Judsonia weekly advance., 1915-06-30

a patriotic duty to muse upon the imaginative picture entitled "The First Fourth of July" which some historical writer has painted upon his vision.
 l In fancy he sees Independence hall in Phila de1phia and the Continental congress with it's ruf1ed shirts, long cloth coats, knee pants, silk stockings and low shoes sitting with dignity, but | listening spellbound to wonderfully strange and entirely new document called The Declaration of | Independence"
 | In fancy he hears the popular acclaim of That is just what we all say!" and Tt is | we'll worded, MT Jefferson" Then the mind pie | lures the various delegates to congress hasten ing forward, eager for the honor of fixing their signatures to a sheepskin document
 The scene changes to the ringing of the great liberty bell. to the assembling of the people at Philadelphia who app1auded the reading of this bill of rights and to the final closing of the day with every man, woman and child in Philadel. phia happy because he is no longer British subject, having become free American in d single day.
 Such vision pictures heroic scene; but the | true record of events does not affirm that these . so-called happenings took place on that me mofable day By plotting out the imperfect de- tails of the picture the Fourth of July is in no way robbed of any of it's glory An authentic account of what transpired at that time changes the meaning of the Fourth of July from one day to about sixty in which the whole history of national liberty is told and | the heroic heart-throbs of the sorely tried colo nsts keeny felt.
 The day itself properly symbolizes the liberty 1 for which the patriots of that time stood ready to sacrifice their lives in order to launch the 1 United States a national craft which should l be anchored by no weight of foreign despotsm
 It time of danger when brother, friend and neighbor became estranged by reason of political opinion Some colonists still loved the mother country with true English pride while others embittered by the injustice of the sovereign across the seas that they willingly gave their all to the cause of the people of the new land.
 During the latter part of 1774 George Wash | ington himself wrote that thinking man among the colonists wanted to separate from | England, and Franklin ridiculed the idea.
 During the early days of the revolution the buecoats never dreamed of separating from the beloved land of their ancestors In fact such course would have been condemned by Ameri- cans themselves treason. Jefferson declared that prior to April 19, 1775 he had heard no whis- per of the disposition of anyone to stand from under the governmental power of Great Britain.
 The inevitable, however, came with the spring of 1776 when local assemblies began formal dis cussion regarding the liberty of coonists. These legislative bodies possessed but little power but they did a great part in crystazing the senti- ment for independence in many quarters and forcing those opposed to the idea declare their inimical attitude.
 The good work of these small legislative bodies was reflected and magnihed the dele gates sent to the Continental congress- Then the spirit of liberty permeated the very at mosphere of the national assembly and many an individual received the courage to align himself with the cause
 If, June T. 1776, there had been an 'extra paper to have informed the public of the latest political news might have read the faring headlines Richard Henry Lee of Virginia the Man of the Hour,' for 1t he who on that day started the Fourth of July. It was this south erner who introduced the first declaration of in dependence in congress declaring the American people free.
 Good judgment dictated the caution of omit. the second to that motion, yet the fact Is known today when there is army of redcoats wait ing to seize patriots as rebels
 Too much praise cannot be given to the in- trodaction of Lees resolution, yet 1t was to the credit of the Continental congress that action | was not forced upon such important measure at that time It could not have succeeded until all objections had been senced, all fears of | Englands success aIlayed, until all con- scientiously convinced that the cause of liberty was just. It imperative that all should look the Goddess of Liberty squarely in the face with a devotion to follow where she should lead | As agreement could be reached on June ' the resolution laid until the next day, | when it again postponed for consideration un- til July 1.
 Il In order that the of liberty should not | be retarded during this wait, congress at that