USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Lexington > History of the town of Lexington, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, from its first settlement to 1868, with a genealogical register of Lexington families > Part 14
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While these decided measures were being adopted by the people in the Colony, and while every county, and almost every town in Massachusetts, was, in its humble way, resounding with, notes of preparation, the tories and the British officials were ridiculing the idea of attempting to withstand his Majesty's troops. A British officer, writing from Boston, November 3, 1774, says, "The Resolutions of Congress are only thrown out as a bugbear to intimidate the merchants of Boston, and frighten the ministry into a repeal of the late Acts. The faction in Boston is now very low. Believe me, all ranks of the people are heartily tired of disorder and confusion ; as soon as the deter- mination of Great Britain to dispose of their resolves and peti- tions is known, all will be very quiet." Another British officer writing from Boston, November 22d, to a friend in London, says,
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" As to what you hear of their taking arms to resist the force of England, it is mere bullying, and will go no further than words ; whenever it comes to blows, he that can run the fastest, will think himself best off. Believe me, any two regiments here ought to be decimated, if they did not beat in the field the whole force of Massachusetts Province ; for though they are numerous, they are but a mere mob, without order or discipline, and are very awkward at handling their arms." Writing home to Scotland from Boston, December 26th, an officer in the king's service declares, " Our army is in high spirits, and at present this town is pretty quiet. I make no doubt things will wear a new face here, especially when your sentiments of the ministry's firmness are authenticated." While letters from Boston were representing the Americans as cowards, Colonel Grant declared in the House of Commons, February 2d, 1775, " that he had served in America, and knew the Americans well ; was certain they would not fight. They would never dare to face an English army, and did not possess any of the qualifications necessary to make a good · soldier."
Though certain officers in the British army at Boston, attempted to call in question the courage of the Americans, and to ridicule the idea of their resorting to arms, General Gage viewed the proceedings of the Provincial Congress with some degree of apprehension ; especially their recommendation for the organization of the militia. Consequently on the 10th of November, 1774, he issued a proclamation in which he denounced these measures as having "a most dangerous ten- dency to ensnare his Majesty's subjects, the inhabitants of this Province, and draw them into perjuries, riots, seditions, treason and rebellion ; " and he exhorts and commands, in his Majesty's name, "all his liege subjects," not to comply "in any degree with the resolves, recommendations, directions, and regulations," of the Provincial Congress, "as they regard his Majesty's highest displeasure, and would avoid the pains and penalties of the law."
The Governor, however, felt himself strengthened and sup- ported by the fact that at the meeting of Parliament, November 29th, the king, in his speech from the throne, assured them of " his firm and steadfast resolution to withstand every attempt to
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weaken or impair the supreme authority of Parliament over the colonies ; " and that the Lords and Commons had, by a large majority, sustained the crown. The Governor was also in- structed by Lord Dartmouth, under dates of December 10, 1774, and January 4, 1775, to carry out his Majesty's pleasure, and to use his utmost endeavors to prevent the appointment of delegates to the Continental Congress, to be holden in May, 1775. The Governor, in response to these instructions, assures his lordship that the firmn stand taken by the king and Parliament " has cast a damp upon the faction," and he begins to hope that "they will fall on some means to pay for the tea " they had destroyed.
But while Gage was flattering himself with the hope, that the action of Parliament would awe the colonies into submission, the fires of patriotism were burning brighter and brighter in the bosoms of all true Americans. The several towns and districts in the Province had elected their delegates to the second Pro- vincial Congress, and on the 1st day of February, 1775, they assembled at Cambridge, and organized for the dispatch of business. On the 9th, they elected Hon. John Hancock, Dr. Joseph Warren, Dr. Benj. Church, Jr., Mr. Richard Devens, Capt. Benjamin White, Col. Joseph Palmer, Mr. Abraham Watson, Col. Azor Orne, Mr. John Pigeon, Col. William Heath and Mr. Jabez Fisher, a Committee of Safety, to continue in power till the further order of this or some other Congress or House of Representatives of the Province. They also " em- powered and directed" them, when they should think it expe- dient, " to alarm, muster, and cause to be assembled with the utmost expedition, and completely armed and accoutred, and supplied with provisions sufficient for their support in their march to the place of rendezvous, such and so many of the militia of this Province, as they shall judge necessary for the end and purpose of opposing " the execution of the late Acts of Parlia- ment, designed to annul the Charter, and enslave the people of the Province. And they earnestly recommended to all officers and soldiers of the militia, to obey the calls of this committee, " and to pay the strictest obedience thereto, as they regard the liberties and lives of themselves, and the people of the Province."
