M. SAM UEL, ADAMS,
THK
LIFE AND PUBLIC SERVICES
OP
SAMUEL ADAMS,
BEING
A NARRATIVE OF HIS ACTS AND OPINIONS, AND OF HIS AGENCY
IN PRODUCING AND FORWARDING THE
AMEEICAN REVOLUTION.
WITH
EXTRACTS FROM HIS CORRESPONDENCE, STATE PAPERS,
AND POLITICAL ESSAYS.
BY
WILLIAM V. WELLS
VOL. II,
BOSTON:
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.
1865.
* 1
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1865, by
WILLIAM V. WELLS,
in the Clerk s Office of the District Court of the Southern District of New York
ONIVERSITY PRESS: WELCH, BIGELOW, & Co.,
CAMBRIDGE.
CHRONOLOGY
OF THE \/, X>
LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS.
VOL. II.
1772.
Nov., Dec. The towns send replies to the " Rights of the Colo
nists/ and appoint Committees of Correspondence . 1-9
Dec. Adams is consulted by gentlemen of Rhode Island in
reference to the affair of the Gaspee . . . . 13-17
1773.
Jan. 6. - Hutchinson, alarmed at the progress of the Committees
of Correspondence, convenes the General Court, and
delivers a speech on the supremacy of Parliament,
which is thought by many to be unanswerable . . 24-29
Jan. 22 - 26. Adams, chairman of the committee to reply to Hutchin
son, presents his report, which is accepted after some de
bate, and is generally considered a complete refutation 29-45
Feb. 12, etc. Adams writes a reply to the Governor on the payment
of salaries by the Crown . . . . . . 47, 48
Mar. 2, etc. Adams responds to the Governor s reply on Parliament
ary supremacy. Hutchinson soon after replies again,
and the whole controversy is published . . . 45, 46
March 5. The oration commemorating the Massacre is delivered
by Dr. Church 51-53
March 6. The Assembly is prorogued ..... 50
March 12. Virginia organizes a Continental Committee of Corre
spondence . . . . . . . .61-63
March 23. Adams reports to a town meeting an elaborate defence
of the legality of the meeting held Nov. 2, 1772, and
the right of the towns to hold such meetings, which
had been called in question by the Governor . . 53-57
March 27, April 10. Adams corresponds with John Dickinson on
public affairs 57-61
April 9, 12. He accepts membership in the Society of the Bill of
Rights 63,64
April. He receives his first letter from R. H. Lee, and replies 64 - 67
IV CHRONOLOGY.
f
| /J
V
y 6. He is re-elected Representative .... . . 69
May 10. Parliament passes an act allowing to the East India
Company a drawback of all import duties on tea
exported to America ;" . . . . . 80,81
May 26. The Assembly meets. Adams is reappointed Clerk 70
May 28. The Assembly passes Adams s resolutions confirming
the action of Virginia . . . . . .71-73
June 2-16. The secret letters of Hutchinson, forwarded from Lon
don by Franklin, are read in the House. They are
published ........ 73-78
June 29. The General Court is prorogued immediately after pass
ing resolves recommending an impeachment of the
judges ......... 79
June - Sept. In the Gazette and in his correspondence Adams calls
for a CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, first proposed by him 81 - 94
Sept. 21. The Boston Committee of Correspondence send to the
other towns a circular, written by Adams, advocating
an American Confederacy ..... 91^
Oct. 9. Hutchinson denounces Adams to the Ministry as the
leader of the town of Boston and manager of the Leg
islature ......... 99-102
Oct. 21. Adams composes for the Massachusetts Committee of
Correspondence a letter to the other Colonies similar
to that sent to the towns . . . . . 96 - 98^.
Nov. The patriots attempt to force the agents of the East
India Company to resign. Several town meetings
are held ......... 103-108
Nov. 23. Adams drafts a circular letter to the towns, asking their
co-operation ........ 108-110
Nov. 28. The Dartmouth arrives with the tea . 110
y, Nov. 29.\^At. ajjpjaoi meedngitisresolved. on motipn^of Adams,
thaUiieJea shall be senT^baclTto England. The
. Dartmouth is guarded . . . . . .110-113
--\*Nov. 30. The Governor in vain requires a meeting to disperse.
The consignees of the tea avoid any concession . 113-115
Dec. 1 -t5. The consignees will do nothing, and the Collector
\ refuses repeated applications for a clearance for the
ships 117-120
All efforts to induce the Governor to yield having failed,
Adams gives the signal for the BOSTON TEA-PARTY . 120-125
Dec. 24. The members of the Committee sign a pledge of mutual
defence 126, 127
1774.
Feb. 5. Adams defends the Committees against the Governor s
opening address of Jan. 26 . . . 131, 132
CHRONOLOGY. V
Feb. 11, etc. The Assembly, led by Adams, impeach Chief Justice
Oliver 134-137
March 5. Anniversary of the Massacre. Hancock delivers the
oration, probably composed by Adams . . .137-140
March 8. The Assembly is prorogued 137
March. Ad/ams drafts a letter to the other Provinces on the griev
ances of Massachusetts, and (on the 28th) a letter of
instructions to Franklin ...... 145-
March 25. Adams consulted in regard to the disturbances at Mar-
V / blehead. He urges the Marblehead Committee of
\ / Correspondence not to resign . . . y, 155
March, ^fil- On receiving the news of the destruction of the tea,
Parliament passes an act closing the port of Bostofi,
anotherentirely changing" the Constitution of Massa-
chusetts, and a third authorizing the Governor to send
persons to England for trial in cfvrf.nin p.a.ses. Gen-
eral Gage is appointed Governor .... 141145
April. An engraving by Paul Revere of Copley s portrait of
Adams appears in the Royal American Magazine,^ . 153
^* April 4. /L/in a letter to Arthur Lee, Adams predicts the indepen-
v^^^^dence and future greatness of A mmr n , ~* 149, \5(xr
May 10. News~ofT!uj Pun ffitTrecetve d in ~B~oston. Adams re-
elected Representative . . . . . . 155, 156
May 12. Convention of the Committees of Correspondence of
eight towns to consider the late acts of Parliament.
They scorn to procure the repeal of the Port Act by
paying for the tea destroyed. Adams prepares a let-
tpr fn the Committees of other Colom ps 1 Dicing for a
concert of action. Its extraordinary effec.t . .156-160
,^*--May 13. Adams presides at a town meeting to consider the Port
Act. A CONTINENTAL NON-IMPORTATION LEAGUE
proposed. He drafts an appeal to the several As
semblies 161-164
May 17. General Gage arrives and assumes command of the
Province 164, 165
May 30. Adams chosen chairman of the Donation Committee 181j 182
June 1. Hutchftison sails for England, having received an adula
tory address from the Tories 168, 169
June 1. The Legislature, which met at Boston, May 26, is re
moved to Salem. The Port Act goes into oper
ation 169-171
j Jane 5, etc. The " Solemn League and Covenant " not to consume
imported goods is very generally signed . 172, 188-190
L<* June 7. Intrepidity of .Adams at the opening of the General
Court at Salem 172,173
:^-"June 17, i\frrr rmt 1 ""? prftri^timi ftf the Representatives, Ad-
x
VI CHRONOLOGY.
c
ams moves resolutions appointing five delegates to a
CONTINENTAL CONGRESS at Philadelphia. The Gov
ernor sends his secretary to dissolve the Assembly, but
After choosing~~John and Samuel Adams, Bowdoin,
Gushing, and Paine delegates, voting money for their
payment, and ordering circulars to be sent to the
other Assemblies, the House allows itself to be dis
solved 174-178
June 17. A Boston town meeting refuses to pay for the tea . 179, 180
June 27, 28. The Tories move in a town meeting that the Committee
of Correspondence be censured andannihilated. Ad-
ams triumphantly defends that body and also the Sol-
emn League and Covenant, which had been attacked
in Draper s Gazette, and censured by the Governor . 182-190
July. The arrest of Adams and other patriots is feared . 190-192
July : InefjfcctuaLattempt of the^Government to corrupt Adams 192-196
July 7. Adams defends the Committee in the Massachusetts Spy 196, 197
August. He writes the replies of the Donation Committee to
various towns 204, 205
August. He plans measures to be pursued during his absence in
Congress, and suggests to Dr. Warren the Suffolk
County Convention 206, 207
August. He receives a complete suit of clothing from some un
known friends 207-213
Aug. 10-29. He journeysto the Congress at Philadelphia . . 213-217
Sept. 5-7. Congress meets at Philadelphia. Adams s conciliatory
influence. He proposes that Duche, an Episcopalian,
should read prayers to the Congress . . . 218-225
Sept. Massachusetts pursues the policy laid down by Adams.
-y^The Suffolk County Convention meet on the 6th,
jind pass Joseph Warren s bold resolutions on the 9th.
/Their effect 225-228,231,232
pt. 21. i Adams re-elected Representative .... 227
Sept. j He defeats Galloway s plan of accommodation with
England 228-230
Sept., Oct. He perhaps assists in drafting the Declaration of Rights 233 - 235
Oct. 26. Congress dissolves and Adams returns to Boston . 247, 248
Nov. 23. Thp. Provincial Congress meets. Afjn~ jnjps it and
urges active measures ...... 251-253
Dec. 30. He drafts a letter setting forth the grievances of Boston,
in reply to General Gage 253, 254
1775.
Jan. The ministerial policy prevails in Parliament in opposi
tion to Chatham, the petitions of the General Congress
CHRONOLOGY. vii
are rejected, and Massachusetts declared to be in a
state of rebellion . . . . . . .257-259
Feb. 1. The Second Provincial Congress convened at Cam
bridge. Its character 259-261
Adams writes replies to donors for the Donation Com
mittee 264-268
Feb. Ministerial plans to seize the leaders of the Colonists 268-270
Feb. 15. A committee of which Adams is a member warn the
militia to be ready for service 272, 273
Feb. 21, etc. He and Warren despatch a secret agent to Canada with
a letter, written by Adams, to the friends of liberty.
The Montreal Committee reply. Adams is engaged
on various committees ...... 274 - 277
March 5. Joseph Warren delivers the annual oration, Adams pre
siding 278-2810
March 22. The Provincial Congress, adjourned since Feb. 16, meet
at Concord, and Adams drafts a letter to the Mohawks 281 - 284
Apr. 8, etc. The Committee on the State of the Province propose an
armed confederation of the New England Colonies for
mutual defence. Deputies sent to Rhode Island,
Connecticut, and New Hampshire. The alliance
formed . _ . . __. . . . . . 285-287
. - Apr. 18, 19. Expedition of the British to seize Adams and Hancock
at Lexington, and to destroy military stores at Con
cord. Battle of Lexington . .. - -~T T . 288 - 295
Apr. 19 -May 10. Arlarpg and TTf^fwir sot nnt fnr Philadelphia to
attend the pprnnd firm tin AH t1 rinngjpfin, Thpy are ,
everywhere received with great honor. Secret meet
ing with Governor Trumbull at Hartford. Consul-
\ i C tation with the New York Committee of Safety . 296 - 301
M#y 10, etc. Congress meets. Adams desires an immediate Decla-
ration of Independence, but finds that Congress is hot ^"" ^
prepared for it. Another pp.tit.jQTi to tftfi_jjjjg voted 302 - 303
June 12. Gage offers pardon to all who will lay down their arms,
except Adams and Hancock ..... 309, 310
,June 15. On the nomination of John and Samuel Adams, Wash
ington is elected Commander-in-Chief, to the great
disappointment of Hancock 307 - 309
17. Battle of Bunker Hill. Death of Warren, Adams s
dearest friend 313, 314
June 23. Washington goes to Cambridge to assume command of
the Continental army, with letters of introduction to
the Massachusetts leaders from Adams . . . 314, 316
Aug. 1-11. Congress adjourns. Adams carries funds for the army
to General Washington . . . . . . 318
via CHRONOLOGY.
Aug. 15, etc. Adams joins the Council, is elected Secretary of State,
and is chairman of a new Donation Committee. His
son enters the army as a surgeon .* "* r~ - . . 319 -322
Sept. 13, etc. The Continental Congress meets. Adams serves on
many committees, chiefly those concerned with the con
duct of the war. He advises that each State should
institute its own system of government preparatory to
a general confederation .... 322-335,401-404
Oct. He urges the building of an American navy . . 335, 33(
Oct. The King refuses to notice the petition of Congress . 34
1776.
Jan. Adams endeavors to procure the liberation of James
Lovell, a prisoner in the hands of General Gage . 341 - 34^
Wilson and a strong party in Congress disavow inde
pendence and carry their point despite Adams s efforts 353, 35*
He confers with Franklin on a separate CONFEDERACY
of such States as are inclined to independence, and
proposes to try it with NEW ENGLAND ALONE if neces
sary. Franklin assents ...... 35!
Jan. 2, Mar. 14. He advocates disarming the Tories, and meeting
British outrages with retaliation . . 364 -367, 376 -37J
an. 16, etc. Adams favors the enlistment of free negroes. He is
actively engaged in forwarding military operations in
the North 344, 341
Jan. 19. Adams re-elected a delegate to Congress . . . 355, 351
Feb. Movement in Congress to open the ports to free trade 37i
Feb. Adams supports Washington in the demand for long
enlistments 375, 371
Feb. 3, etc. He publishes addresses to the people of Pennsylvania
; and to the people in general in reply to the testimony
; of the Quakers in favor of submission . 360-363, 369
37;
38!
Feb. 12. He publishes an earnest Appeal to the People, on Lord
North s second plan of conciliation .... 349
March. Hancock sides with the Southern Loyalists and breaks
with the bolder delegates ..... 380 J
March 17. The British evacuate Boston. They have made Ad
ams s house uninhabitable ..... 38
Mar., Apr. Adams is impatient at the delay in proclaiming inde
pendence 388-401
April 6. Congress abolishes British custom-houses and opens the
ports to free trade 400, 40
My |0. Adams supports the resolutions recommending the dif
ferent Colonies to establish governments independent
of Great Britain . . 40
CHRONOLOGY. IX
June 5-10. R. H. Lee introduces resolutions declaring the Colonies
FREE AND INDEPENDENT STATES. A vigorous de
bate ensues, in which Adams probably takes part.
The question is postponed for three weeks . . 405 - 415
Juno 12. Adams is the representative of Massachusetts in a com
mittee of one member from each Colony appointed to
digest the form of a confederation. They report . 415-417
JunolO-|Tuly 1. He wins over members to the party of indepen-
ydence .418-432
After lively debate Lee s resolutions are passed . . 432 - 438
July 2-4. The DECLARATION of INDEPENDENCE is discussed and
adopted.
July 15-29. Adams is perhaps concerned in the preparation of the
Constitution of Pennsylvania ..... 438, 439
August 1. An oration, falsely purporting to have been delivered by
Adams on this day at Philadelphia, is published in
London in the autumn ...... 439, 440
-ArTg. 12 -Oct. 24. After a short visit home, during which he has an
interview with General Washington at New York,
stays a few days with his family at Dedham, and re
sumes his office of Secretary of Estate, Adams returns
to Congress ........ 441-449
-Nov., Dec. The campaign in New Jersey is disastrous to the Conti
nentals, Philadelphia is threatened by Cornwallis, and
Congress removes to Baltimore. Adams undismayed
in the general gloom 451-456
-Bee. He is chairman of the Committee on the State of the
Northern Army, and a member of the Committee on
the State of Washington s Army and the Committee
to obtain Foreign Aid. He recommends investing
Washington with dictatorial powers ^.^^^A,,^*.*,*^... . 456 - 464
.^^^^^^^^^^- _^UOTT i. I I l. WttnrFf 1 * * 1 ^^- r-mi i iiiii^wijJJJLlinpP*
1777.
Jan., Feb. Adams is ill from over-work ..... 465
Jan. 15. M.G prepares instructions for Allen, an agent among the
/ Nova Scotia Indians ...... 467
Jan.,\|etc>/ He is a member of the Board of War, and chairman of
numerous committees ...... 468, etc.
July, Aug. After the surrender of Ticonderoga, Adams advocates
the substitution of Gates for Schuyler as commander
of the Northern Department 483-489
., Oct. Washington is defeated at Brandywine. Congress ad
journs to Yorktown, and Howe occupies Philadelphia.
V Congress is reduced to twenty members. Adams
encourages his despondent friends .... 490 - 494
X CHRONOLOGY.
Oct., Nov. Burgoyne surrenders at Saratoga. France forms a
treaty with the United States, and Great Britain
appoints peace commissioners .... 493 - 4J
Nov. 11. Samuel and John Adams leave Yorktown and arrive at
V Boston, Dec. 4 . . . . . . . 499, 5(
Nov. 15. The Articles of Confederation, long debated in Congress,
are agreed to ....... .472-4*
1777, 1778.
Dec., Jan. A cabal in Congress endeavors to remove Washington
from the chief command. Hancock spreads the re
port that Adams is engaged in it . . . . 500-5]
LIFE
OF
SAMUEL ADAMS
CHAPTER XXIV.
Extraordinary Effect of the Committee of Correspondence. Adams its Leader
and Master Spirit. Alarm of the Loyalists. They attack it in the Press,
and are encountered by Adams. The whole Province forms a Confeder
acy. Objects of Adams, in forming the Committee, not merely Provincial.
An Intercolonial System his Ultimate View. His Origination of such
a Scheme proved. Case of the Gaspee. Rhode Island Patriots apply to
Adams for Advice. His Views of the Encroachments of Tyranny.
The Home and Family of Adams. Picture of his Domestic Life. John
Adams describes a Visit to his House.
THOUGH a few of the towns responded at once to the re
port sent forth by the Boston Committee, it was not until
towards the close of the year that the leaven had worked
sufficiently to produce all the results that had been antici
pated. While the Committee was yet in its infancy, and be
fore similar ones had been generally organized throughout
the Province, the Loyalists, who now perfectly compre
hended the vastness of the scheme, determined to prevent
its consummation. At first, however, few of them believed
that success could possibly attend an effort which was strug
gling into existence at a time when the Province was be
lieved to be remarkably quiet and contented. While the
report was preparing, Hutchinson wrote to Pownall :
" The restless faction in this town have pleased themselves with
the hopes of fresh disturbances from the salaries proposed for the
judges of the Superior Court, and the usual first step has been
taken, a town meeting. Hitherto they have fallen much short
VOL. II. 1
PF> SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
of their expectations, and even in this town have not been able to
revive the old plan of mobbing ; and the only dependence left is, to
keep up a correspondence through the Province by committees of
the several towns, which is such a foolish scheme that they must
necessarily make themselves ridiculous." *
The activity of the first few towns in the vicinity of Boston,
in response to the Circular Letter, however, soon alarmed
the crown writers, and a studied assault was made upon the
Committee, misrepresenting the number at the meeting
which formed it, ridiculing their efforts and the want of
success that had thus far attended them, and warning the
public against encouraging the scheme. 2 Their recognized
antagonist was ready as usual to engage them.
"I am well assured," replied Samuel Adams, a week before
Christmas, in defence of the Circular, " it has been forwarded to
four fifths of the gentlemen selectmen in the country, the Repre
sentatives of the several towns, the members of his Majesty s Coun
cil, and others of note, by the direction of the Committee, in
pursuance of the vote of the town, with less expense for carriage
than two dollars. I have a better opinion of the good sense of the
people of this country than to believe they will be diverted from an
attention to matters which essentially concern their own and their
children s best birthrights, and which every day become more seri
ous and alarming, by the trifles that are every week thrown out,
perhaps with that very design, in the Court Gazette more espec
ially. The axe is laid at the root of our happy civil Constitution ;
our religious rights are threatened ; these important matters are the
subjects of the letter of this town to our friends and fellow-sufferers
in the country. Whether there were present at the meeting three
hundred or three thousand, it was a legal meeting ; as legal as a
meeting of the General Assembly convened by the King s writ, or
a meeting of his Majesty s Council summoned by his Excellency
the Governor; this I say with due respect to those great assem
blies. The selectmen, among whom is the honorable gentleman
who was moderator of the meeting, have condescended to publish it
1 Hutchinson to Pownall, Nov. 13, 1772.
1 Massachusetts Gazette, Nov. 26, 1772.
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 3
under their hands, that a very respectable number attended the
meeting through the day/ If it had been as thin a meeting as Mr.
Draper s writers would fain have the country think it was, still,
being a legal meeting, their proceedings, according to the warrant
for calling it, would have been as legal as those of his Majesty s
Council when seven gentlemen only (which number by charter con
stitutes a quorum) out of their whole number, twenty-eight, happen
to be present." l
The attacks of the Tories, however, were no longer formi
dable. A singular and unprecedented spectacle was pre
sented, astonishing probably even to the most enthusiastic
friends of the movement. Letters in reply to the pamphlet
came from all quarters, a few indeed being sent on the mere
rumor of the occasion, for it was fully the close of the year
before some of the interior towns received the report from
the Committee, owing, perhaps, to the inclement season and
difficulty of communicating with distant places. 2 But grad
ually the " great invention " came into harmonious move
ment, and its beauty and order were apparent. Like the
tree of the prophet s vision, it had spread its arms until
they reached over all the land. From the communities in
the West, where the people of South Hadley, Petersham,
Brimfield, Leicester, and Lenox voted bold and patriotic
responses ; from Essex, whence were heard the voices of
Gloucester, Newburyport, Marblehead, Lynn, Danvers, and
Beverly ; from Middlesex, whose men of Concord, Framing-
ham, Medford, Acton, Stoneham, Medfield, Groton, and
Marlborough encouraged the central Committee with words
of fervid patriotism ; 8 from the Old Colony, by the cheering
replies of Plymouth, Duxbury, Eastham, Pembroke, and
even little Chatham, isolated on the extremity of Cape
Cod ; from every direction was heard the sound of an up
rising people, who seemed to have been touched by the
1 "Candidas," in the Boston Gazette, Dec. 14, 1772.
8 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, Nov. 31, 1772.
8 Bancroft, VI. 439-443.
4 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
magician s wand. The numerous little democratic com
munities were suddenly combined into a perfectly organized
body. The action of the Committee at Boston was conveyed
as by so many nerves to every part of the system, and every
member sent back its answer. As the replies of the towns
began to be published in the Gazette, it was proposed to col
lect and preserve them in a printed volume, that posterity
might know what their ancestors had done in the cause of
freedom. 1 In Marblehead, when the report of the Boston
Committee was received and accepted, it was ordered " that
the pamphlet containing the state of rights, &c., be lodged
in the town clerk s office, and read annually at the opening
of every March meeting for the election of town officers,
until the public grievances are redressed." 2 In less than a
month from the day when Hutchinson had predicted that
the Committee " must necessarily make themselves ridicu
lous," he had found reason to alter his tone, and now, thor
oughly alarmed at the great awakening, he invoked the aid
of Parliament in a letter to Pownall, acknowledging the
success of the scheme ; and in his History he admits that
" all on a sudden from a state of peace, order, and general
contentment, as some expressed themselves, the Province
more or less, from one end to the other, was brought into
a state of contention, disorder, and general dissatisfaction ;
or, as others would have it, were roused from stupor and
inaction to sensibility and activity." 3 As the strength of the
confederacy increased, the ablest writers on the government
side attempted in vain to retard its progress.
" This," said Leonard, a distinguished Tory writer, " is the foulest,
1 Boston Gazette, Jan. 18, 1773.
2 Proceedings of Marblehead, Dec. 15, in Boston Gazette, Dec. 28, 1772.
The Gazette for December contains the response of Dorchester, Roxbury,
Plymouth, Cambridge, Taunton, Brooklyn, Marblehead, TWnshend, Salem,
Charlestown, Sudbury, Lexington, Watertown, Medford, Lynn, and other
towns, whose letters were constantly arriving, and were published as fast as
received by the Committee, to encourage others.
8 Hutchinson s History, III. 370.
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 5
subtlest, and most venomous serpent ever issued from the egg of
sedition. It is the source of the rebellion. I saw the small seed
when it was implanted ; it was a grain of mustard. I have watched
the plant until it has become a great tree. The vilest reptiles that
crawl upon the earth are concealed at the root ; the foulest birds
of the air rest upon its branches. I now would induce you to go to
work immediately with axes and hatchets and cut it down, for a
twofold reason, because it is a pest to society, and lest it be
felled suddenly by a stronger arm, and crush its thousands in its
fall." 1
The first positive step in the Revolution had been accom
plished in knitting together the resources of the Province.
Adams and his friends could now form an exact estimate of
the general feeling in Massachusetts, and must have read
the responses from the secluded rural districts with the joy
of a growing conviction that, beyond doubt, the seeds of free
dom which had been planted there were swelling with a new
life, and at the proper season would burst forth into luxuri
ant growth.
The history of the Revolution cannot be told in the biog
raphy of any one man, though it is possible to identify every
incident of that epoch with some leading men. The Rev
olution is a great highway of history, which is repeatedly
traversed by the biographer in company with some one char
acter, always revealing new phases of the story ; but the
main course of the narrative remains unchanged. A few
men suggested the successive measures of resistance prior to
the commencement of the war. Their inborn knowledge of
the New England people enabled them to draw from the
inquisitive character of the masses what was required to
produce public movements. The spirit of the press, the
harangues and motions in town meetings, the proceedings
of the committees, the tone of the circulars and handbills,
and all the detail that went to make up the general unity of
purpose, were carefully suited to the popular understanding.
1 " Massachusettensis," in the Massachusetts Gazette, Jan. 2, 1775.
6 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
But even this adaptation could not have succeeded, had not
the people themselves been educated in the doctrines of de
mocracy and human rights, and thus prepared for the event.
The spirit of liberty pervaded all New England. It was a
principle which no man or set of men could either generate
or destroy. Its germ came over with the Puritans, and
flourished from the settlement of the country. Nurtured on
the rocky, barren soil, and purified in the frozen air of the
North, the genius of Freedom needed but the occasion to
spring up resplendent with truth, clad in the armor of con
scious right, and invincible in the virtue of a population of
rare intelligence, inured to toil, and taught to despise the
luxuries of the nation from whence their ancestors had fled
to the New World.
The towns and villages which now rose in unison against
oppression had maintained in their origin an existence amid
the severest hardships and in the face of savage foes. They
had experienced few of the enjoyments known to the pio
neers of the West, though equally obliged to struggle for
life against the merciless Indian. Save along the rivers
and in the valleys which Nature in her rugged mood had
scantily placed for the habitations of man, the country found
by the settlers of Massachusetts in the seventeenth century
was an unpromising field for agriculture. No rolling, flow
ery prairies, no herds of buffalo cropping the rich grasses, no
vast farming districts with generous soil, stretching out to
the horizon, and waving with fertility beneath a genial sun,
invited the adventurer. Much of the country was a howling
wilderness. Pathless pine forests formed the landscape, and
sighed mournfully in the winds, and the wolf prowled be
neath the snow-laden branches. In scenes like these, so en
tirely the reverse of the warm and pleasant countries of the
South and West, was cultivated the indomitable love of free
dom which supported New England through the trials of the
Revolution. This spirit, though now oftenest manifesting
itself by notable deeds in the capital, existed with no less fer-
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 7
vor in the country towns, where the hard-handed tillers rose
up at the call of freedom, and stood forth her champions.
From the ploughed field and waving meadow, amid the
woodlands and cataracts, the voices of liberty were heard
with as much earnestness as amid denser populations. And
so with individuals. Though the principal characters filled
the public eye, biography, for want of material, can never do
justice to unnumbered incorruptible men moving in lesser
circles, but faithfully and fearlessly performing the part
allotted to them.
Hutchinson might well cast about him in his troubles for
advice and comfort. He had haughtily refused to call the
Assembly when petitioned in October, and, at that time,
reposing in fancied security, he felicitated himself upon the
general quiet and contentment. As the " new power "
spread over the land, the mighty heart throbbing through
every artery, he was thrown into a state of ludicrous inde
cision as to his proper course. Should he convene the Leg
islature, the reason would be obvious, and he would lose
caste among the Loyalists, who always favored an arbitrary,
unbending manner to the people, besides virtually admitting
the success of the Committee. In a review of these events,
written in April of the following year, Mr. Adams says :
" Perhaps no measure that has been taken by the town of Boston,
during our present struggles for liberty, has thwarted the designs of
our enemies more than their votes and proceedings on the 20th of
November last Amidst the general anxiety, the memorable
meeting was called with design that the inhabitants might have
the opportunity of expressing their sense calmly and dispassionately,
for it is from such a temper of mind that we are to expect a rational,
manly, and successful opposition to the ruinous plans of an aban
doned administration ; and it is for this reason alone, that the petty
tyrants of this country have always dreaded, and continue still to
dread, a regular assembly of the people." l
On the day following the organization of the Committee,
1 " Candidas," in the Boston Gazette, April 12, 1773.
8 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
Adams had written to Arthur Lee, in London, an account
of it and of the anticipated effects. Lee, in answer, said :
" I cannot describe how much I am pleased with the spirit with
which you oppose the infringement of your rights. I cannot but
hope every town in the Province will harmonize with Boston,
Nothing will make so deep an impression here as a proof of unanim
ity and firmness. My countrymen must ever remember what I
have before mentioned, that from the justice of the ruling powers
in this country they are to expect nothing; from their fears and
necessities, everything. I agree entirely with you that the tribute
is the indignity that must be done away." *
" I am heartily glad," replied Adams, " to find that the proceed
ings of this town are so pleasing to you. I have heard that Lord
Dartmouth received one of our pamphlets with coldness, and ex
pressed his concern that the town had come into such measures.
His Lordship probably will be very much surprised to find a very
great number of the towns in this Province (and the number daily
increases) concurring fully in sentiments with this metropolis ; ex
pressing loyalty to the King and affection to the mother country,
but, at the same time, a firm resolution to maintain their constitu
tional rights and liberties Every art and every instrument
was made use of to prevent the meetings of the towns in the country,
but to no purpose. It is no wonder that a measure calculated to
promote a correspondence and a free communication among the peo
ple should awaken their apprehensions ; for they well know it must
detect their falsehood, in asserting that the people of this country
were satisfied with the measures of the British Parliament and the
administration of government." 2
To Richard Henry Lee, with whom about this time Ad
ams commenced a correspondencence, he wrote :
" The friends of liberty in this town have lately made a successful
attempt to obtain an explicit political sentiment of a great number
of the towns of this Province, and the number is daily increasing.
The very attempt was alarming to our adversaries, and the happy
1 Arthur Lee to Samuel Adams, Jan. 25, 1773.
* Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, April 9 and 12, 1773.
1772.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 9
effects of it mortifying to them. I would propose it for your consid
eration, whether the establishment of committees of correspondence
among the several towns in every Colony would tend to promote
that general union upon which the security of the whole depends." l
This last extract indicates a very important feature in the
formation of these Provincial committees. It reveals the
fact that although Adams, in setting the ball in motion, ac
tually organized only his native Province, his views in reality
aimed at much grander results, and included a continental
system, towards the establishment of which the local institu
tion was merely preliminary. If we glance back over the
extracts from his writings, given in these pages, it will
appear that his great theme had been, from the commence
ment of the troubles with the mother country, a union of
the Colonies to make common cause against the encroach
ments of tyranny. His attention was never diverted from
this vital point, which he considered to be the basis of all
successful opposition. There is scarcely any time, from 1764
to 1774 inclusive, in which we do not find him directing his
countrymen to the importance of a unity of purpose and
concert of action among the several Provinces, either by
public papers of the town or the Legislature, circular letters,
motions in the Assembly, political essays, or private letters.
The instances which have been handed down are conclusive
upon this head, and furnish positive evidence, not only of
his principal agency in forwarding such a union, but of his
priority in the conception of the scheme, as a measure imme
diately connected with the Revolution. " Massachusetts,"
says Bancroft, " organized a Province, Virginia promoted a
Confederacy." 2 This is true, if we look only at public acts ;
but it must, in some degree, lose its significance when asso
ciated with the fact, that the originator of the whole system
unquestionably had in view from the first that very confed-
1 Samuel Adams to Richard Henry Lee, April 10, 1773 (Life of Lee by his
Grandson, R. H. Lee, I. 88).
2 History of the United States, VI. 455.
10 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
eracy and union of all the Colonies, to the successful accom
plishment of which the preliminary organizing of the Prov
ince was indispensable. His ultimate idea, in establishing
the local committees in Massachusetts, was to accomplish
the still more important establishment of intercolonial cor
respondence; and though Virginia nobly inaugurated the
measure in the following year, it none the less had Its origin
in the brain of Adams. The earliest suggestion of an inter
colonial committee of correspondence was in 1764, when, as
Bancroft says, " the Legislature adopted the principles and
the line of conduct which the town of Boston, at the impulse
of Samuel Adams, had recommended." l The plan, as per
fected, was but the practical working of his idea. He saw
the necessity of a central Colony, like Virginia, taking the
lead, and was ever prudently on his guard against an appar
ent desire in Massachusetts to assume an ambitious promi
nence in the struggle. Provincial and intercolonial com
mittees of correspondence were distinct institutions, and
some four months apart in their birth ; but, in the mind of
Samuel Adams, the first was but a stepping-stone to the
second. Three months later, Benjamin Church, in his
March oration, thanked God that the Boston Committee of
Correspondence had given the alarm to the other Colonies,
who by that means were approaching a " combination for
their mutual interest and defence." Church was a member
of the Committee, had the confidence of Samuel Adams, and
spoke that he knew. The words of John Adams, as " Nov-
anglus," already quoted, on the subject of local committees,
are also contemporary evidence to the same effect. He says
" every Colony adopted the measure," which had been the
means of cementing a general union, as shown in their sev
eral resolves, "that one heart animated the whole,"
" one masterly soul animating one vigorous body." He
and others of that day knew that this extraordinary system
was of universal application, and intended as such by its
1 Bancroft, V. 200.
1772.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 11
originator. Hutchinson s letters abundantly prove the fact,
even without the unmistakable evidence found in the acts
and writings of Samuel Adams. The Governor, in his His
tory, says that the original plan was to obtain the sanction
of the Assembly to the movement, when " the whole pro
ceedings should be transmitted to the several Assemblies
upon the continent, for their approbation and concurrence."
This was admitted to him by Gushing, the Speaker of the
House, and was probably well understood among the friends
of the government. 1
Samuel Adams himself repeatedly points to the intercolo
nial movement as the immediate result of the Massachusetts
confederacy, which he had the satisfaction of knowing had
been cordially approved by " gentlemen of figure in other
Colonies." He adds : " From the manifest discovery of a
union of sentiment in this Province, which has been one
happy fruit of it [the town meeting] , there will be the united
efforts of the whole, in all constitutional and proper methods,
to prevent the entire ruin of our liberties." In a letter to
Arthur Lee, he refers to the Boston Committee as the first
step towards " awakening the whole continent," and as the
origin of the intercolonial committee in the Virginia House
of Burgesses. Indeed, several days before the town meet
ing at which he proposed his plan, looking forward to its
results, he expressed a hope to Gerry that it might " arouse
the whole continent."
The evidence, both direct and inferential, of the ultimate
intention of Adams is irresistible. Hutchinson, writing on
the subject a few months afterwards to a gentleman in Eng
land, says :
" The several towns having made their resolves, there would be
but little difficulty in bringing their Representatives to agree to this
fin the House ; and this being done, the other Assemblies throughout
the continent were to be desired by a circular letter to join with the
House of Massachusetts Bay." 2
1 Hutchinson, History, III. 368, 369.
* Hutchinson to some person unknown, Feb. 19, 1773.
