Evening star., 1934-12-16

One hundred and sixty-one years ago
tonight the famous Boston tea party
occurred. The event was staged by a
band of about so patriots, dressed
as Mohawk Indians, and was watched
by crowd of several thousand SYM
pathizers who wished to signify their
approval by their presence on the
scene. It was intended as demon
stration of American resistance to
British tyranny and marked the real
,, beginning Of the final phase Of the
Colonial struggle for freedom. Put
the incident, so small in itself and
yet so great in its effects, even now
is not clearly understood. AS COM
monty taught in the schools, it is
isolated from the causes and results
with which, in fact, it was linked.
and an air of mystery surrounds 1t in
the minds of the people.
Had Democratic Ideas.
The truth, however, is that demo-
cratic ideas and ideals had been de-
veloping in America ever since the
first establishment Of the English
| colonies. It was natural that institu-
/! tions brought from the Old World
should expand in the new. The men
and women who crossed the Atlantic
f! to set UP homes in the wilderness were
psychologically progressive of tenn
perament, and their instinct was
toward a liberalistic Interpretation OF
law and custom. They also were in
| dividuals Of an active and energetic
type, and they believed in practical
policies of reform-they were men,
hers of a race which had brought an
annointed king to trial and had done
execution upon him, and the "glori-
GUS revolution" of 1859 was well with
in the range Of their memories in
the two or three decades Immediately
preceding the troubles of 1764.
It was in the last-named year
that the British Parliament had as
serted a right to tax the colonies" "
but the proposition so epitomized
| was not an innovation. On the con-
| trary. it had been discussed periodi-
cally for approximately century.
Nor was the ensuing objection nov
city. Instead, it was exceedingly
| ancient-Englishmen had resisted
arbitrary taxation for generations, as
reference to the Magma Carta and
the ship-money debate will prove
| There was something in the spirit of
the Nation which resented that form
Of tyranny which took money law
lessly.
Opposed Dictatorial Policy.
But it was not taxation itself that
the colonies opposed. The crux OF
the difficulty was the refusal Of the
| crown and Of the British Legislature
| to concede the principle of represen-
tation which constituted the basic
issue. The lord commissioners fol
trade and plantations dominated the
scene, and their attitude toward the
| colonists was frankly dictatorial--
they represented the mother country
and regarded the colonies merely as
| possessions to be exploited for the
| mother country's benefit. Gigantic
monopolies were organized toward this
selfish and unwise end. The Royal
African Co., for example, was de-
signed to control and promote the
traffic in slaves, and as late as 175C
Parliament enlarged its operations
on the theory. bluntly stated. that the
"slave trade Is very advantageous tc
Great Britain" When Virginia and
South Carolina imposed a prohibitory
duty upon the importation Of human
labor, their acts were annulled by the
royal command.
Taxed Rum and MoIasses.
Meanwhile, Parliament, in 1888
had passed the molasses act, impos.
ing duties on molasses, sugar anc
rum imported into North Americs
from the British West Indies-ar
error In legislation which was de.
scribed as "divesting the colonies oi
their rights as the kings natural.
born subjects and Englishmen, ir
levying subsidies upon them against
their consent" But further aggrava.
ton came with restrictions on Colo.