At the same time, they had appointed, as before stated,
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general officers to command the troops called out by the Com- mittee of Safety. They also published a patriotic and spirited Address to the Inhabitants of Massachusetts, which commences and closes as follows : "Friends and Fellow Sufferers :- When a people, entitled to that freedom which your ancestors have nobly preserved as the richest inheritance of their children, are invaded by the hand of oppression, and trampled on by the merciless feet of tyranny, resistance is so far from being criminal, that it becomes the Christian and social duty of each individual. Your conduct hitherto under the severest trials, has been worthy of you as men and Christians, and notwithstanding the pains that have been taken by your ene- mies, to inculcate the doctrine of non-resistance and passive obedience, and by every art to delude and terrify you, the whole continent of America has this day come to rejoice in your firm- ness. We trust you will still continue steadfast, and having regard to the dignity of your characters as freemen, and those generous sentiments resulting from your natural and political connections, you will never submit your necks to the galling yoke of despotism prepared for you ; but with a proper sense of your dependence on God, nobly defend those rights which Heaven gave, and no man ought to take from you."
Having dispatched their business, and appointed Thursday, the sixteenth day of March, as a day of fasting and prayer to the Sovereign Ruler of nations, the Provincial Congress adjourned on the 16th of February, to meet at Concord on the 22d of March.
The Committee of Safety and the Committee of Supplies, held mectings almost daily between the sessions of the Congress, and adopted the most active and efficient measures to put the Colony in a state of defence. That there might be more harmony and efficiency, they generally met together. They directed sub-committees to procure cannon and small arms, powder and ball, and military stores such as provisions, tents, entrenching tools, and whatever would be required in case troops were called into the field. The journal of their proceedings shows at once their energy and their poverty - their strong devotion to the cause of liberty, and the destitution of the Colony in almost everything necessary to carry on a war, in case
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they were driven to the necessity of taking up arms in defence of their rights. They selected Worcester and Concord, as the depots of such arms and stores as they could obtain. But their journal shows greater preparation than was actually made. The cannon and other stores ordered, could not in many cases be obtained. But everything in the Colony went to show that a rupture was expected, and that stout hearts and strong hands were relied upon to supply the defects of munitions of war ; and that the patriots trusted in the justice of their cause, and the overruling providence of God to bring them off conquerors and more than conquerors, should their oppressors take the field against them.
As the object of this chapter has been to state the real question at issue, and to show the various steps by which the collision was brought about, we have brought the account down to the first of March, 1775, being about the period when General Gage com- menced operations in the field. We have seen that the contro- versy originated in the question of taxation ; Great Britain claiming the right to legislate for the colonies "in all cases whatsoever," and consequently to impose such taxes upon them as the king and Parliament might think fit; and the colonies insisting that by their charters and the great principles of Magna Charta, they, having all the rights, immunities and prerogatives of Englishmen, could not be taxed without their consent ; that . taxation without representation was oppressive, and that all laws to raise a revenue in America, without the consent of the people, were in direct contravention of the English Constitution and the colonial charters ; and so were unconstitutional and void. The British Government, finding themselves unable to meet this issue in the field of debate, and knowing that the united voice of the people in the colonies was sustained by many of their ablest statesmen at home, resolved to change the issue by altering the American charters, so as to give Great Britain, if not eivil, at least military control over the colonies. The Charter of Massa- chusetts was at first taken away, and subsequently restored with important changes, greatly increasing the power of the crown, and consequently reducing that of the colonists. But though this modified Charter was in fact forced upon the colonists, the ministry were not disposed to abide by it, but actually took the
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liberty of infringing its provisions, whenever they were found to stand in the way of their unjust and oppressive measures. They not only trampled upon the rights of the Colony, as a body politic and corporate, but they invaded the private rights of individuals in points relating, not only to property, but to liberty and life, by controlling the courts of justice, depriving the people of the right of trial by jury, and the privilege of meeting together" peaceably to deliberate upon their own affairs. These unconsti- tutional and oppressive measures'- this system of tyranny, deliberately adopted and persistently adhered to, for the express purpose of reducing the colonies to a state of abject and degrading servitude, they attempted to enforce at the point of the bayonet.
It was not simply a question of taxation or no taxation, but a question of freedom or slavery, that the people were called upon to decide ; - not merely a question whether they should be taxed to feed their oppressors, but whether they should submit to evils far greater, and enormities more to be dreaded, because more personal in their character ; - whether they should have their property torn from them in mock trials by judges taken from among their oppressors, and by juries packed by corrupt crown officers - whether. their lives should be put in jeopardy by being torn from their families, and transported beyond the seas to be tried for pretended offences. This was the issue forced upon the people at that day. Our patriot fathers were not rebels in the common acceptation of that term. They did not revolt against the mother country, or refuse to obey laws constitutionally made, and designing to apply to all his Majesty's subjects. No; they simply refused to acquiesce in a system of measures applying to themselves alone, and adopted for the avowed purpose of de- priving them of the rights of British subjects, and of bringing them trembling to the foot of the throne.