12 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
And immediately after, he says of Samuel Adams to
another correspondent :
" Our principal incendiary has a great deal of low art and cun
ning, and laid his plan to concert measures for maintaining the
independency. The Assembly was to follow the example of the
towns, and invite every other Assembly upon the continent to make
the same declarations." l
And again :
" The restless incendiary laid a new scheme to promote his pro
fessed independence I have stopped the progress of the
towns for the present, and I think have stopped the progress of
another part of the scheme, which was for this Assembly to invite
every other Assembly upon the continent to assert the same prin
ciples." 2
Referring to an interview with Gushing, Hutchinson says
in another letter :
" Upon this occasion he confided to me the plan of the party to
have sent their circular letter to every Assembly upon the conti
nent, to join with them in denying the supremacy of Parliament,
but pretended he was not let into it until the Assembly met, which
I could not easily believe."
Why this intention was delayed, when the Assembly met
in January, 1773, is quite apparent. With the opening of
the session, the Governor, to the surprise of everybody,
introduced the subject himself, by commencing the famous
discussion on Parliamentary authority, which continued with
out intermission until the 6th of March, when, with a long
and able paper, he suddenly prorogued the Court. A week
1 Hutchinson to Israel Mauduit, Feb, 21, 1773. That the Virginia resolves
in March, 1773, for intercolonial committees of correspondence, were a conse
quence of the Massachusetts local Committee seems to have been generally
understood at that time. "The first notice," says Hutchinson, "which
appears of the resolves of the town of Boston was by the Assembly of Vir
ginia, and that very soon after they had passed. They seem to have produced
a set of resolves," etc. Hutchinson s History, III. 392 (see also the note).
8 Hutchinson to Gen. Mackay, Feb. 23, 1773.
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 13
afterwards, the Virginia House of Burgesses formed their
intercolonial committee of correspondence, to which the
Massachusetts House responded, on the motion of Samuel
Adams, as soon as the Assembly convened in May.
An instance of the great reliance which was placed in the
judgment and opinions of Samuel Adams is found in a cor
respondence which this winter passed between him and a
number of the leading gentlemen of Providence, Rhode
Island. Early in the year, the Commissioners of Customs *
in Boston had despatched the armed schooner Gaspee, un
der command of Lieutenant Dudingston, to Narraganset
Bay, to prevent infractions of the revenue laws and put a
stop to illicit trade. Upon this, Governor Wanton of Rhode
Island sent the high sheriff to Dudingston, requiring him to
show his commission. The officer did not reply, but com
municated the circumstance to Rear Admiral Montagu at
Boston, who wrote an insulting reply to the Rhode Island
Governor, denying his right to interfere in orders that the
Admiral might give to the officers of his squadron. In
June, the Providence packet was chased by the Gaspee,
which, venturing too far in shore, ran aground on Namquit
Point, and was there attacked by a party of armed men
from Providence, who boarded her in a number of boats,
set fire to the vessel, and destroyed her without loss of life.
The attempts both of Governor Wanton and Admiral Mon
tagu to discover the perpetrators were unsuccessful ; and
in January, 1773, a Board of Commissioners, appointed
by the Crown, convened at Providence to take the matter
into consideration. In December, the news had arrived
that, by royal order, the abettors and witnesses were to be
taken to England for condign punishment. The deed had
been one of impulse, and was the act of a few unknown
persons ; yet this intolerable violation of justice was fully
resolved upon, and it was even proposed to abrogate the
charter of Rhode Island ; and Hutchinson thought that " a
few punished at Execution Dock would be the only effect-
14 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
ual preventive of any further attempt." The act relating
to the King s dock-yards, passed in the last session of Par
liament, and especially referred to by Adams in the Rights
of the Colonists, provided for just such punishment ; for, by
its provisions, it was death to destroy the oar of a cutter s
boat, or the head of an empty cask belonging to the fleet,
and the accused could be transported to England for trial.
Lord Dartmouth had written to Governor Wanton, stating
the King s order as to the abettors and witnesses, and the
principal men of the Province, looking around them in their
hour of peril, resolved to write to Samuel Adams for direc
tion.
" We doubt not," they say, " you have before this heard of the
difficulties this Colony labors under, on account of the destruction
of the Gaspee, they being such as becomes the attention of the Col
onies in general (though immediately to be executed on this only).
As they affect in the tenderest point the liberties, lives, and proper
ties of all America, we are induced to address you upon the occasion,
whom we consider as a principal in the assertion and defence of
those rightful and natural blessings ; and in order to give you the
most authentic intelligence into these matters, we shall recite the
most material paragraphs of a letter from the Earl of Dartmouth to
the Governor of this Province, dated Whitehall, Sept. 4th, 1772."
[Then follows the extract from the Secretary s letter. 1 ] " You will
consider how natural it is for those who are oppressed, and in the
greatest danger of being totally crushed, to look around every way
for assistance and advice. This has occasioned the present troubles
we give you. We therefore ask that you would seriously consider
of this whole matter, and consult such of your friends and acquaint
ance as you may think fit upon it, and give us your opinion in what
manner this Colony had best behave in this critical situation, and
how the shock that is coming upon us may be best evaded or sus
tained. We beg you, answer as soon as may be, especially before
the llth of January, the time of the sitting of the General Assem
bly."
1 Mr. Adams published this letter in the Boston papers. See his letter to
E. H. Lee, April 10, 1773.
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 15
This letter, signed among others by Darius Sessions, the
Deputy-Governor of Rhode Island, and Stephen Hopkins,
who had lately filled the executive office, and was in a few
years to affix his name to the Declaration of Independence,
speaks volumes for the wide-spread influence of the patriot
whose counsel was solicited. Did no other memorials exist,
this appeal alone would indicate a controlling mind to which
others were accustomed to look for guidance in public exi
gencies. His advice, in this instance, was contained in a
number of letters, from which a few extracts may be taken.
The first was to Darius Sessions.
" The subject," he says, " is weighty, and requires more of my
attention than a few hours to give you my digested sentiments of it.
Neither have I yet had an opportunity of advising with the few
among my acquaintance whom I would choose to consult upon a
matter which, in my opinion, may involve the fate of America.
This I intend soon to do, and shall then, I hope, be able to commu
nicate to you (before the time you have set shall expire) such
thoughts as in your judgment may perhaps be wise and salutary
on so pressing an occasion The interested servants of the
Crown, and some of them pensioned, perhaps biassed and corrupted,
being the constituted, judges whether this or that subject shall be put
to answer for a supposed offence against the Crown, and that, in
a distant country, to their great detriment and danger of life and
fortune, even if their innocence should be made to appear, what
man is safe from the malicious persecutions of such persons, unless
it be the cringing sycophant ; and even he holds his life and prop
erty at their mercy. It should awaken the American Colonies,
which have been too long dozing upon the brink of ruin. It should
again unite them in one band. Had that union which once happily
subsisted been preserved, the conspirators against our common rights
would never have ventured such bold attempts. It has ever been
my opinion that an attack upon the liberties of one Colony is an
attack upon the liberties of all ; and, therefore, in this instance, all
should be ready to yield assistance to Rhode Island."
On the last day of the same week he wrote again to Ses
sions a long and admirably clear and prudent letter of ad-
16 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
vice, in which, after sketching a general plan of procedure
for Rhode Island, he says :
" If the foregoing hypotheses are well grounded, I think it may
justly be considered that, since the Constitution is already destined
to suffer unavoidable dissolution, an open and manly determination
of the Assembly not to consent to its ruin would show to the world
and posterity that the people were virtuous, though unfortunate, and
sustained the shock with dignity.
" You will allow me to observe that this is a matter in which the
whole American continent is deeply concerned, and a submission of
the Colony of Rhode Island to this enormous claim of power would
be made a precedent for all the rest. They ought, indeed, to con
sider deeply their interest in the struggle of a single Colony, and
their duty to afford her all practicable aid. This last is a consider
ation which I shall not fail to mention to my particular friends when
our Assembly shall sit the next week.
" Should it be the determination of a weak administration to push
this measure to the utmost at all events, and the Commissioners call
in the aid of troops for that purpose, it would be impossible for me
to say what might be the consequences, perhaps a most violent
political earthquake through the whole British empire, if not its total
destruction.
" I have long feared this unhappy contest between Great Britain
and America would end in rivers of blood ; should that be the case,
America, I think, may wash her hands in innocence ; yet it is the
highest prudence to prevent, if possible, so dreadful a calamity.
Some such provocation as is now offered to Rhode Island will, in all
probability, be the immediate occasion of it. Let us, therefore, con
sider whether, in the present case, the shock that is coming upon
you may not be evaded, which is a distinct part of the question pro
posed I beg first to propose for your consideration, whether
a circular letter from your Assembly, on the occasion, to those of
the other Colonies, might not tend to the advantage l of the general
cause and of Rhode Island in particular. I should think it would
induce each of them at least to enjoin their agents in Great Britain
to represent the severity of your case in the strongest terms." 2
1 This advice was followed early in the next year.
1 Samuel Adams to Darius Sessions, Dec. 28, 1772, and Jan. 2, 1773.
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 17
As the time for the meeting of the Rhode Island Legisla
ture drew near, Mr. Adams wrote again to Sessions with the
view of dissuading Governor Wanton from acting with the
royal commission, on which he had been placed by the
government. He feared that it would be construed as con
ceding on the part of the Governor to the legality of the
commission, which Adams denied.
" Every movement," said he, " on the side of the Commissioners
and the Assembly may be important. I think no concessions will
be made on your part which shall have the remotest tendency to fix
a precedent ; for, if it is once established, a thousand Commissioners
of the like arbitrary kind may be introduced to the ruin of your free
Constitution."
The correspondence was continued until the middle of
February, the same persons keeping Adams informed of the
movements of the Assembly and the Commission. 1
The house in Purchase Street, where Adams was born, was
standing early in the present century, but at last disappeared
before the march of improvement. It was the family home
stead, and there his children were born. Although his hum
ble circumstances precluded anything like display, the house
was frequently the rendezvous of his political friends, and
especially of the club, which seems to have met at the resi
dences of the members. The entertainment of visitors, how
ever, thanks to the care of his devoted wife, was not wanting
in substantial hospitality. Mrs. Adams was said to be one
of the best housekeepers in Boston, where all the matrons
prided themselves upon the art most honorable to woman ;
and her prudence and good management permitted nothing
like penury or meanness to appear. She fully appreciated
the character of her husband. Besides feeling it her duty to
aid, by all means in her power, in the great objects of his
life by disburdening him as much as possible of domestic
1 See also the letter of Adams, on this subject, to Kichard Henry Lee, April
10, 1773.
VOL. II. 2
18 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
cares, she was perfectly devoted to him socially. His letters
to his wife and daughter, while he was in Congress at Phila
delphia, during the Revolution, are expressive of the tender-
est solicitude for their happiness and comfort, and reveal a
degree of elegant and refined sentiment in his intercourse
with them, peculiar to the educated gentleman of that
day. He lived within the slender means which his stipend
from the Assembly afforded him ; yet he was cheerful and
contented with his lot, and desired, as a reward for his pub
lic services, only a decent livelihood for his family, satisfied
if the important part he was acting should aid in preserving
to his countrymen their liberties and virtue. Grace was
always said by Samuel Adams in person, and the little circle
each night listened to the divine word as read by some mem
ber of the family from the great Bible. He has been repre
sented as an austere, strait-laced, Puritanical man, suffering
no levity nor amusements in his household. This is incor
rect. No one in the religious society of Boston had a greater
reverence for the Sabbath and the requirements of the rigid
faith of his pious ancestors, nor were any more careful in the
observance of them. He was a devout Christian, a sincerely
religious man ; but was far from being gloomy or morose,
however stern and unrelenting he was in political life.
Nothing pleased him more than the cheerful sports of chil
dren, and the society of young persons was specially accept
able to him. He ever had pleasant words for them, loved to
have them visit at his house, sympathized in their sorrows
and pleasures, and was always ready with kind advice for
their welfare. He was one of those benignant characters
whom children approach with confidence and love. 1
1 His own recreations were few. As he was eminently social in his habits,
the rare intervals of relaxation from public cares were generally passed among
intimate friends, sometimes riding into the country, or joining a summer excur
sion down the Bay to test the sailing qualities of one of Hancock s newly-
launched vessels, or with a committee of the Legislature to visit Harvard
College or the lighthouse. John Adams occasionally alludes to these in his
Diary, once in particular in August, 1770, when the writer seems to have been
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 19
His own children, whose education he superintended dur
ing their youth, remembered him as their companion as
well as parent, and they sought his counsel with the assur
ance that he would have the most affectionate interest in all
that concerned them. At the period of which we are now
treating, his daughter Hannah was seventeen years old, and
his son, named after himself, just twenty-two. Mr. Adams
sent his son at the age of fourteen to Harvard College, where
he was graduated in 1770 ; and in the following year, his
father designing him for the medical profession, his friend
Dr. Joseph Warren, who was the family physician, took him
under his charge, educated him professionally, and in 1773
he commenced to practise medicine in his native town. He
afterwards became a surgeon in the army of the Revolution,
served until the end of the war, and died of disease caused
by exposure and hardship. Until the commencement of
hostilities he continued to live in his father s house, where
his pleasing social disposition made him a valuable member
in the family circle. They often had for visitors the sister
of Samuel Adams (Mrs. James Allen, whom her brother
called " Polly ") and her three children, who usually came
from a neighboring town, and passed a certain season in
Boston ; Mrs. and Miss Adams returning the visit during the
summer months. 1 Their principal social visitors appear to
invited to join such an excursion. He describes a jaunt over sharp rocks to the
point of the island opposite to Nantasket, and speaks of their visit to a hideous
cavern, containing marine curiosities, which they entered and explored, guided
by " Mr. Mason," probably the lighthouse keeper.
1 In the will of Mrs. Adams, dated December 15, 1808, occurs, among
other bequests, the following : " To Joseph Allen, Esq., and Samuel Allen,
both of Worcester, and to Mrs. Avery, wife of the Rev. Joseph Avery of Hoi-
den, ten dollars each, for a ring of Mr. Adams s and my hair." The three
persons here designated were the children of James Allen and Mary Adams,
sister of Samuel Adams. The daughter (also named Mary) became the wife
of Mr. Avery, as above shown, who was a minister in Holden for more than
half a century. Joseph, elsewhere mentioned as a special favorite of his uncle,
was the father of the Rev. George Allen and Judge Charles Allen, both of
Worcester. Samuel married Miss Elizabeth Honeywood, a sister of St. John
20 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
have been the families of Francis Wells, Esq., of " Cam
bridge Farm," and of the Rev. Samuel Checkley, Mr.
Adams having been related to both by his first and second
marriage. A son of this minister, bearing the same name,
was pastor of the Old North Church from 1747 to 1768,
and a friendly intimacy existed for many years between
the families. The younger Checkley and his brother Wil
liam, who married a Miss Cranston in 1766, were often
at the house, and some amusing anecdotes are related of the
lively and entertaining disposition of the latter. It may be
taken as a proof of the endurance and longevity of the peo
ple of the last century that it was the office of the elder min
ister Checkley to baptize Samuel Adams on the day of his
birth in 1722 ; to perform the service in 1749 at the mar
riage of his own daughter Elizabeth to the same person ; to
baptize all their children ; to officiate at the funeral of this
daughter in 1757 ; and again, in 1764, at the marriage cer
emony of Samuel Adams and Elizabeth Wells. He died in
the winter of 1769, having preached fifty-one years in the
church in Summer Street. Miss Elizabeth Wells, above
mentioned, was twenty-one years older than her brother
Thomas, who, in the last year of the Revolution, was mar
ried to the daughter of Samuel Adams, the young lady
thus becoming the wife of her step-mother s brother, eighteen
years after her father s marriage into the same family.
The black servant girl, Surry, was presented to Mrs. Ad
ams by Mrs. Checkley about the year 1765, and, having been
freed by Mr. Adams, lived with the family for nearly half a
Honeywood of Leicester, Mass., a well-known poet. After her death he mar
ried Miss Rachel Newell, daughter of General Newell, an officer of the Revolu
tionary war. Mrs. Mary White, a daughter of Joseph and Mary Avery above
mentioned, is now living at an advanced age in Boylston, Mass. Among many
interesting relics of the Adams family, in this lady s possession, is a set of an
tique bed-curtains of rich material and elaborately worked. Into the fabric is
sewn with silk thread the following inscription : " Wrought by Mary Fifield of
Boston, Mass., about the year 1714, assisted by her daughter Mary, mother of
the late Samuel Adams, Governor of Massachusetts."
1772.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 21
century. Surry never left Boston but twice, which was dur
ing the British occupation, and when the small-pox prevailed
hi town during the administration of Governor Adams. She
served every member of the household with an affectionate
devotion, which nothing could change. When the institu
tion of slavery was formally abolished in Massachusetts,
though she had long been free, additional papers were made
out for her : but she threw them into the fire, indignantly
remarking that she had lived too long to be trifled with in
that manner. Another member of the family was a servant
boy, whose education Mr. Adams attended to as conscien
tiously as though he had been his own child. The boy lived
to become an influential mechanic in Boston, and was con
spicuous in 1795 96 as an active politician in electing his old
master to the Chief Magistracy of the Commonwealth. Add
to these a famous Newfoundland dog, named " Queue," a
creature of immense strength and almost human intelli
gence, and we have the little household as it existed just
previous to the Revolution. " Queue " was noted for his an
tipathy to British uniforms ; and he bore on his shaggy hide
the scars of wounds received from soldiers, and even officers,
who repelled his attacks by cutting and shooting at him.
But the dog seemed to bear a charmed life.
The grounds of the family estate left in 1748 by the elder
Adams appear to have diminished in extent, by sale or other
means, until the commencement of the Revolution. Besides
the dwelling-house, there were several outbuildings ; among
them an old and disused malt-house and a garden contain
ing a number of fruit-trees and elms. The boundary ex
tended two hundred and fifty-eight feet on Purchase Street ;
the estate including the garden and a wharf, dock, and flats
reaching down to low-water mark. The garden was the
special pride of Miss Adams, who was an early riser and an
enthusiastic lover of nature. On one of the stone steps, lead
ing to the front door, were cut the letters " S. A." and " M.
F.," the initials of the elder Adams and his wife. This was
22 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
said to have been done in 1713, the year of their marriage,
when the house was built. The letters were visible nearly a
century afterwards, but almost obliterated by constant wear.
Of the interior arrangement of the dwelling, little can be
ascertained. John Adams, at the close of the year 1772,
made this entry in his Diary :
" Spent this evening with Mr. Samuel Adams at his house. Had
much conversation about the state of affairs, Gushing, Phillips, Han
cock, Hawley, Gerry, Hutchinson, Sewall, Quincy, &c. Adams was
more cool, genteel, and agreeable than common ; concealed and re
strained his passions, &c. He affects to despise riches, and not to
dread poverty ; but no man is more ambitious of entertaining his
friends handsomely, or of making a decent and elegant appearance
than he. He has lately new covered and glazed his house, and
painted it very neatly, and has new papered, painted, and furnished
his rooms ; so that you visit at a very genteel house, and are very
politely received and entertained.
" Mr. Adams corresponds with Hawley, Gerry, and others. He
corresponds in England and in several of the other Provinces. His
time is all employed in the public service." *
In the same Diary, for several years, we now and then
find Samuel Adams visiting his political friends, or receiv
ing them at his own house, where the questions of the day
were discussed, and probably some of the most important
measures matured. Towards the last of December in this
year, he called on John Adams to request him to officiate as
orator at the succeeding anniversary of the Boston Massacre.
" This afternoon," says John Adams, " I had a visit from Samuel
Pemberton, Esquire, and Mr. Samuel Adams. Mr. P. said they were
a sub-committee deputed by the standing committee of the town of
Boston, to request that I would deliver an oration in public upon
the ensuing 5th of March. He said that they two were desirous of
1 John Adams s Diary, Dec. 30, 1772 (Works, II. 308). It was towards
the close of 1772 that the Society of the Bill of Rights in London elected
Samuel Adams a member. See Arthur Lee to Samuel Adams, Jan. 25, 1773
(Life of A. Lee, I. 226-228).
1772.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 23
it, and that the whole committee was unanimously desirous of it. I
told them that the feeble state of my health rendered me quite will
ing to devote myself forever to private life ; that, far from taking
any part in public, I was desirous to avoid even thinking upon pub
lic affairs; and tliat I was determined to pursue that course, and
therefore that I must beg to be excused. They desired to know
my reasons. I told them so many irresistible syllogisms rushed
into my mind and concluded decisively against it, that I did not
know which to mention first; but I thought the reason that had
hitherto actuated the town was enough, namely, the part I took in
the trial of the soldiers. Though the subject of the oration was
quite compatible with the verdict of the jury in that case, and
indeed, even with the absolute innocence of the soldiers, yet I found
the world in general were not capable, or not willing, to make the
distinction, and, therefore, by making an oration upon this occasion,
I should only expose myself to the lash of ignorant and malicious
tongues on both sides of the question. Besides that, I was too old
to make declamations. The gentlemen desired I would take time
to consider of it. I told them no ; that would expose me to more
difficulties ; I wanted no time ; it was not a thing unthought of by
me, though this invitation was unexpected; that I was clearly,
fully, absolutely, and unalterably determined against it, and, there
fore, that time and thinking would answer no end. The gentlemen
then desired that I would keep this a secret, and departed." :
1 John Adams s Diary, Dec. 29, 1772.
CHAPTER XXV.
Progress of the Committees of Correspondence. Hutchinson, alarmed at the
continued Denial of Parliamentary Supremacy, assembles the General
Court, resolved to test the Question in a Controversy. His Opening
Speech on that Subject. Its Doctrines apparently unanswerable.
Adams Chairman of the Committee to reply. His signal Overthrow of
Hutchinson. Chagrin of his Excellency. He responds, and Adams
again replies for the Assembly. Parliamentary Authority over the Col
onies disproved. A Continental Congress suggested. Effect of these
Papers in England and America. -4 \
WHEN the success of the Committees of Correspondence
was such as to thoroughly alarm the government, more than
eighty towns having been brought into the agreement, the
Governor deemed it prudent to call the Assembly- together,
with the view, if possible, of preventing further mischief.
Circulars had been sent " to about two hundred and fifty
towns and districts with town , privileges." Most of the
principal ones had followed the example of Boston, and,
says Hutchinson, " more than one third of the whole num
ber had joined the confederacy before my Assembly met " ; 1
and again, to Bernard he says, after naming Samuel Adams
as the author of this plan to set the Province in a blaze, " I
question whether ten towns in the Province would have
stood out, if I had not called upon the two Houses just as
I did." 2 His hope in assembling the Legislature was, that
some of the towns would consider it unnecessary to form
committees, since their Representatives were to meet so
soon. Mr. Adams also believed that the meeting of the
General Court had been hastened by the committees. " It
is my opinion," he says, " that it would have been post-
1 Hutchinson to Gen. Mackay, Feb. 23, 1773.
8 Hutchinson to Bernard, Feb. 23, 1773.
Jan., 1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 25
poned as usual, of late, till near the close of our political
year, had it not been for the Boston town meeting." 1
The Governor had doubtless availed himself of all the
legal knowledge within his reach, for the preparation of the
address with which he intended to open the session. This
speech was suggested by the extraordinary success of " the
declarations against the authority of Parliament," as he
termed Adams s " Rights of the Colonists," which were
likely " to raise a general flame." Hence, as soon as the
pamphlet was circulated, he began to consider the subjects
of which it treated. His legal acquirements were counted
equal, if not superior, to those of any other lawyer in the
Province, and he had also at his command the learning of
not a few men of acknowledged ability. The crown writers,
who had already disputed the subject of Parliamentary su
premacy with Samuel Adams, were generally lawyers in the
royal service, one of them Jonathan Sewall, 2 the Attorney-
General. These men the Governor could consult at any
time, and probably had the benefit of their suggestions.
But his own qualifications for such a contest as ensued at
the approaching session were very great. His learning and
talents were unquestioned ; he was an experienced politi
cian ; and having a thorough knowledge of English and
Colonial history, he entered upon the controversy with
every assurance of success. He therefore looked forward
with satisfaction to the opening of the Court, when he
should enhance his reputation in England by a stroke such
as he believed would confound all opposition. With leisure
to mature his cunningly devised project, he believed that
the time had come when he could " make apparent the rea
sonableness of coercion, and justify it to all the world." 3
1 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, April 9, 1773.
2 Massachusetts Historical Society s Collections, Fourth Series, IV. 458 ;
Note by Thomas Hollis.
3 Hutchinson to J. Pownall, January, 1773. The letter was written immedi
ately after the delivery of his speech to the Legislature, and with the self-
26 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
It would seem that the whole aim of the man was to find
plausible excuses for the destruction of his country and its
liberties, so as to advance his own interests. His plan was
to drive the Legislature into an open avowal of the inde
pendence of the Colonies, or oblige them to admit the force
of his reasoning on the authority of Parliament. In either
case, he pictured for himself a complete triumph : by the one
he should place the patriots in the wrong, by the other his
reputation as a lawyer and statesman would be established.
But little did he anticipate the snare he had laid for himself,
or his quick succeeding defeat.
On the 6th of January the Legislature convened, and his
Excellency, on the same day, hastened to send down his
speech, which was directed to both Houses. It is here only
necessary to condense the arguments, as illustrating the po
sitions taken on each side.
Confident of victory, he at once threw down the gauntlet,
promising to treat the subject without reserve, hoping the
Legislature would receive what he had to say with candor.
And if they should not agree with him, he promised to con
sider with candor what they might offer in answer. Then,
having reviewed the usages of the last hundred years, to
show that it was the sense of their ancestors, as well as of
the kingdom, that the Colonists, from the time their prede
cessors first took possession, were to remain under the su
preme authority of Parliament, which he held had never
before been called in question, he turns to the late proceed
ings of several towns which had adopted the " Rights of the
Colonists," denying the supreme authority of Parliament.
The provisions of the charter, he said, could not be under
stood as an exemption from acts of Parliament, although the
Colonists were not represented in that body ; but the grant
of liberties and immunities therein specified was nothing
more than an assurance on the part of the Crown that those
sufficiency of one who believed his argument to be conclusive and unanswer
able.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 27
born in the Colonies or on their passage thither or thence
would not become aliens, but were entitled to the liberties of
free-born subjects, in whatever part of the English domin
ions they might happen to be. The rights of Englishmen
could not be the same in all respects in all parts of the Brit
ish dominions. At home they were governed by laws made
by persons in whose election they had from time to time a
choice. If they removed to America, where the right of
voting for those persons could not be exercised, it did not
follow that the government, by their removal, lost its author
ity over them ; but rather that, by their voluntary removal,
they relinquished a right which they could resume whenever
they returned to England. He knew of no line that could
be drawn between the supreme authority of Parliament and
the total independence of the Colonies ; it was imposssible
there should be two independent Legislatures in one and the
same state. Independent of England, the Colonies could not
claim her protection, and might thus become a prey to one
or the other powers of Europe ; and he asked if there was
anything they had more reason to dread than independence.
Assuming, then, that the supremacy of Parliament would no
longer be denied, he believed it would follow that the exer
cise of its authority could be no matter of grievance ; and
if it were, that could be no ground for immediately denying
or renouncing the authority, or refusing to submit to it.
The crafty Justice Braba^on, when seeking for pretexts
and plausible grounds, in the reign of Edward the First,
upon which to erect the royal prerogative over the domain
of Scotland, did not search through the obsolete records
with more pertinacity than did Hutchinson, as he now
labored to establish the almost feudal subjection of his coun
trymen to the same power. The precedents which he had
gathered with much care he made the basis of an extended
essay, prepared with consummate skill, illustrating the sub
ject with all the powers of his reasoning and knowledge of his
tory. They were advanced with an air of candor which no
28 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
one better than the Governor knew how to assume. " If
I am wrong in my principles of government," said he, " or
in the inferences which I have drawn from them, I wish to
he convinced of my error I have laid before you
what I think are the principles of your Constitution ; if you
do not agree with me, I wish to know your objections."
Thus he challenged them to debate on the most important
subject that had ever come before an American Legislature.
For more than a century, the Colonies had lived in cheerful
acknowledgment of Parliamentary rule, regarding that body
as their natural protector. By the attempt of Grenville, in
1764, to extort an unjust revenue from them, the veil of
peaceful contentment was torn rudely aside, and, as the
popular liberties were asserted, the boundaries of that su
premacy began to be more clearly defined ; and now the great
question was about to be contested.
The document created all the sensation in the country
that its author had anticipated, and he triumphantly awaited
its effect upon the Assembly. It immediately appeared in
all the Boston newspapers, and found its way throughout
the Province, where it was perused by the farmers in the
long winter evenings, and was discussed in the political
clubs. It was printed in England, was copied into the papers
of other Colonies, and everywhere read as a powerful and
convincing argument. All looked with anxiety for the
answer of the House. Many who had never clearly under
stood the closer points of the issues upon which the speech
was based, or whose limited knowledge of them had caused
an implicit and habitual reliance upon the ability of their
leaders, considered it incontrovertible. Hutchinson soon
after wrote to Lord Dartmouth and others in England that
" it was the general voice in both Houses of the Assembly,
that the principles he had advanced were not to be denied."
But, by those who had pondered over these questions, it
was perceived that the Governor had laid himself open to
attack. His hearers in Boston saw his indiscretion, and
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 29
Samuel Adams prepared " to take the fowler in his own
snare." The positions appeared at first to be so impregnable,
that some members of the House were doubtful of the policy
of risking a defeat by replying. Samuel Adams had anx
iously awaited a favorable moment to contest this very ques
tion in the Legislature, and the opportunity now presented
itself. In a circular from the Committee of Correspondence
of the Assembly to the like bodies in other Colonies, he
alludes to the state of feeling existing at this time in the
House.
" Our Governor in a manner forced the Assembly freely to ex
press their sentiments in so delicate a point as to appear to acqui
esce in the doctrines he advanced in his speech. The House of
Representatives were reduced to a choice of difficulties, either by
speaking their minds, to run the hazard of giving a wrong touch to
the ark, or, on the other hand, to suffer it to fall for want of their
feeble support in a time of danger. The total silence of the sister
Colonies put it out of our power to avail ourselves of such aid as we
should undoubtedly have had from their arguments, or even of
knowing their sentiments on an all-concerning point. It will there
fore appear to our brethren of the other Colonies to have been not
very easy for us to determine whether it was a time to speak or a
time to keep silence. We, upon the whole, thought it prudent to
enter into the subject, but with caution, rather supporting the opin
ions of our ancestors, which appeared to us to be opposite to the sen
timents of the Governor, and deducing inferences therefrom, than
explicitly declaring our own. In what manner the House have ac
quitted themselves is a matter in which we can more safely rely
upon the free and candid judgment of our neighbors than our own."
The Governor s speech was read to the House for the sec
ond time on the 8th, when a committee was appointed to
reply ; and on the 22d the answer was reported by Samuel
Adams, its author and the chairman of the committee. As
there was not a full House, the subject was postponed until
the afternoon, and an effort was meantime made to obtain a
general attendance. The answer was then read, and named
30 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
as the special order for the 26th, at eleven o clock. The
members were evidently in a quandary. Very few of that
body were men of more than ordinary acquirements. Their
occupations, and the seclusion of many of them for long
periods from the immediate theatre of action, gave them,
for the most part, few opportunities to unweave the more
subtle political questions, though all understood the general
issues, and were not to be deceived, especially when guided
by the Boston members. This is shown particularly by the
selection of the committees for drafting important papers
and the writers of the documents out of those committees.
The journals of the House indicate that this work was
usually confided to a few practised men. Hutchinson says
in a letter written during this session :
" I think, besides, it was high time the principles of the leaders
here should be known in England. I say leaders, because I suppose
of about in the House of Representatives, who voted unani
mously the answer to my speech, not ten could give any account of
what they had done." l And to another : " I don t remember be
fore a House of Representatives voting unanimously according to the
direction of their leaders ; and yet this seems to have been the case
with the late House, for I could not find any of them who could
give any account of the messages after they had voted them." 2
This stricture upon the intelligence of the House, though
probably exaggerated, would apply to very many. It is
recorded in the journals, that the reading was " by para
graphs," that the full application and meaning of the paper
might be understood, and a manuscript record of the pro
ceedings taken on that day shows that some evidently
doubted the validity of the authorities cited, so unprece
dented were the positions assumed ; and the committee were
requested to bring vouchers to substantiate their arguments
on the day appointed for the next consideration of the
answer.
1 Hutchinson to Israel Mauduit, Feb. 21, 1773.
8 Hutchinson to Col. Williams, April 7, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 31
On the 26th, the members having been specially directed
to attend for the occasion, the answer was again considered,
and the vouchers were probably produced. The question
was postponed until the afternoon, when the report was
"accepted unanimously by ninety-seven voters." As the
House were appointing a committee to carry it up, an
addition was submitted and referred to the committee,
when a motion to adjourn until nine on the following day
was made and lost. These were probably efforts of Tory
members to delay the answer or hamper its adoption ; but
it passed, and befbre the adjournment Samuel Adams him
self, after it had been two days debated, presented it to his
Excellency. 1
1 Samuel Adams s authorship of this celebrated state paper, and that of
March on the same subject, has been questioned. Of the first one, either
Samuel Adams or Joseph Hawley (who was also a member of the committee)
was undoubtedly the author, and either would have availed himself of the sug
gestions of the other. The two were almost always placed upon committees
together, to prepare important papers, and no document such as that now
under consideration went forth until both had carefully considered it. Adams
was usually the writer, as the many rough drafts in his autograph indicate,
and as Hutchinson testifies in his History ; and when great legal points were
involved, he summoned all able counsel in aid of his positions. John Adams,
though not a member of the Legislature, was in this instance consulted, as is
shown by his reminiscence of the event and by Hutchinson s contemporary let
ters and his History. By reference to the journals of the House, from the
day on which the committee was appointed to that on which the first answer
was reported, it appears that while Hawley was upon several committees for
general business, the usual demand was not made upon the time of Samuel
Adams, who was left, it would seem, at liberty as chairman of the committee
to prepare this paper ; while the minutes of the proceedings of the House, dur
ing that interval, are in the handwriting of some person apparently assisting
the clerk, or acting perhaps as his substitute. Can it, then, be doubted that
Samuel Adams wrote this answer as well as that of March ? Mr. Bancroft,
after carefully weighing the evidence, was clearly satisfied of this (see his His
tory, VI. 446, 448, 453) ; and no person of the present day is as well qualified
as he to pronounce upon the subject, familiar as it is to him from many years
of close study and impartial examination. The policy of Adams was to ob
tain for the cause all available talent; but the occasional legal authorities,
which at his request may have been supplied by Hawley or John Adams, can
not warrant the omission of this paper from any collection of the writings of
Samuel Adams.
32 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
It gives a signal refutation of the Governor s arguments.
He is driven from every position with plain, irresistible rea
soning, is condemned out of his own mouth, and the fal
lacy of his deductions is laid bare with unsparing sarcasm.
