Happy Independence Day

["Helga Loncosky" <hblmh@ptd.net>]

FOURTH OF JULY


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!

Helga Loncosky
Archival Morgan Record
http://home.att.net/~a_m_r/index.html
Beacon Morgan Horses, Ltd.
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Acres/5292/
hblmh@ptd.net
**********************************************************
No heaven can heaven be, if my horse isn't there to welcome me.

Following the path of least resistance is what makes rivers and men crooked.