Nor was this noble stand taken by our fathers, till all other means had failed. Petition and entreaty had been resorted to, but repeated petitions had been answered only by repeated inju- ries ; and it was not till all hope of redress had failed, that they took the last resolve to stand by their rights at the hazard of their lives. And even then, they resolved not to be the aggres- sors. If blood must flow, its stain should not be upon their
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hands ; if human life must be sacrificed, they would be the first victims. Though they believed their cause to be just, they would not forfeit the approbation of the God of battles, by any hasty or rash act of their own. Though they were preparing for the defence of their rights, at every sacrifice and every hazard, and were resolved, if need be, to submit the decision to the arbitrament of arms, they were nevertheless determined that the first overt act should not be chargeable upon them. Pursuant to this deliberate resolution, it was not till they were attacked - not until they saw their brethren deliberately shot down by their side, that they unsheathed the sword, and committed their cause to the Lord of Sabaoth.
On their part the approaching struggle was to be a religious war in the highest and best sense of the term. Not that they entered upon it in any sectarian spirit, or prosecuted it to sustain a party. They believed that they were the children of God, whose care extended over all their interests, whether civil or religious ; that he had regard for their rights as citizens, as well as for their privileges as Christians, and that they were bound to preserve both by every means in their power. The motives which led their fathers to this country, the difficulties and dangers through which they had passed, the sustaining hand of God which had been visible in their whole history, led them to believe that they had a special trust committed to them, which they must discharge with fidelity ; that they were placed as sen- tinels to guard the sacred cause of civil and religions liberty, and must stand at their post, and transmit the blessing to those that were to come after them. It is a libel upon the character of our fathers, to say that they involved the country in all the horrors of war, rather than pay a petty tax upon stamped paper and tea. They had motives higher, purer, and holier, than that of avoiding the payment of an insignificant tax. They planted themselves upon the great principles of human rights - of fealty to their country, and fidelity to their God. They felt that they had personal rights which they were bound to defend - a duty they owed to posterity, which they were under a sacred obligation to discharge - a devotion to the Most High, which it were treason to disregard. Such were the motives and the con- victions of our patriot sires. They fought not to conquer, but
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to defend ; not to humble a foe, but to build up a commonwealth on the great principles of equal rights. To these duties they were prompted by the dictates of patriotism, and the teachings of the Word of Life.
NOTE .- An event worthy of notice occurred within the period covered by this chapter, which is stated here, so as not to interrupt the chain of events which were tending to an open rupture with the mother country. On the 22d of May, 1773, Rev. Mr. Clarke's house was entered by a burglar, who carried off a silver tankard and other articles of plate. Levi Ames was subsequently arrested, and the articles found in his possession. He was arraigned and found guilty. He confessed his guilt, and as burglary in the night time was at that day a capital offence, he was executed, October 20th, 1773. Mr. Clarke visited him in prison, and prayed with him, after his conviction. The stolen articles were restored to Mr. Clarke.
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CHAPTER VI.
THE BATTLE OF LEXINGTON.
The Policy of General Gage - His Expedition to Concord - Attack upon the Americans at Lexington - The Gathering of the Militia - The Skirmish at Concord-Destruction of Military Stores there - The Retreat of the British Troops - Reinforcement under Lord Percy.
WE now come to the most eventful period in the history of Lexington, and indeed of our country. We have seen in the preceding chapters the causes which led to the Revolution, and the steps by which the great conflict of opinions was developed. We have witnessed the aets of oppression on the one side, and the firm and manly opposition on the other. We have felt the ground-swell of public sentiment, and heard the busy notes of preparation. We have seen that the town of Lexington had contributed its full share to the patriotic tide, and was measurably prepared for the issue.
In this chapter we are to contemplate the opening scene of our Revolutionary struggle, so fraught with the great subject of human rights. In days gone by, when brute force was the measure of human greatness, and when most questions were decided by the arbitrament of arms, the historian had little else to do than to record in letters of blood, the march of hostile armies, the encounter upon the ensanguined field, the shouts of the victors and the groans of the dying. Historians have been too much inclined to dwell upon the outward and visible, and to content themselves with recording the results, without stopping to inquire into the causes which produced them. But the intel- ligent public, at this day, are hardly satisfied with such narra- tives. They wish to know the antecedents as well as the consequents. By presenting events in this consecutive manner - by holding up to the public view the remote and the proxi- mate causes, as well as the events themselves and their immediate
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and remote effects, the true philosophy of history is inculcated, and the relative character and importance of events are made to appear. By reading histories of this character, we may profit by the records of the past, and learn wisdom from those who have gone before us.