The circumstance of his not having been bred to the law has been advanced
as a reason why a document possessing so many legal references is not likely
to have been written by him. But an examination of the answer will show
that it contains no evidence of a greater legal knowledge than a statesman
should possess ; and several of the works from which quotations are given, and
which serve as authorities, are those which Mr. Adams s previous essays and
state papers prove that he must have studied. Franklin, Mason, Richard
Henry Lee, Elbridge Gerry, and others equally eminent in the Revolution,
were not educated as lawyers ; yet their general knowledge of so much of the
law as could be obtained by reference to the ordinary authorities, in any con
stitutional argument, would scarcely be disputed. Samuel Adams was a deep
reader of works on government and theology and whatever law books were
accessible on the former subject. Bradford, the historian, who was personally
acquainted with Adams, and was a witness of his career through the whole
Revolutionary period, says of him, in his Life of Mayhew (p. 473) : " The very
eminent patriot, Samuel Adams, is justly entitled to the character of a learned
man as well as of an able political writer. He was also familiar with the
works of the best theologians extant in his time. His powerful mind, however,
displayed itself chiefly in political discussions, in his very able treatises in de
fence of republican governments and the rights of man." Sullivan, who was
an associate with Samuel Adams through the entire Revolution, and knew
him intimately, bears witness to his familiarity with the sentiments of the
great English writers on popular rights and his full possession of all the
governmental systems. Though Adams was not bred to the legal profession,
his writings, private and public, are proofs that he was well read in the general
principles of law applying to this controversy, and that he possessed great read
iness in adapting them to his purposes. In the previous summer (June 5,
1772) he had been elected by joint ballot of both Houses, with John Adams and
Samuel Pemberton, to revise the Province laws ; and it would appear, by the
order of the names, that he received the largest number of votes, and was
chairman of the committee. This selection from among so numerous a body
would not have been made, but for the confidence reposed in his judgment
and knowledge of the subject intrusted to him. The long and comprehensive
letter of instructions from the House to Dr. Franklin, written by Samuel
Adams in November, 1770 (see p. 370, and Bancroft, VI. 375), is conclusive
evidence of his legal knowledge in affairs of Colonial government, a knowl
edge which could consistently exist without any pretensions to "legal ability"
in the common courts. The remarkable letter of the House to Dr. Franklin,
from the pen of Samuel Adams in June, 1771 (see p, 460), maintains this
identical principle of freedom from the authority of Parliament (see Bancroft,
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 33
Even his own History of Massachusetts is made an instru
ment of his overthrow. The paper obtained great celebrity
in America, and was much admired in England by the
friends of the Colonies for its soundness of doctrine and that
VI. 406) ; and the Governor, after denouncing Adams to the Ministry as its
author, aud "the greatest incendiary in the King s dominions," points to the
letters as calculated to keep the Province in "a perpetual flame," by their
dangerous and alarming denials of Parliamentary supremacy. Turn to what
ever writings of Samuel Adams we will, for two or three years prior to this
controversy, we find him preparing for these very questions, upon which
his own mind had evidently been long made up from reading and reflection.
To suppose that a statesman, whose time was wholly devoted to the one sub
ject of the political relations between the Colonies and the parent country
should not, in the course of years, have carefully fortified himself from the
works of writers on government would be to doubt his claim to any portion
of the industry and sagacity which were especial characteristics of Samuel
Adams.
Many of his works not only evince a familiarity with the opinions of law
yers, but they repeatedly deny the authority of Parliament over the Colonies,
the very subject discussed in the answers under consideration. Among
other political essays, those signed " Valerius Poplicola," October, 1771, and
" Candidus," January, 1772, in the Boston Gazette, may be mentioned. They
appeared respectively twelve and sixteen months before ; and when compared
with both of the answers in this controversy, will be found to run so nearly
parallel in style and sentiment as to compel the conviction that they were the
work of the same hand.
The attention of the Governor had been directed to this subject of Parlia
mentary supremacy many months before the date of the controversy, for he
approaches it in the speech with which he prorogued the Assembly as far back
as the last summer. (See Bradford s State Papers, p. 331.) He there contro
verts the claim made by the House to " legislative power and authority vested
therein by the charter," and pointedly alludes to the late writings in the press,
which gave "false notions of government," referring, as his own letters at
the time declare, directly to Samuel Adams, whose published denials of Par
liamentary authority, in his controversies with the crown writers, Hutchinson
had previously denounced to administration. One of these papers (the Bos
ton Gazette) he sent to England, and expressed the fear that its doctrines
might even be adopted at the next session of the Legislature. The House did
not meet until winter, when what he apprehended actually came to pass.
Hutchinson s attention having been thus engaged, he had leisure to prepare his
arguments ; and however much the public may have been astonished at them,
we have seen that the subject was no novelty to Samuel Adams, who had
unquestionably been preparing for the occasion, which he saw was not far
distant.
VOL. II. 3
34 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
elegant simplicity of style which distinguishes the writings
of Samuel Adams. It first traces the disturbed state of
the government, to which the speech had alluded, to the
new and unprecedented measures of Parliament. The Gov-
John Adams, at the time the above-mentioned essays were written, was not
in public life. In fact, his own record in his Diary, only a week before the
meeting of this Legislature, proves that he shunned all part in public business.
Though urged by Samuel Adams to enter the lists, he steadily refused, and
was " desirous to avoid even thinking of public affairs." (See his Diary, Dec.
9, 1772; Works, II. 307, 308.) With so little disposition, then, for political
combat, it may be imagined that his aid in this instance could not have been
very material. At a time when Samuel Adams was engaging in lengthy
newspaper controversies with the government essayists on this special topic of
Parliamentary supremacy, John Adams was exclusively devoting himself to
the practice of his profession and the improvement of his property at Brain-
tree, as is shown in his Diary. His attention being thus engrossed, he may
not have known that his kinsman had been battling on this very subject for
more than a year before ; else he would scarcely have asserted, when endeavor
ing to recall these events from the oblivion of a past century, that he alone,
when consulted, "introduced those legal and historical authorities which
appear on the record." If we examine both answers, we shall find that these
" historical authorities " are mainly from Hutchinson s History of Massachu
setts. The very arguments with which the unlucky historian had apparently
proved Parliamentary supremacy over the Colonies are turned into weapons
for his own discomfiture. This is precisely the plan which Samuel Adams
had already pursued in his public writings, some of which are especially
devoted to the refutation of these particular points in Hutchinson s History.
Is it not reasonable to suppose that now, when he came to treat the same sub
ject in the Legislature, he would naturally turn to the volumes which he had
been so closely criticising ? As for "legal authorities," authors on govern
ment, which were certainly in Samuel Adams s library, are extensively used
in both answers, and several had been equally quoted in his previous essays.
He had evidently been a reader of Hooker, Locke, Grotius, Blackstone,
Vattel, Hume, and American histories, as his writings through several years
sufficiently prove ; and it is not likely that he was a stranger to any of the
standard political authors. Now the occasion had arrived, what was to pre
vent him from quoting and applying them as he had already done in the
circumscribed limits of the public press ?
Governor Bernard, as early as September, 1765, attempted to entrap the Leg
islature into committing themselves on the distinction between the authority of
Parliament and the expediency of the Stamp Act (see Bancroft, V. 329),
and Samuel Adams then replied, that there were boundaries to the power of
Parliament, and that the people had certain inherent rights, which Parliament
itself could not divest them of. (See I. 75-77, and Bancroft, V. 348.) The
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 35
ernor s assertions on Parliamentary supremacy are then
taken up in detail, the answer promising, according to his
Excellency s recommendation, " to treat the subject with
calmness and candor, and also with a due regard to truth."
times were not then ripe for defining those powers. " It by no means," he
says, "appertains to us to presume to adjust the boundaries of the power of
Parliament; but boundaries there undoubtedly are." (See Bradford s State
Papers, p. 45.)
To quote Bancroft again, referring to the present controversy (VI. 446) :
" No man in the Province had reflected so much as he [Samuel Adams] on the
question of the legislative power of Parliament ; no man had so early arrived
at the total denial of that power. For nine years he had been seeking an
opportunity of promulgating that denial as the opinion of the Assembly ; and
caution had always stood in his way. At last the opportunity had come, and
the Assembly with one consent placed the pen in his hand."
The subject now at issue had been associated with his earliest public acts.
Long before the Revolution, in Gov. Shirley s administration, he had appeared
in defence of Colonial supremacy within Colonial limits against an act of Par
liament overruling the laws of the Province ; and that act of 1741, with the
act of the Massachusetts Legislature passed at that time, militating with it,
in relation to the Land Bank scheme, is one of the subjects of the second
answer. (Seel. 25-29.) Samuel Adams in this controversy uses the old
Provincial act (which a contemporary says was passed through his exertions)
as a precedent for disproving Parliamentary authority in the Colonies. For
several years past, according to Hutchinson s History (III. 413), Adams had
been industriously making such changes in the forms and phraseology of the
legislative proceedings as were calculated gradually to undermine the existing
idea of Parliamentary authority, and establish, as far as was practicable, the
local independence of the Massachusetts Assembly. Controverting Parlia
mentary supremacy thus seems to have occupied him at every step of his
political career.
But Samuel Adams, in a letter to John Adams, indirectly admits his
authorship of both answers ; for he refers to an assertion of the common law
in the first, which he distinctly states was his own, and that, " as he thought,"
John Adams had been his authority on that particular point. Here, then, is
an intimation from Samuel Adams himself, disclosing his authorship. It is
reasonable to infer that the author of the first answer would have been espe
cially selected by the committee to draft the second, the subject being the
same ; and that Samuel Adams was the author of the second will hardly be
questioned, since he was manifestly alone engaged in composing it when the
above-mentioned note (hereafter given) was written.
His original drafts have not been preserved ; perhaps they were dispersed
with the bulk of his papers after his decease. The manuscript copies on
file in the public archives, are in the handwriting of one who often acted
or ^ AirnBL AI> AS.
^
Item ii mi OB****: fri tfce
\3wnl t ^rw
*f w Ookttwss **K inteatbc to
TV iww ir. BtfttOOwsw^S KA3r^ iltl ^74 .^vro: KL *K . --
^iMc tML- V TVi*mpvn-
*MK.
I... T:i.i
r : t^- - t: r,>
JUtC JbBTe ^rt JMWt -BMttfcC- 3B08VK rv&BBK -Of
.
einm .-.,... T>*4
1773.] Lire OF 3AKITEL ADAM*.
conform to the principle* and funoVrr, -M^I ^aw of the
Ksfa Constitution, its rights and statute* then ^ -.. .
by no means to bind th*5 Colonie* to the supreme author:-/
of Parliament. When the continent sra* take
Artbvr Lee, in a letter to ^MMwf A4*MM f^cme 11, 17781, r*ferng-
BOTper, -ays : Yon iwre wj tb grea* ;jrosriety r*tiff*nn>d a
the GoTfTtxxr s 3m speech, that tfce -Jrawi B$ a } b***g a
takiog, aai of genera! ootwerotteat, joa wovid oat atteaw&c it
cowfirrews." Tarawa^ t tke pMW^e rferl t by Mr.
recorded swsgewtkwi of a rrmfimifMiii B^e,
]**ga*& *nb a, kCM
l^ i -vHsidb be ;JWM* o*
It woowl be SB ardaa t**<-
to awwfaea a aaaVieat rnumber to so
102;, rwwever, is to be despaired rf .
lenrr tetls us, you faooir of no line that can be drawn betv""--
aoaJmui of ?arBamet ad ta*-aai miafgrntmttf ^f ttue CotaWK*/ If tfcere
be no aocii line, the cansagmpce is either that the Guiana*-* ae-the ^ ttuuaA- jf
the Partbanem or ther are tonaflf ina<fRaBL A* it eanoot be attfpoaed so
her? been the intention of the partiec it -the rwmpaet that -we 3*M be redoKed
to the state of v-wilae. the enHBOatai is, tbat it ww thesr setae that ust i ajp
We bare onhr to compare this with the -faikmrin* extracts . ram IBS
wn tines, to see that tber were br one person. In the tester, signed
dns. aiireadr ailndaa to. Mr. Adams had aaid :
,t , rt - A ^ . 1 ^. . > ..an ^.^
mar ncrt victi&te. irod canned aher, that the
aiates. and tree, than to smpjwwe that then- mnat .- .reu.t Brnaui amd
And e^ean ^^hteen mcoiths before, m the Bsoxi jnoecte :ff j/kir ^>.
:.riu as An Eieetor of im,** *
rcr idea oi onr proper xmditum. IKe are
independent of Gxeat Bmuin -M aatr oaher onarth that matrfT nae t bar ;wtv-
cBrcnin. or -we utre :ier /me Goknnee. In bath dxee oaaee. uer ronuuet ;OMBJBJK-
u sfhonid be identical.*
TtfaBBH are ant a twr od date inssancee Tiiminc ^tnrnucL. "be umwwrt. wnesre- a
cssrn^iii -"TiuniinBtwni will ssiow Tiyccrse^r the same trnuK at ncmijns UCD& tRtcrr
iiBni .i-. . . :". . - -"T lit a .uibr jRiwL. nan nammilr iBjuKtinstit
Hbe ".(uimms tt :bt Lecfflianire .-aiao rceveai *^Mrt -TUTTTTI^ ^itatms wns okaiBF-
ais aBBtKsaceft vnrr unmast\ nrncmr aim :ttt ueBcrer at ins ontc
36 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
In a rehearsal of the provisions of the several charters of the
American Colonies in the reigns of Elizabeth and James, it
is argued at great length, and proved by the modes of ex
pression, that the laws of the Colonies were intended to
as his amanuensis, and specimens of whose writing are found among his
papers.
The note in Hutchinson s History (III. 374), given on the authority of a
clergyman of Maryland, that Mr. Delaney or Mr. Dickinson were applied to
by the committee to prepare an answer to his speech, is an absurd and unac
countable blunder. The journey to and from Annapolis had, at that time, to
be made on horseback, which, even in a less inclement season than mid-winter,
would have consumed more than the time that elapsed between the delivery
of the Governor s speech and the 22d, the day on which the committee re
ported. A reply could not have been expected within a month at least, and
his Excellency might have been pleased in the interim to dissolve the Assem
bly. Hutchinson s information was generally correct, and his historical state
ments reliable, save when violent personal prejudice, begot by disappointed
avarice or ambition, pushed his resentment beyond his judgment. This story
perhaps took its rise from the letter of Samuel Adams to John Dickinson
(which the clergyman referred to may have seen), in relation to the late con
troversy, requesting him to take up his pen in defence of the ground assumed
by the House. And here we have another indirect evidence of Samuel
Adams s authorship. He shows an author s anxiety for the answers, and a
desire to know the opinion of Southern gentlemen of the manner in which the
House had acquitted themselves. Indeed, in that letter, instead of asking for
aid in the controversy, he regrets " the silence of the other Assemblies upon
every subject that concerns the joint interest of the Colonies." In the Circular
Letter to the other Assemblies written in this year by Samuel Adams, allud
ing to this controversy, he says, " The total silence of the sister Colonies puts
it out of our power to avail ourselves of such aid as we should undoubtedly
have had from their arguments." These quotations, besides disclosing the
author s paternal interest in the answers, effectually upset the theory of assist
ance received from any other Colony. The last paragraph in the first answer
is also singularly in consonance with the wording of Adams s letter to Dick
inson on this subject.
The first answer abounds with evidences of Samuel Adams s mind, too palpa
ble to be mistaken. His very words and long-recognized sentiments are again
and again repeated in it. The style of an author has its distinctive character
istics, which cannot be entirely disguised, even if desired. Those who, from
long practice, have formed a certain style, gradually fall into the use of
phrases which serve to identify their compositions among all others on the
same subject. Expressions and the application of words peculiar to Sam
uel Adams, occur throughout this answer as well as that of the following
month.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 37
conform to the principles and fundamental laws of the Eng
lish Constitution, its rights and statutes then in being, and
by no means to bind the Colonies to the supreme authority
of Parliament. When the continent was taken possession
*
Arthur Lee, in a letter to Samuel Adams (June 11, 1773), referring to this
answer, says : " You have with great propriety maintained in your answer to
the Governor s first speech, that the drawing a line being an arduous under
taking, and of general concernment, you would not attempt it without a
general congress." Turning to the passage referred to by Mr. Lee, the
earliest recorded suggestion of a continental congress, we are struck with
the coincidence in sentiment and language with a letter from Adams to Lee,
written fifteen months previously, in which he points out the advantages of a
union of the Colonies, who should meet by their deputies once a year at some
stated place. " It would be an arduous task," he continues, " for any man to
undertake to awaken a sufficient number to so grand an undertaking. Noth
ing, however, is to be despaired of."
The last paragraph but two in the answer commences thus : " Your Excel
lency tells us, you know of no line that can be drawn between the Supreme
authority of Parliament and the total independence of the Colonies/ If there
be no such line, the consequence is either that the Colonies are the vassals of
the Parliament or they are totally independent. As it cannot be supposed to
have been the intention of the parties in the compact that we should be reduced
to the state of vassalage, the conclusion is, that it was their sense that we are
thus independent."
We have only to compare this with the following extracts from his previous
writings, to see that they were by one person. In the essay, signed " Candi-
dus," already alluded to, Mr. Adams had said : " It is certainly more concor
dant with the great law of nature and reason, which the most powerful nation
may not violate, and cannot alter, that the Colonies are separate, independent
states, and free, than to suppose that they must be one with Great Britain and
slaves." And even eighteen months before, in the Boston Gazette of May 20,
1771, he says, as "An Elector of 1771," "Few words are necessary now to
express my idea of our proper condition. We are either a state as entirely
independent of Great Britain as any other on earth that makes use of her pro
tection, or we are her/ree Colonies. In both these cases, her conduct towards
us should be identical."
These are but a few of the instances running through the answers, where a
careful examination will show precisely the same trains of thought and nearly
the same words, disclosing to an impartial mind that the writer, on coming to
handle the subject at a later period, had naturally reproduced his own ideas.
The Journals of the Legislature also reveal that Samuel Adams was chair
man of the committees, both for drafting and for presenting the first answer to
the Governor ; his associates very properly making him the bearer of his own
production.
38 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
of by Europeans, it was inhabited by heathen and barbarous
people, who held all the right to the soil which God had
originally given to man. The territory was thenceforth
vested in, and was at the absolute disposal of, the Crown,
Nor should the fact be lost sight of, that the Governor s speech, which
elicited the reply of the House, commenced with a direct attack upon the Com
mittees of Correspondence, whose proceedings, as he himself admitted, had
led him to attempt this argument in support of Parliamentary authority. The
Committees of Correspondence were a political engine of which Samuel Adams
was the inventor and master mind. " The Rights of the Colonists " (the
original draft and preparatory notes of which still exist in the handwriting of
Adams, written two months before the commencement of this controversy)
embodied the very issues now raised in the Legislature. Hutchinson, by some
means, had ascertained that Adams was the author of that new and bold doc
trine, and so wrote to General Gage during this session. With this knowl
edge, the Governor based his two speeches upon the principles advanced in
that work. He commences, in fact, with the declaration, that his argument
is to be directed against the mischievous report which had caused so much
commotion. " At length/ says his Excellency, " the Constitution has been
called in question, and the authority of Great Britain to make and establish
laws for the inhabitants of this Province has been by many denied. What
was at first whispered with caution was soon after openly asserted in print ;
and of late a number of the inhabitants in several of the principal towns in the
Province have assembled together in their respective towns, and have assume4
the name of legal town meetings, have passed resolves, which they have
ordered to be placed upon their town records, to be printed and published.
.... In consequence of these resolves, committees of correspondence are
formed in several of those towns to maintain the principles upon which they
are formed." And near the commencement of his speech of Feb. 16th,
he says again : " The proceedings of such of the inhabitants of the town of
Boston as assembled together, and published their resolves or votes as the act
of the town at a legal town meeting, denying in the most express terms the
supremacy of Parliament, and inviting every other town and district in the
Province to adopt the same principle, and to establish committees of correspon
dence to consult upon proper measures to maintain it, and the proceedings of
divers other towns in consequence of this invitation, appeared to me to be so
unwarrantable, and of such dangerous nature and tendency, that I thought
myself bound to call upon you, in my speech at the opening of the session, to
join with me in discountenancing and bearing a proper testimony against such
irregularities and innovations." And, as if not content even with these explicit
statements, he repeats the assertion at the close of the second speech, that " the
point of the supremacy of Parliament " was the direct question raised in the
last November by the Committees of Correspondence ; and that this legislative
controversy had been commenced by him to prevent the spread of such dan-
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 39
and not annexed to the realm. The granting of the charters
to the Colonists implied no sovereignty in the Parliament,
who had never had the inspection of Colonial acts, the
King giving his dissent or allowance.
gerous principles. The Governor s whole force, by his own admission, is
directed against the platform established by the " Chief Incendiary." His
own doctrines having been thus assailed, upon whom did the duty of maintain
ing them more appropriately devolve than upon Samuel Adams ?
Another indication is found in the proceedings of the town immediately after
the adjournment of this Legislature. (Boston Gazette, March 29, 1773.) The
General Court rose on Saturday, the 6th of March. On Monday (the first
legal day following), a town meeting was called (see Chap. XXVI.) for the
purpose of publicly refuting the statements made by Hutchinsou in his contro
versy with the late Assembly, wherein he had denied the legality of the
Committees of Correspondence. Of the committee appointed for this purpose,
Samuel Adams was chairman, and the report which was made on the 23d by
him in person, he acknowledges to have been his own. His friends, aware of
his agency in the recent legislative discussion, seem to have naturally confided
this continuation of the subject to one who had so signally overthrown the
Governor in the Assembly.
Hutchinson, in his first speech, charged that the Committee of Correspond
ence had " denied in the most express terms, the supremacy of Parliament."
Adams, in the report above mentioned, replies in vindication of the town, that
the House of Representatives had subsequently " made choice of this very mode
of expression in their controversy with his Excellency." Turning back to the
Town Records, we find the wording of the resolutions with which Adams
preceded his motion for a committee of correspondence (Nov. 28, 1772), to be
nearly similar to the opening of the answer to the Governor s second speech to
the Assembly. Would any one have been so likely to have thus reproduced
this language as the person who originally penned it ?
It appears to have been understood by Arthur Lee, then in London, that
Samuel Adams was the author of both answers in this controversy, an im
pression he may have received direct by letter from other persons ; for Adams,
with characteristic disregard of any credit due to himself, never attempted to
establish his own claim to acts or writings. Lee expresses himself in such a
manner as to give his friend to know that he was well informed as to the
authorship. He refers to them as the compositions of Samuel Adams, and
applauds their ability in disproving Parliamentary supremacy. On sending the
pamphlet containing the controversy to Arthur Lee, Adams directed his atten
tion to marginal corrections, in his own hand, of errors of the press. Who
but the author of the answers would have been thus careful to have his
friend receive them in a perfect state, as he had originally submitted them to
the Legislature ?
Several of the contemporaries of Samuel Adams have left their testimony
42 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
the most valuable clauses of their charter unintelligible ; and
they forebore, they said, to remark upon the absurdity of a
grant, which, according to his construction, offered to per
sons born without the realm the same liberties which would
have belonged to them if they had been born within the
realm.
Having conclusively demonstrated, by lengthy argument
and references, that it had never been the sense of the king
dom that the Colonies should remain subject to the supreme
authority of Parliament, they proceed to show what was the
sense of their ancestors. This is first done by quotations
and comments from the Governor s History, whereby they
prove that at the time the charter was granted, it was the
opinion of persons of influence, that under certain circum
stances, with the removal of subjects to any other state or
quarter of the world, their subjection ceased, and this was
the case of the original settlers of the Colony. Other author
ities are copiously quoted to the same effect.
The Governor had said that he knew of no line between
the authority of Parliament and total independence ; and the
House replied that the consequence was, that the Colonies
were the vassals of the Parliament, or totally independent ;
and as it could not have been the intention of the parties in
the compact to reduce themselves to a state of vassalage, the
conclusion was that they were independent. " It is impossi
ble," his speech had asserted, " that there should be two
independent Legislatures in one and the same state." " May
we not, then," was the reply, " further conclude that it was
their sense that the Colonies were by their charters made dif
ferent states by the mother country ? " " Although," con
tinued Hutchinson, " there may be but one head, the King,
yet the two Legislative bodies will make two governments as
legislative contest, and after a few lines he goes back to his controversy with
Brattle. The account appearing in his autobiography was given not far from
half a century afterwards, when the aged narrator, then past his eightieth year,
had evidently happened upon the above note, which is without date, and was
in error as to the time when the controversy occurred.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 43
distinct as the kingdoms of England and Scotland before the
union." " Very true, may it please your Excellency," was
the reply, " and if they interfere not with each other, what
hinders but that, being united in one and common sovereign,
they may live happily in that connection, and mutually sup
port and protect each other ? "
To the question whether there was anything which they
had more reason to dread than independence, they answered,
" Notwithstanding all the terrors which your Excellency has
pictured to us, as the effects of a total independence, there
is more reason to dread the consequence of absolute, uncon
trolled power, whether of a nation or a monarch, than those
of a total independence," and they referred him to the con
sent of all the other Colonies in Congress, if he wished to
have the line drawn between the supreme authority of Par
liament and total independence. " These," they held, " were
great and profound questions." "It is the grief of this
House," they say, in closing, " that by the ill policy of a late
injudicious administration, America has been driven into the
contemplation of them. And we cannot but express our
concern that your Excellency, by your speech, has reduced
us to the unhappy alternative, either of appearing, by our
silence, to acquiesce in your Excellency s sentiments, or of
thus freely discussing this point."
The Governor s speech had been directed to both Houses,
and the Council, replying by Bowdoin, argued ably for Brit
ish rights, and contested the levying of taxes within the
Province, but made no issue on the supremacy of Parlia
ment. Hutchinson, and probably all his friends, were as
much confounded by the answer of the House as the public
had been at his own apparently irrefutable logic. He now
began to regret his precipitate entrance into the dispute, but
he could not retrace his steps : he had eagerly challenged
the debate, and, much as he disliked it, was compelled to
abide the issue. His letters are almost pitiful.
" I am involved," he writes to a correspondent in England, u in
44 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb., March,
spite of my teeth, in another controversy with my two Houses. I
have always avoided tho point of the superiority of Parliamentary
orders, as I have taken it for granted that it was not to be disputed."
And again, to another in New York: " Upon my first coming to tho
administration of the government, I have avoided disputing with tho
Assembly upon points which I wished to see the government in
Kngland undertake at all events to determine and settle ; and I am
afraid that tho controversy 1 have been engaged in, and which has
appeared in all the newspapers, will leave some impressions to my
disadvantage, when the motives of it are not known. As I wish to
retain a share of your esteem," &c.
His anxiety and vindictiveness arc apparent in all his let-
tors of this period ; regret that ho had allowed his expecta
tion of an easy victory to lead him into an irretrievable blun
der, and rage against the objects of his abortive attempts.
Samuel Adams s remark, that Lord Hillsborough would not
thank the Governor for opening this controversy was likely
to be verified. Hutchinson was desirous of evading tho
odium of having needlessly raised tho delicate issue, but this
ho was never able to do. Ho had invited tho contest, and
had fallen in it. lie had fondly deemed his speech unan
swerable. The decline of his influence in the Province, and
of his interest at court, dated from this time.
The aim of Adams was, on tho other hand, to lodge the
responsibility where it belonged, with tho Governor. This
ho did not only in the answers, but in his correspondence in
all directions, especially with tho Southern Provinces. His
motto still was, " Place tho enemy in tho wrong." It was
necessary that persons of influence at a distance should bo
made to understand tho true state of alfairs. In a circular
letter from tho Committee of Correspondence of the llouso
of Representatives to similar bodies in other Provinces, ho
refers to this subject :
" We have particularly expected to hear in what manner a late
controversy between the Governor of this Colony and the two
Houses of Assembly, relating to the legi.-lative authority of Great
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 45
Britain over the Colonies has been treated by Parliament or by ad
ministration. But no account of that matter has yet been received
here, saving in general, that the opening a controversy of that
nature, on the part of the Governor, has embarrassed in somo
measure the designs of such as have an influence in administration,
and wish to see an end put to the dispute subsisting between the
Colonies and the mother country We wish to know your
sentiments of the subjects of the controversy, because it is not im
probable that either this or some other Colony may be called upon
to enter further into it, and for this purpose we beg leave to enclose
the pamphlet." 1
The severe lesson received by his Excellency did not dis
courage him from re-entering the lists, which ho did throe
weeks after the answer of the House had been reported.
His speech was more than double the length of the first, but
it advanced nothing which had not been, in cfl ect, said in
that of January. Samuel Adams again replied for the
House, and on the 2d day of March his answer was ac
cepted. 2 It is a continuation of the argument of the first
paper, and is as decisive an overthrow of the Governor s
doctrines. Arthur Lee considered it quite equal to the first,
and especially refers to it during the following summer in a
letter to his friend. "Your reply," he says, " to the Gov
ernor s second speech is certainly unanswerable. The prin
ciple of the argument lies, indeed, in a very narrow compass." 8
Tins answer, however, did not close the contest. Hutchin-
son replied again to as little purpose as bcfbro, and the whole
controversy, printed in pamphlet form, WMS soon after circu
lated through the country, Adams industriously sending it
abroad, not only to clubs and towns, but to every gcntleimin
of influence within the range of his acquaintance. He was
assured, some months after the adjournment, that hopes
were indulged in England, by the administration, of provail-
1 MSS. rough draft of the circular letter of the Committee of Correspondence
of tho House of Representatives to the other Colonies, by Samuel Adams, dated
" March, 1774." If any answers were received, they have not been preserved.
8 Bancroft, VI. 453.
8 Arthur Lee to Samuel Adams, June 11, 1773.
46 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
ing on the House to rescind the answers which had been
regarded as a bar in the way of reconciliation. The Minis
try, however, were informed by a gentleman, to whom appli
cation had previously been made, of the hopelessness of the
attempt. The House having been driven into their position,
as to Parliamentary authority, they could not consistently
recede, even had they desired it. The failure in 1768 to
induce that body to rescind their Circular Letter, should have
taught the Ministry a lesson. Writing to Hawley on this
subject, Adams remarks, " I am apprehensive that endeavors
will be used to draw us into an incautious mode of conduct,
which will be construed as in effect receding from the claim
of rights of which we have hitherto been so justly tenacious."
His caution, perhaps, made him over-estimate the danger.
It was his custom to supply his correspondents with files of
papers and public documents, and he frequently obtained
valuable information in return. Thus he sent the printed
pamphlet to Arthur Lee, in London.
" The whole controversy," he writes, " is here enclosed. It has
been published in most of the newspapers on the continent, and en
gages much of the attention of the other Colonies. This, together
with the proceedings of a contemptible town meeting, has awakened
the jealousy of all, and has particularly raised the spirit of the most
ancient and patriotic Colony of Virginia. Their manly resolves
have been transmitted to the Speaker of the House of Representa
tives in a printed sheet of their journals, and our Committee of
Correspondence have circulated them into every town and district
through the Province." *
"Every day," replied Mr. Lee, "gives us new light and new
strength. At first, it was a tender point to question the authority
of Parliament over us in any case whatsoever. Time and you have
proved that their right is equally questionable in all cases whatso
ever. It was certainly a great stroke, and has succeeded most hap
pily. It will remain an authentic record to vouch in opposition to
their declaratory act, whenever the great and ultimate question is
seriously brought forward. It stands uncontroverted." 2
1 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, April 9, 1773.
8 Lee to Adams, Oct. 13, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 47
The habitual caution of Mr. Adams in his correspondence
with distant friends is apparent in many of his letters. He
always wrote in such a way that, if intercepted, they could
not be used to compromise those to whom they were ad
dressed. Thus, in a letter to Arthur Lee, who advocated
the American cause in London, under the signature of
" Junius Americanus," he speaks of the writer in the third
person.
" I perceive," he says, " by the late London newspapers, that the
Governor s first speech had arrived there, and had been very sensibly
remarked upon by Junius Americanus. This warm and judicious
advocate for the Province, I apprehend, was mistaken in saying that
the supreme authority of the British Parliament to legislate for us
has been always acknowledged here. "When he reads the answer
of the House to the speech, he will find the contrary clearly shown,
even from Governor Hutchinson s History. What will be the con
sequence of this controversy, time must discover. It must be placed
to the credit of the Governor, that he has quickened a spirit of in
quiry into the nature and end of government and the connection of
the Colonies with Great Britain, which has for some time past been
prevailing among the people. Magna est veritas et prevalebit. I
bolieve it will be hardly in the power even of that powerful nation
to hold so inquisitive and increasing a people long in a state of
slavery." x
While the House were awaiting the Governor s reply to
their first answer in the controversy, a committee was ap
pointed to inquire of his Excellency his reasons for refusing
official assent to the grants made by the Assembly to the
superior judges. The Governor stated, on the following
day, that the salaries of those officers were thenceforth to be
paid by the Crown. Samuel Adams replied for the com
mittee of which he was chairman, quoting the very words
of George the Third when he ascended the throne, that the
independence and uprightness of judges were essential to
the impartial administration of justice, as one of the best
1 Adams to Lee, May 6, 1773.
48 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
securities of the rights and liberties of his subjects, and as
most conducive to the honor of the Crown.
" When we consider," the answer continues, " the many attempts
that have been made effectually to render null and void those
clauses in our charter upon which the freedom of our Constitution
depends, we should be lost to all public feeling should we not man
ifest a just resentment. We are more and more convinced that it
has been the design of Administration totally to subvert the Consti
tution, and introduce an arbitrary government into this Province ;
and we cannot wonder that the apprehensions of this people are
thoroughly awakened." l
This discussion was soon after brought to an end in the
House by the final speech of the Governor on Parliamentary
supremacy. But it was a renewal of the subject which
had given rise to the Committees of Correspondence ; and
Hutchinson, a few days afterwards, described to Secretary
Pownall the effects upon the popular mind. ]y-^ \
" Our incendiaries," he says, " had influenced the minmof the
people to that degree upon the subject of the salaries, that I have
not been without apprehensions of new turmoils and outrages, and
have had no small difficulty to maintain my ground in such manner
as to avoid them. Hearing of some rash speeches of a popular
man, 2 If this won t do, something else must ; If the judges will
not refuse the salaries from the King, they must take the conse
quences, and the like, I sent for him ; and although he was loath
to own them, I told him he might depend upon it, that as he was at
the head of what they affect to call the Commons, and as he signed
all the extraordinary votes which had passed upon the subject of the
salaries, some of which were inflammatory, he might be assured that,
if any outrages were committed, as some had threatened, sooner or
later they would be revenged on him ; for although they had gone
such a length as they had without animadversions, there were
1 Journal of the House, Feb. J2, 1773. Bradford s State Papers, p. 366.
The answer, with an account of the whole controversy, is inserted in the Gen
tleman s Magazine, April, 1773 ; XLIII. 198, 199.
2 The Speaker of the House, Thomas Gushing.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 49
bounds which the nation would not suffer to be exceeded, and,
when once aroused, there would be no withstanding. He seemed
alarmed, and although he acknowledged or conceded that some of
the leaders wished to see a mob, yet there was nothing he dreaded
more." l
A committee was appointed on the following day to pre
pare letters to the Earl of Dartmouth on the public griev
ances, and another to Dr. Franklin, who was to present it.
This measure was not entirely to the mind of Mr. Adams.
" Our House of Representatives," he writes soon after to Arthur
Lee, " have sent a letter to Lord Dartmouth. This must, without
question, be a wise measure, though I must own I was not in it. I
feared it would lead the people to a false dependence ; I mean upon
a minister of state, when it ought to be placed, with God s assistance,
upon themselves"
The letter to Franklin is also missing ; and probably Mr.
Adams, who usually wrote the letters of the House to the
agent, for the same reason was not now the author.
