The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1909-07-29
Early History of New England.
An Address by Frank S. Forbes, ESQ.,, at the
Picnic OF the New England Society in Los
Angeles, Calf, July 5th.
Los Angeles News.l

Several thousand people We're present
at the fourth annual Fourth of July pic
mic of the New England Society at East
/ lake Park last Monday. There were peo-
pie present from each of the New Eng
land States, some of whom have lived in
California for forty years or more, and
others who came from New England
within the last month. All six of the
New England States were represented
in some way on the program. The two
principal addresses were made by Judge
Waldo M. York, native of Dixmont,
Maine, and Edward A Regain, ESQ.,, re-
Gently from Boston. The guest of honor
was Capt. Daniel Mclaughlin, a native
of Connecticut, who is the only surviving
member of the naval crew who, under
the command of Admiral Sloat, raised
the Stars and Stripes for the first time
over California soil, at Monterey, July 7,
1916. A. j. Woodbury., native of New
Hampshire, brought with him the old
flint lock pistol owned by Benedict Ar
mold at the time of his treason, 1850.
Frank S. Forbes, ESQ.,, president of
the New England Society, in his closing
address gave few facts concerning the
early history of New England, which are
known to but few except those who have
made special study of New England
history. He said the first man to sug-
gest such thing as the independence Of
the American Colonies was the Rev. John
Wise of Ipswich, Mass, who, more than
fifty years before the Declaration of In
dependence was signed, declared in a
sermon that every man has the right to
''life, liberty and the pursuit of happi-
ness In TIT these sentiments We're
published in little book by Mr.. Wise
which, during the next fifty years. found
its way into the homes of the people all
the way from Massachusetts to South
Carolina. This little book, known as
''The Text Book of the Revolution, ~
had more to do in kindling the fires of
patriotism in the American heart at that
time than any other influence. The first
man to suggest that the Colonies should
be organized into a United States of
America with proper State sovereignty
under a superior federal power, was
Jonathan Mayhem, pastor Of a Boston
church, in ITO. The originator of the
Continental Congress was Samuel Adams
of Boston. The first flag, apart from the
British, ever raised on American soil was
made by man in Connecticut and raised
in Boston, either at or soon after the bat
tie Of Bunker Hill The most famous
midnight meeting Of any three men in
history was when Paul Revere, Samuel
Adams and John Hancock met on the old
Concord road the night preceding the
battle of Lexington, and planned how
they might resist the British soldiers.
The first men to lay down their lives for
American independence were New Eng
landers, and the first people to build
monument in commemoration of our in
were New Englanders. The
New Englanders have been the first and
foremost in nearly everything which has
added to the material and moral great
ness of this nation. They were the first
to open the free school. the first to estab-
fish the Independent church, the first to
construct water wheel, the first to turn
the spinning wheel, the first to send the
message over the telegraph, the first to
lay the submarine cable, the first to talk
over the telephone; in fact, if you cut out |
all the Yankee has invented and discov-
cred, you would have but little left in our
modern civilization.