure blood of treemen-through
that midnight darkness of despair
at Valley Forge, where, but for
Gods overruling providence, in
which they alone trusted, they
must have gone down forever; on
and on through terrible scenes OF
sacrifice and death, out
into that glorious light Of victory
which broke upon them on that
day at Yorktown, and es.
tablished for them and for us, and
forever, a nation free and indepen-
dent.
On this the anniversary Of that
Attn Of July, 1875, when
there was given to this nation and
TO the world that divine-inspired
document which has been read in
your hearing, the Declaration Of In.
dependence, it is not only our right
but our duty to talk over the events
which eliminated in the establish.
ment Of this nation.
To-day we should gather around
Us our children and tell them the
story of the great struggle for free
dom, that they may know and real
lie what the liberty they enjoy and
the possibilities that are vouchsafed
to them, cost. Let them know and
that these ceremonies
by which we celebrate this our
nations birthday are not idle
and meaningless; teach them that
they live III country where merit
and true worth is rewarded, and not
royal blood; teach them that because
Of the results Of the struggle for in
which to-day We re-
member with glat hearts the posi-
biliti.s are rendered alike to all,
whether it be the child Of the mil.
liOnaire of high birth, or the child of
the poor man Of humble parentage.
But while we remember with
pride and gratitude, the grand re.
suits and brilliant achievements of
our illustrious forefathers in their
struggle for liberty, with charity
toward them, but with justice for
those who following have preserved
to us a nation, we must not for
get that when they had wTenched
from England her acknowledgement