" I wish," he said, in the same letter to Lee, " I could hear some
thing more of Lord D. to qualify him for his high office, than merely
that he is a good man. 2 Goodness, I confess, is an essential, though
too rare a qualification of a minister of state. Possibly I may not
yet have been informed of the whole of his Lordship s character.
Without a greatness of mind adequate to the importance of his
station, I fear he may find himself embarrassed with his present con
nections. It can easily be perceived what principle induced Lord
North to recommend to that department a nobleman characterized
in America for piety ; but what would prevail on his Lordship to
join with such connections, unless he had a consciousness that his
own abilities were sufficient to defeat the plans of a corrupt admin
istration, I am not able to conceive. It might be well for his Lord
ship to be assured, that there is now a fairer prospect than ever of a
union among the Colonies, which his predecessor felt, and had reason
1 Hutchinson to Pownall, Feb. 24, 1773.
8 Cowper describes Dartmouth as one
" Wh wears a coronet and prays."
VOL. II. 4
50 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March, 1773.
to feel, though he affected to despise it I must now acknowl
edge your agreeable letter of the 24th of December. I cannot
wonder that you almost despair of the British nation. Can that
people be saved from ruin who carry their liberties to *narket, and
sell them to the highest bidder? But America shall rise full-
plumed and glorious from the mother ashes. " *
After a session of two months, producing results memo
rable and important to the great cause, the Governor pro
rogued the General Assembly on the 6th of March. He had
indeed little reason to be pleased with what had happened.
He wrote to Lord Dartmouth :
" I wish I was able to transmit to your Lordship a more favorable
account of the proceedings of the Assembly, since the date of my
last letter. I have closed the session, and do not intend ever to meet
them again, The newspaper which I cover contains the two last
messages of the Council and House, and my answer to them ; also,
the resolves of the House on the salaries of the judges ; and I shall
cover an attested copy of an address from the Council on the same
subject. Your Lordship very justly observes that a nice distinction
upon civil rights is far above the reach of the bulk of mankind to
comprehend. I experience the truth of it, both in the Council and
House of Representatives. The major part of them are incapable
of those nice distinctions, and are in each House too ready to give
an implicit faith to the assertion of a single leader. I have there
fore offered them a view of their Constitution in such plain language,
and upon such perfect principles, that it was the general voice of
both Houses that they were not to be denied ; and the only resource
of the leader was, by cloudy and obscure answers to perplex the
minds of the members, and then to strike them by advancing that
what the Governor had laid before them as their Constitution was
perfect slavery, and therefore could not be just." 2
1 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, April 9, 1773. The last line he quotes
from Lee s letter above mentioned.
a Hutchinson to Lord Dartmouth, March 9, 1773.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Anniversary of the Boston Massacre. Dr. Benjamin Church, Orator of the
Day. His Character and Public Services. Adams defends the Charter
Bight of Town Meetings against the Governor. Correspondence with
John Dickinson. Adams and Dickinson contrasted. Virginia organizes
a Continental Committee of Correspondence. Adams responds by offering
similar Eesolutions in the Massachusetts Assembly. Priority of the Idea
established for Massachusetts. Adams its Earliest Advocate. Elected a
Member of the London Society of the Bill of Rights. He proposes John
Adams and Warren for Membership. Adams and Richard Henry Lee
commence a Correspondence. Dr. Franklin forwards from London the
Secret Letters of Hutchinson. Exposure and Disgrace of the Governor.
ON the 5th of March the annual commemoration of the
Massacre was held at the Old South, where the oration was
pronounced by Dr. Benjamin Church. The public interest
in these ceremonies had not abated. The church, as John
Adams recorded in his Diary, " was filled and crowded in
every pew, seat, alley, and gallery, by an audience of several
thousand people, of all ages and characters, and of both
sexes."
Church was one of those whom Samuel Adams had
brought forward into political life as a young man of genius.
Adams saw his abilities, and determined to secure them for
the country, by early imbuing their possessor with his own
ideas of virtue and liberty. His pupil, however, wavered as
circumstances looked promising or the reverse. In 1768
-69, he was engaged upon the Times, a journal devoted
to liberty, and denounced to the Ministry by Bernard. Its
articles were generally republished in New York. He en
joyed the unlimited confidence of the Whigs, and was con
sidered as one of the most valuable members of the party.
The first intimation of his backsliding is in one of Hutchin-
son s letters, in which he informs a friend in England that
2 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
the Dr. Church who wrote the Times is now a writer
on the side of government. 1 This was when the patriot
cause was at the lowest ebb, and the Governor was employ
ing all the talent he could procure to refute the essays of
the patriots in the Boston Gazette. Church had already
risen to eminence as a physician and surgeon, as well as by
his eloquence as a writer and speaker, and he possessed
poetical talent of no mean order. Having built an expen
sive house at Raynham, near Nippahouset Pond, where he
resorted for the pleasures of country life, and particularly
of fishing, he contracted debts which probably induced him
to accept the tempting bribes of Hutchinson. His style as
a writer was nervous, correct, and elegant. It would appear,
however, that he very soon repented of his treachery ; and
that not one of his patriot friends suspected him is evident
from the fact that, in November of the same year, he was
selected to write the letter to the other towns to organize com
mittees of correspondence, and at the time of the Tea Party,
a year later, he was an active member of the Boston Com
mittee. But, with all his brilliant gifts, he was a creature
of fortune, and lacked those steadfast qualities which carried
the Revolution to a successful close.
Samuel Adams and Pemberton, whom we have seen search
ing for an orator for the occasion, selected Church without a
suspicion of his true character, and with a view to his effec
tiveness as a speaker. The choice was well made. Church
pronounced an oration perfectly adapted to the occasion, elo
quent and logical. Looking forward to a plan which had
already been discussed in Boston, he thanked God that the
alarm had gone forth, by the Committees of Correspondence,
to the people, who now esteemed their charter rights " to be
the ark of God to New England ; and," said he, " like that
of old, may it deal destruction to the profane hand that shall
dare to touch it." .... "The general infraction of the
rights of all the Colonies must finally reduce the discordant
1 Hutchinson to Bernard, Jan. 29, 1772.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 53
Provinces to a necessary combination for their mutual inter
est and defence. Some future congress will be the glorious
source of the salvation of America ! The Amphictyons of
Greece, who formed the diet or great council of the states,
exhibit an excellent model for the rising Americans." 1
The crowded auditory drank in the words, and were thus
familiarized with an idea, which in another year was to be
carried into effect. Samuel Adams, as usual, sent the
printed oration to his friends, scattering the seeds of liberty
in England as well as in the other Colonies.
A few days after the adjournment of the Legislature, at a
town meeting called for the purpose, a committee, with
Adams as its chairman, was named to take into considera
tion the misrepresentations of the Governor in his late mes
sage to both Houses, respecting the proceedings of the town
at their memorable meeting. On Monday, the 23d, Adams,
in his report, occupying two columns of the Boston Gazette, 2
took issue with Hutchinson on the legality of the town
meeting which had given birth to the Committees of Corre
spondence. His Excellency had asserted that the subjects
considered at that meeting, which he held was illegal, were
such as a town, in its corporate capacity, had no right to act
upon. The reply first proves, by an act of the Province
made in the reign of William and Mary, that any town
meeting called by ten or more freeholders was legal.
" But," continues Adams, " were there no such laws of the Prov
ince, or should our enemies pervert these and other laws made for
the same purpose from their plain and obvious intent and meaning,
still there is the great and perpetual law of self-preservation, to
which every natural person or corporate body hath an inherent right
to recur. This being the law of the Creator, no human law can be
1 Church s Oration, Boston, March 5, 1773 (Republished in Niles s Princi
ples and Acts of the Revolution, pp. 8-12).
2 Boston Gazette, March 29, 1773. The town-clerk s account of the pro
ceedings commences with the statement that Samuel Adams was the author of
the report.
54 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
of force against it. And, indeed, it is an absurdity to suppose that
any such law could be made by common consent, which alone gives
validity to human laws. If, then, the matter or thing, viz. the
fixing salaries to the offices of the judges of the Superior Court, as
aforesaid, was such as threatened the lives, liberties, and properties
of the people, which we have the authority of the greatest Assembly
of the Province to affirm, the inhabitants of this or any other town
had certainly an uncontrovertible right to meet together, either in
the manner the law has prescribed, or in any other orderly manner,
jointly to consult the necessary means of their own preservation and
safety. The petitioners wisely chose the rule of the Province law,
by applying to the selectmen for a meeting, and they, as it was their
duty to do, followed the same rule, and called a meeting accordingly.
We are therefore not a little surprised that his Excellency, speaking
of this and other principal towns, should descend to such an artful
use of words, that a number of inhabitants have assembled to
gether, and having assumed the name of legal town meetings/ &c.,
thereby appearing to have a design to lead an inattentive reader
to believe that no regard was had to the laws of the Province in
calling these meetings, and consequently to consider them as illegal
and disorderly.
" The inhabitants being met, and for the purpose aforesaid, the
points determined, his Excellency says, were such as the law
gives the inhabitants of towns, in their corporate capacity, no power
to act upon! It would be a sufficient justification of the town to
say, that no law forbids the inhabitants of towns, in their corporate
capacity, to determine such points as were then determined. And
if there was no positive legal restraint upon their conduct, it was
doing them an essential injury to represent it to the world as illegal.
Where the law makes no special provision for the common safety,
the people have a right to consult their own preservation, and the
necessary means to withstand a most dangerous attack of arbitrary
power. At such a time, it is but a pitiful objection to their thus
doing, that the law has not expressly given them power to act upon
such points. This is the very language of tyranny. And when
such objections are offered to prevent the people s meeting together
in a time of public danger, it affords of itself just grounds of jeal
ousy that a plan was laid for their slavery."
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 55
The paper then proceeds to show that, disregarding the
Bill of Rights, which expressly provides that the subject may
petition the King, the Governor, in refusing the town the
privilege of applying to him for a session of the Legislature,
had, in effect, denied them the right of petitioning his Ma
jesty s representative, thereby inflicting a mortal wound on
the civil Constitution of the Province. Nothing was dearer
to the people of Massachusetts than their time-honored right
of town meetings. It was a part of the foundation of New
England liberty, which could not be disturbed without tum
bling the whole fabric to ruins ; and it was this unprece
dented position taken by the Governor which so alarmed
those who could speculate upon its possible consequences.
Hutchinson s plan might be in consequence of ministerial
orders, which were perhaps shortly to be enforced. An
attempt against the meeting of any one town could only
be a step behind a measure to prevent free communication
between any number of towns. Adams, therefore, in his
report, placed particular stress upon this point.
" We may justly affirm," he says, " that the town had a right at
that meeting to communicate their sentiments of matters which so
nearly concerned the public liberty, and, consequently, their own
preservation. They were matters, to use the words of the Province
law, of public concernment to this and every other town and even
individual in the Province. Any attempt, therefore, to obstruct
the channel of public intelligence in this way argues, in our opin
ion, a design to keep the people in ignorance of their danger, that
they may be the more easily and speedily enslaved. It is notori
ous to all the world that .the liberties of this continent, and espe
cially of this Province, have been systematically and successfully
invaded from step to step. Is it not, then, to say the least, justifi
able in any town, as being part of the great whole, when the last
effort of tyranny is about to be made, to spread the earliest notice
of it far and wide, and hold up the iniquitous system in full view ?
It is a great satisfaction to us that so many of the respectable towns
in the Province, and, we may add, gentlemen of figure in other Col
onies, have expressed, and continue to express, themselves much
56 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
pleased with the measure ; and we encourage ourselves that, from
the manifest discovery of a union of sentiments in this Province,
which has been one happy fruit of it, there will be the united ef
forts of the whole, in all constitutional and proper methods, to pre
vent the entire ruin of our liberties." *
The meeting unanimously voted to have this report " re
corded upon the town s book as the sense of the inhabi
tants," and printed in the several newspapers, and that the
Committee of Correspondence should transmit a printed
copy to such towns and districts as they might correspond
with. This was done, and the above extracts are taken
from the copy sent by the Committee to a town in Worces
ter county, and signed by the faithful William Cooper, their
clerk.
Could Samuel Adams have seen the letters Hutchinson
was writing about this time, on the very subject of which
the report treated, the legality of town meetings, he
would have found that the Governor was creating among
influential persons in government circles an impression that
the democratic tendencies and privileges of those meetings
were dangerous to the ministerial plan in New England.
Thus he was preparing the way for new encroachments on
the popular rights. His letters to Sir Francis Bernard and
others, some of which, as the supposed best authority on
American affairs, were read by the King, must have had
great weight in shaping the measures of government, for
they were quoted in Parliament, and used in part to justify
the plan of coercion which was at last adopted. To quote
briefly from a few of these letters: to General Gage he
writes :
" I beg leave to acquaint you that, by an unfortunate mistake,
soon after the charter a law passed which made every town in the
Province a corporation perfectly democratic ; every matter being
determined by the major vote of the inhabitants ; and although the
1 Massachusetts Spy, March 25, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 57
intent of the law was to confine their proceedings to the imme
diate proceedings of the town, yet for many years past the town of
Boston has been used to interest itself in every affair of moment
which concerned the Province in general." *
And again, to Secretary Pownall, in relation to Adams s
report above quoted :
" The use which the town of Boston has made of its power as a
corporation, in passing the enclosed votes, is far from warrantable.
The performance itself is generally considered as a piece of sophis
try and evasion, which is characteristic in the present Leader of the
town, and will engage the attention of the people no longer than
until some other like publication appears to take the place of it." 2
Again, after describing the " restless incendiary," as he
called Samuel Adams, he writes to another correspond
ent:
" By a law made soon after our charter, and unfortunately allowed
by the Crown, every town is a distinct corporation ; and although
their powers are limited to matters of public concernment to the
town, yet, when the inhabitants are once assembled, they take upon
themselves all matters of government, and they are sure that their
Representatives in the General Assembly will never consent to any
act to control or restrain them." 3
These extracts sufficiently display the opinions of Hutch-
inson on this head. He had for some time meditated and
recommended a change in the Provincial charter, such as
would deprive the local government of its democratic char
acter, the least tinge of which he counted a misfortune in the
Constitution, and calculated to keep the people mindful of
their rights.
From the time that the celebrated John Dickinson com
menced writing his Farmer s Letters in the fall of 1767,
Mr. Adams had felt his heart warm towards him with the
1 Hutchinson to General Gage, March 7, 1773.
2 Hntchinson to J. Pownall, March 27, 1773.
8 Hutchinson to Colonel Williams, April 7, 1773.
58 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
sympathy of one great mind appreciating another through
his works, without a personal acquaintance. He was so
pleased with the purity of style and devoted patriotism of
those writings, that he repeatedly quoted them in his own
essays, as if anxious that the New England people should
not miss their benign influence ; and he often held them up
to his fellow-citizens as worthy of their frequent considera
tion. No man south of Massachusetts had done so much in
the press as Dickinson to support the popular cause. Lat
terly, however, his writings had grown less frequent, and
Adams, solicitous that the subject of Parliamentary suprem
acy which had been raised in Massachusetts should also be
discussed in the other Provinces, now wrote to Dickinson for
the double purpose of engaging his powerful pen on that
point, and to establish a somewhat more familiar relation
ship between them than that of merely hearing each other
mentioned by mutual friends. There was a wide difference
between the two men. Both were ardently devoted to Amer
ican liberty, each was recognized as the ablest writer in his
section of the continent, and each commanded public respect
by his unaffected piety and love of justice. But while the
most cherished wish of Adams was the total independence
of his country, Dickinson, who for some time influenced
Pennsylvania through the general admiration of his char
acter, shrunk from such a thought, and longed for nothing
more than conciliation. Adams was acquainted with pov
erty and the humble in life, and had reached eminence
among his townsmen by mingling with public affairs, and
personally leading in political measures. Dickinson, sur
rounded by wealth, and enjoying leisure to cultivate his
scholarly tastes, was without physical vigor, loved repose
and retirement, and was fearful of precipitancy in the meas
ures of the New-Englanders. The one, with his inflexible
will and ceaseless energy, never lost sight of his purpose, and
yet constantly tempered his zeal with a sagacious apprecia
tion of the character of the people and the circumstances of
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 59
the time. The other, with an organization not more sensitive
than that of Adams, had nothing decisive in his composition,
and lacked the power which constitutes a leader. Yet the
two men had, each in his own particular sphere, exceeded
all others in creating public opinion. Adams saw that, if
he could induce Dickinson to commence writing on the sub
ject of the late controversy, the name of the author would
command general attention, and Dickinson would stand
committed to the position taken by the Massachusetts Legis
lature, thus leading the way to the adoption of the same
doctrine by the Pennsylvania Assembly. The correspond
ence, which has been preserved, is as follows :
BOSTON, March 27, 1773.
SIR,-
I take the liberty of enclosing an oration delivered by Dr. Ben
jamin Church on the Anniversary of the 5th of March, 1770, which
I beg the favor of you to accept.
The proceedings of our General Assembly at our last session you
may perhaps have seen in the newspapers. Our Governor in a
manner forced the Assembly to express their sentiments of so deli
cate, though important a subject as the supreme authority of the
Parliament of Great Britain over the Colonies. The silence of the
other Assemblies, of late, upon any subject that concerns the joint
interest of the Colonies, rendered it somewhat difficult to determine
what to say with propriety. As the sense of the Colonies might
possibly be drawn from what might be advanced by this Province,
you will conceive that the Assembly would have chosen to be silent
till the sentiments of at least gentlemen of eminence out of this
Province could be known. At the same time that silence would
have been construed as the acknowledgment of the Governor s
principles, and a submission to the fatal effect of them. What will
be the consequences of this controversy time must determine. If
the Governor entered into it of his own notion, as I am apt to
believe he did, he may not have the approbation of the Ministry for
counteracting what appears to me to have been for two years past
their favorite design, to keep the Americans quiet, and to lull them,
into security.
60 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
Could your health or leisure admit of it, a publication of your
sentiments on this and other matters of the most interesting impor
tance would be of substantial advantage to your country. Your
candor will excuse the freedom I take in this repeated request. An
individual has some right, in behalf of the public, still to urge the
assistance of those who have heretofore proved themselves its ablest
advocates.
I shall take it a favor, if you will present the other enclosed ora
tion to Mr. Reed, whom I once had the pleasure of conversing with
in this place, and to whom I would have written by this unexpected
opportunity, but am prevented by the hurry of the bearer.
I am, sir, with sincere regard, your most humble servant,
SAMUEL ADAMS.
JOHN DICKINSON, Esq., Philadelphia.
P. S. Mr. Josiah Quincy, a young gentleman, but eminent in
the profession of the law, is soon expected to arrive at Philadelphia
from South Carolina. Could he be introduced into the company of
Mr. Dickinson and Mr. Reed, he would certainly esteem himself
honored, and his conversation would not be unentertaining even to
them.
Upon what other occasion they had corresponded is not
known, unless he refers by this " repeated request " to the
vote of thanks which Boston, in April, 1768, had sent to the
author of tlie Farmer s Letters by the hand of Samuel Adams.
Dickinson immediately replied :
FAIRHILL, near Philadelphia,
April 10, 1773.
DEAR SIR,
I return you my hearty thanks for your favor of the 27th of
March, which has just come to my hands, and for the enclosed ora
tion.
I have seen with the sincerest pleasure the proceedings you men
tion. They are greatly approved, even by those who, by a strange
combination of events, are affected with a political lethargy. The
firmness, temper, and wisdom of your Assembly are acknowledged
to do them honor. May the same zeal, united with the same knowl
edge, still govern the conduct of your truly respectable Province,
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 61
till time shall ripen the period for asserting more successfully the
liberties of these Colonies : that thereby they may be kept on the
watch to seize the happy opportunity when it offers.
My heart is devoted with the most ardent affection to the inter
ests of my countrymen. I join in their opposition to the encroach
ments from Great Britain from two motives, a love of liberty
and a love of peace. For I am convinced in my own mind, that no
solid, permanent tranquillity will be established in America, until
they attain "placidam sub libertate quietem"
But, sir, though these are my sentiments, I must beg you will
please to excuse me from enlarging on them in any publication.
I never had that idea of my abilities or learning, to suppose that
anything that I could offer to my countrymen could merit their
attention after the same subject had been discussed by another per
son. I never took up my pen as a volunteer, but always as a man
pressed into the service of my country by a sense of my duty to her.
And, though for a little while I may have endeavored to maintain
a post, yet it has only been till a better soldier could come more
completely armed to defend it.
The cause is in excellent hands. May Heaven prosper their
worthy efforts.
I shall be extremely glad to pay my compliments to Mr. Quincy
on his arrival here, and shall be extremely glad if this letter goes
by Mr. George Clymer of Philadelphia, a gentleman of such uncom
mon merit, that he should have the pleasure of your acquaintance.
I am, sir, with the strictest esteem,
Your very humble servant,
JOHN DICKINSON.
SAMUEL ADAMS, Esq.
The idea of a union of the Colonies for mutual protec
tion, as we have seen, had long been the prevailing wish
of Samuel Adams. It has been shown that he considered it
necessary first to organize his own Province as a stepping-
stone to the more general application of the plan. It had
been his intention to propose intercolonial committees of
correspondence when the Legislature met, early in Janu
ary ; but though he desired to see his invention at work on
a larger scale, his caution restrained him, until he could feel
62 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
certain that the majority of the other Assemblies would adopt
it. For he well knew that so important a move on the part
of Massachusetts, if not cordially responded to by her sis
ter Provinces, would tend rather to injure than assist the
cause. The controversy, too, on Parliamentary authority
commenced and ended with that session, occupying its time
nearly to the exclusion of all other subjects ; and Adams
may have thought it prudent, since that point had been
unexpectedly raised, to await some expression of opinion
thereon from beyond New England, before venturing further
with the committee system. $*\
But even as Hutchinson prorogued {Re General Court,
troubled with the conviction that "the other Assemblies
throughout the continent were to be desired by a circular
letter to join the Massachusetts House of Representatives," l
the great project had been achieved in Virginia. On the 4th
of March, the young and gifted Dabney Carr offered, in the
Souse of Burgesses, resolutions for a system of intercolonial
correspondence, which were eloquently supported by Richard
Henry Lee and Patrick Henry. On the 12th, the resolutions
were reported and adopted, and the circular was sent to
every Colony. Virginia thus organized the Colonies under
a general system. 2 The resolves reached Boston after the
1 Hutchinson to Bernard, Feb. 23, 1773.
2 Though the first intercolonial committee was set in motion in Virginia,
the scheme originated with Samuel Adams in Massachusetts, where the earliest
advance was made towards a practical union of the Colonies for this purpose,
in the winter of 1768, when the Circular Letter was sent to all the other Prov
inces. And in 1770 and 1771, on his motion, distinct intercolonial committees
of correspondence were appointed. The success of the Massachusetts local
committees must, as Hutchinson wrote, have suggested to Virginia to effect the
plan on a more extended scale. The conception sprung undoubtedly from the
Provincial system, accounts of which had reached Virginia. And if it be al
leged that the idea had its origin with Jonathan Mayhew of Boston, in June,
1766, when he suggested to James Otis a communion of Colonies by sending
circulars from the Massachusetts Assembly to the rest, it will still appear that
the thought was but a repetition of that contained in Samuel Adams s Bos
ton Instructions in May, 1764. No man of the Revolution preceded Samuel
Adams in the idea of a union of the Colonies in opposition to Parliamentary
1773.] HE OP BETHEL ADOTS. 63
adjournment of the Assembly ; but the Committee of Corre
spondence, a body exercising in the interim to some extent
the powers of the Legislature, immediately had several hun
dred copies printed at Edes and Gills s establishment, and
sent them to every town and district in Massachusetts.
Replies full of cheerful encouragement came back, display
ing a determined resolution at the proper time to make the
" appeal to Heaven, and drive tyranny from these northern
climes." 1
At this time Mr. Adams received from Arthur Lee a reso
lution of the Society of the Bill of Rights in London, electing
him a member, 2 to which he replied :
" I must by no means omit to request you to present my most
encroachments. The letter of Richard Henry Lee to John Dickinson, in July,
1768, recommending the appointment of select committees by all the Colonies
for mutual information and a private correspondence " between the lovers of
liberty in every Province," was some five months after the Massachusetts Cir
cular Letter of that year, suggested and written by Samuel Adams, had
reached the other Colonies, and been published throughout the continent, urg
ing a union and correspondence between the several Assemblies.
In Tucker s Life of Washington, it is admitted that the honor of having
first suggested the plan of intercolonial committees belonged to Massachusetts,
though, owing to the severe censures passed in England on the Circular Letter
of 1768, the idea was not consummated until Virginia gave it efficiency in
1773. The writer refers to the resolutions introduced into the Massachusetts
Legislature in November, 1770, and June, 1771. (See, ante, I. 373, 406.)
All that is claimed for Adams is the origination of the idea and the sugges
tion of it to the Legislature. That it was not perfected earlier in the Revolu
tion was not for the want of continual exertions for its accomplishment.
But although Virginia organized the system, it does not appear that she
went any further at this time than formally to adopt it. None of the inter-
colonial Committees are known to have put it to any visible use until Samuel
Adams, for that of Massachusetts, started it into life by opening a correspond
ence in October of this year with the other Committees on the threatened danger
of the tea importations. In March, 1774, he again addressed the Committees of
the sister Colonies, and hinted about the " total silence " they had kept ; but
to neither of these is any reply known to have been made. Thus not only did
the idea of intercolonial Committees of Correspondence originate in Massachu
setts, but the system was there first put in practical operation.
1 Bancroft, VI. 456.
2 A. Lee to S. Adams, Jan. 25, 1773. The election was made some time
before this date.
64 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
respectful compliments to the Society of the Bill of Rights, and
return them my hearty thanks for the great honor they have done
me, in admitting me one of their members. The gentlemen may
be assured that this unexpected mark of their respect adds to the
obligation which I have ever held myself under, to employ the small
share of ability which God has given me in vindicating the rights
of my country and of mankind As you have confided in me
to recommend one or more gentlemen of this place as candidates
for the Society of the Bill of Rights, I can, with the greatest integ
rity, nominate my two worthy and intimate friends, John Adams
and Joseph Warren, Esqrs., the one eminent in the profession of
law, and the other equally so in that of physic ; both of them men
of an unblemished moral character and zealous advocates for the
common rights of mankind." l
Before the close of the year, John Adams was elected, and
received at the hands of Stephen Sayre the resolution to that
effect, and Warren doubtless also became a member. 2
When Samuel Adams and Arthur Lee had been corre
sponding for some two years, the latter wrote to his brother,
Richard Henry, at Chantilly, Virginia, with the view of
establishing a similar communication between him and the
Northern statesman. The suggestion was met with alacrity,
and, in April, Adams received a letter inviting the corre
spondence, which, commencing at once, was continued at
intervals for sixteen years. The firmest friendship and con
fidence existed between Adams and Richard Henry Lee
from this time forth. They were much alike in character,
being equally determined in their support of American
rights, and imbued with the fervid religious sentiment which
distinguished the men of the Revolution.
" From a person quite unknown to you," said Lee, " some apol
ogy may be necessary for this letter. The name of my brother, Dr.
Arthur Lee of London, may perhaps furnish me with this apology.
To be firmly attached to the cause of liberty on virtuous principles
1 S. Adams to A. Lee, April 9 and 12, 1773. See also the Boston Gazette,
May 23, 1774.
1 For the form of the resolutions, see John Adams s Works, II. 325.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 65
is a powerful cause of union, and renders proper the most easy com
munication of sentiment, however artfully disunion may be promoted
and encouraged by tyrants and their abettors. If this be true in
general, how more certainly is it so in that particular state of affairs
in which every scheme that cunning can form, or power execute, is
practised to reduce to slavery so considerable a portion of the human
species as North America does and may contain. Every day s ex
perience proves this to an attentive observer.
" Among other instances in proof, if I mistake not, the manner
of resenting the loss of the Gaspee is one. At this distance, and
through the uncertain medium of newspapers, we may never per
haps have received a just account of this affair. I should be ex
tremely glad, sir, when your leisure permits, to have as true a state
of the matter as the public with you has been furnished with. At
all events, this military parade appears extraordinary, unless the
intention be to violate all law and legal forms, in order to establish
the ministerial favorite, but fatal precedent of removing Americans
beyond the water, to be tried for supposed offences committed here.
This is so unreasonable and so unconstitutional a stretch of power,
that I hope it will never be permitted to take place while a spark
of virtue or one manly sentiment remains in America. The primary
end of government seems to be the security of life and property ;
but this ministerial law would, if acquiesced in, totally defeat every
idea of social security and happiness. You may easily, sir, perceive
that I understand myself writing to a firm and worthy friend of the
just rights and liberty of America, by the freedom with which this
letter is penned. Captain Snow, of your town, who comes fre
quently here, and who takes care of this, will bring me any letter
you may be pleased to favor me with." l
In his anxiety to promote union, Lee was to the South
what Samuel Adams had ever been to New England. It
was uppermost in his mind, and that the scheme had not
already been attempted by him was perhaps owing to the dif
ference between the character of his sparsely-settled section
of the continent, and the democratic communities of Massa
chusetts, where the people were apt to receive whatever wise
1 Kichard Henry Lee to Samuel Adams, Feb. 4, 1773.
VOL. II. 5
66 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
and efficacious plans their leaders advanced. The idea com
ing from the all-important Colony of Virginia, whose co-oper
ation in such a project he had long desired, was instantly
seized upon by Adams ; for the letter was dated a month
before the passage of the resolutions for the Virginia Com
mittee of Correspondence, and he gladly responded to the
cordial and unaffected greeting of the Southerner.
" Your letter to me of the 4th of February last," he replies, " I
received with singular pleasure, not only because I had long wished
for a correspondence with some gentleman in Virginia, but more par
ticularly because I had frequently heard of your character and merit
as a warm advocate of virtue and liberty. I had often thought it a
misfortune, rather than a fault, in the friends of American indepen
dence and freedom, not taking care to open every channel of com
munication. The Colonies are all embarked on the same bottom.
The liberties of all are alike invaded by the same haughty power.
The conspirators against their common rights have indeed exerted
their brutal force, or applied their insidious acts differently in the
several Colonies, as they have thought it would best serve their
purpose of oppression and tyranny. How necessary, therefore, that
all should be early acquainted with the particular circumstances of
each, in order that the wisdom and strength of the whole may be
employed upon every occasion. We have heard of bloodshed and
even civil war in our sister Colony of North Carolina, and how
strange is it that the best account we have of that tragical scene
should be brought to us from England.
" This Province, and this town especially, have suffered a great
share of ministerial wrath and insolence. But God be thanked,
there is, I trust, a spirit prevailing which will not submit to slavery.
The compliance of New York in making annual provision for a
military force designed to carry acts of tyranny into execution, the
timidity of some, and the silence of others, are discouraging. But
the active vigilance, the manly generosity, and the steady perse
verance of Virginia and South Carolina give us reason to hope
that the fire of true liberty and patriotism will at length spread
itself through the continent : the consequence would be the acquisi
tion of all we wish for. The friends of liberty in this town have
lately made a successful attempt to obtain an explicit sentiment of
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 67
a great number of the towns of this Province, and the number is
daily increasing. The very attempt was alarming to our adver
saries, and the happy effects of it mortifying to them. I would
propose it for your consideration, whether the establishment of
committees of correspondence among the several towns, in every
Colony, would tend to promote that general union upon which the
security of the whole depends. The reception of the truly patriotic
resolves of the House of Burgesses of Virginia gladden the hearts
of all who are friends to liberty. Our Committee of Correspond
ence had a special meeting on the occasion, and determined to cir
culate immediately printed copies of them in every town in the
Province, in order to make them as extensively useful as possible.
I am desired by them to assure you of their veneration for your
most ancient Colony and their unfeigned esteem for the gentle
men of your Committee. This, indeed, is a poor return. I hope
you will have the hearty concurrence of every Assembly on the
continent. It is a measure which will be attended with great and
good consequences. Our General Assembly is dissolved, and writs
will soon be issued, according to the charter, for a new Assembly to
be holden the last Wednesday in May next. I think I can almost
assure you there will be a return of such members as will heartily
co-operate with you in your spirited measures. The enormous stride
in erecting what may be called a court of inquisition in America is
sufficient to excite indignation in every, heart capable of feeling.
" I am expecting an authentic copy of that commission, which I
shall send to you by the first opportunity after I have received it.
The letter from the new Secretary of State to the Governor of
Rhode Island, which possibly you may have seen in the newspapers,
may be depended upon as genuine. I received it from a gentleman
of the Council of that Colony, who took it from the original. I
wish the Assembly of that Province had acted with more firmness
than they have done : but, as the court of inquiry is adjourned, they
may possibly have another trial. I have a thousand things to say
to you, but am prevented from want of time, having had but an
hour s notice of the sailing of this vessel. I cannot conclude, how
ever, without assuring you that a letter from you, as often as your
leisure admits, would lay me under great obligations." *
1 Samuel Adams to K. H. Lee, April 10, 1773.
68 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
In the middle of this century, when the means of convey
ance by railroad and steamboat have placed remote parts of
the country in easy communication, and the electric tele
graph has annihilated space and time, it is hard to realize
the difficulties of intercourse during the Colonial period.
The fact which Samuel Adams deplored in his letter is tJn
evidence of the isolated condition of the several Provinces,
especially in the winter season. The roads, never in good
condition, must then have been at times impassable, and let
ters went oftener by coasting vessels than by land carriage.
The government, after the Stamp Act troubles, seeing the
danger of facilitating intercourse between the Colonies, did
little or nothing to expedite or cheapen the means of travel,
its policy being, as Lee had said in his letter, to promote dis
union among them ; and probably, after 1768, when the Mas
sachusetts Circular Letter so alarmed the Ministry, Lord
Hillsborough s measures were taken with a view of discourag
ing intercommunication. The obstacles to obtaining speedy
intelligence are shown by the fact, that reliable news of the
troubles in North Carolina, though occurring in May and
June, 1771, seems not to have reached Boston until the next
year, and then through the medium of England. The letter
of Richard Henry Lee, written on the 4th of February, was
received by Mr. Adams in Boston about two months after
wards by the hands of the master of a coasting packet, and
the answer was returned by a similar conveyance. When
important messages were to be transmitted, an express rider
was dispatched from one Colony to another. Thus in July,
1769, expresses were sent to Gen. Gage from Boston, in rela
tion to the resolutions of the House, and in May, 1774, Paul
Revere rode an express from Boston to Philadelphia with the
votes of the town respecting the Port Act. He accomplished
the distance in six days, having started on the 14th and
reached Philadelphia on the evening of the 20th. Horse
riding, as in all thinly inhabited countries without perfect
roads, was then very general. We find John Adams, in his
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 69
Diary, for several years, riding from one county-seat to an
other in Massachusetts, during the term of the Courts ; and
in September, 1775, the delegates to the Continental Con
gress probably made the greater part of the distance from
"Watertown to Philadelphia on horseback. Samuel Adams,
j fter his arrival, writing to Elbridge Gerry, says : " I arrived
in this city on the 12th instant, having rode full three hun
dred miles on horseback," using one of the horses of his
friend John Adams, offered the day after they left Water-
town. That journey, including the stoppages, occupied
fifteen days. 1 Horsemanship was, to a great extent, a ne
cessity, as well as a means of recreation in New England,
and if the art has passed away as the modern luxurious road-
vehicles have come into more general use, it may be ques
tioned whether the change has not been made at the sacrifice
of an accomplishment, healthful in practice and manly in
character. It was this difficulty of reaching each other,
except by letter at long intervals, that gave rise to the inter
colonial Committees of Correspondence, whose messages, pass
ing to and fro in advance of the usual post-riders, enabled
the Provinces to maintain a tolerable frequency of inter
course, to exchange their views on important subjects, and
preserve a concert of action.
