Norwich bulletin., 1913-06-06
TOOK SPECIAL PRIZE IN CONTEST
Essay Written by Robert Gale Moves of This CyAdjudged
 Best of Those Submitted by High and Grammar Schools of the State.
of the State.

In winning the $15 special prize of fered by Mrs. John H. Helcombe in connection with the essay contest of l the Connecticut Society of the Colonial Danes, Robert Gale Neyes of the Ninth grade of Broadway grammar school of this city was. in competition not only with pupils of his own grade throughout the state. but was also en- tered in the lists, against high school pupils, as this contest included both grades. That this award should have come to him under these circumstances is significant of the merit of the essay of this Broadway scheolboy, who is the son of MT. and Mrs. G. Fred Moves ef No. l04 Laurel Hill avenue.
 The Prize Essay.
 The following was the essay upon the assigned topic of The Founders Of Hartford and the First Constitution
 Connecticut has no romantic incl dents connected with it's history-1ust the plain. every day life of the ordI- nary citizen. The study of its history Is made none the less interesting, how ever, by this simplicity The state of Connecticut has as much cause for pride as any state in our federal Un- ion, It was here on tlle banks of the Connecticut, at Hartford that Ameri- can democracy had it's birthplace. The colony was founded by a few brave men and women who dared defy tErants and declare that that great God given gift IT liberty - belongs euaMy to all freemen.
 In 1881 Washquimacut, an Indian sachem visited the Massachusetts Bay colony telling Of the beauty of the Connecticut valley andeinvfting the white man to settle there. Soon after, Edward Winslows made the journey to the valley. He marvelled at the grand eur Of the country and upon his re- turn to the Plymouth colony gave glowing accounts of what he had seen.
 The next year various companies be- came interested and made the jour ney, all of them returning with enthu- slastic praises of the region.
 The population of New England was, at the time, mostly in and around the settlements at Boston and Plymouth. The tyrannous actions of the king of England, both in church and state gave cause for an ever increasing number of people to migrate to Amer ica. Soon the region around Boston populated, and there arose a complaint of lack of land Naturally the people began petitioning the general court of Massachusetts for permission to eml- grate to the Connecticut.
 There were various reasons given for this desire to emigrate. The luxuriant meadows, which would afford excellent
 
 strong attraction. The claim of lack of land in Massachusetts formed an- other excuse, but one that seems to us both humorous and ridiculous. If Massachusetts could be called over populated in 1884 by four thousand people, what would it be termed today with more than three millions? But the true reason was political. The charter of Massachusetts granted po litical freedom to all freemen, but there had been enacted a law which allow ed only church members to vote. Mas sachusetts was decidedly an aristocra- cy Many of tie colonists thought this to be radically wrong. They believed in the separation of church and state, and acknowledged tho right of all free citizens to govern themselves.
 One of the chief petitioners in favor of the emigration was the Rev. Thom- as Hooker, the light of the western churches
 Thomas Hooker was born at Mar field, England, two years before the de- struction of Philip HIS invincible He was educated at Eman- ue1 college during the reign of James and Charles I.
 These monarchs, thinking that dom- finance in the church would aid them in strengthening the throne, believed in the union of church and state. All those who would not conform to this mode of government were called non- and were regarded as ene- mics to the throne. Thomas Hooker was a non -confomist preacher who believed according to his conscience in the separation of church and state. He