The Holbrook news., 1921-07-01
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These laws were comprehensive and strict, being designed to give British merchants monopoly of trade with the colonies and to protect British manufacturers against colonial competition. War ships were placed along the coast to stop the colonial trade with France and Spain and their West Indian colonies. The "Writs of As Sistance" were general search warrants given to customs officials to enable them to break into and search any premises at any time James Otis. the famous Boston lawyer, opposed the right of the British government to issue the writs or even to pass act of trade imposing a tax the colonies John Adams said of Otis celebrated speech: Tt breathed into this nation the breath of life" Undoubtedly this situation of the contributing causeS of the Revolution
 Then King George demanded that the colonies pay the expense of a British army of about 20. 900 men to be quartered In America to protect the colonies against the Indians The colonies suspected the purpose of this army and would have none of 1t. Here the beginning of real trouble a little later.
 The 'Boston Tea Party a serious affair. not in itself, but because parliament immediate ly took measures to punish Boston and Massa- chusetts The closing of the port of Boston. the removal of the seat of government ito Salem, the appointment of General Gage as governor of Mas sachusetts and the remodeling of the charter of Massachusetts constituted warning to all the colonies that free government was in imminent danger everywhere. On top of this came the act providing that British officers magistrates charged with murder other capital crime should be tried in some other colony or in England; the act billeting soldiers people who failed volun- tarily to provide quarters and the act extending the boundaries of Quebec to the Ohio river ana establishing an arbitrary form of government
 This emulation of activities on the part of the crown seems to have convinced the colonies that their only salvation lay in getting together for united action So the First Continental Congress met This congress merely deliberative and advisory; 1t issued declaration of rights; 1t formed an association for carrying out the non importation agreement; 1t forwarded petition to the king and set out an address to the col onies; it provided for another congress to meet in 1775. Still there was no open discussion of independence.
 It was Massachusetts which finally set off the powder barrel. General Gage summoned the pro vincial congress to meet in Salem, but put on the date of assembling. The delegates met without him and his counsellors. They provided for the appointment of committee of safety and issued n call for 12OOO Minute Men," Parliament then declared Massachusetts to be in state Of re- bellion. Next was the expedition out of Boston to seize powder and to arrest the two chief trait ors".
 Then came the "shots heard round the world and bloodshed. The fight And still there was no open movement for independence until after a year of bloody fighting. It was not until June T 1776, in the Second Continental Congress, that Virginia's instructed delegate Richard Hen ry Lee, introduced the resolution beginning. That these united colonies are and of right ought 10 be- free and independent states
 The Declaration of Independence, as drafted by Thomas Jefferson with the aid of John Adams. Benjamin Franklin. Roger Sherman and Robert R Livingston and amended by congress- consists of two principal parts: A statement of American political theories in justification of independence and list of abuses by King George III that had operated to absolve the united colonies from all allegiance to the British crown. The facts here in set forth make clear most of the abuses as out lined in the Declaration