The elections on the 6th of May resulted triumphantly for
the liberty party, Gushing, Samuel Adams, Hancock, and
Phillips receiving nearly every vote cast. In the instruc
tions which the town gave them for their guidance in the
approaching session, they were desired to consider seriously
if the salvation of American liberty and the restoration
of friendship between America and Great Britain did not
demand an immediate concurrence with " the wise and
salutary proposal of our noble, patriotic sister Colony of
Virginia." Adams enclosed the instructions in a letter to
1 From August 28 to September 12. See S. Adams to E. Gerry, Philadel
phia, Sept. 26, 1775, in Austin s Life of Gerry; and John Adams s Works,
II. 421.
70 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
Arthur Lee. They serve, he said, " to communicate their
sentiments and spirit to the other towns, and may be looked
upon as fresh Appeals to the World." 1 The Assembly met
on the 26th at Boston, when Samuel Adams was elected
Clerk, and Thomas Gushing Speaker. 2 Adams had written
a week before to Arthur Lee :
" Our General Assembly will meet next week. What kind of a
budget the Governor will then open is uncertain. It is whispered
he intends to bring about a coalition of parties ; but how he will
attempt it, I am at a loss to conceive. Surely he cannot think that
the body of this people will be quieted till there is an end put to all
oppressions they are under ; and he dares not propose a coalition
on such terms, because it would disgust those who are the instru
ments of, and sharers in, the oppression." 3
Out of twenty-eight Councillors chosen, all but threo
(John Adams, Bowers, and Phillips) were accepted ; and
1 Adams to Lee, May 6, 1773.
2 The first act of the House was always to elect a Clerk. In the Journal
for this year the form of oath is printed, and precedes the regular business.
It is : " Whereas you, Mr. Samuel Adams, are chosen Clerk of the House of
RepresentatiA es, you do swear that you will enter all the votes and orders
thereof, and in all things relating to your office will act faithfully and impar
tially, according to your best skill and judgment. So help you God.
" T. HTJTCHINSON, Governor."
8 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, May 17, 1773. The following letter appeal s
in the Historical Magazine, January, 1863; VII. 20.
BOSTON, May 14, 1773.
GENTLEMEN,
I must beg the favor of you to present my unfeigned regards to the town,
and acquaint them that, by reason of bodily indisposition, I am unable to dis
charge the duty they have been pleased to assign me as moderator of their
meeting, which is to be held this day by adjournment. I am much obliged to
the town for the honor done me, and esteem it a very great misfortune when
ever it is not in my power to render them services proportionate to my own
inclination.
With all due respect, I remain, gentlemen,
Your friend and fellow-citizen,
SAMUEL ADAMS.
To THE SELECTMEN OP THE TOWN OF BOSTON.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 71
among these was John Hancock, who, as in the previous
year, declined the office, and retained his seat in the House
of Representatives. The first business was to consider the
Virginia letter in regard to a committee of correspondence.
On Friday, the 28th, " according to order," the several let
ters from the Speakers of the Assemblies of Virginia and
Rhode Island were taken up, when, on motion of Samuel
Adams, the following resolves were accepted :
" Whereas the Speaker hath communicated to this House a letter
from the truly respectable House of Burgesses, in his Majesty s
ancient Colony of Virginia, enclosing a copy of the resolves entered
into by them on the 12th of March last, and requesting that a com
mittee of this House may be appointed to communicate from time to
time with a corresponding committee, then appointed by the said
House of Burgesses in Virginia ;
" And whereas this House is fully sensible of the necessity and
importance of the union of the several Colonies in America, at a
time when it already appears that the rights and liberties of all are
systematically invaded ; in order that the joint wisdom of the whole
may be employed in consulting their common safety :
Resolved, That this House have a very grateful sense of the obli
gations they are under to the House of Burgesses in Virginia for the
vigilance, firmness, and wisdom which they have discovered at all
times in support of the rights and liberties of the American Colo
nies, and do heartily concur with them and their said judicious and
spirited resolves.
" Resolved, That a standing committee of correspondence and
inquiry be appointed, to consist of fifteen members, any eight of
whom to be a quorum ; whose business it shall be to obtain the most
early and authentic intelligence of all such acts and resolutions of
the British Parliament or proceedings of administration as may re
late to or affect the British Colonies in America ; and to keep up
and maintain a correspondence and communication with our sister
Colonies respecting these important considerations ; and the result
of such, their proceedings, from time to time, to lay before the
House.
" Resolved^ That it be an instruction to the said committee that
they do, without delay, inform themselves particularly of the prin-
72 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
ciples and authority on which was constituted a court of inquiry
held in Rhode Island, said to be vested with powers to transport
persons accused of offences committed in America to places beyond
the seas to be tried.
" Resolved, That the said committee be further instructed to pre
pare and report to this House a draft of a very respectful answer to
the letter received from the Speaker of the Honorable House of
Burgesses of Virginia; and another to a letter received from the
Speaker of the Honorable House of Representatives of the Colony
of Rhode Island; 1 also a circular letter to the Speakers of the
several other Houses of Assembly on this continent, enclosing the
aforesaid resolves, and requesting them to lay the same before their
respective Assemblies, in confidence that they will readily and cheer
fully comply with the wise and salutary resolves of the House of
Burgesses in Virginia." 2
Massachusetts thus took the first opportunity to respond
to the call of Virginia ; and the two principal Colonies, hand
in hand, led the way to American freedom. From this
moment there existed in Massachusetts two distinct bodies
having their origin from the people, independent of the Pro
vincial charter, and yet violating no law of that instrument ;
the one emanating from the town municipal government,
and extending in its operations to the remotest settlements
of the Province ; the other, a continuation of the same plan,
but springing from the representative government, and em
bracing the whole thirteen American Colonies. The one
was local, and organized a Province. The other infused
order and system into a continent, where before only uncer
tainty and want of harmony existed. For however much
the principle of resistance to tyranny may have actuated the
several Provinces, their disunited efforts would be unprof-
1 The correspondence with Rhode Island was relative to the royal Commis
sioners, who had been sitting at Providence to inquire into the affair of the
Gaspee. The letter to the Massachusetts House of Representatives was written
in pursuance of the advice given the principal members of the Legislature of
that Colony by Samuel Adams in December, 1772.
2 Journal of the House for May 28, 1773. Bradford s State Papers, p. 400.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 73
itable without that method and concerted purpose which
alone gives consequence to the movements of numbers.
Hutchiiison, for a year past, had predicted, with gloomy
foreboding, the bursting out of this flame. And now the
unanimity of the House left him no hope of a reconsidera
tion, for the resolves had passed by a vote of one hundred
and nine against four. In his History he calls this measure
" a most glaring attempt to alter the Constitution of the
Colonies, by assuming to one branch of the Legislature the
powers of the whole ; by continuing by delegation powers of
government, after the authority from which the delegation
was derived had expired ; and by uniting in one body a
number of bodies, which, by their constitution, were intended
to be kept separate and unconnected. It was an act which
ought to have been considered as an avowal of indepen
dency, because it could be justified only upon the principle
of independency." 1 The spreading of that fire was seen in
England with the alarm which its threatening aspect might
well beget. The Committee held its sittings in Boston dur
ing the recess of the General Court, and Hutchinson was
required "to signify his Majesty s disapprobation." 2 But
there was no power in the realm which could prevent a free
interchange of sentiment between men, towns, or Colonies.
New Hampshire and Connecticut had joined in the move
ment ; and the way was open to successful resistance.
The time was at hand when the hypocrisy of Hutchinson
and Oliver was to be clearly exposed. None of the patriots
doubted that the Governor, in particular, had been for years
engaged in a secret correspondence with the Ministry, hos
tile to the liberties of America. The conviction of this in
the mind of Samuel Adams had been so strong since 1768,
that he hints at it in almost all of his political writings and
letters. Hitherto the secret had been faithfully kept, and
nothing tangible could be made to appear. But the oppor
tunity for exposure had at last arrived. Franklin, while
1 Hutchinson s History, III. 397. 2 Bradford s State Papers, p. 411.
74 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
urging in London a change in the oppressive policy of the
government towards his countrymen, was informed by Sir
John Temple 1 that this policy had been suggested by per
sons in America, and that the measures complained of had
in reality fallen short of the plans and solicitations addressed
by such persons to the Ministry. To verify this statement,
Temple exhibited to Franklin a package of Hutchinson s
and Oliver s letters, in his possession, addressed to persons
in official positions, representing American affairs in the most
irritating light, in fact, of the same character as those
already quoted, traducing private character, urging the
alteration of the Provincial charter, misstating the popular
sentiment, and setting forth the necessity of establishing
military rule over the Colonies. Franklin obtained leave
from Temple to send the letters to Gushing, the Speaker of
the House, who received them in March, and showed them
to a select few, among whom was Samuel Adams. Before
the present Assembly convened, he thus alluded to them
and their author in a letter to Arthur Lee :
" A few of his letters we have seen, but are restrained at present
from publishing. Could they be made generally known, his friends
must desert him. It is a pity, when the most important intelligence
is communicated with such restrictions as that it serves rather to
gratify the curiosity of a few than to promote the public good. I
wish we could see the letters he has written since his advancement
to the government. His friends give out that they are replete with
tenderness to the Province. If so I -speak with assurance
they are the reverse of those which he wrote before." 2
John Adams, Hawley, and Hancock also read them, but
as they came from England under injunctions of secrecy,
and no copies could be taken, they were useless for the dis-
1 How Temple became possessed of the letters remains a mystery. That it
was he who furnished them to Franklin, there is proof in a paper with his own
signature, read by K. C. Winthrop in his Address before the Maine Historical
Society, p. 37.
3 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, May 17, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 75
comfiture of their author. 1 The mention made of Hancock
in these letters aroused his indignation, and in conjunction
with Hawley he determined to expose them. More than
two months elapsed, however, before any definite plan was
decided upon, and, in the mean time it became generally
known that such letters were in the possession of the lead
ers. The Governor s friends were much agitated, and with
out being allowed a sight of the mysterious package, they
pronounced the letters not genuine, while the people under
stood that they aimed at an entire subversion of their rights. 2
On the 2d day of June, one of the members informed
the House that he had matters that greatly concerned the
Province to communicate, and moved that the galleries be
cleared. This done, and the members having been enjoined
to attend, Samuel Adams acquainted them that certain let
ters of an extraordinary nature, that had been written and
sent to England, greatly to the prejudice of the Province,
had been placed in his possession by a gentleman, 3 who con
sented that they should be read in the House, under certain
restrictions, which were that the letters should be neither
printed nor copied in whole or in part. The motion having
prevailed that the letters should be read under these restric
tions, their contents were soon made known. They were
from Hutchinson, Oliver, Paxton, Moifat, Auchmuty, Rog
ers, and Rowe ; and on the motion of Hancock, from the
committee, the whole were voted to be of a tendency and
design to overthrow the constitution of the government, and
introduce arbitrary power into the Province. " Yery im-
1 John Adams s Diary (Works, II. 318).
2 Boston Gazette, June 7, 1773.
3 Hutchinson s History, III. 402-403. His published account agrees sub
stantially with his private letters and with the Journal of the House. Writing
to Governor Tryon of New York, July 6, 1773, he says : " After the Assem
bly had sat some days, the Clerk, who was their leader, informed them that
certain letters had been put into his hands, which he was obliged to return
without copies being taken, and if they would hear them read upon those
conditions, he would read them. This they agreed to."
76 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
portant events," said a public writer, " will soon transpire,
which will bring many dark things to light, gain many
proselytes to the cause of freedom, make tyrannical rulers
tremble, and give occasion for the whole people to bless the
providence of God, who causeth the wicked man to fall into
the pit he hath digged for another." 1 A correspondence
now passed between the House and the Governor, in which
he flatly denied ever having written any public or private
letter with the intention to subvert the Constitution, and he
desired a transcript of their proceedings, and to be informed
to what letters they referred. The dates of the letters were
sent to him, and at the same time the House asked for cop
ies of such letters as the Governor had written, of those
dates, relating to public affairs. These his Excellency re
fused to furnish, and again denied that, in the letters under
consideration, there was anything respecting the particular
constitution of the government, as derived from the charter. 2
As it was important to have copies taken and printed for
the use of the Assembly, a committee was appointed to con
sider some means by which the House could be honorably
and fully possessed of the letters ; and its chairman, Mr.
Hawley, reported on the 10th, " that Mr. Adams had ac
quainted them that, having conversed with the gentleman
from whom he received the letters, he is authorized to in
form the House that the said gentleman consents (as he
finds that copies of said letters are already abroad, and have
been publicly read) that the House should be fully pos
sessed of them to print, copy, or make what other use *of
them they please, relying on the goodness of the House that
the original letters be returned (in their own time), they
retaining attested copies of the same for their use." Mr.
Adams, being called upon, repeated the declaration ; and on
the 16th, the printed pamphlet was brought into the House,
and Mr. Adams in person carried up copies for each mem-
1 Boston Gazette, June 7, 1773.
2 Bradford s State Papers, p. 404.
1773.J LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 77
ber of the Council. 1 Permission having been obtained, the
pamphlet was circulated, and sent to the several towns by
the Committee of Correspondence, with spirited letters on
the subject. 2
This plain exposure completed the ruin of Hutchinson.
His evil devices had returned to plague their inventor. He
was now past sixty years of age, had struggled long and
persistently to secure pensions for himself and family, and
had scrupled at nothing to destroy his country and its de
fenders. But the game had gone against him. " I have
wrote," he says to Bernard, " what ought not to be made
public," and he desired his friend in London to burn such
of his letters as might raise a clamor. 3 The House immedi
ately passed a series of resolutions, showing the pernicious
tendency of the letters, and Samuel Adams drew up a peti
tion to the King praying for the removal of Hutchinson and
Oliver forever from the government. 4
If Franklin ever knew in what manner the letters were
1 Journal of the House for June, 1773.
2 Gentleman s Magazine, July, 1773 ; XLHI. 358.
3 Hutchinson to Bernard, June 14, 1773. Bancroft, VI. 463, 464.
4 Journal of the House for June, 1773. The original draft is in the hand
writing of Adams.
The vote was not unanimous (see Hutchinson, III. 406). Among the
Adams papers is a letter from J. Pickering, dated Salem, July 5, 1773, in
which he complains that on arriving home, after the adjournment of the
Assembly, he found an impression prevailing among his constituents that he
had turned Tory. He adds : " As I always spoke with freedom, so I always
did, and will freely give my vote as I did at that time, without fear, favor,
affection, or hope of reward from any quarter whatever. I want no feath
ers ; they will not stick on me without much political tar." On the back
of the letter is this brief endorsement in the autograph of Samuel Adams :
" Letter from Mr. J. Pickering, an honest and sensible friend of y e liberty
of his country, July 8, 73." It was at the meeting of the Privy Council
whei-e this petition was presented, that Franklin was subjected to the invective
of Wedderburn, who appeared for Hutchinson and Oliver (see Bancroft, VI.
495-497). The origin of the resolutions which preceded the petition may be
inferred from a postscript in a letter of Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, June
16, 1773, "The enclosed resolves are to he considered by the House this
afternoon."
78 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
obtained by Temple, his secret died with him. They were
addressed to Mr. Whately, a London banker, and brother
of a former Secretary of the Treasury. Several persons
were suspected of having purloined them ; and a dispute on
this subject having resulted in a duel between Temple and
Whately, Franklin avowed his part in the affair, to prevent
further bloodshed. He was bitterly denounced for sending
the letters to America, and was dismissed for it sometime
afterwards from his office ; but he considered that a dis
closure of their contents was a debt he owed to his constit
uents, and the production of the originals necessary to the
verification of their contents. 1 Hutchinson had finally be
come too hateful to his countrymen to be much longer con
tinued in office without injury to the government service,
and during the next winter he was recalled to England.
For awhile after his arrival he was courted as a rising man
and the most reliable authority on American affairs ; but,
as the objects of his baleful counsels became apparent, he
lost all favor at court, and, retiring disgraced, died in mean
obscurity, broken down with age, disappointed ambition,
and domestic afflictions. But he improved the time yet
allotted to him in Massachusetts, to continue his mali
cious correspondence, which, now that his duplicity was
unmasked, he made more venomous than ever.
" I think," said Adams, " enough appears, by these letters, to show
that the plan for the ruin of American liberty was laid by a few
men, born and educated amongst us, and governed by avarice and
a lust of power. Could they be removed from his Majesty s service
and confidence here, effectual measures might then be taken to re
store placidam sub libertate quietem. Perhaps, however, you may
think it necessary that some on your side the water should be im
peached, and brought to condign punishment. 2
" The House are now considering the independency of the judges ;
a matter which every day grows still more furious, and employs
1 Grahame s History, pp. 475-477.
2 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, June 21, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 79
much of the attention of the people without doors as well as of the
members of the House. I wish that Lord Dartmouth and the rest
of the great officers of the Crown could be prevailed upon duly to
consider that British Americans cannot long endure a state of
slavery." x
The independency of the judges was discussed in the
House, and a series of resolves passed, demanding of those
officers whether they were determined to receive the grants
of the Assembly or to accept of their support from the Crown,
and making it the indispensable duty of the Commons 2 of
the Province to impeach them before the Governor and
Council in case of longer delay in their reply. The Court
was .immediately prorogued after the passage of the resolves
recommending an impeachment, and the idea was consum
mated in the next session by John Adams, who drew up
articles to that effect ; but though the House of Representa
tives adopted them, the Council refused their concurrence. 3
1 Adams to Lee, June 28, 1773.
2 On this use of the word Commons, see, ante, I. 387
8 John Adams s Works, II. 328 - 332.
CHAPTER XXVII.
The Ministry resolve to draw a Revenue from America by a Tax upon Tea.
Arrival of the News in Boston. Excitement throughout the Colonies.
Adams publicly calls for a CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. His Origina
tion of the Idea. His Writings and Correspondence on the Subject.
Gushing wishes the Colonists to cease Agitation, and bear with the Public
Grievances. Adams points out the Danger of Concession, and contin
ues to urge a Convention of the Thirteen States. He foresees the
coming Republic, and advocates an American Commonwealth. Ex
changes Sentiments with Hawley. Tireless Energy of Adams in the
Public Cause. He Drafts a Circular Letter to the other Assemblies.
The Governor continues to denounce him to the Ministry as the Arch
Leader and Manager of the Legislature.
SEEING how effectively their successive measures for exact
ing a tribute from the Colonies had been frustrated, the gov
ernment now determined to enforce the old act, levying
an impost upon tea. They believed that a stroke of policy
would accomplish what no amount of constraint had thus
far enabled them to effect. Disregarding the counsels of the
wisest statesmen in England, and heedless of the moderate,
though resolute course of the Colonists themselves, whose
character and intentions were persistently misconceived, the
Ministry resolved to try the temper of the people still further.
The result of the act had been only to encourage the smug
gling of tea from Holland and other countries, which all the
vigilance of the government could not wholly prevent, while
the regular exports from England had so decreased that sev
enteen millions of pounds had accumulated in the ware
houses of the East India Company in London. To relieve
the Company, and at the same time to increase the revenue
by a revival of trade, a bill was introduced into Parliament
authorizing them to export tea to all places free of duty. It
was expected that although a heavy duty was levied on the
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 81
article after its arrival in America, yet it would find ready
purchasers in the Colonies, as the company could sell it
cheaper than at any previous time. Before the passage of
the act the Company had proposed that government should
remove the tariff of threepence upon the pound, retaining
sixpence as an export duty. Had this plan been adopted,
it might have cleared the way for a reconciliation, and
American independence have been retarded ; but the policy
of forcing the Colonies into unconditional obedience had
not been abandoned, and the idea was rejected. 1 When
the Revenue Act passed in 1767, the abstract right of taxa
tion, rather than any immediate income, was the motive ;
the hope of revenue, however, had some weight, and now
the proposed enforcement was for a while regarded as a cer
tain expedient to draw moneys from America. It was Lord
North who conceived this project, and in May the act was
passed by a large majority.
When this news reached Boston, it convinced the patriots
that a crisis was approaching. A few months only would
elapse before the tea-laden ships would arrive. Samuel
Adams, as the danger grew more imminent, nerved himself
to encounter it, and still held to union as the watchword.
The Boston Committee of Correspondence was now in the
height of its activity. It was an all-powerful institution,
having the unbounded confidence of the people, and re
sponding to their trust by unwearying efforts to preserve a
singleness of purpose among all the towns. The contem
plated enforcement of the tea duty, the most wily and dan
gerous, as it was the best planned of all the measures of
government, being a blow aimed at the whole, Adams saw
that the time for a Continental Congress had arrived. This
1 The plan seems to have been first suggested in the Gentleman s Magazine
(January, 1773; XLIII. 20), where it is proposed to take off the three pence
per pound on importation to America, which would greatly increase the con
sumption there, and give the East India Company a monopoly of the Amer
ican tea trade.
VOL. II. 6
82 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
he conceived was not an idea to be held in reserve, but to be
put into immediate execution. 1 Towards this point he had
been aiming for two years past. In the fall of 1771, he had
recommended a meeting of the Colonies, by their deputies,
to correspond with a similar organization in London, to
promote a union throughout America. 2 The idea, he said,
dropped suddenly from his pen, but it did not cease to oc
cupy his mind, for we find him again alluding to it in his
answer to the Governor s speech in January, 1773, where he
asserts that the consent of all the Colonies in Congress would
be necessary for the establishment of a line of distinction
between the supreme authority of Parliament and total in
dependence. 3 A member of a Connecticut Committee of
Correspondence, Samuel H. Parsons, afterwards a major-
general in the Continental army, wrote to Samuel Adams in
March of this year, proposing " an annual meeting of com
missioners from the Colonies to consult on their general
welfare." 4 "I have only time," he adds, " to suggest the
thoughts to you, who I know can improve mor.e on the sub
ject than is in my power, had I time." Dr. Church, in his
March oration, had also predicted " some future Congress
as the glorious source of the salvation of America." But
Adams had long pondered over the subject, and only awaited
the judicious moment for putting it in practice. Caution
had restrained him (until the Governor s speech in Janu
ary) from hinting at it in his public writings as a positive
legislative proposition ; for until a Colonial combination could
be effected, by means of his cherished idea of committees of
correspondence, it would only jeopardize the cause to sug
gest a measure for which the public mind was not prepared,
and could not be until the way had been cleared by the
1 See Bancroft, VI. 465, 466.
8 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, Sept. 27, 1771.
8 Bradford s State Papers, p. 364.
* Allen s American Biog. Dictionary, art. " Parsons." Historical Magazine,
March, 1855 ; II. 88, 89. Lossing s Field Book, 1855, I. 742.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 83
committees. All these contingencies were carefully studied,
and the consecutive manner in which he developed his plans,
shows how perfectly he understood the character of his
countrymen and his own purposes. But even the hint of a
Congress as early as the last winter, was sufficient to awaken
the anxiety of Arthur Lee, who, on reading the reply to the
Governor s speech, immediately wrote back to his friend dis
suading him from the scheme.
" You have with great propriety mentioned, in your answer to the
Governor s first speech, that the drawing a line being an arduous
undertaking and of general concernment, you would not attempt it
without a general Congress. Of the justice of this I am clear, but
doubtful of its policy. I cannot help thinking that the leading men
in each Assembly, communicating with one another, would form a
plan more wise and well considered than could be expected from a
public body. And there would be no danger of effectual opposition
to it in the different Assemblies, when the time came in which they
could demand a ratification of it from this country, with assurance
of success. My great objection to a public Congress is, that it will
arouse this country, and perhaps incense her to some hostile meas
ure. The only contention in which we are unequal to her is in that
of arms. It is not wise policy, therefore, to provoke this issue of the
dispute, if our purpose can be accomplished without it. For with
all her ill usage, Britain is still our mother country." 1
But Samuel Adams had already addressed Lee fully on
this project, and, the next week after the above was written,
the letter arrived, in which Adams so plainly set forth the
advantages likely to ensue from such a convention, that Lee
replied at once :
" Since my last to you, I have received your last two favors, for
which I cannot express how much I am obliged to you. I have
reconsidered what I then wrote you touching the policy of a Con
gress, and I am happy in retracting my opinion, upon a full con-
1 Arthur Lee to Samuel Adams, June 11, 1773. Hutchinson seems to have
relished the proposition no better. See his letter to Lord Dartmouth, Sept. 23,
1773.
84 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
viction that you are wiser and better able to judge of what is proper
in this business than I can possibly be." 1
The letter referred to has unfortunately been lost, and we
can only judge by inference of the arguments of its author.
To reach Lee as it did, between the llth and 23d of June,
and subject to the uncertainty of departure from Boston and
the movements at sea of a sailing vessel, it must undoubtedly
have been written in April. The idea of a Congress of the
Colonies was, in the mind of Samuel Adams, the natural and
anticipated consequence of the Committees of Correspond
ence, both being founded in what to him was the salvation
of the country, a firm union of the whole.
" Should the correspondence," said he, " from Virginia produce a
Congress, and then an assembly of States, it would require the head
of a very able minister to speak with so respectable a body. This,
perhaps, is a mere fiction of the mind of a political enthusiast ; min
isters of state are not to be disturbed with dreams." 2
The honor of having first proposed a Continental Congress
has been claimed for both Samuel Adams and Franklin. In
his biographical sketch, written at the death of Adams, from
facts within his own knowledge, Judge Sullivan gave it as a
common statement, in those times, that he originated a Con
gress of the Colonies ; and continues, " He certainly was the
man who proposed it in this State ; though Governor Bow-
doin and Dr. Franklin were with him in the measure.* 3
Of Bowdoin s participation no other evidence remains. The
next allusion to the scheme, after that by Adams in January
of this year, is by Benjamin Church in his oration in March, 4
and probably the idea was considered about that time by
others in private circles. It was not until July, that Frank
lin, writing from London, recommended a Congress to Cush-
1 A. Lee to S. Adams, June 23, 1773. The letter is erroneously dated
1772 " in the Life of Lee.
* S. Adams to A. Lee, April 9, 1773.
8 Sullivan s Biographic Sketch of the late Gov. Adams, Boston, October, 1803.
* See, ante, II. 53.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 85
ing. 1 Both Franklin and Adams had ever kept in view the
importance of union. The first had drawn up in 1754, at
the Albany Congress, the plan of a federative compact with
a Governor-General to be named and supported by the King,
and a Grand Council to be triennially elected by the people
of the Colonies through their Legislatures. This was long
before the Revolution, when America and the mother coun
try were in profound peace, and had for its object mainly the
protection of the Colonies against the French. The other,
the moment Britain developed her policy, in 1764, of Colo
nial taxation, had intuitively seen the necessity of an alliance
of the Provinces for mutual support and protection, and he
first sounded the alarm by directing the Boston Representa
tives to bring the other North American Colonies to add
their weight to that of Massachusetts, " that, by the united
applications of all who are aggrieved, all may happily obtain
redress." 2 And, acting upon this basis, the Legislature ;
which met three weeks afterwards, on the motion of James
Otis, sent forth a letter to the other Colonies inviting their
co-operation ; the offspring of which was the New York Con
gress, " from whose united counsels," in the language of
Adams, the town of Boston " had the warmest expectations."
In 1766, he had proposed to Christopher Gadsden a union
and correspondence among the merchants throughout the
continent. 3 The Circular Letter of 1768 , so alarming to the
Ministry, and denounced as tending to create " unwarrant
able combinations," and the successive motions for com
mittees of correspondence in 1770, 1771, and 1773, all
originated with Adams. Thus the two New-Englanders
had equally seen the necessity of union ; but when Franklin
proposed his scheme, the Colonies had no thought of a com
bination to preserve their rights as men and subjects from
the aggressions of tyranny, nor were any such issues raised
for ten years. The Congress proposed by Samuel Adams
1 Franklin to Gushing, July 7, 1773. a See, ante, I. 48.
8 S. Adams to Christopher Gadsden, Dec. 11, 1766.
86 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
was for life and liberty. He began his career as a states
man with a clear perception of the policy of an alliance
of counsel for the general safety of the Colonies, and he-
never abandoned the idea.
The recent news from England left no room for discretion.
The disease required vigorous treatment, and a general Con
gress now seemed indispensable. Adams commenced a series
of essays in the Gazette, extending through August and Sep
tember, in which he held up this measure as the only salva
tion of the country. Lord Dartmouth had written a private
letter to Gushing as the Speaker of the Assembly. Charmed
with the " noble and generous sentiments " of the writer,
Cushing, who could not, like Adams, separate the Minister
from the pious man, yielded to the persuasive reasoning,
and advised that the people should for a time bear with their
grievances.
" Our natural increase of wealth and population," said he, " will,
in a course of years, settle this dispute in our favor ; whereas, if we
persist in denying the right of Parliament to legislate for us, they
may think us extravagant in our demands, and there will be great
danger of bringing on a rupture fatal to both countries."
These views he embodied in a letter to Arthur Lee, be
lieving that grievances would be redressed, " if these high
points about the supreme authority of Parliament were to
fall asleep." l
Adams made this submissive policy the subject of one of
his essays. After commenting upon the wishes which the
Minister had expressed for submission and reconciliation,
he says :
" If we will now petition in such a style as his Lordship will call
decent and temperate, that is, so as administration shall be able to
avail themselves in Parliament in saying that we have, to use their
own words, virtually given up our claim, we shall then have every-
1 Bancroft, VI. 466. Massachusetts Historical Society s Collections, 4th
Series, IV. 360-363.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 87
thing else we want, and his Lordship will endeavor that the
acknowledged right of Parliament shall never be exercised, ex
cept a case of absolute necessity should happen. But who is to
be the judge when this case of necessity happens ? I fear if these
revenue acts should be repealed upon this principle, it would very
soon be deemed necessary, by other acts, to give and grant to the
King the property of the Colonists again, and enable him to apply
it to the purpose of establishing a tyranny over them. His Lord
ship, I dare say, will not in this case think it safe to pledge him
self to the Colonies. If ever another petition should be sent from
America, relating to the common rights, it is presumed that it will
employ the joint wisdom of the whole, in a Congress, or some other
way, conformable to the plan of union proposed by Virginia, and
adopted by the Assembly of this and such other Colonies whose
Assemblies have had opportunity of meeting since. It certainly
would be inconsistent with that plan of union for this or any other
Colony to come into a new system of American policy without con
sulting the whole.
" But why should administration expect any further petitions ?
Our sentiments and resolutions are sufficiently known to them
already. We have spoken without reservation. We scorn to say
anything that looks like duplicity or cunning. Our petitions have
always been expressed in terms decent and temperate, as well as
explicit. If they expect we shall alter our tone with a view of
having it thought we have altered our sentiments, when in reality
we have not, this is a low artifice which Americans will always
despise, and therefore it is highly probable they will find them
selves mistaken. Solomon tells us there is a time to speak and a
time to be silent ; and perhaps it requires as much wisdom to
determine the time when as what to speak. Speak ye every man
the truth to his neighbor, however inconsistent it may be with the
maxims of cunning politicians, is a rule which ought to be, and ever
will be, regarded by an honest community as well as by every hon
est individual whenever he speaks at all. It certainly is not a time
now for Britain and the Colonies to prevaricate with each other.
The matter in controversy is of too serious and important a nature
to be trifled with. It will be folly for Britain, and with half an eye
she may have discerned it already, to attempt to settle this contro
versy by mere power and brutal force. If, perchance, it should be
88 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
admitted that at present she is powerful, would it not for all this
be wiser for her to consider how long she is likely to remain so.
America is daily increasing in numbers and consequently in strength ;
and the balance of power may be shifted before the most saga
cious are aware of it. An American politician, who is a mere
cunning man, is waiting for this (what he calls) glorious event, in
hopes to have the opportunity of acting the same unreasonable part
towards Britain for which we are complaining of her. This is a
principle directly repugnant to the plan of reconciliation which all
profess, and every wise and good man really wishes for. The pros
pect arising from our rapid increase is indeed flattering, and it of
fers the strongest reason why we should be watchful over ourselves,
lest, for the sake of present peace, we indirectly, or impliably, or in
any manner or way inadvertently make the least appearance of re
ceding from our just claim of right. When our liberty is gone,
history and experience will teach us that an increase of inhabitants
will be but an increase of slaves. Let us, then, strive to convince
our brethren on the other side the Atlantic that it is in vain for
them to expect we shall ever cease to contend for the full exercise
of our constitutional rights ; and at the same time, so far from aim
ing to be separated from, or disconnected with them, we wish for a
plan of union and harmony, upon the principles of equal liberty,
which, if possible, shall be lasting as time itself." x
By the next opportunity the Governor sent this Gazette
to Lord Dartmouth, anxious that the Minister should know
what were the views of the man whose counsels and cease
less energy were more to be feared than the efforts of any
other. He says :
" The body of the people of the Province are far from a perverse
disposition. They are deluded by a few men, and even among
those few there are some who would wish to see an end to conten
tion upon what they call reasonable terms. But there are others
of too great influence, who are against all conciliatory proposals ;
and if every complaint of grievance should be satisfied, they would
immediately make as many more fresh complaints in the place of
them. The piece with the signature of " A.," in the paper I enclose
1 "A.," in the Boston Gazette, Sept. 13, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 89
to your Lordship, speaks the language of the chief man among
them, and is generally supposed to be wrote by him. The hint of
a Congress is nothing new ; it is what they have been aiming at the
last two sessions of the General Court ; and I have certain intelli
gence that the Speakers of the Assemblies in several of the Colo
nies have been invited to join with this Province, and have been
assured that the Assembly here are ready to do their part." 1
Those who " wished to see an end to contention on what
they called reasonable terms," included Gushing, against
whose " feeble advice " 2 Adams used his influence, and per
sistently combated everything tending to waive the just
claim of right on the part of the Colonies. Gne of Gush-
ing s letters to Arthur Lee, already alluded to, had ad
vanced this theory of yielding the point in dispute ; and
Lee, in reply, endeavored to prove to his correspondent
the fatal tendency of such a course. Gushing showed this
to Adams, who, in his next letter to Lee, reveals, in his
guarded, quiet manner, his opinion of his colleague s poli
tics. He says :
"May I whisper in your ear that you paid a compliment to the
Speaker, when you told him you always spoke under the correction
of his better judgment. I admire what you say to him (and I hope
it will have a good impression on his mind), that we shall be respect"
ed in England exactly in proportion to the firmness and strength of
our opposition ." 3
The sagacity of Adams, and his knowledge of human na
ture, taught him that however much they might attempt
to conciliate the Ministry, by receding from the righteous
principles of liberty, the act would be only regarded as an
admission of their inability to maintain their cause on con
stitutional grounds, and a dread of the consequences of per
sisting in the dispute. The first step in retreat would be
the signal of defeat. No part of the general plan could
1 Hutchinson to Lord Dartmouth, Sept. 23, 1773.
2 Bancroft, VI. 466. 3 Adams to Lee, April 4, 1774.
90 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
be abandoned, without destroying the whole. Revolutions
never go backward. The theory of union by correspond
ence among the Colonies was established ; but to reduce it
to practice there must be a meeting of delegates from each,
where resistance would be united and systematic. Had the
Americans followed the advice of Gushing and others of the
like policy, the Revolution must have proved a failure, for
success could only be attained by determination in a fixed
purpose, to be accomplished not by one Colony, but by a
confederacy of the whole thirteen. Adams saw in each new
act of aggression additional light and encouragement for the
grand object of his life ; and as he speculated upon the won
derful future of America, he still urged a Congress as the
first step towards its realization.
