[Rhodes22-list] The cost of freedom.

[John Tonjes]

   John Tonjes
   [1]johntonjes at earthlink.net
   Why Wait? Move to EarthLink.



     4TH 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 theirl
     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.  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
     sending this to as many people as you can, please.  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.

References

   1. mailto:johntonjes at earthlink.net