Freedom

Usually I don't pass these things along. Usually. There've been exceptions every once in a while, if you've followed. Old Block Islanders (not a comment on your ages!) remember that another fun-loving BI-er moved a little further up the map here in Maine. He sent me this and I thought it was a lovely little bit of history. Don't know if it's true at all, except the names are correct. But for those of you who know how patriotic I am - especially my vocal opposition to turn Fourth of July Parades into Other Themed Parades (no matter how good a job the committee does in Holiday Presentations)- I thought I'd pass this along.

FREEDOM IS NEVER FREE!!
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.

Enjoy your 4th and remember the sacrifice of these people who were willing
to give up everything they owned plus the lives of their family for
something people around the world who are still willing 230 years later to
give their lives to obtain or protect. freedom.