"The very important dispute," said he, "between Britain and
America has, for a long time, employed the pens of statesmen in
both countries, but no plan of union is yet agreed on between them ;
the dispute still continues, and everything floats in uncertainty. As
I have long contemplated the subject with fixed attention, I beg
leave to offer a proposal to my countrymen, viz. that a CONGRESS
OF AMERICAN STATES be assembled as soon as possible ; draw up a
Bill of Rights, and publish it to the world ; choose an ambassador
to reside at the British Court to act for the united Colonies ; appoint
where the Congress shall annually meet, and how it may be sum
moned upon any extraordinary occasion, what further steps are to
be taken, &c.
" The expense of an annual Congress would be very trifling, and
the advantages would undoubtedly be great ; in this way the wis
dom of the continent might, upon all important occasions, be col
lected and operate for the interest of the whole people. Nor may
any one imagine this plan, if carried into execution, will injure
Great Britain ; for it will be the most likely way to bring the two
countries to a right understanding, and to settle matters in dispute
advantageously for both. So sensible are the people of America
that they are in possession of a line country and other superior ad
vantages, their rapid increase and growing importance, it cannot
be thought they will ever give up their claim to equal liberty with any
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 91
other people on earth ; but rather, as they find their power per
petually increasing, look for greater perfection in just liberty and
government than other nations or even Britain ever enjoyed. As
the Colonies are blessed with the richest treasures of nature, art
will never be idle for want of stores to work upon ; and they, being
instructed by the experience, the wisdom, and even errors of all ages
and countries, will undoubtedly rise superior to them all in the scale
of human dignity, and give the world new and bright examples of
everything which can add lustre to humanity. No people that ever
trod the stage of the world have had so glorious a prospect as now
rises before the Americans. There is nothing good or great but
their wisdom may acquire, and to what heights they will arrive in
the progress of time no one can conceive. That Great Britain
should continue to insult and alienate the growing millions who in
habit this country, on whom she greatly depends, and on whose alli
ance in future time her existence as a nation may be suspended, is
perhaps as glaring an instance of human folly as ever disgraced pol
iticians or put common sense to the blush." *
Fearing that the dangerous counsels recommending in
action until the Ministry should feel disposed to redress
their grievances might find friends in the interior towns, the
Boston Committee of Correspondence addressed them, by the
hand of Samuel Adams, a Circular Letter, setting forth the
advantage of a " Confederacy of the whole continent of
America," and refused to waive the claim of right, which
could only divide the Americans in sentiment and confuse
their counsels. They urged the town committees not to
commit their rights to the tender mercies of the Ministry ;
reminded them that watchfulness, unity, and harmony were
necessary to the salvation of themselves and posterity from
bondage, and expressed " an animating confidence in the
Supreme Disposer of events, that he would never suffer a
sensible, brave, and virtuous people to be enslaved." 2 The
most influential man in the interior was Joseph Hawley, one
1 "Observation," in the Boston Gazette, Sept. 27, 1773.
2 Circular of the Boston Committee of Correspondence, Sept. 21, 1773,
quoted in Bancroft, VI. 467.
92 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
of the ablest lawyers in tlie Province, who for years had
worked shoulder to shoulder with the " Chief Incendiary "
in his legislative measures. Adams addressed him two long
letters, in October, on the subject engrossing his thoughts.
" I cannot omit," he says, " this opportunity of submitting to your
judgment the ideas I have of the present disposition of the British
Administration towards this country ; and I the rather do it at this
time, because, as matters seem to me to be drawing to a crisis, it is
of the greatest importance that we should have a right understand
ing of their sentiments and designs. The * wild and extravagant
notions/ as they have lately been called, of the supreme authority of
Parliament, flowing from the pen of our House of Representatives,
has greatly chagrined them, as they apprehend it has been the
means of awakening that spirit of opposition to their measures which,
from the information their tools on this side the water had given
them, and the confidence they had placed in the art and address of
Mr. Hutchinson, they had flattered themselves had subsided, and
would soon be extinguished Some of our politicians would
have the people believe the administration are disposed or deter
mined to have all the grievances which we complain of redressed,
if we will only be quiet ; but this, I apprehend, would be a fatal
delusion ; for I have the best assurances that, if the King himself
should make any concessions, or take any steps contrary to the right
of Parliament to tax us, he would be in danger of embroiling him
self with the Ministry ; and that, under the present prejudices of all
about him, even the recalling an instruction to the Governor is not
yet likely to be advised."
Again, to the same person, after a review of political af
fairs, and hazarding some speculations upon the probable
issue of events in both continents, he says :
" But nothing, I think, will be so dangerous as for the Americans
to withdraw their dependence upon themselves, and place it upon
those whose constant endeavor, for ten years past, has been to
enslave us ; and who, if they can obtain a new election of old mem
bers, it is to be feared, unless we keep a perpetual watchfulness,
will in another seven years effect their designs. The safety of the
Americans, in my humble opinion, depends upon their pursuing
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 93
their wise plan of union in principle and conduct. If we persevere
in asserting our rights, the time must come, probably a time of war,
when our just claims will be attended to and our complaints re
garded ; but if we discover the least disposition to submit ourselves
to their decision, it is my opinion that our injuries will be increased
tenfold." 1
If Hawley replied, the answers have not been preserved.
But there can scarcely be a doubt that he perfectly coin
cided with his friend, and used the same arguments in
Western Massachusetts to support union and a determined
action, if the weak policy of submission found any advocates
there. Adams followed up the subject again in the Ga
zette.
" No one can doubt," he says, " but there are some good men in
the two Houses of Parliament, but, at the same time, it must be
extremely irrational in us to place any dependence upon them ; for
if they are not able to stop the progress of despotism in Britain,
where they reside, we may not imagine they can restore the liber
ties of America. We know that the British Parliament stands
impeached by its constituents, and that numerous petitions from the
best part of the people in the kingdom have been presented to the
Throne for a dissolution of it, charging said Parliament (and sup
porting their charge) with tyranny and many flagrant violations of
the rights and liberties of the people ; and now, what man in his
senses will hope for the restoration of American liberties from such
a Parliament ? So much has been written upon the rights of the
Colonies, that no man of understanding is ignorantly transgressing
against them ; therefore Parliament has knowingly and deliberately
trampled on the liberties of America ; and from such men nothing is
to be expected but continued injuries.
" It is then evident, if we have relief, it must come from some
other quarter. It must result from the union and determined reso
lution of the Colonies ; they must force their unjust aggressors to
comply with the dictates of reason. It will perhaps be readily
granted that there is no foundation to hope for redress of our griev
ances from Parliament. But the question will be asked, How
1 Adams to Hawley, Oct. 3 and 13, 1773.
94 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
shall the Colonies force their oppressors to proper terms ? This
question has been often answered already by our politicians :
Form an independent state, AN AMERICAN COMMONWEALTH/
This plan has been proposed, and I can t find that any other is
likely to answer the great purpose of preserving our liberties. I
hope, therefore, it will be well digested and forwarded, to be in due
time put into execution, unless our political fathers can secure
American liberties in some other way. As the population, wealth,
and power of this continent are swiftly increasing, we certainly
have no cause to doubt of our success in maintaining liberty by
forming a commonwealth, or whatever measure wisdom may point
out for the preservation of the rights of America." l
In whatever direction the search is pursued, the tireless
energy and indomitable purpose of Adams is apparent.
His genius seems to have been all-pervading. A bare re
hearsal of his actions, with simply the comments necessary
to explain them, in consecutive order, must seem like pan
egyric, from their very importance and results. Yet silent
memorials of his constant activity, which letters and pub
lic documents alone unfold to curious investigation, can
only bring his shadow before the posterity for whose happi
ness he toiled. We survey these pieces of the shattered
statue, and can but deplore the carelessness which leaves us
to imagine the figure by their character. The remnants for
tunately preserved from a fate which had swept away the
greater portion, and was fast destroying all, might afford to
an inventive mind probable theories for narrative biography,
which would serve to reproduce the original with sufficient
accuracy. But whoever studies the great plan of the
American struggle, and seeks to comprehend its gradual
development upon the basis of reason and calm judgment,
may supply from its documents what is lacking for the illus
tration of character in its minor details. To such an
observer, the papers of this period are so many pictures, full
of significance, and peopled in every line with the moving
1 "Z.," in the Boston Gazette, Oct. 11, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 95
spirit of the time. We conjure up, without difficulty, the
scenes at the popular meetings in Faneuil Hall and the Old
South, and at the Committees of Correspondence, the earnest
debates in the Legislature, the objections of the timid and
hesitating, and the overpowering will of the more resolute.
We imagine the conferences of the Governor and his confi
dential friends in the Province-House ; the discussions on
popular rights in the clubs and the family circles of Boston ;
the scenes in the streets, the equipages, the peculiar charac
ter of the New England people ; the amusements, tastes,
manner of living, and dress of that day ; and fancy presents
an interminable succession of groups, embracing the entire
routine of life. But a strict adherence to actual occur
rences, in portraying a series of political events, as illus
trated in the actions of one or a few men, if taken as a rule
at the outset, leaves little space for the ideal.
The character of Samuel Adams is best shown in his
political works, and a plain statement of facts places him
before us, without the assistance of inferential narrative.
Had a Boswell existed to record the daily sayings of Adams,
nothing extraordinary would be found in them, save the
wisdom and foresight which he displayed in conversation, as
well as in his public measures. But he never studied effect.
What he had to say was to the point, plainly expressed, and
uttered with the same earnestness which appears in his
writings. He never attempted flights of fancy or oratorical
display, and appealed, both with his pen and in public
debate, to the reason rather than to the imagination of
those whom he addressed. Of his speeches few specimens
have been preserved, and it is by his writings almost ex
clusively that posterity must judge of his opinions on all
important matters. No amount of labor seemed capable of
exhausting him; no limit could be placed to his capacity
for work. And by a life of regularity, as far as the nature
of his pursuits would permit, and the strictest temperance,
he prolonged his powers for many years beyond the space
commonly allotted to man.
96 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
Having thrown abroad among the people of Massachu
setts, by private letters, circulars, and essays in the Gazette,
his ideas of union, and urged a resolute policy to meet the
approaching danger, he again turned his attention to the
other Colonies, feeling assured that his own Province might
be counted on with absolute certainty. The intercolonial
Committee of Correspondence appointed by the House of
Representatives was in organization, but as yet few if any
documents had passed between that body and the other
Committees. Adams procured a meeting, and prepared a
Circular Letter to the Committees of the sister Colonies. 1 It
was essential that Gushing, the Speaker of the House, who
was nominally chairman of the Massachusetts Committee,
should appear in the Circular, and he was brought into the
measure by Adams, who obtained his signature to the paper,
though, as we have seen, he had been opposed to its ex
pressed policy. The original, rough draft, in Adams s hand
writing, is extant. The Circular first calls attention to the
nature of the intercolonial institution, and then points out
the menacing aspect of affairs, the prorogation of Parlia
ment, without taking the least notice of American griev
ances ; the King s resolute answer to the prayer of the
Massachusetts petition, avowing his intention to support
the authority of Parliament in the Provinces ; and the ac
cumulating evidences that the Ministry were determined
to prosecute the revenue acts. It then continues :
" Such being still the temper of the British Ministry, such the
disposition of the Parliament of Britain, under their direction, to
consider themselves the sovereign of America, is it not of the utmost
importance that our vigilance should increase, that the Colonies
should be united in their sentiments of the measures of opposition
necessary to be taken by them, and that in whichsoever of the Col
1 Bancroft, VI. 469. Barry s Massachusetts, II. 467. " Samuel Adams,
whose vigorous intellect overpowered opposition, persuaded even Gushing to
act as one of a select committee to prepare a circular to be sent to the other
Colonies to join with Massachusetts in resisting the designs of the English
Ministry and preventing the landing of teas in their ports."
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 97
onies any of the infringements are, or shall be, made on the com
mon rights of all, that Colony should have the mutual efforts of all
for its support This we take to be the true design of the estab
lishment of our Committees of Correspondence.
" There is one thing that appears to us to be an object worthy
the immediate attention of the Colonies. Should a war take place,
which is thought by many to be near at hand, America will then be
viewed by Administration in a light of importance to Great Brit
ain. 1 Her aid will be deemed necessary ; her friendship, therefore,
will perhaps be even courted. Would it not be the highest wisdom
in the several American Assemblies absolutely to withhold all kinds
of aid in a general war, until the rights and liberties which they
ought to enjoy are restored and secured to them upon the most per
manent foundation ? This has always been the usage of a spirited
House of Commons in Britain, and upon the best grounds ; for cer
tainly security and protection ought to be the unalterable condition,
when supplies are called for. With regard to the extent of rights
which the Colonies ought to insist upon, it is a subject which re
quires the closest attention and deliberation, and this is a strong
reason why it it should claim the earliest consideration of at least
every Committee, in order that we may be prepared, when time
and circumstances shall give to our claim the surest prospect of suc
cess. And when we consider how one great event has hurried on
upon the back of another, such a time may come, and such circum
stances take place, sooner than we are aware of. There are cer
tain rights which every Colony has explicitly asserted, and which
we trust they will never give up. That, in particular, that they
have the sole and unalienable right to give and grant their own
money, and appropriate it to such purposes as they judge proper,
is justly deemed to be of the last importance. But whether even
this subject, so essential to our freedom and happiness, can remain
secure to us while a right is claimed by the British Parliament to
make laws binding upon us in all cases whatever, you will certainly
consider with seriousness. It should be debasing to us, after so
manly a struggle for our rights, to be contented with a mere tem
porary relief."
1 This idea of Britain s dependence upon America, in some future time of
war, seems to have frequently occupied the mind of Mr. Adams. See his
essays in the Boston Gazette and his letter to Hawley, Oct. 13, 1773.
VOL. II. 7
98 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
The legislative controversy of the last session was enclosed
with the Circular, from which only an extract has been
given, and it was suggested that, as some other Colony might
be called into a similar discussion, an interchange of argu
ments would be beneficial.
" We are far from desiring," thus the paper concludes, " that the
connection between Britain and America should be broken. Esto
perpetua is our ardent wish, but upon the terms only of equal liberty.
If we cannot establish an agreement upon these terms, let us leave
it to another and a wiser generation. But it may be worth consid
eration, that the work is more likely to be well done at a time when
the ideas of liberty and its importance are strong in men s minds.
There is danger that the?e ideas may grow faint and languid. Our
posterity may be accustomed to bear the yoke, and being inured to
servility, they may even bow the shoulder to the burden. It can
never be expected that a people, however numerous, will form and
execute as wise plans to perpetuate their liberty, when they have
lost the spirit and feeling of it.
" We cannot close without mentioning a fresh instance of the tem
per and designs of the British Ministry ; and that is, allowing the
East India Company, with a view of pacifying them, to ship their
teas to America. It is easy to see how aptly this scheme will
serve to destroy the trade of the Colonies and increase the revenue.
How necessary, then, is it, that each Colony should take effectual
methods to prevent this measure from having its designed effects." l
The Circular was unanimously adopted by the Committee,
and a postscript was added, requesting that it should not be
made public, as its object might otherwise be counteracted
by the common enemies of the Colonies.
For a few months past, the Governor had found but little
else to do than to witness helplessly the gradual advances of
the people towards that union which the Ministry so dreaded.
His defeat in the legislative controversy, and the odium which
the exposure of his letters had brought upon his head, had
1 Original draft of the Circular Letter of the Committee of Correspondence
of the House to the other Colonies. Signed by Thomas Cashing, Samuel
Adams, and William Heath, Oct. 21, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 99
lessened his influence in England ; and as he had received
no endorsement of his course for several months, but rather
intimations that his having raised the issue of Parliamentary
authority was disapproved by the government, his letters
grew less frequent. Dwarfed to mean proportions as a pol
itician, anticipating his recall, and fearful of being left with
out his usual public emoluments, he solicited the office of
Postmaster, held by Franklin, and looked forward with
gloomy apprehensions as to how he should be received on
his arrival. Overthrown in all his schemes for the aggran
dizement of himself and family, he turned to the principal
agent of his troubles, and, as he noted the continued and
systematic approaches of Adams towards American Inde
pendence, he addressed a private letter to Lord Dartmouth,
with the view of fully establishing in that nobleman s mind
the true position of the several leaders, and the overruling
influence of the master spirit.
" Permit me, my Lord, in a private letter to acquaint your Lord
ship more particularly with the state of the Province than would be
convenient in a public letter. It must be allowed that the people,
in general, are possessed with a jealousy that it has been the design
of Administration in England to enslave them, as they term it, or to
subject their liberties and property to the arbitrary disposal of a
power in which they have not any choice, and over which they can
not, be the issues what the^ may, have any control. There are
many, however, and more would appear if they dared, of the most
sensible part of the community who know and declare that the jeal
ousies are groundless, and that they were raised and cultivated by
artful, designing men. The conductors of the people are divided in
sentiment ; some of them professing that they only aim to denounce
the innovations since the Stamp Act, or, as they sometimes say,
since the expiration of the war (for they are not always the same) ;
and though they don t think Parliament has a just authority, yet
they are willing to acquiesce, since it has been so long submitted to.
Others declare they will be altogether independent, but would main
tain an alliance with Great Britain. Each stands in need of the
other, and their mutual interest is sufficient to connect them to-
100 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
gether. Of the first sort, the Speaker of the House l often declares
himself; so does a clergyman of Boston, 2 who has great influence in
our political measures; and so do some of the Council, who have
most influence there.
" Those of the latter opinion have for their head one of the mem
bers of Boston, who was the first person that openly, in any public
assembly, declared for absolute independence, and who, from a nat
ural obstinacy of temper, and from many years practice in politics,
is perhaps as well qualified to excite the people to any extravagance
in theory or practice as any person in America. From large defal
cations, as collector of taxes for the town of Boston, 3 and other acts
in pecuniary matters, his influence was small until within these seven
years ; but since that, it has been gradually increasing, until he has
obtained such an ascendency as to direct the town of Boston and the
House of Representatives, and consequently the Council, just as he
pleases. A principle has been avowed by some who are attached
to him, the most inimical that can be devised, that in political mat
ters the public good is above all other considerations ; and every rule
of morality, when in competition with it, may very well be dispensed
with. Upon this principle, the whole proceedings, with respect to
the letters of the Governor and Lieutenant-Governor, of which he
was the chief conductor, has been vindicated. In ordinary affairs,
the counsels of the whole opposition unite. Whenever there ap
pears a disposition to any conciliatory measures, this person, by his
art and skill, prevents any effect; sometimes by exercising his
talents in the newspapers, an instance of which is supposed to have
been given hi the paper enclosed to your Lordship in my letter,
number twenty-seven, at other times by an open opposition, and
this sometimes in the House, where he has defeated every attempt
as often as any has been made. But his chief dependence is upon a
Boston town meeting, where he originates his measures, which are
1 Thomas Gushing. 2 Andrew Eliot ?
8 Keference is here made to the nncollected taxes in the year 1763 - 64, when
the distresses of the town made it impossible for many poor tax-payers to meet
the demands against them. Mr. Adams, as was frequently the case with other
tax collectors, had been unable to collect the town s dues, and was held respon
sible until released by the unanimous vote of the inhabitants. The subject is
treated more fully on pages 35 - 41 of the previous volume, and in Drake s
History of Boston, I. 719.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL
101
followed by the rest of the towns, and of course are adopted or jus
tified by the Assembly. In a late session, I endeavored to remove
the difficulty about the agency, and intimated to many of the mem
bers that I would make no objection to the person they had chosen
their special agent nor to any other respectable persons for one or
two years only. There seemed to be a general disposition to it, but
the motion in the House was opposed by this person, 1 who rather
inclined to have no agent, neither general nor special, nor was either
one or the other appointed.
" I could mention to your Lordship many instances of the like
kind. To his influence it has been chiefly owing, that when there
has been a repeal of acts of Parliament complained of as grievous,
and when any concessions have been made to the Assembly, as the
removal of it to Boston and the like (notwithstanding the profes
sions made beforehand by the moderate part of the opposition, that
such measures would quiet the minds of the people), he has had art
enough to improve them to raise the people higher by assuring
them, if they will but persevere, they may bring the nation to their
own terms ; and the people are more easily induced to a compliance
from the declaration made, that they are assured by one or two
gentlemen in England, on whose judgment they can depend, that
nothing more than a firm adhesion to their demands is necessary to
obtain a compliance with every one of them. Could he have been
made dependent, I am not sure that he might not have been taken
off by an appointment to some public civil office. But, as the Con
stitution of the Province is framed, such an appointment would
increase his abilities, if not his disposition to do mischief, for he well
1 In 1770, the Assembly appointed Dr. Franklin their agent to appear for
them at the court of Great Britain. The salary granted to him by the House
could not be paid until Governor Hutchinson had consented to the bill passed
for that purpose. Samuel Adams alludes to this in the letter of the House to
Franklin in June, 1771 ; and also as " Candidus," in the Boston Gazette, Oc
tober, 1771. Instructions from the Ministry forbade the Governor to consent
to a salary for any agent at court unless the appointee suited the views of his
Excellency. Such an order would of course have forever excluded Franklin.
The Governor also refused his assent in July, 1771, to the grants of the two
Houses to Deberdt and Bollan, who had long acted as agents of the Assembly.
Adams was one of a committee to prepare a remonstrance against this griev
ance. The paper is found in the Journal of the House for July, 1771 ; and in
Bradford s State Papers, p. 308.
102 LIFERS -SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct., 1773.
/ : , H/.f 4: V[* i : A *"*
knows that 1 have tfdt v a Council which in any case would consent
to his removal, and nobody can do more than he to prevent my
ever having such a Council." l
This lets us into the inner temple of the secret diplomatic
correspondence of that day. The Governor could have put
nothing on record more absolutely indicative of the all-pow
erful influence of the great leader. A volume could not
have said more. And yet this information from the highest
authority in New England, was intended to be used for the
destruction of Adams ; for it was doubtless this letter, and
others of a similar nature, which induced the Ministry to
single him out, a few months afterwards, for sacrifice, as the
principal offender among the patriots.
1 Hutchinson to Lord Dartmouth, Oct. 9, 1773, marked "Private."
CHAPTER XXYIII.
Agents appointed for the East India Company. Efforts to force them to re
sign. The Committee of Correspondence assume the direction of Public
Affairs. Adams drafts a Circular Letter to the other Towns, asking their
Co-operation. Arrival of the Tea-Ships. Town Meetings at Faneuil
Hall and the Old South. Adams s Resolution to send the Tea back to
England. Ineffectual Efforts to obtain a Clearance for the Ships. Mem
orable Town Meeting. The Committee make their Last Appeal. A
Winter Evening in the Old South. The Governor finally refuses a Pass.
Adams gives the Signal. DESTRUCTION or THE TEA. Political Im
portance of the Event. Effect on the Revolution. Conspiracies against
the Committee. Mutual Pledge of the Members.
As in the other Colonies, Commissioners had been ap
pointed in Boston to act as agents for the East India Com
pany. Active opposition commenced in Philadelphia, where,
on the 18th of October, resolutions were adopted against the
duty on tea, and requesting the agents of the Company to
resign, which in a few days they did. In Boston this ex
ample was followed, and notices were left on the night of
the 1st of November at the door of each one of the agents,
summoning them to appear at Liberty Tree on the following
Wednesday to resign their commissions. 1 The meeting was
called together by the ringing of church bells for an hour
before noon, and by the public crier, who announced it at
the top of his voice. The following notice was posted about
town.
1 As the tea ships were sailing from England, Arthur Lee wrote to Samuel
Adams (Oct. 13, 1773) : "The introduction of the tea ought, I think, to be
opposed. I enclose yon a letter on that subject. The confidence with which
the least appearance of safety inspires cowards should make us cautious in
permitting Administration to succeed in any of their measures. The com
modity may, under this manoeuvre, come cheaper to the consumer, the mer
chants commission, &c., being avoided ; but whatever touches our liberties
should, under every temptation, be shunned. Besides, when once they have
fixed the trade upon us, they will find ways enough to enhance the price. But
I rest in your wisdom."
104 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
TO THE FKEEMEN OF THIS AND THE NEIGHBORING TOWNS.
GENTLEMEN, You are desired to meet at the Liberty Tree this
day at twelve o clock at noon, then and there to hear the persons
to whom the tea shipped by the East India Company is consigned
make a public resignation of their offices as consignees upon oath ;
and also swear that they will reship any teas that may be consigned
to them by the said Company, by the first sailing vessel to London.
O. C., Sec y.
BOSTON, November 3, 1773.
(sg Show me the man that dare take this down !
Adams, Hancock, and Phillips, the selectmen, and Wil
liam Cooper, the town clerk, with about five hundred more,
gathered on the appointed day, November 3d ; but as the
consignees did not make their appearance, Molineux and
Warren and a body of the people proceeded to Clark s ware
house, where all the agents were assembled, and Molineux
acted as spokesman in the parley which ensued. To the
demand which he made, by a written paper, that they should
promise not to sell the teas, but return them to England,
they gave a point blank and insolent refusal. The people
would probably then have proceeded to violence, had not
Molineux dissuaded. 1
A town meeting was held on the 5th, to consider the re
port that the East India Company were about shipping their
teas to this and the other Colonies, a political plan of the
British Administration to establish and fix the tribute laid
upon the importation of that article. During the debate
some of the Tories were engaged in circulating a number of
printed handbills, called the u Tradesman s Protest," against
the proceedings of the merchants on this subject of the tea
importations. The meeting was a public one, though called
for a special purpose ; and the interference was not only met
with the spirit of perfect toleration, but the regular pro-
1 Bancroft, VI. 474.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 105
ceedings were stopped, and, on motion, one of these papers
was read aloud by Paxton, who had been seen distributing
them in King Street the day before. After the reading,
without comment, and giving the document the benefit of
the last hearing, the tradesmen present were desired to col
lect themselves at the south side of the Hall, when the ques
tion was put to them, whether they acknowledged the
" Tradesman s Protest," and the whole number, amounting
to at least four hundred, voted in the negative. 1 The paper,
and Paxton and others who had circulated it, as well as its
printer, were then denounced as false, base, and scandalous.
This unanimous vote was a finishing stroke to the "Pro
test," about which nothing was ever heard again.
The substance of the eight resolves which had passed in
Philadelphia was now adopted after debate, and a commit
tee was appointed to request the agents or factors to resign
their appointments. An additional resolve having been
passed to prevent the sale of the teas, the meeting adjourned
until afternoon, when the committee reported that the fac
tors could not give answer until Monday, some of their com
panions, whom they desired to consult in the business, being
in Milton. Upon this, it was unanimously voted that Sam
uel Adams, Molineux, and Dr. Warren be a committee to
visit Messrs. Clarke, Faneuil, and Winslow, those of the tea
commissioners said to be in town, and acquaint them that, as
they were not joint factors of the East India Company with
the Hutchinsons, (father and son, who were among the
agents,) it was supposed they could determine for themselves,
and therefore it was the expectation of the town that they
would return an immediate answer to the message. The
committee soon reported that an answer might be expected in
half an hour, and that Mr. Winslow was not in town. 2 Han
cock, Pitts, Samuel Adams, and Dr. Warren were then made
1 Votes and Proceedings of the Freeholders, etc., Nov. 5 and 18, 1773 (pub
lished by order of the town), p. 4.
2 Boston Town Kecords, November, 1773.
106 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
a committee to repair to Milton, and acquaint the two sons
of Hutchinson with the request of the town, that they would
immediately resign. Soon after, a letter was received from
Clarke, Faneuil, and Winslow, replying that they were not
yet able to give a definite answer. The letter was read, and
voted " unsatisfactory," and the meeting adjourned to the
next day.
It was evident that the consignees were vacillating be
tween greed and fear, and delayed action with the hope of
some change in public affairs favorable to their intentions.
But the determination of the people was not to be evaded by
any subterfuge. The committee had inquired on the pre
vious evening at Elisha Hutchinson s house in Boston, where
they ascertained that the persons they sought were at Milton,
at the country-seat of the Governor. On Saturday morning,
having called again at the house, without meeting the objects
of their search, they rode out to Milton, and applying at the
Governor s residence, were informed that only Elisha Hutch
inson had lodged there the last night, and that he had set
out early that morning for Boston. Resolved to accomplish
their purpose, they returned to town, and calling at his
house, found that he had again given them the slip, and
gone back to Milton. But the other brother was found at
home, and to him the vote of the town on the preceding day
was read. 1 He promised a reply in a quarter of an hour,
within which time it was sent to the town meeting, which
had now convened again at Faneuil Hall. The answer ac
knowledged that he and his brother had been notified of
their appointment as consignees of the tea, and that, in case
they were made factors, they would be sufficiently informed
to answer the request of the town. The meeting upon this
voted the answer " not satisfactory," and the reply of Clarke,
Faneuil, and Winslow " daringly affrontive to the town."
Just before the adjournment, a vote of thanks was moved to
Hancock, the chairman, but it was opposed both by himself
1 Boston Town Eecords, November, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 107
and Adams, and the precedent then and there established,
" that a vote of thanks should only be given upon very espe
cial and signal services performed for the public." I It was
evidently no time for passing compliments. Every man was
expected to do his whole duty to his country, for which no
one should look for thanks, which might imply some obliga
tion on the part of the people. Nothing could more plainly
indicate the unalterable determination to defeat this most
atrocious of all the tyrannical acts of government.
The leaders frequently met in the room over Edes and
Gill s printing-office, to consult upon measures, and it was
probably here that the plot was arranged which was carried
out in the middle of the next month. So perfectly was the
secret kept ever after, that no clew can be obtained to the
origin of what followed, but it is scarcely possible that the
destruction of the tea was hastily decided upon. More
likely the act had been arranged several weeks beforehand,
and perhaps a secret organization, to be disguised as Indians
at the decisive moment, was even now formed in Boston,
New York, and Philadelphia ; for on the 5th of November,
in New York, " the Mohawks " were in readiness, should an
attempt be made there to land the expected cargo. 2 What
secret pledges were made in Boston among those who were
admitted to the secret counsels of the master spirits can
never be known. Nearly five weeks before the decisive day,
Samuel Adams sent Arthur Lee the Boston Gazette, con
taining the proceedings of the town meetings of the 5th and
6th of November.
" I have but just time," he writes, " to enclose you a newspaper,
by which you will see that Lord Sh ne [Shelburne] was not
mistaken when he said, that * things began to wear a very serious
aspect in this part of the world. I wish that Lord Dartmouth
would believe that the people here begin to think that they have
borne oppression long enough, and that, if he has a plan of recon-
1 Town Records, November, 1773.
3 I. Q. Leake s Life of Gen. John Lamb, p. 80.
108 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
ciliation, he would produce it without delay ; but his Lordship must
know that it must be such as will satisfy Americans. One cannot
foresee events ; but from all the observations I am able to make,
my next letter will not be upon a trifling subject." *
A fast sailing vessel arrived on the 17th from London,
having on board one of the East India factors, and bringing
the news that the tea-ships had actually sailed, and might
soon be expected. The next day a meeting was held, when
a committee of citizens, including Samuel Adams, again
applied to the several tea consignees, to know if they would
resign their commissions, to which they replied that, though
they had not yet received any order from the Company,
their friends in England had entered into penal engagements
in their behalf, merely of a commercial nature, which put it
out of their power to comply with the request of the town.
This answer, like the other, was voted " not satisfactory,"
and the meeting was instantly dissolved without a word of
debate. An undefined terror seized upon the consignees at
the ominous silence of this breaking up. There was no
debate, not a word pro or con, only the vote to dissolve, and
it is so briefly recorded in the " town book." 2 The time for
threatening harangues and prudent discussions was at an
end. The town could do no more, and the affair was finally
placed in the keeping of the Committee of Correspondence.
The Council, who were petitioned by the consignees to take
charge of the teas, refused to act, and the applicants were
left to take their own course, when some of them withdrew
to Castle William.
The Committee now despatched invitations to those of the
four principal surrounding towns, to assemble at the Select
men s Chamber at Faneuil Hall, where, upon meeting, it was
unanimously voted to use their united influence to prevent
the landing and sale of the teas, and a joint letter from this
body was sent to all the other towns in the Province, placing
1 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, Nov. 9, 1773.
2 Town Records for November, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 109
the case plainly before them, and asking their advice. This
circular, which was written by Samuel Adams, and bears
the signature of the faithful William Cooper, thus con
cludes :
" But if we are prevailed upon implicitly to acknowledge a right
to tax us, by receiving and consuming teas loaded with a tax im
posed by the British Parliament, we may be assured that, in a very
short time, taxes of the like or a more grievous nature will be laid
on every article exported from Great Britain, which our necessity
may require, or our shameful luxury may betray us into the use of;
and when once they have found the way to rob us, their avarice
will never be satisfied until our own manufactures, and even our
land, purchased and cultivated by our hard laboring ancestors, are
taxed to support the vices and extravagance of wretches whose
vileness ought to banish them from the society of men. We think
therefore, gentlemen, that we are in duty bound to use our most
strenuous endeavors to ward off the impending evil, and we are
sure that, upon a fair and cool inquiry into the nature and tendency
of this ministerial plan, you will think this tea now coming to us
more to be dreaded than plague or pestilence ; for these can only
destroy our mortal bodies, but we never knew a country enslaved
without the destruction of their virtue, the loss of which every good
man must esteem infinitely greater than the loss of life. And we
earnestly request that, after having carefully considered this impor
tant matter, you would impress upon the minds of your friends,
neighbors, and fellow-townsmen the necessity of exerting them
selves in a most zealous and determined manner, to save the pres
ent and future generations from temporal, and we think we may
with seriousness say, eternal destruction."
To this, Mr. Adams added a postscript, stating some fur
ther particulars as coming more directly from the parent
committee, and fully exposing " the black design upon their
liberties," " to drain their cash for the support of their ene
mies on this and the other side of the water in luxury and
debauchery."
" Now, brethren," he concludes, " we are reduced to this dilem
ma, either to sit down quiet under this and every other burden
110 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
that our enemies shall see fit to lay upon us as good-natured slaves,
or rise and resist this and every other plan laid for our destruction,
as becomes wise freemen. In this extremity we earnestly request
your advice, and that you would give us the earliest intelligence of
the sense your several towns have of the present gloomy situation
of our affairs." l
On Sunday, the 28th, the Dartmouth sailed up the har
bor, and came to anchor near the Castle, with one hundred
and fourteen chests of tea. Despite the rigid New England
observance of the Sabbath, the Committee, who saw that no
time was to be lost, met at once, and obtained from Rotch,
the owner of the vessel, a promise not to enter his ship until
Tuesday. Samuel Adams was then authorized to invite the
Committees of Dorchester, Roxbury, Brookline, Cambridge,
and Charlestown, to bring their own townsmen to hold a
mass meeting with those of Boston on the next morning. 2
The message was sent, and, responsive to the call, thousands
flocked in from all directions.
On Monday morning, the 29th, the following placard ap
peared :
FRIENDS ! BRETHREN ! COUNTRYMEN !
