The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1934-06-29

July 4, 1854, and in it he anticipated by % years
to the day some of the ideas expressed in the
Declaration of Independence. He said
Brethren it is very true as you told u.s. that
the clouds hang heavy over us and it is not very
pleasant to look up; but we give this belt to
clear away all the clouds, that we may all live
in bright sunlight, and keep together in strict
union and friendship. Then shall become
strong and nothing can hurt us.
Brethren l will just tell you what people
we were formerly. If any enemies arose against
US, had occasion to lift up our whole
hand against them, for our little finger was sufi-
Gent; and as we have now made a strong con-
federacy If we are truly In earnest therein, we
may retrieve the ancient glory of the Five
Nations"
1t is easy to imagine how attentively one
delegate to that congress listened to the words
of the Mohawk chieftain as he told Of the an
cient power of the roquois confederacy a power
gained so many years before because these "sav-
ages" realized that "n union there is strength
and put that realization into practical effect
That delegate was Benjamin Franklin of Penn
sylvania, who had in his pocket a plan for a
union of the colonies which he had brought from
Philadelphia with him.
His plan provided for the appointment of
president-general for the colonies, appointed by
the Crown, and the election by the various
colonial assemblies of legislative body to be
called the grand council. The powers which they
were to exercise resembled in many ways those
conferred upon the President and congress by
our federal Constitution. But did the colonies
accept it? They did not For as Arthur Pound
says In his book, johnson of the Mohawks," in
telling of the parts played by Franklin and Sir
William Johnson at the Albany congress-
at seems to have pleased no one thoroughly
except Franklin, being too royalist for the colo
NAL assemblies and too democratic for the Lords
of Trade. They had counseled union for de-
tense, presumably temporary, and here was a
permanent machine for decreasing their author
ity. With the calm assurance of great minds
they dDpped the plan, iguratively, into the
wastebasket and pushing the figure of speech
still further, they dropped the American colo
MES after it. For union of some sort was the
only means by which the colonies could have
managed American affairs, including frontier
wars, without British interference and taxation
from London" So although tie delegates to the
Albany congress unanimously adopted Franklin's
plan, it was defeated when brought to a vote
in the colonial assemblies.
So the colonies and the Mother country turned
deaf ears to the wisdom that came from the
lips of such men as King Hendrck of the Mo-
hawks and Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania
and went back to their policy of "blundering
times in the campaign against Crown Point the
next year. One of their plumbers was in dsre-
garding the advice of King Hendrick who had
led his Mohawks to aid his friend, Sir William
Johnson, who commanded the expedition
When it was proposed to send detachment
of 1000 troops and 800 Indians to the aid of
besieged Fort Edward the Mohawk chief OBJ
jected. "If they are to fight, they are too few"
he said. IF they are to die, they are too many"
D. IL
1t was proposed to send the detachment against
the enemy in three parties, Hendrck again
preached his message of "in union there is
strength" Picking up three sticks from the
ground he said: Put these together and YOU
cannot break them; take them one by one and
you will do it easily"
But again his advice was disregarded and the
detachment started against the gallant and able
commander, Dieskau. The result was the ambush
at Bloody Pond, the defeat of the colonials with
the loss of 100 men: including the leader of the
detachment Col. Ephraim Williams and stout
old Hendrick His horse was shot down at the
first volley and before he could extricate him.
self a French bayonet pierced his heart
So the great Mohawk died before he could see
his English allies blunder through the French
and Indian war to successful conclusion. But
his oft-repeated sin union there is strength" was
not utterly lost. Another man who had preached
the same message at the Albany congress con.
tinued to preach Through his snake cartoon,
through his writings and in his speeches in the
Continental congress. So Benjamin Franklin
lived to see it become accomplished fact He
helped write pledge to such a union in the
Declaration of Independence and even rnougb
during the dark days of the Revolution the bonds
of that union seemed about to be broken. they
survived long enough to win American liberty
But before he died he saw that union imper.
ishably preserves In the Constitution of tn,
United States of America
nv WAISTS New.