Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-02-04
WHERE BLOOD FIRST WAS SHED.
vernOnt's Claim Respecting the BE-
SHINING Of the Revelation.

vernont's Claim Respecta.s the BE-
gfnniag Of the Revelation.
From the Burlington vt) Free Press.
Vermonters have been wont 10 claim that
the first blood Of the revolutionary strug-
Gle was shed at Westminster, VT, on the
18th OF March. IT'S. when. as the inscrip-
ton on his monument records. William
French was shot by the hands of Cruel
Ministerial tools Of Georg We 3D."
But there are rival claims. Some Mas
sachusetts people assert that the first blood
was shed at Salem, on the 10Th Of Feb
rrary, 11I5-hftsen days before the West
minister massacre-when Gen. Gage. hav-
ing learned that the patriots were mount
ing some old cannon taken in the French
war at Salem. sent thither a battalion of
$40 men under Lieut.. Col. Leslie who met
in the town a mob so large and threaten
ing that he thought it the proper plan to
retrace his steps to Boston. 1t is claimed
that bayonets were lowered and some of
the men who barred the way were pricked
with them.
A much earlier collision between a squad
OF British soldiers and a mob. in New York
city, In January. ITO, has also been cited
as the first instance of the shedding of
blood in the contest for independence. This
latter event has new come freshly into no.
tice. Within week past a bronze tablet
mas been placed on the wall of the Broad
once.
by the Daughters of the Revolution of
that city
Whether the blood spilled in this fracas
can properly be called ''the first martyr
blood Of the revolution of course depends
on the date when the American revolution
can properly be said to have begun His
torians have not commonly placed that
date earlier than the year 1775 There was
already serious friction between the colo
MES and the king in 17I0 The presence of
trOODS no two
measures Of the British government was
obnoxious to the men of the colonies, but
they had not as yet determined to throw off
the yoke. The liberty they claimed and
for which the liberty pole on the New York
common stood, was liberty under the royal
government. not independence of 1t.
III the collisions between the New York
sailors and English sailors in January,
ITO. could be called parts of the revou-
ton. then the similar occurrence in Boston
In March OF that year, known as "ths Bos-
ton massacre, in which the soldiers fired
on the mob and killed three citizens, would
nave been placed by historians among the
overt acts of revolution. But that event
has not been SO classed. The revolution
was impending, but had not begun.
When, however, the royal posse attacked
the court house at Westminster, VT. the
revolt was in active preparation. The first
continental Congress had assembled, the
port of Boston had been closed by British
ships. and British army assembled at
and Connecticut ware casting the bullets
which few days later slew hundreds of
redcoats at Concord bridge and Bunker
Hill. The Green mountain boys had al
ready engaged to take Ticonderoga The
revolution had begun.
If British bayonet was stained with
pc triot blood at Salem. Mass, in February.
lII5, that may, perhaps, fairly be called
the first blood of the revolution. but It is
not certain that any blood was then shed.
Mr.. Winsor. the Massachusetts, historian,
In his Critical History of America" calls
1t "a little alleged pricking of bayonets"
and, according to his view, the first blood
or the revolution was not shed there, but
at Lexington. THE shot heard round the
world was fred on the 18th of April 1878,
but William French and Daniel Houghton,
slain by King Georg his tory crew." at
Westminster. on the 18th of March. were
patriots arrayed against royal authority,
and there is still room for fair argument
that theirs was the first martyr blood of
the revolution.