" That worst of plagues, the detested TEA, shipped for this port by
the East India Company, is now arrived in this harbor. The hour
of destruction or manly opposition to the machinations of tyranny
stares you in the face. Every friend to his country, to himself, and
posterity is now called upon to meet at Faneuil Hall at nine o clock
THIS DAY (at which time the bells will ring), to make a united and
successful resistance to this last, worst, and most destructive meas
ure of Administration." 3
At the hour appointed, the inhabitants gathered at the
" Cradle of Liberty." The meeting soon swelled into the
1 Circular to all the towns in the Province from the joint Committees of
Boston, Dorchester, Brookline, and Roxbury, dated Boston, Nov. 23, 1773.
2 Bancroft, VI. 477, 478.
8 Boston Gazette, Monday, Nov. 29, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. Ill
largest ever known in Boston, and, as the Gazette says, was
" for the purpose of consulting, advising, and determining
upon the most proper and effectual method to prevent the
unloading, receiving, or vending of the detestable TEA."
Jonathan Williams was chosen Moderator, and the business
of the meeting was conducted by Samuel Adams, Hancock,
Young, Molineux, and Warren. 1 An organization having
been effected, Samuel Adams arose in the vast assemblage,
and moved that
" As the town have determined at a late meeting, legally assem
bled, that they will, to the utmost of their power, prevent the land
ing of the tea, the question be now put, Whether this body are
absolutely determined that the tea now arrived in Capt. Hall shall
be returned to the place from whence it came at all events."
The motion was direct and to the point. It left nothing
to be inferred, and committed the people of Boston and the
surrounding towns distinctly to an issue with George the
Third, who had determined " to try the question with Amer
ica." There was not one dissenting voice. It now appeared,
however, that Faneuil Hall could not contain the crowd, who
numbered upwards of five thousand, and probably filled all
the adjacent street. The meeting was therefore adjourned
to the Old South, leave having been obtained for the pur
pose. 2 How must the Loyalists have looked, as they wit
nessed the great throng passing towards the church, pouring
into its spacious portals, and packing the building to its ut
most capacity. The scene illustrated the irresistible power
of the Committee of Correspondence, by whose noiseless
spells the multitude had been evoked. The church being
filled, and silence restored, Samuel Adams s motion was
again made with an addition, and the question put :
" Is it the firm resolution of this body that the tea shall not only
be sent back, but that no duty shall be paid thereon ? "
1 Bancroft, VI. 478.
2 Boston Gazette, Dec. 6, 1773, which contains the fullest account of this
meeting.
112 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nor.
The question was answered unanimously in the affirmative,
and Young held that " the only way to get rid of it was to
throw it overboard." l
It had been expected that the consignees of the tea would
send in some proposals at the opening of the meeting, but,
as none were made, the body adjourned to three o clock,
P. M., when, having come together again in the church, it
was voted that the tea should go back in the same vessel in
which it had arrived ; upon which Mr. Rotch, the owner of
the Dartmouth, being present, stated that he should enter
his protest against the proceedings. He had the whole power
of England to back him in his protest, and the royal will
would carry into effect any necessary measures of coercion ;
but the meeting, without a dissenting voice, passed the sig
nificant vote, that Mr. Rotch be directed not to enter this tea,
and that the doing of it would be at his peril ; while Captain
Hall, the master of the ship, was to be informed that " it
was at his peril, if he suffered any of the tea brought by him
to be landed." For the security of the ship, a watch of
twenty-five persons was authorized for the approaching night,
under Captain Edward Proctor, and the names of the towns
men who were volunteers on the occasion were handed in
to the Moderator.
Some one here informed the meeting that the Governor
had required the Justices of the Peace to meet and suppress
any routs, riots, &c., of the people that might happen. The
intimation was a repeated insult to the town, and a continua
tion of the policy which his Excellency had often recom
mended against the inestimable right of town meetings guar
anteed by the charter. He had already nearly made up his
mind to flee to the Castle, a favorite device of the Royalists
on these occasions, to create the appearance of seeking refuge
from violence ; but he was dissuaded from the step by friends,
who saw in it only an exhibition of his natural cowardice.
This attempt to give an orderly, legal town meeting the char-
1 Bancroft, VI. 478.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 113
acter of a mob was received with a unanimous vote that his
conduct carried a designed reflection upon the people there
assembled, and was solely calculated to serve the views of
Administration. 1
Hancock now stated that he had learned, through Mr.
Copley, that the consignees had only last evening received
their letters from London, and were desirous of having fur
ther time. Upon this, so read the records, the meeting
" out of great tenderness to these persons, and from a strong
desire to bring the matter to a conclusion, notwithstanding
the time they had expended upon them to no purpose, were
prevailed upon to adjourn to the next morning at nine
o clock."
The next morning, on the last day of the month, " the
long expected proposals were at last brought into the meet
ing, not directed to the Moderator, but to John Scollay,
Esq., one of the selectmen." It was, however, voted that
they be read. The consignees declared it to be out of their
power to send the tea back, but offered to store them until
word could be obtained from their constituents. Before the
meeting could take action on this reply, Greenleaf, the
Sheriff of Suffolk, entered, and begged leave of the Mod
erator to read a proclamation from the Governor. The
reading was at first opposed ; but Samuel Adams having sig
nified his acquiescence, the meeting unanimously consented,
and the paper was read. 2 It was addressed to Jonathan
Williams, the Moderator. After rehearsing pompously the
carrying of unlawful measures into execution, openly vio
lating and setting at naught the good and wholesome laws
of the Province, his Excellency concludes by " warning,
exhorting, and requiring " the assemblage to disperse, and
" surcease all further unlawful proceedings at their utmost
peril." No sooner was this uttered than " a loud and very
1 Printed Circular of the Proceedings of the Several Meetings, sent out by
the Boston Committee of Correspondence.
2 Hutchinson s History, III. 432.
VOL. II. 8
114 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nor.
general hiss " l followed, " which continued during the stay
of the Sheriff and accompanied him in his retreat." 2
Copley, the artist, son-in-law of Clarke, one of the con
signees, seems to have acted the part of a mediator between
the people and the Loyalists. He was a general favorite in
Boston, and though, at the crisis, he sided with the govern
ment, his suggestions were often listened to, as proceeding
from a kind and honest heart. After the storm of hisses
had subsided, and the meeting had unanimously voted not
to disperse, Copley desired to know whether, in case he
could prevail upon the Clarkes to present themselves before
the people, they would be treated with civility. The prom
ise was given, and two hours were allowed him to produce
his friends, during which time the meeting adjourned. He
was obliged to go to the Castle by water, arid failed in his
mission, as the Clarkes refused to appear. Copley returned
some time after the meeting had reorganized, apologized for
his delay, and reported the answers of the consignees, which
was voted to be " not in the least degree satisfactory." It
was doubtless Copley to whom Hutchinson alluded in his
letter to the Earl of Dartmouth, referring to this meeting.
" It looks," he says, " as if the principal actors in the late town
meetings were afraid of being, one time or other, called to account
by some other authority than any within the Province ; for when
anything very extravagant is to be done, a meeting of the people at
large is called by printed notifications without signers, but select
men, town clerk, &c., attend. In the last Assembly, in the largest
meeting-house in town, a gentleman who spoke in behalf of the con
signees called upon the selectmen. Mr. Adams the Representative
corrected him, and remarked that they knew no selectmen at those
meetings." 3
The owners and factors of such of the tea-ships as had not
1 Account of the meeting in the Boston Gazette.
2 Account by Lord North, in presenting American papers to the House of
Commons, March 7, 1774.
8 Hutchinson to the Earl of Dartmouth, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 115
yet arrived were summoned and notified of the resolutions
of the meeting, and Captain Hall of the Dartmouth, being
present, was forbidden, at his peril, to aid or assist in unload
ing the interdicted cargo, and was ordered to carry it back
to London, to which he agreed. A watch of armed patrols
was appointed for the ensuing night, who, in case they were
molested, were to ring the bells, while six post riders were
selected to alarm the neighboring towns, should occasion re
quire. Resolutions were also passed against such merchants
in the Province as had even inadvertently" imported tea
while subject to the duty under the former act. Warning
was given to all persons not to import until the unrighteous
act was repealed, and all masters of vessels were forbidden
to take the obnoxious article on board their ships, under
pain of being considered enemies of their country, of having
the landing forcibly prevented, and the tea sent back to the
place from whence it might come. And it was voted to
carry the resolutions into effect " at the risk of their lives
and property." A committee, consisting of Adams, Han
cock, Phillips, Rowe, and Williams, was appointed to trans
mit these proceedings to New York and Philadelphia, and
to England, and to every seaport in Massachusetts. 1 Vol
unteers for the night watches having been requested to leave
their names at the printing-office of Edes and Gill, the meet
ing dissolved.
The account of this meeting and that of the previous day
appeared in the Boston Gazette, occupying four columns.
Adams had the proceedings struck off as supplements or
extras, and scattered abroad far and near. Hutchinson en
closed copies to his correspondents in England. One of his
letters, without address, takes an extended view of the
meeting.
" I must refer you," says the writer, " to the newspapers for the
history of the resolves of the town and other proceedings, but will
1 Hutchinson, III. 433.
116 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
enclose the printed account of the doings of this week, which exceeds
everything which has yet been done. Hancock, who had been mod
erator of the first meeting, took care to keep clear of this, and they
drew in a nephew of Dr. Franklin, whom I greatly pity. Hancock,
notwithstanding, has exposed himself, by his unguarded speeches,
more than ever before. You see they print their acts without any
attestation ; but though it is called a meeting of the people, yet it is
all under the selectmen of this town, who attended the whole meet
ing, as I am informed, together with Adams and Phillips, Represen
tatives. Surely this act will not pass without something effectual.
" It may be said by some, that there will not be sufficient evidence
to subject particular persons to answer. There are the printed votes
of the town, who are the selectmen who call the meetings, who the
moderator, who the committees, &c. ; and though the paper I enclose
has not the name of the printer, yet the facts that are in it are noto
rious. It is part of a newspaper which all the printers were en
joined to publish, as you will see by the enclosed letter from the
Secretary. There are great numbers of the people who can testify-
to every part, but dare not do it voluntarily, and cannot be com
pelled. It is in everybody s mouth, that Hancock said at the close
of the meeting he would be willing to spend his fortune and life
itself in so good a cause. But the Secretary says he cannot find
anybody who will make oath to it. In such a case, are not public
printed papers presumptive evidence sufficient to proceed upon?
This I submit." l
At the same time the Governor recommended, as a means
of stopping the progress of the opposition, to separate Boston
from the rest of the Province, and advised Bernard, in Lon
don, of the " invincible difficulties " in which the tea-ships
would soon be involved. His letters, too, illustrate the per
fect unity of purpose existing among the people. Such a
thing as a traitor was not thought of. It would have been
an absolute impossibility to obtain the slightest testimony
from any who were in the confidence of the leaders, though
Hutchinson was always casting about him for the means of
commencing criminal proceedings against them.
1 Hutchinson to , Dec. 3, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. * 117
During the first week in December the other tea-ships
arrived, and, under the directions of the Committees of Cor
respondence, were anchored near the Dartmouth, so that the
guard established over her might answer for all. It was the
immovable determination of Boston that the teas should not
be landed ; and by the revenue laws the ships, without
entering the tea, could not be cleared from the port, and
would be liable to seizure. Forcible interference with these
proceedings would certainly have brought on a bloody con
flict. The spirit of the people was up, and action instead of
words was henceforth to be the rule. The guard, armed
with muskets and bayonets, some of them perhaps the same
that had been used in the conquest of Canada, patrolled the
streets as in time of war, and every half-hour in the frosty
night word passed " All is well." l Placards had been posted
by the " True Sons of Liberty," announcing their determina
tion to " resent any or the least insult or menace offered to
any one or more of the several Committees appointed by the
body at Faneuil Hall." They also pledged themselves to
support the printers in anything the Committee of Corre
spondence should desire them to print ; while, as a warning,
one of these handbills was to be posted at the door of the
dwelling-house of any offender against the proceedings of
the town. 2 It is evident, from these notices, that force had
been thought of at some consultations between the military
and civil authorities. Indeed, the Cadets, under command
of John Hancock, had already been ordered to prepare for
service ; but it is not possible that their aid could have been
obtained for any emergency, and Hancock, personally, de
clined to act. 3 At the same time the Committee of Corre
spondence, the virtual government of the Province, took
care to cultivate the spirit of resistance, by inspiring the
public with confidence. This was done by Samuel Adams,
1 Bancroft, VII. 480.
2 Placard, quoted in Lossing s Field-Book of the Revolution, 1855, I. 496.
8 Hutchinson, III. 438.
118 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
who regularly sent to the Boston Gazette the correspondence
from the other towns in answer to his Circulars. The num
bers published in December teem with these patriotic re
sponses, which came in by post riders from all parts of
Massachusetts-; and to make the union more general in
character, the proceedings in relation to the expected tea
shipments arriving in other Colonies were also published.
The Committee continued to send its appeals abroad to
New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New York, and Pennsylva
nia, urging union in action and sentiment, while at homp,
as the customary twenty days probation of the three tea-
ships drew to a close, the preparations were made to put the
long-concerted plan into execution. Yet the Loyalists, as
their letters show, underrated the intensity of the public feel
ing, and few believed that anything would be done beyond
mere resolutions and debates. But the Committee sought
their object not by passionate proceedings, but through legal
approaches. Nothing was done without being first submit
ted to tne test of reason and candid deliberation. Every
member of that body was sincerely desirous to have the tea
returned to London peaceably, and thus avoid the painful
alternative which the case presented. Thus, as long as a
reasonable hope remained, they continued their urgent ef
forts for the accomplishment of that object. They held a
meeting on the llth of December, with Samuel Adams
in the chair, when Rotch, the owner of the Dartmouth, hav
ing been summoned before them, was asked why he had not
kept his engagement to send the vessel and tea back to Eng
land. He replied that it was out of his power to do so. He
was then told that the ship must go, and that the people of
Boston and the neighboring towns expected and required it. 1
While this was going on, two war ships were ordered to
guard the passages leading out of the harbor, and the guns
of Castle William were loaded ; and by Hutchinson s orders
no vessels were to be allowed to go to sea without a permit.
1 Bancroft, VI. 482.
1773 -1 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 119
It was apparently expected that some attempt would be
made to put to sea with the ships ; but so secretly had
everything been conducted, that not one out of " the circle *
imagined what was about to happen.
On the 13th, there was a meeting of the Committees of the
five towns. It was only three days before the time when the
ships, to avoid confiscation, must land their cargoes. The
next day, Tuesday, a meeting was called at the Old South,
which people from a " distance of twenty miles " attended. 1
Rotch was again summoned, and enjoined at his peril to
demand of the Collector of the Customs a clearance for his
ship ; and Benjamin Kent, Samuel Adams, and eight others
were appointed a committee to see this done. The meeting
then adjourned to Thursday, the 16th, the last of the twenty
days. The town s committee accompanied Rotch to the
lodgings of the Collector, who refused to give an answer
until the next morning. The Boston Committee of Corre
spondence had the last of their preparatory meetings on
Tuesday evening. Since the assembling of the Committees
of the five towns on Monday, they had held anxious con
sultations on subjects involving the fate of America, and
perhaps, eventually, the liberties of mankind. Long and
important were the discussions, and the plans decided upon
were fraught with peril. That little body of stout-hearted
men were making history that should endure for ages.
Their secret deliberations, could they be exhumed from the
dust of time, would present a curious page in the annals of
Boston ; but the seal of silence was upon the pen of the sec
retary, as well as upon the lips of the members. Morning
and evening, for two days, they had been in close commu
nion, yet the journal for that time contains only the brief
and prudent entry : "No business transacted, matter of
record." 2
Wednesday came, and one more attempt was made to ob
tain a clearance for the Dartmouth. The world should not
1 Boston Gazette, Dec. 20, 1773. 2 Bancroft, VI. 484.
120 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
say in future times that efforts were wanting for obtaining
justice up to the last moment. Adams, Kent, and the others
of the town s committee again accompanied Rotch to the
Collector. This time he was with the Comptroller at the
Custom-House, and both " unequivocally and finally " re
fused to allow the ships to depart. This was conclusive, as
far as the power of the revenue officers was concerned. But
there yet remained one more chance.
The meeting of Tuesday had been adjourned to Thursday,
the 16th, at ten o clock. At that hour the people of Boston,
with at least two thousand from the country, met at the Old
South. The eventful day had arrived, and the issue was to
be decided. Rotch came into the meeting, and reported that
the Collector had refused him a clearance for the Dart
mouth. He was then directed instantly to protest against
the decision of the Custom-House, and apply to the Governor
for his passport by the Castle. As Hutchinson, anticipating
something of the kind, had left town for his country-seat at
Milton, it would take time for an answer ; and the meeting
adjourned until afternoon, bidding Rotch make all haste. At
three o clock the town again assembled, numbering, in and
around the church, seven thousand men, the largest meet
ing ever held in Boston. The agent did not appear, and the
assembly waited " till near sunset."
During this interval speeches were made by several. The
momentous question arose whether the meeting would abide
by their former resolutions " with respect to the not suffering
the tea to be landed." Samuel Adams, Young, and others
made addresses on this subject, and the first two advised to
stand by the resolutions. " Who knows," said Rowe, " how
tea will mingle with salt water " ? and the suggestion was
received with great applause. 1 Quincy, always eloquent and
forcible, but lately returned from his Southern tour, was
present, and arose to restrain the meeting from any intended
decisive measures.
r
1 H. Niles s Principles and Acts of the Revolution, pp. 485, 486.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 121
"It is not, Mr. Moderator, the spirit that vapors within these
walls that must stand us in stead. The exertions of this day will
call forth events which will make a very different spirit necessary
for our salvation. Whoever supposes that shouts and hosannas will
terminate the trials of the day entertains a childish fancy. We
must be grossly ignorant of the importance and value of the prize
for which we contend ; we must be equally ignorant of the power
of those combined against us ; we must be blind to that malice, in
veteracy, and insatiable revenge which actuates our enemies, public
and private, abroad and in our bosom, to hope that we shall end this
controversy without the sharpest conflict, to flatter ourselves that
popular resolves, popular harangues, popular acclamations, and pop
ular vapor will vanquish our foes. Let us consider the issue. Let
us look to the end. Let us weigh and consider before we advance
to those measures which must bring on the most trying and terrible
struggle this country ever saw."
These counsels of moderation came from a brave and gen
erous heart. Quincy was among those who saw the ap
proaching contest, and he warned his townsmen against
precipitancy, though none more ardently desired the happi
ness and freedom of America. He was even now fast sink
ing in a decline, and, six months later, sailed for England,
whence he returned no more to aid in the great cause of lib
erty. Others said, in reply to him, " Now the, hand is to the
plough, there must be no looking back." l
The remarks of Adams must be inferred from his writings.
He seldom made long speeches ; but what he urged was to
the point, and advanced with no flowers of rhetoric or stud
ied imagery. His calm and well-considered advice was
always supported by solid reasoning, and had all the more
weight for its unpretending directness and never-failing wis
dom and good sense.
When the question was finally put to the seven thousand
assembled, it was unanimously resolved that the tea should
not be landed. 2 By this time it had been dark an hour.
1 Bancroft, VI. 486. 2 Boston Post Boy, Dec. 20, 1773.
122 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
Still the great meeting remained, and awaited the coming
of Rotch with the Governor s final decision. The dim light
of the church added to the impressive solemnity of the occa
sion. All were convinced, as the cold night darkened with
out, that the last scene was about to be enacted. Everything
was arranged and in readiness, yet only a few could have
known what was intended. Should the Governor give the
clearance, the ships would be at once sent to sea, and stout
arms from among a nautical people were willing to assist in
working them down the harbor. In case of refusal, it would
be impossible to pass the guns of the Castle and Admiral
Montagu s ships at the Narrows, and there remained but
one alternative to prevent the landing of the accursed freight.
At a quarter past six o clock Rotch appeared, and reported
that he had entered his protest in accordance with the
directions of the meeting of Tuesday, and that he had
waited on the Governor for a pass, but " his Excellency
told him he could not, consistently with his duty, grant it
until his vessel was qualified." l The proceedings which
followed showed how perfectly systematic were the plans
of the Committee of Correspondence. As soon as Rotch
had made his report, Samuel Adams stood up and gave
the word : " This meeting can do nothing more to save
the country ! " 2
Instantly a shout was heard at a door of the church from
those who had been intently listening for the voice of Adams.
The war-whoop resounded. Forty or fifty men disguised as
Indians, who must have been concealed near by, appeared
and passed by the church entrance, and, encouraged by
Adams, Hancock, and others, hurried along to Griffin s, now
Liverpool Wharf, near the foot of Pearl Street. The accounts
of this event are such as were guardedly given at the time
of its occurrence ; and posterity can only imagine the scene
1 Boston Gazette, Dec. 20, 1773.
2 Bancroft, VI. 486, quoted from Francis Kotch s Information before the
Privy Council.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 123
of the thousands pouring out of the church portals into the
wintry night, and making their way towards the harbor.
In accordance with the arrangements, guards were posted
to prevent the intrusion of spies, when the " Mohawks" and
some others, not so disguised, sprang aboard the ships, and
three hundred and forty-two chests of tea were emptied into
the Bay " without the least injury to the vessels or any other
property." l " Nothing was destroyed but the tea, and this
was not done with noise and tumult, little or nothing being
said either by the agents or the multitude who looked on.
The impression was that of solemnity, rather than of riot and
confusion " ; 2 and a looker-on, from a small eminence about
fifty yards from the nearest ship, observed that the people
on board were disguised. He could hear them cut open the
tea chests, when they had brought them upon the deck, so
noiselessly were the proceedings conducted. 3 Three hours
were occupied in the destruction, and by the end of that
time it was estimated that at least one hundred and forty
persons were engaged, accessions having been constantly
made to the original number. The moon shone from a clear
sky during the evening, and the British squadron lay but a
short distance off, yet no interruption was experienced either
from fleet or troops. When the last chest had been emptied,
1 S. Adams to A. Lee, Dec. 31, 1773.
2 Niles s Principles and Acts, p. 486. The Governor forwarded a detailed
narrative of the event to the East India Company, dated December 19, 1773.
" It appears," said he, " to have been a concerted plan ; for a sufficient num
ber of men to do the work were prepared and disguised before the people came
down from the meeting, and guards were placed to prevent any spies, and the
whole conducted with very little tumult, nor was there any suspicion of an
intention, in the conductors of the affair, that the teas should be destroyed."
3 Examination of Dr. Hugh Williamson before the King s Council in Lon
don (Mass. Hist. Society s Collections). Dr. Williamson, who seems to have
taken particular pains to inform himself of the acts of the " rioters, " was
evidently regarded in Boston as friendly to the cause. He was the bearer of
Adams s letter to A. Lee of Dec. 31. Adams, in that letter, says of him :
" We have had great pleasure in his company for a few weeks past, and he
favored the meeting with his presence."
124 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
and the Mohawks and their assistants had gained the wharf,
they marched homewards through the town with fife and
drum, passing the house of a Loyalist, where Admiral Mon
tagu was visiting, and the Admiral bandied some words
with them as they went by. 1 The work had not been accom
plished an hour too soon ; for the next morning the tea
would have been placed under the protection of the Castle.
People from towns twenty miles from Boston had attended
the meeting that day at the Old South, 2 and some of them
the same night carried the news back to their villages. 3
Boston subsided at once into its usual quiet. The next
day the tea was found heaped up in windrows upon the
Dorchester beach, 4 where the wind and tide had carried it.
The vessels from which the tea was thrown were the Dart
mouth, the Eleanor, and the Beaver. A fourth, a brig from
London, having fifty-eight chests on board, had already been
cast away " on the back of Cape Cod," 5 where the " Cape
Indians " probably gave a good account of " the detested
tea." 6
The closest secrecy was preserved as to the authors of this
scheme and the actors in its accomplishment, until after the
War of Independence, when the names of a number were
obtained. In 1836, eleven survived who had been mere
lads at the time. Lendall, Pitts, and Adam Colson were
probably the leading actors. Early in the present century,
a resident of Boston who had conversed with the men of the
Revolution on this subject, wrote : " Mr. Samuel Adams is
thought to have been in the counselling of this exploit, and
many other men who were leaders in the political affairs of
the times ; and the hall of council is said to have been in
the back room of Edes and Gill s printing-office , at the cor
ner of the alley leading to Brattle Street Church from Court
1 Traits of the Tea Party, and Logging s Field Book, I. 499.
2 S. Adams to A. Leo, Dec. 31, 1773.
8 Bancroft, VI. 487. * Barry s Massachusetts, II. 473.
6 Adams to Lee, Dec. 31, 1773. 6 Boston Gazette, Dec. 20, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 125
Street." 1 Others of the survivors of that intrepid band, as
well as eminent men of the last century, have repeatedly
mentioned Adams as one of the prime movers in the Tea-
Party. 2 That he was the guiding spirit in the public trans
actions between the arrival of the news that the tea had
been shipped and its destruction, we have already seen.
Only three days before the first public measures against the
landing of the tea, Hutchinson had written to the Ministry
describing Samuel Adams as the " chief manager on this side
the water " ; 3 and his letter to Lord Dartmouth, pointing
out Adams as the leader and " director of the town of Bos
ton and the Assembly," had been sent less than three weeks
before. Adams had hinted to Arthur Lee, in November,
that his next letter would probably be upon no trifling mat
ter. By the next vessel he sent his friend a full account of
the great evento
" You cannot imagine," he writes, " the height of joy that spark
les in the eyes and animates the countenances as well as the hearts
of all we meet on this occasion, excepting the disappointed, discon
certed Hutchinson and his tools. I repeat what I wrote you in my
last, if Lord Dartmouth has prepared his plan, let him produce
it speedily ; but his Lordship must know that it must be such a plan
as will not barely amuse, much less further irritate, but conciliate
the affection of the inhabitants." 4
The Committee of Correspondence held a meeting the
next day, and appointed Samuel Adams and four others to
prepare an account of the last night s proceedings ; and Paul
Revere rode express to Philadelphia with the news, which
was received there on the 26th with the ringing of bells and
every sign of joy and universal approbation ; and the next
day, at a public meeting, it was indorsed " with universal
1 Niles s Principles and Acts, p. 486.
2 Verbal statements of Hon. Perez Morton, Ex-Gov. Strong, Samuel Shed,
and others.
8 Hutchinson to , Oct. 27, 1773.
* S. Adams to A. Lee, Dec. 31, 1773.
126 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
claps and huzzas." " We all allow," says a letter thence,
" you have had greater trials than any of the Colonies, and
we wonder much of your great patience."
When the Governor and Loyalists generally had recov
ered from their astonishment at the boldness of the act, its
great importance, and probable consequences, and the power
of the secret organization as displayed by the order and sys
tem with which everything had been conducted, their first
thought was of arrests, transportation to England for trial,
and examples at Execution Dock. Hutchinson busily con
sulted his law books, 2 and wrote home full accounts of the
event. The members of the Committee were watched with
jealous care by the Governor s spies, to obtain information for
use at the trials. They were liable to be seized at any mo
ment by the military, and shipped secretly to England ; and
plans to that effect actually existed. " Detector," a writer in
the Gazette, warns " those dark and villanous assassins that
their conspiracies against the lives and liberties of a number
of the most worthy patriots in the metropolis and vicinity
are well known. Their execrable measures to secure and
transport them abroad are seasonably discovered. Their
persons are marked, and if they are disposed for a concealed
plot, they may probably fall into the pit they are digging for
others." 3 It was about a week after the Tea-Party that
these secret plans became known to the Committee ; and
that there was good reason to guard against them is evident
from a pledge signed by the members four days after the
appearance of " Detector s "card.
" Voted, That the subscribers do engage to exert our utmost influ
ence to support and vindicate each other, and any person or persons
who may be likely to suffer for any noble efforts they may have
made to save their country, by defeating the operations of the Brit-
1 Letter from Philadelphia, dated Dec. 28, 1773, published in Boston Ga
zette, Jan. 24, 1774.
2 S. Adams to A. Lee, Dec. 31, 1773.
8 Boston Gazette, Dec. 20, 1773.
1773.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 127
ish Parliament, expressly designed to extort a revenue from the
Colonies against their consent.
MR. SAMUEL ADAMS, MR. JOHN PITTS,
MR. ROBERT PIERPONT, MR. OLIVER WENDELL,
DR. THOMAS YOUNG, MR. WILLIAM COOPER,
MR. WILLIAM POWELL, MR. WILLIAM MOLINEUX,
DR. BENJAMIN CHURCH, JOSEPH GREENLEAF,
CAPT. JOHN BRADFORD, MR. NATHAN APPLETON,
MR. JOHN SWEETZER, MR. WILLIAM GREENLEAF."
DEACON BOYNTON,
"BOSTON, Dec. 24, 1773." l
Here was a pledge made among a plain democratic com
mittee of the people, for mutual protection at this perilous
crisis against the most powerful nation in the world, whose
King and Parliament they had defied in the cause of justice
and humanity. Little show as it makes on paper, it takes
us back to dangers incurred by the Revolutionary patriots,
and is affecting from its very simplicity and the circum
stances under which it was signed. On the margin is a
note that it is not to be recorded in the journal as part of
the Committee s proceedings. It is in the handwriting of
Church, who so soon afterwards proved unworthy the trust
reposed in him. The first signer was Robert Pierpont, but
it would seem that the members present desired their mas
ter spirit to appear at the head of the list, for Pierpont s
name is erased, and Samuel Adams s signature takes pre
cedence. This is an apparently trifling, but at the same
time eloquent, testimonial of the all-powerful leadership
which Adams exercised in Boston. This position was re
cognized alike by friends and foes. It resulted from no
effort on his part to reach political ascendency, but his
resolute energy of purpose and undaunted courage, and,
above all, his sound judgment, which pointed him out
naturally as the chief manager in important measures,
these were the ever active agencies which made communi-
1 Journal of the Committee of Correspondence.
128 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec
ties look to him for direction. Edward Everett, who was
intimate, early in the present century, with persons who
had witnessed the career of Samuel Adams, thus refers
in his Lexington oration to this remarkable guiding and
directing power:
" More than most of his associates, he understood the efficacy of
personal intercourse with the people. It was Samuel Adams, more
than any other individual, who brought the question home to their
bosoms and firesides, not by profound disquisitions and elaborate
reports, though these in their place were not spared, but in the
caucus, the club-room, the Green Dragon, in the ship-yards, in ac
tual conference, man to man and heart to heart. He was forty-
three years of age when he came to the House of Representatives.
There he was of course a leader; a member of every important
committee ; the author of many of the ablest and boldest state pa
pers of the time. But the throne of his ascendency was in Faneuil
Hall. As each new measure of arbitrary power was announced
from across the Atlantic, or each new act of menace and violence
on the part of the officers of the government or of the army oc
curred in Boston, its citizens, oftentimes in astonishment and per
plexity, rallied to the sound of his voice in Faneuil Hall ; and there
as from the crowded gallery or the moderator s chair he animated,
enlightened, fortified, and roused the admiring throng, he seemed
to gather them together beneath the aegis of his indomitable spirit,
as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings."
The destruction of the tea was the great crowning act of
the Revolution prior to the commencement of hostilities. It
marks an epoch in the progress of events. There was no
receding from the position now assumed in the system of
opposition, which must henceforth move onward or cease
entirely. The least intimation of a desire to go back, any
faltering or hesitancy, would have been ruin to the cause.
" Samuel Adams," says Hutchinson, " is in his glory," and,
with his resolute friends, prepared to make the most advan
tageous use of the event. A writer who lived in the last
century, and was personally cognizant of the spirit of the
1773.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 129
Revolution, says of this great landmark in American His
tory :
"It was the general opinion among reflecting politicians after
this event, and of all who had been careful to watch the temper of
the British Ministry, that an open rupture must speedily follow,
that measures of vengeance would be adopted by the advisers of the
King, which would either lead to unconditional subjection or to
independence. Mr. Samuel Adams was among the small number
of those who looked forward with confidence to the latter. His
influence among his countrymen was deservedly great, and his
exertions to inspire his own confidence in others were still greater.
Many of those who had been the foremost and most zealous in
espousing the cause of the people against the usurpations of the
Court and Parliament of Great Britain were now gloomy and
despondent at the prospect before them. They had neither a wish
for independence in its sense of separation, nor the smallest hope
of success in the struggle which they knew was preparing for them.
They desired no more than the peaceful enjoyment of the liberties
allowed to them by the British Constitution, and secured to them
by the Colonial charters. For this they had been ready at all times
to speak, to write, and to act." 1
In South Carolina, the tea, which arrived on the 2d of
December, was forbidden to be sold, and was left to rot in
the cellars where it was stored, the consignees having been
persuaded by the people to resign. In Philadelphia, on the
27th, as George Clvmer and Thomas Mifflin wrote to Sam
uel Adams, the cjIMignee who arrived with the detested
cargo resigned at^BB instance of a meeting of five thou
sand people, and t^fccaptain agreed to sail the next day for
England. The Boswi Committee kept up its correspond
ence with the other B^ew England Colonies, and with New
York and Pennsylvania, and a general feeling of harmony
existed. 2 The desire for a Congress of the several American
States had grown into a recognized sentiment, which was
1 Paul Allen s American [Revolution, I. 170, 171.
8 Bancroft, VI. 489.
VOL. II. 9
130 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec., 1773.
shortly to knit the Colonies more firmly together. The news
was meantime on. the wing to England, where it excited no
less astonishment than among the Loyalists in America, and
was made the groundwork for retaliatory measures, at the
meeting of Parliament in March following.
CHAPTER XXIX.
Meeting of the General Court. Adams holds the Public Good to be above
all other Considerations. He directs the Proceedings of the Assembly.
Impeachment of the Chief Justice. The Fifth of March. Hancock s Ora
tion. News of the Tea-Party reaches England. Proceedings of Parlia
ment. Eloquence of Edmund Burke. Passage of the Boston Port Act.
Franklin advises Massachusetts to pay for the Tea. Adams to be ar
rested as "the Chief of the Revolution." Massachusetts, by the Pen of
Adams, sends her Last Instructions to Franklin. Adams predicts a
Mighty American Empire, and the eventual Decline of England. Some
of the Leading Characters of Boston. News of the late Acts of Parlia
ment received in Boston. Convention of Committees of Correspondence.
They scorn to pay for the Tea. Adams prepares a Circular Letter to
the Committees of other Colonies, asking for a Concert of Action. Mag
ical Effect of this Appeal throughout America.
THE Massachusetts Assembly stood prorogued to the 20th
of January, " to about five weeks after this riot," as
Hutchinson states. He found it prudent, however, to fur
ther prorogue them to the 26th. To avoid an undesirable
answer, 1 he took no notice in his opening speech of the late
transactions, and to the general business of the session added
only his instructions to signify the King s disapprobation of
the Committees of Correspondence sitting and acting during
the recess of the Court. 2 The House, by the pen of Samuel
Adams, replied in defence of the Committees and their meas
ures.
" We cannot," he says, " omit saying, upon this occasion, that
while the common rights of the American subjects continue to be
attacked in various instances, and at times when the several Assem
blies are not sitting, it is highly necessary that they should corres
pond with each other, in order to unite in the most effectual means
for the obtaining a redress of their grievances. And, as the sitting
1 Hutchinson s History, III. 441. 8 Bradford s State Papers, p. 410.
132 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
of the General Assemblies in this and most of the Colonies depends
upon the pleasure of the Governors, who hold themselves under the
direction of administration, it is to be expected that the meeting of
the Assemblies will be so ordered as that the intention proposed by
correspondence between them will be impracticable, but by commit
tees to sit and act in the recess. We would moreover observe that,
as it has been the practice for years past for the Governor and Lieu-
tenant-Governor of this Province, and other officers of the Crown,
at all times to correspond with ministers of state and persons of in
fluence and distinction in the nation, in order to concert and carry
on such measures of the British Administration as have been deemed
by the Colonists to be grievous to them, it cannot be thought un
reasonable or improper for the Colonists to correspond with their
agents, as well as with each other, to the end that their grievances
may be so explained to his Majesty as that, in his justice, he may
afford them necessary relief.