In this way we may learn that mighty contests often arise from causes apparently trivial, and that events of no seeming magnitude in themselves, may contain the germ of some great convulsion whose effects may extend to distant nations, and be felt through succeeding generations. In this way we may discern the nature of events and the true character of the principal actors therein. An act seemingly indifferent or apparently brutal, may by its causes and the motives which actuated those by whose agency it is brought about, become a praiseworthy deed ; and acts which might of themselves elicit shouts of applause, may appear in a very different light, when viewed in connection with the causes which produced them, and the principles which moved the actors therein. It is due to our patriot fathers that their acts and doings should be viewed in the concrete, and that all the circumstances by which they were surrounded, should be carefully weighed by those who enjoy the fruit of their trials and sufferings.
If the importance of a battle depended upon the number of the troops engaged, or upon the military science displayed in the operation, the Battle of Lexington would dwindle into compara- tive insignificance. The events of the 19th of April, 1775, are not characterized by any remarkable exhibition of military skill, or by those combined desperate deeds of daring, which excite admiration and render a military expedition remarkable. There were no dangerous defiles to be passed at every hazard, in the face of disciplined troops - no strong batteries to be stormed --- no commanding positions on which depended the fortunes of the day, to be carried at the point of the bayonet. Nor were there any of those desperate encounters between veterans, well armed and equipped, and led on by brave and experienced commanders, of which we have so many accounts in history. There was true bravery - but it was the firm principle of patriotic valor, unaided by military skill - the uprising of a people poorly armed, in defence of their dearest rights.
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The Battle of Lexington, in its commencement, was little more than a cowardly and brutal attack of some eight hundred veteran troops upon fifty or sixty peaccable citizens. The whole movement of General Gage was simply a secret expedition of a well appointed corps to destroy a few unguarded military stores -a march through a country of unoffending citizens, where there were no troops to oppose his progress. It was not an expedition into an enemy's country in time of war; but a sort of excursion party in times of peace, sent out by the acknowledged Governor of the Province, some twenty miles into the country. And yet the fate of two mighty empires hung upon the conduct of this party. Their excursion was among men who knew their rights, and knowing dared maintain them. If their march was peaceable, and the rights of the people were respected, they had nothing to fear from the inhabitants. But if they should invade the rights of the citizens by destroying their property or ruthlessly entering their dwellings ; and especially if their march should be marked by violence and massacre, it would in all probability cause a wound never to be healed. And yet this party, with a haughty disregard of the rights of the inhabitants, wantonly commenced a system of pillage and massacre, as though it were a mere holiday pastime; and thus brought on a collision, the effects of which were not only felt in both hemispheres at that day, but may yet extend to unborn ages.
The pages of the world's history present us with many san- guinary battles, and even decided and brilliant victories which were attended with no particular results. The battle of the Pyramids in Egypt, and of Buena Vista in Mexico, are of this description. Nor is it obvious to the most careful observer at the present day, what principles, moral or political, were involved in those bloody and terrible conflicts, or were settled by their results. The desperate struggle in the Crimea, which ended in the partial fall of Sebastopol, where the mighty energies of the three great powers of the world were put forth, and where blood and treasure were poured out like water, decided nothing, except that the advance in military science gives neither party any advantage, where both avail themselves of the latest improve- ments.
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But with the affair of the 19th of April, the ease was widely different. It involved the enfeebling of one empire, and the creation of another. It was a conflict of opinions rather than of arıns. It was a war of conflicting principles which had divided the public mind for centuries, -it was a stern debate upon the ensanguined field of the great question of human rights against arbitrary and despotic power- of the privileges of the ' many against the prerogatives of the few. But though the col- lision on that memorable day was the opening scene of the Revo- lutionary drama, it was by no means the moving cause of that eventful struggle. We must look to causes more remote . than the marching of the British troops from Boston, and to questions more momentous than the possession of a few rusty cannon at Concord, if we would comprehend the issue decided by the Amer- ican Revolution. Nor are the effects of that day's adventure to be confined to the precipitate and ignominious flight of the British army, and their arrival under the cover of their ships at Charlestown. No; the events of that day, by inspiring confi- dence and securing union on the one side, and by creating dis- trust on the other, insured to America the blessing of indepen- dence, and gave an impulse to the cause of liberty which has cheered many a heart on both continents, and may yet contribute to the emancipation of the world.
The spring of 1775 opened with every indication that the crisis was rapidly approaching, and that General Gage had resolved to make some decisive demonstration in the field. Par- liament had signified its determination to sustain the ministry in bringing the colonies to a state of subjection. The Earl of Dartmouth had suggested to General Gage the propriety of dis- arming the colonists ; 1 and though General Gage had in Novem- ber, 1774, intimated that true wisdom would require the employ- ment of twenty thousand troops,2 yet in January, 1775, he had written to his Lordship that matters looked more favorable, and that it was the general opinion, that " If a respectable force is seen in the field, and the most obnoxious of the leaders are seized, and a pardon proclaimed for all others, government will come off victorious, with less opposition than was expected a
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