The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1898-07-21
BRAVE AMERICAN WOMEN.
In the Revolution They Were Not Behi
the Men in Patriotism.


From memoirs, diaries and old le
ters enough comes down to give u
an idea of the tone of the women OF
the Revolution, and the mothers
stand out as heroically as any Spartan
woman. A Mrs. Martin voiced the
general feeling when British officer
asked her whether she had son.
81 have seven"
"Where are they?"
"Fighting for their country"
"All of them?"
GAIL"
The officer sneered. "Well, you
sent enough" he said.
Mrs. Martin looked him squarely in
the face. 81 wish / had fifty sons to
send against you"
Such instances pile up before the
searcher, and there were mothers
drawer still One of them sent an
only son to the siege of Augusta. A
British soldier, full of hatred for the
rebels, rode out of his way to tell the
woman of her sons death. She met
him at the door, and, without word
of warning, he brutally announced:
"You had a son. saw his brains
blown out at Augusta.
The mothers form grew rigid, but
she said proudly:
''He could not have died in anobler
cause.
There are mothers in the land to-
day as brave as she, if cause like
hers should call; and, even when the
cause is the liberty of another race,
the mothers have been brave and
stopped their tears. Women's work
was needed more in the old days than
it is in this time of Government sup
plies and well-filled Treasury, and
wherever women were needed, there
they were found. Mrs. Draper, OF
Dedham, Mass, sent her husband
| and sixteen-year- son to the army.
| Then she called in her neighbors
and began baking bread and pies,
which she kept on long table before
her gate, for the refreshment OF all
hungry American soldiers who passed
that way. After Bunker Hill, when
the scarcity of ammunition induced
Washington to call for all available
pewter and lead, the same Mrs.
Draper came to the front again. Pew
ter was dear to the heart of the New
England housekeeper, and she had
one of the finest collections in New
England; but without a moments
hesitation she melted it down, and,
not content with furnishing the ma
terial, she obtained a mould and made
the pewter into bullets, which she
forwarded to the army. Then new
want arose. The men were insult
ficiently clothed. The interchangeable
Mrs. Draper had piles of domestic
cloth slowed away for family use. She
made it into soldiers coats. Her
splendid stock of sheets and blankets
was transformed into shirts, and even
her own flannel clothing was altered
| to mems garments.
She was only one woman among
thousands like her. The famous Mrs.
Motto, who had given signal evidence
| of patriotism, was at one time obliged
| to leave her handsome home, which
| fell into British hands. Mrs. Motto
| took up her residence in farmhouse
| back of the American lines. The
| American commander became con-
WINGED that the only way of routing
the British was by destroying the
Motto house, but he hesitated to men
ton this to the patriotic women.
| When he did pluck up courage to do
so, he was relieved of all embarrass-
ment. Although the place was dear to
her, and was almost her only property,
she assured the commander that 1T
was altogether at his service, fur
| nished him the bow and arrows by
which combustibles were to be carried
to the roof, and stood beside him, with
no sign of regret, while her home and
fortune burned to ashes.
Not all of the Revolutionary women
had great sacrifices to make, but they
did what they could; and so many of
the girls pledged themselves never to
accept the attentions of young men
who refused to fight for the country
that there was really no merit in
young mans going to the front.
American women gave up tea, too;
and in that day that was sacrifice as
heroic as it would be in England now.
Peggy Stewart, of Annapolis, went
further than that in the tea fight.
She was the pretty wife of Anthony
Stewart, a merchant and shipowner;
and when bark, named for her, the
Peggy Stewart, came in with cargo
of tea, she ordered both tea and bark
to be burned in the harbor; and forced
her husband to hold the torch with
which the fire which destroyed his
property was kindled.
The Flag of Betsy Ross,