--- REMEMBERING INDEPENDENCE DAY
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who
signed the Declaration of Independence?
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and
tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;
Another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of
the Revolutionary War.
They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes,
and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants,
nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means,
well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were
captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader,
saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his
home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was
forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress
without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions
were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.
Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall,
Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the
British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for
his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to
open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The
enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.
John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was
dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his
gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests
and
caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children
vanished.
A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.
Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.
Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American
Revolution. These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians.
They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They
had security, but they valued liberty more.
Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged:
"For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the
protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to
each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."
They gave you and me a free and independent America. The
history books never told you a lot about what happened
in the Revolutionary War. We didn't fight just the British.
We were British subjects at that time and we fought our
own government! Some of us take these liberties so much for
granted, but we shouldn't. So, take a few minutes while enjoying
your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not
much to ask for the price they paid.
Remember: freedom is never free!
I hope you will show your support by please sending this to
as many people as you can. It's time we get the word out that
patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to
it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.
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