In the mean time this House will employ the powers with which
they are intrusted, in supporting his Majesty s just authority in the
Province, according to the royal charter, and in despatching such
public business as now properly lies before us. And while we pur
sue such measures as tend, by God s blessing, to the redress of griev
ances and to the restoration and establishment of the public liberty,
we persuade ourselves that we shall at the same time, as far as in
us lies, most effectually secure the tranquillity and good order of
the government and the great end for which it was instituted,
the safety and welfare of the people." *
The general principle, founded upon the natural rights of
man, that " the welfare and safety of the people " were par
amount to all other considerations, was a democratic theory
often advanced by Samuel Adams during the pre-Revolu-
tionary controversies. " The good of the people " was of
the first consideration. The doctrines of Locke, Montes
quieu, and other great political writers, were his guides.
Governments were founded in equal rights ; and laws were
only to be regarded as such, when constituted by public ap-
1 Bradford s State Papers, pp. 411, 412.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 133
probation as a foundation of government. He never ceased
to enunciate this as the basis of all freedom, and through the
press and by legislative documents pointed out the blindness
and ignominy of submitting to the tyranny of Parliament,
because its advocates could produce specious reasons, sup
ported by precedent and law. It could doubtless have been
argued by the crown lawyers, that casting the tea overboard
was " against law " as laid down in the books ; but had the
patriots applied to those authorities before acting, when only*
energy and determination could save the country, the ad
vance of the Revolution would have been slow indeed. A
month before the first steps were taken towards preventing
the landing of the tea, Hutchinson had written :
" The leaders here have reason to acknowledge that their cause
is not to be defended on constitutional principles, and Adams now
gives out that there is no need of it ; they are upon better ground ;
all men have a natural right to change a bad constitution for a bet
ter whenever they have it in their power." l
In the message of the House, sent August 1, 1770, Sam
uel Adams says : " Whenever a dispute has arisen within
the realm between the Crown and the two Houses of Parlia
ment, or either of them, was it ever imagined that the King
in his Privy Council had authority to decide it ? However,
there is a test, a standard, common to all ; we mean the
public good." 2 And the Governor, in a private letter to the
Earl of Dartmouth, informs him that a principle had been
avowed by Samuel Adams and those attached to him, that
" the public good was above all other considerations." 3
This opinion was not, however, by any means to be con
strued into a defiance of all law. No act of tyranny but
can be plausibly defended by an array of law quotations,
which, if strictly regarded, would effectually bar any at-
1 Hutchinson to Col. Williams, Oct. 7, 1773.
2 Bradford s State Papers, p. 241. See, ante, I. 349.
8 Hutchinson to Dartmouth, Oct. 9, 1773. This sentiment is also exp
in the Report to the Town, March 23, 1773. See, ante, II. 53.
134 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
tempts at redress. Adams saw plainly through these legal
subterfuges, and brushed them contemptuously aside, when
ever the law was distorted to defend a wicked system for the
destruction of his country. To be binding and effective, the
law, in his estimation, should strictly conform to the require
ments of the Constitution and the rights sacredly guaranteed
by the Colonial charters. Upon that platform, no man more
carefully studied the measures for the preservation of the
popular liberties ; none advanced with more deliberate cau
tion and readiness to uphold these acts, by pointing to the
law and charter in support of them. Thus law was his
guide as long as it did not violate the Constitution. When
that instrument was trodden under foot, he fell back upon
the original rights of the people, as superior to all other
considerations.
One of the first questions in the present session related to
the settlement of salaries by the King upon the judges.
Three or four of these officers, having been publicly called
upon, refused to accept the royal salaries ; but Oliver, the
Chief Justice, held out, and the House commenced proceed
ings against him. A vote was taken on the llth of February
for his removal, and the " Committee to consider the State
of the Province " recommended the passage of an order for
the adjournment of the Superior Court (which was to meet
on the following day) to a further time. On the 24th, the
House voted to impeach the Chief Justice before the Council ;
and the Governor was waited upon by a committee with
Samuel Adams at its head, 1 desiring him to be in the chair
on that occasion. His Excellency replied that he " knew
of no crimes or misdemeanors, nor any offences whatever,
which were not cognizable before some judicatory or other
in the Province " ; and refused to assume authority to pro
ceed with the impeachment. The House, on receiving this
answer, decided to make no immediate reply, but pushed
1 Journal of the House for February, 1774. This measure was advised by
John Adams, and the articles of impeachment exist in his handwriting.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 135
forward the impeachment, which Hutchinson thus de
scribes :
" Without taking any notice of this message, they resolved to
proceed. Mr. Adams, chairman of the committee, addressed the
Council in this form: May it please your Excellency and the
Honorable Council, Mr. Bowdoin, one of the Council, no doubt
by concert, observed to him that the Governor was not in Council.
This gave opportunity for an answer. The Governor is presumed
to be present. This was certainly a very idle presumption. It gave
pretence, however, for Mr. Adams to report to the House, and
being Clerk of the House, afterwards to enter upon the journals
that the committee had impeached the Chief Justice before the
Governor and Council, and prayed that they would assign a time
for hearing and determining thereon." l
Samuel Adams appears, by the journals, to have been the
leader in this bold proceeding. His name heads every com
mittee in connection with it. The draft of the message on
the Governor s reply, and the resolutions explaining why the
House would not now make a grant to the Chief Justice,
were all reported by him, 2 and he was the mouth-piece of
nearly every important committee to the end of the Legis
lature. Several of the state papers of the session, embody
ing leading principles, are extant in his autograph. One
of these was in answer to the Governor s reply to the House,
requesting him to be present at Oliver s impeachment. It
is noticed by Hutchinson, in his History, as " framed princi
pally for introducing several fleers, marked by inverted
commas, at parts of the Governor s speeches at former ses
sions " ; and, he adds, " It would be difficult to meet with
stronger marks of envy, malignity, and a revengeful spirit,
than appear in this composition." 3
Unfolding the time-stained document, which had thus
excited the Governor s ire, and which, with its corrections
and erasures, remains just as it came from the pen of Adams,
1 Hutchinson s History, III. 446. 3 Journal of the House for 1774.
8 Hutchinson s History, III. 449, 450.
136 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb., March,
we are able to compare its spirit with the historian s descrip
tion. The Governor had denied that any high crime or mis
demeanor could be committed that was not recognizable by
some court, and declared that neither he nor the Council had
the right to try offenders against the law without- authority
granted by the charter, thus annulling the whole proceed
ing. The Council had requested the Governor to have
the subject considered by the Board, but he had taken no
notice of the application, and that body could not proceed
without him. The answer holds that the charter places with
the Governor the sole power of appointing judges and other
civil officers ; and though no power of removal was ex
pressed in the instrument, yet such power was necessarily
therein implied, and the greatest evils and inconsistencies
would arise from the want of it.
"From the very nature of our Constitution," so the paper reads,
" there must be somewhere a supreme court who have cognizance
of the crimes and misdemeanors of high officers, so far, at least, as
is necessary for their removal. This supreme court we take to be
the Governor and Council, and to this court are to be presented all
complaints touching the misdemeanors of judges.
" And as it never was supposed in England that the dignity of
the King was affected by any charges against his officers, we cannot
conceive why it should be here ; for though it is a maxim that the
King can do no wrong, yet, by the misrepresentations of his officers,
much wrong hath been, and may again be, brought to pass. If any
person may by his conduct break through the Constitution of the
Province, grounded on the charter and confirmed by constant usage,
and promote and establish a different Constitution and practice, con
trary to the charter in any one instance, without being liable to be
called to account by any judicatory here, merely because the royal
assent to such construction hath been procured, we do not know
where such practices will stop ; and we fear that by degrees, with
out our ever having an opportunity of being heard, one innovation
after another will be forced upon us, until there will be not only
* an abridgment of what are called English liberties/ but a total sub-
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 137
version of the Constitution. We assure ourselves that were the
nature of our grievances fully understood by our Sovereign, we
should soon have reason to rejoice in the redress of them. But, if
we must still be exposed to the continual false representations of
persons who get themselves advanced to places of honor and profit
by means of such false representations, and, when we complain, we
cannot even be heard, we have yet the pleasure of contemplating
that posterity, for whom we are now struggling, will do us justice
by abhorring the memory of those men who owe their greatness to
their country s ruin. " l
Though no action was had upon the articles of impeach
ment, they were printed, and had their effect upon the peo
ple. The Governor saw that the danger of " revolt " was.
daily increasing, and he resolved to put an end to the ses
sion. He therefore sent his Secretary with a message to
both Houses for that purpose. While it was read in Coun
cil the House heard of the approaching document, and,
seeing that no time was to be lost, closed the doors, re
fused the Secretary admission, and then proceeded with the
requisite business. An effort had been already made to ob
tain the Governor s consent to a bill for the payment of
Franklin and Lee, the agents in London ; and Samuel Ad
ams, chairman of a committee for that purpose, had reported
to the House a remonstrance against Hutchinson s action.
The last act of the session, while the door was still kept fast,
was to direct the Committee of Correspondence to write to
Franklin on the public grievances, the last appeal of Mas
sachusetts directly or indirectly for redress. This accom
plished, the doors were thrown open, the Secretary admitted,
and the Assembly prorogued on the 8th of March.
The Committee had as usual arranged for the anniversary
of the Massacre, and John Hancock was this year the orator,
Samuel Adams having been one of the committee appointed
on the last occasion to select a suitable person. The town
assembled at Faneuil Hall at ten o clock in the forenoon, on
1 From the original draft by S. Adams.
138 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
the 5th, where Samuel Adams was chosen Moderator " by a
written vote," whence they adjourned to the Old South
Meeting-house, probably owing to " the prodigious crowd," 1
which the " Cradle of Liberty " could not contain. The
meeting opened at the church with some introductory re
marks from Adams, when the oration, which was received
" with universal applause," was delivered, this being Han
cock s first public address. That it was pronounced effect
ively and with oratorical skill, is evident from the effect
upon the audience, which John Adams records on the same
day. Hancock was a graceful, easy speaker, self-possessed
and dignified in action, and thoroughly understood an au
dience of his native townsmen. It was known among a
few that Samuel Adams composed nearly the whole of this
oration for his friend. A letter asserting this as a fact, writ
ten in 1787, by one who personally knew both Adams and
Hancock, was in existence a few years since, but has been
lost. Mrs. Hannah Wells has repeatedly stated that she
knew the time and place where her father used to meet
Hancock while preparing the speech, but, as a girl, she had
been cautioned not to mention it. Mr. Joseph Allen, a
nephew and special favorite of Adams arid a frequent visitor
at his house, used to say that Hancock was long closeted
with Adams on several occasions, a week or two before the
delivering of the oration. The secret, however, seems to
have leaked out among loyalists as well as patriots. After
Dr. Warren s oration on the same subject, in the following
year, a number of British officers and Tories assembled for
the purpose of ridiculing his performance, and shortly after
wards a lampooning oration delivered by Dr; Bolton, on this
occasion, appeared in pamphlet form. In this occurs the
following delectable passage :
" I cannot boast the ignorance of Hancock, the insolence of Adams,
the absurdity of Rowe, the arrogance of Lee, the vicious life and un
timely death of Molineux, the turgid bombast of Warren, the trea-
1 Boston Gazette, March 7, 1774
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 139
sons of Quincy, the hypocrisy of Cooper, nor the principles of Young.
Nor can I with propriety pass over the character of these modern
heroes (or to use their own phrase, Indians), without a few observa
tions on their late conduct The first of these chiefs is Ad
ams, a Sachem of vast elocution ; but, being extremely poor, retails
out syllables, sentences, and eulogiums to draw in the multitude ;
and it can be attested that what proceeds from the mouth of Adams
is sufficient to fill the mouths of millions in America. But it is
prophesied that the time is near at hand when their frothy food will
fail them. 1
" But generous John scorns to let him starve ; far from it ;
t is well known his purse strings have been at Sam s disposal ever
since he assisted in making the oration delivered by John, on the
5th of March, 1774, to a crowded audience of Narragansett In
dians." 2
Another of these pamphlet publications of a series of let
ters, printed in 1774, is filled with the most scurrilous allu
sions to the principal leaders, who are termed the " rebellious
herd of calves, asses, knaves, and fools which compose the
faction."
" The saints," it says, " professing loyalty and godliness at Bos
ton, send us, by every vessel from their port, accumulated proofs of
their treasons and rebellions. That mighty wise patriot, Mr. John
Hancock, from the Old South Meeting-house has lately repeated a
hash of abusive treasonable stuff, composed for him by the joint ef
forts of the Rev. Divine Samuel Cooper, that Rose of Sharon, and
the very honest Samuel Adams, Clerk," etc. 8
Adams or Cooper, or both, may have composed the ora
tion, but that the performance was not the work of Hancock
cannot be doubted after a perusal of any of his letters of this
date. No state paper or public document is known to have
1 This hint alludes to the special order, which had then been issued by the
Ministry for the seizure of Samuel Adams, who was specially designated as an
object of vengeance.
2 An Oration delivered March 15, 1775, at the Eequest of a Number of the
Inhabitants of the Town of Boston, by Dr. Bolton.
8 Extract printed in Drake s History of Boston, p. 720.
140 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
been his production, and none have been found in his hand
writing. John Adams says in his Diary, after hearing the
oration, " The composition, the pronunciation, the action,
all exceeded the expectations of everybody. They exceeded
even mine, which were very considerable." 1
The speaker, standing in the sacred desk, engaged the
attention of the great assemblage in a well-chosen exor
dium, explained his sincere attachment to the interest of
his country and his hearty detestation of every design
formed against her liberties. In closing, he pointed out
Samuel Adams who, as Moderator, was in full view, and
" the vast multitude seemed to promise that in all succeed
ing times the great patriot s name and the roll of fellow-
patriots should grace the annals of history. " 2 Christopher
Monk, who had been dreadfully wounded in the Massacre,
was present, and, as the meeting broke up, " a very gener
ous collection " was taken up for the cripple, " a shocking
monument of that horrid transaction." A committee, with
Samuel Adams at their head, were appointed to wait on the
orator with the thanks of the town for his elegant and spir
ited oration, and also to request a copy of it for the press,
and " the thanks of the town were unanimously voted to
Adams for his good services as Moderator." The Gazette
adds, " As this anniversary happened on Saturday, the even
ing of which is considered by many persons as the com
mencement of the Sabbath, the exhibition of portraits of the
murderers and the slaughtered citizens was put off till this
[Monday] evening, when they will be exposed to public
view at Mrs. Chapman s in King Street." This exhibition
had been customary on each anniversary of the Massacre. 3
Shortly after the great fire of 1711, in which much of the
business portion of the city was destroyed, an act passed the
Legislature for the appointment of fire-wards in Boston.
These officers were not to exceed ten in number. They
1 John Adams s Diary, March 5, 1774 (Works, II. 332).
8 Bancroft, VI. 508. 8 Boston Gazette, March 7, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 141
carried a distinguishing badge during a fire, which was a
red staff, five feet in length, headed with a brass spire six
inches long. 1 There are yet living persons who can remem
ber the old fire-wardens and their superintending services at
a conflagration, where they seem to have had the direction
of all work, and could order the blowing up of buildings.
For some years prior to the Revolution these offices were
held by the leading citizens of Boston, whether as a special
mark of honor, or with a view of setting a proper example
to the towns-people generally, does not appear. In March
of this year, John Hancock, Samuel Adams, William Cooper,
and John Scollay were among the fire-wardens. 2 Adams
had served in the same capacity several years before. Very
little of detail has been preserved relative to the method
of extinguishing fires in the olden time. A fire-engine
had been imported into the town in 1676, when a reg
ular company was formed to take charge of it. In 1733,
there were seven fire-engines in Boston, and, in 1765, one
of home manufacture was tried and " found to perform ex
tremely well." 3 The church bells, as in later times, were
rung as a general alarm ; and besides the engines, " bags
and buckets " for passing water appear to have been used,
perhaps by organized companies. The town being built of
wood was constantly liable to destruction, and the utmost
vigilance was necessary. The office of fire-warden was evi
dently considered as demanding great discretion. Adams
found time to serve in other common capacities such as this.
He considered it the duty of every man to show his good
citizenship by filling positions which demanded care and
attention, though entirely unremunerative, and that the
more prominent the citizen, the more incumbent it was for
him to set a proper example.
Parliament was in session when the news of the destruc
tion of the tea arrived in London. It was at a time when
1 Drake s History of Boston, p. 542. 3 Boston Gazette, March 21, 1774.
8 Drake s History of Boston, p. 691.
142 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
the national spirit and pride of the English people had been
aroused by what was supposed to be a defiance from a de
pendent state. The Ministry were fully prepared for any
measures of coercion. On the 7th of March, the proceedings
at Boston were communicated in an address from the Throne
to both Houses, in which the Americans were accused of
attempting to injure the commerce of Great Britain, and to
subvert its Constitution. The message was accompanied with
a number of papers, containing copies and extracts of letters
from the several royal Governors, showing that the opposi
tion proceeded not from Boston alone, but was common to
all the Colonies. Disregarding constitutional forms, which
forbid that any should be condemned unheard, a bill was
introduced on the 18th, after some debate, for suspending
the trade, and closing the harbor of Boston during the
pleasure of the King, excluding it from the privilege of
landing and discharging, or of loading and shipping goods,
wares, and merchandise.
During the discussion, which extended through the month
of March, Edmund Burke, Barre*, Pownall, Rose Fuller,
Byng, and others of lesser note, defended the Colonists, and
opposed the bill with all the eloquence of genius inspired by
a love of justice and a prophetic foresight of the conse
quences of driving their injured fellow-subjects to despera
tion ; but the policy which for ten years had been recklessly
pursued, with but slight deviations from changes of Min
istry, was not to be turned aside even by the most magnifi
cent eloquence and reasoning of Burke. The blow must
be dealt where the measures of resistance had originated,
and whence it was supposed the example would strike terror
into the rest of the continent without making the punish
ment more extensive ; and on the 29th the bill passed the
House of Lords unanimously. Three weeks later the debate
on American affairs was renewed on the question of repeal
ing the tax on tea, when Burke electrified the Parliament
with the greatest speech that had ever been heard. Even
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 143
that slight concession might have opened the path to concil
iation, but it was not to be. The bill was defeated by a
great majority. The duration of the Port Act was to depend
on the conduct of the Bostonians, and would be relaxed
whenever they should make compensation for the tea and
otherwise satisfy the King of their willingness to submit.
Franklin had meantime written a letter to Gushing, Samuel
Adams, Hancock, and Phillips, the four Boston Representa
tives, with the view to conciliation, advising that compensa
tion should be made to the East India Company before any
compulsive measures were thought of. 1 But the advice,
even had there been a disposition to act upon it, came too
late.
The same Parliament, proceeding with its policy of crush
ing the Colonists into abject obedience, passed a bill in April
" for the better regulating the government of Massachusetts
Bay." This act so changed the Constitution of the Province
as to wrest the whole executive power from the House of
Representatives, making the Council elective by the Crown.
Judicial officers were to be appointed or removed by the
royal Governor ; juries, instead of being chosen among the
people, were to be nominated and summoned by the sheriffs ;
town meetings could only be convoked by the Governor, and
nothing discussed at them beyond the topics specified by
him. On comparing these measures with the repeated and
urgent suggestions in the letters of Hutchinson to persons
in authority in England, it becomes evident that they were
adopted at his solicitation ; and to him attaches the chief
1 Bancroft, VI. 500,501.
There is a story which seems to be well authenticated, that the well-known
Whig, Colonel Bromfield, while visiting Samuel Adams, was shown a letter
from Franklin, in which the advice was given to pay for the tea to avoid precip
itating events. Among other remarks on this subject, Adams said, in conclu
sion : " Franklin may be a good philosopher, but he is a bungling politician."
The fact was narrated by a nephew of Samuel Adams, Mr. Joseph Allen of
Worcester, who had it many years since from Colonel Bromfield in person.
The letter was probably that above referred to.
144 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
responsibility of producing the alienation of the Colonies
from the mother country. His letters were, to a great
extent, the basis upon which the fatal measures of govern
ment were founded. Arthur Lee had already written to
Samuel Adams from London :
" The present time is extremely critical with respect to the meas
ures which this country will adopt relative to America. From the
prevailing temper here, I think you ought to be prepared for the
worst. It seems highly probable that an act of Parliament will
pass this session, enabling his Majesty to appoint his Council in your
Province. On Tuesday last the Earl of Buckinghamshire made a
motion in the House of Lords for an address to the King, to lay
before them the communications from Governor Hutchinson to the
Secretary of State. He prefaced his motion with declaring that
these papers were to be required merely out of form ; for that the
insolent and outrageous conduct of that Province were so notorious,
that the House might well proceed to punishment, without any fur
ther information or inquiry." *
With the belief that these measures could not be carried
into execution without riots, a bill was passed for the impar
tial administration of justice, in the cases of persons ques
tioned " for any acts done by them in the execution of the
law, or for the suppression of riots and tumults in Massa
chusetts Bay." In case any person was indicted in Massa
chusetts for murder or any other capital offence, and it
should appear to the Governor that the fact was committed
in the exercise or aid of magistracy, in suppressing tumults
and riots, and that a fair trial could not be had in the Prov
ince, he should send the person so indicted to any other
Colony or to Great Britain for trial, and special instructions
were sent for the arrest at a proper and convenient time of
Samuel Adams, above all others, as " the Chief of the Revo
lution." 2 At the same time, the government of the Province
was withdrawn from Hutchinson, and General Thomas Gage,
1 A. Lee to S. Adams, Feb. 8, 1774. 2 Bancroft^ VI. 523.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 145
late Commander-in-Chief of his Majesty s forces in America,
was appointed in his stead, and ordered to repair to Boston
and assume his post, while the military force was to be in
creased. Thus was the cup of bitterness filled to the brim,
and the people of the Colonies driven into an indissoluble
union for the common defence.
While this memorable Parliament were perfecting their
measures, the Legislature was prorogued in Massachusetts,
and, as usual, the Committee of Correspondence continued
to act in open defiance of the King s disapprobation. The
Province, in fact, was virtually under the control of this
democratic body of Provincial statesmen. Hutchinson s au
thority, as he admits, was little more than nominal. " All
legislative as well as executive authority," he says, "was
gone." l The last act of the late Assembly had been to di
rect their Committee of Correspondence to " transmit letters
to the other Colonies and to Dr. Franklin on the subject of
the Chief Justice receiving his salary from the Crown, the
enormous extent of the powers of the Admiralty in America,
and other matters which they should judge important to be
communicated." Among the Adams papers remains his
draft of a letter to the other Legislatures, in pursuance of
this vote. After touching upon other matters, and deplor
ing " the total silence of the sister Colonies " upon the sub
ject of Parliamentary authority, he proceeds :
" We have long been struggling with one grievance upon the back
of another, but none seem to be so threatening to us and to all the
Colonies as an attempt to render our Governor and the judges of
the land independent of the people for their support. This appears
to us to be the completion of the system of tyranny : for certainly
that people must be slaves where another legislative claims and ex
ercises the power of raising what moneys it pleases from them, and
supporting an executive which is independent of them for their
places or their continuation in office, out of the moneys thus taken
from them without their consent. We cannot better convey to you
1 Hutchinson s History, III. 455.
VOL. II. 10
146 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
the sentiments of the House of Representatives of this Province
upon this subject, than by enclosing their protest and resolves
thereon. The House have lately petitioned for a removal of this
grievance in special ; but we have certain intelligence that their
petitions are displeasing to his Majesty, because the principle is
therein held up repugnant to the authority claimed by Parliament
to make laws binding on the subject in America in all cases whatso
ever. The power assumed and exercised by the British Parliament
is, in truth, the foundation of the grievance. We have petitioned
against it ; and if we admit that they have this right, we have no
ground of complaint." l
On the 28th, Adams, for a committee consisting of himself
as chairman, and Hancock, Phillips, and Heath, prepared a
long and explicit letter to Franklin in the name of Massa
chusetts, sending " her last instructions " 2 to her agent in
England. Enclosing the proceedings of the two Houses of
Assembly for Franklin s fuller information, Adams takes a
comprehensive review of the position of Britain and Amer
ica, relatively to each other. The taxation acts, the illegal
support of the judges, the refusal of the King to hear the
petitions of Massachusetts, the independency of the Gov
ernor, the prejudices of the Ministry, and the consequent
increase of angry feeling, are all clearly set forth, and the
plainest deductions drawn from them.
" It will be vain," continues Adams, " for any to expect that the
people of this country will now be contented with a partial and tem
porary relief, or that they will be amused by Court promises, while
they see not the least relaxation of grievances. By the vigilance
and activity of committees of correspondence among the several
towns in this Province, they have been wonderfully enlightened and
animated. They are united in sentiment, and their opposition to
unconstitutional measures of government is become systematical.
Colony communicates freely with Colony. There is a common affec
tion among them, the communis sensus ; and the whole continent
1 Letter to the other Colonies by S. Adams. The draft is dated " Boston,
March, 1774.
2 Bancroft, VI. 508.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 147
A
is now become united in sentiment and in opposition to tyranny.
Their old good will and affection for the parent country is not, how
ever, lost. If she returns to her former moderation and good hu
mor, their affection will revive. They wish for nothing more than
permanent union wjtjj her, upon the condition of equal liberty. This
islTll they have been contending ibr,~and nothing yliurl iff this will,
or ought to, satisfy them. When formerly the kings of England
have encroached upon the liberties of their subjects, the subjects
have thought it their duty to themselves and their posterity to con
tend with them till they were restored to the footing of the Consti
tution. The events of such struggles have sometimes proved fatal
to crowned heads, perhaps they have never issued but in estab
lishments of the people s liberties.
" In those times it was not thought reasonable to say that, since the
King had claimed such or such a power, the people must yield it to
him, because it would not be for the honor of his Majesty to recede
from his claim. If the people of Britain must needs flatter them
selves that they collectively are the sovereign of America, America
will never consent that they should govern them arbitrarily, or
without known and stipulated rules. But the matter is not so con
sidered here: Britain and the Colonies are considered as distinct
governments under the King. Britain has a Constitution, the envy
of all foreigners, to which it has ever been the safety, as well of
kings as of subjects, steadfastly to adhere. Each Colony has also a
Constitution in its charter or other institution of government, all of
which agree in this, that the fundamental laws of the British Con
stitution shall be the basis. That Constitution by no means admits
of legislation without representation. Why, then, should the Parlia
ment of Britain which, notwithstanding all its ideas of transcendent
power, must forever be circumscribed within the limits of that
Constitution, insist upon the right of legislation for the people of
America, without their having representation there ? It cannot be
justified by their own Constitution. The laws of nature and reason
abhor it ; yet, because she has claimed such a power, her honor truly
is concerned still to assert and exercise it, and she may not recede.
Will such kind of reasoning bear the test of examination ? Or,
rather, will it not be an eternal disgrace to any nation, which con
siders her honor concerned, to employ fleets and armies for the
support of a claim which she cannot in reason defend, merely be-
148 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
cause she has once in anger made such a claim ? It is the misfor
tune of Britain and the Colonies that flagitious men on both sides
the water have made it their interest to foment divisions, jealousies,
and animosities between them, which perhaps will never subside
until the extent of power and right on each part is more explicitly
stipulated than has ever yet been thought necessary ; and, although
such a stipulation should prove a lasting advantage on each side, yet
considering that the views and designs of those men were to do infi
nite mischief, and to establish a tyranny upon the ruins of a free
Constitution, they deserve the vengeance of the public, and until the
memory of them shall be erased by time, they will most assuredly
meet with the execrations of posterity." *
The letter then takes up the subject of the agent s salaries.
The Governor s refusal to accede to them is considered
insulting, as his action was grounded upon the hope that
gentlemen in England, whose talents might be engaged for
the Colonies under ordinary circumstances, would be dis
couraged from further serving them when persistently denied
their just compensation. But this letter was written when
the mad policy of trampling America under the armed heel
of violence had already been decided upon in Parliament.
The instructions to Franklin to make one more appeal for
redress, and the news of the final fatal determination of the
Ministry must have passed each other on the ocean. Almost
at the same time that Burke with words like " burning ora
cles " was astonishing the nation with his wondrous elo
quence in defence of the Colonies, and Lord Mansfield was
1 The original by Samuel Adams is dated March 28, 1774. The copy in
possession of Dr. A. L. Elwyn of Philadelphia, and published in the Collec
tions of the Seventy-Six Society, is dated March 31. The fair copy differs in
some slight particulars from the original.
Franklin served as agent of Massachusetts from the commencement of 1771
until near the close of the royal authority in the Province. The journals
indicate that a number of official letters were written to him by the Assembly.
Samuel Adams was on the committee for preparing nearly every one. The
drafts of these are found among his papers, including the first and last, and
also the draft of a letter from the town of Boston to Franklin before the latter
was appointed agent, written in July, 1770.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 149
urging that now " the sword is drawn, you must throw away
the scabbard," Samuel Adams was depicting to his friend,
Arthur Lee, in England, with the spirit of prophecy, the
inevitable result. He foresaw the entire ruin of the liberties
of America by the " lifting the whole power of the govern
ment from the hands in which the Constitution had placed it,
into the hands of the King s ministers and their dependents."
" This," said he, " is, in a great measure, the case already ; and
the consequences will be angry debates in our senate and perpetual
tumult and confusions abroad, until these maxims are entirely
altered, or else, which God forbid, the spirits of the people are de
pressed, and they become inured to disgrace and servitude. This
has long been the prospect in the minds of speculative men. The
body of the people are now in council. Their opposition grows into
a system. They are united and resolute. And if the British admin
istration and government do not return to the principles of modera
tion and equity, the evil which they profess to aim at preventing,
by their rigorous measures, will the sooner be brought to pass,
viz. the entire separation and independence of the Colonies^
"Even imaginary power beyond right begets insolence. The
people here, I am apt to think, will be satisfied on no other terms
but those of redress, and they will hardly think they are upon equi
table terms with the mother country, while, by a solemn act, she con
tinues to claim a right to enslave them whenever she shall think fit
to exercise it. I wish for a permanent union with the mother coun
try, but only on the terms of liberty and truth. No advantage that
can accrue to America from such an union can compensate for the
loss of liberty. The time may come, sooner than they are aware of
it, when the being of the British nation, I mean the being of its im
portance, however strange it may now appear to some, will depend
on the union with America. It requires but a small portion of the
gift of discernment for any to foresee that Providence will erect a
1 Justice to the Colonies is here made the alternative. Yet Hutchinson, in
a letter to Lord Dartmouth (July 10, 1773), says of the General Court then
lately prorogued, " There are some who are ready to go all the lengths of the
Chief Incendiary, who is determined, he says, to get rid of every governor who
obstructs them in their course to independency."
150 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
mighty empire in America, and our posterity will have it recorded
in history that their fathers migrated from an island in a distant
part of the world, the inhabitants of which had long been revered
for wisdom and valor. They grew rich and powerful ; these emi
grants increased in numbers and strength. But they were at last
absorbed in luxury and dissipation ; and, to support themselves in
their vanity and extravagance, they coveted and seized the honest
earnings of those industrious emigrants. This laid a foundation of
distrust, animosity, and hatred, till the emigrants, feeling their own
vigor and independence, dissolved every former band of connection
between them, and the islanders sunk into obscurity and contempt." 1
A part of the prophecy was verified in two years. The
time for that " entire separation and independence of the Col
onies " was at hand. It was the one aim of Adams, and he
pursued it as the progress of events dictated and prudence
seemed to warrant. The character of Samuel Adams pre
sents itself at this epoch with increasing lustre-. His wisdom
and firmness appear in every important public act. " He
had," says a distinguished divine, " the eyes of Argus, and
as many hands as Briar ens, and in each hand a pen." He
was the centre around which the system revolved. Love for
liberty truly pervaded the people, but all looked for guid
ance to Samuel Adams. Among the thousands whose hearts
beat with generous enthusiasm for the great principles of
human freedom, he stood forth conspicuous for sagacity,
foresight, and that never-wearying industry which saw in
great acts already accomplished only incentives for still fur
ther efforts. Nothing could for a moment distract his at
tention from the cause. No sophistry could deceive his
discernment, no threats or impending dangers could appall
him. He seemed to penetrate intuitively the designs of the
Ministry and their agents in America.
With him, hand in hand, went the young and enthusiastic
Joseph Warren, a noble, manly character, whose public ser
vices grow in importance as they are studied. In him was
1 Samuel Adams to Arthur Lee, April 4, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 151
combined the impetuous ardor of youth with the coolness
and wisdom of riper years. At once a powerful orator and
an eloquent, logical writer, his influence was widely felt and
acknowledged. He was the principal member of the Com
mittee of Correspondence after Samuel Adams, and the two
had no separate purposes in public measures. John Adams
was about to quit the retirement of private life, and enter
upon a field of action which was to lead on to the highest
position in the gift of his countrymen, his career culminat
ing with the close of the century. As yet, however, he
remained practically but a spectator of the great events
happening around him. John Hancock, heart and soul in
the cause of his country, was ready to devote his all to her
welfare, and aided with his great fortune to consummate the
policy marked out by others. The Loyalists, in their letters,
had represented the " faction " as composed of a few ambi
tious adventurers without property, and unsupported by
people of consideration in the Province. As the wealthiest
man in Boston, it was essential that he should be associated
with all public measures, and his name frequently appears
as the moderator of town meetings and on committees for
preparing important papers. Generous, impulsive, and sin
cere in his support, he had the hearts of the people, and was
yet to take the most prominent, position in America in the
glorious assertion of her liberties. Thomas Gushing, as
Speaker of the House, had acquired in England a repu
tation for influence which, for a while, made him a spe
cial object of vengeance. But Gushing was a leader only
in name. He possessed few of those popular qualities
which enabled two or three others to guide and direct.
His desire for a reconciliation, based upon his sincere love
of country, prompted him to hold back from vigorous meas
ures, and he sometimes feebly advised forbearance when
delay would have been total ruin. His was not a character
for decisive action ; he possessed, more than any other man
of his time, the art of obtaining information, to which may
152 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
be attributed his occasional interviews with Hutchinson,
which the Governor repeatedly mentions in his letters to
England. James Warren of Plymouth, Robert Treat Paine,
and Joseph Hawley lived at some distance from Boston,
and, except during the sessions of the Legislature, were gen
erally absent from its scenes. James Bowdoiii seems to
have figured but slightly in any public events outside the
Council, where his character, learning, and literary abilities
stamped him as the leader. William Molineux, who died in
October of this year, had for some time been recognized as
an impetuous, fearless citizen, whose influence was espe
cially exerted among the working-people, whom he could
always command by his energetic style of harangue and his
readiness to head any active movement. Josiah Quincy,
next to Joseph Warren, was perhaps the closest friend and
confidant of Samuel Adams, who sincerely admired his tal
ents as a writer and speaker. After these, the most promi
nent actors at this time in Boston were Dr. Thomas Young,
Oliver Wendell, William Cooper (the Town Clerk), Paul
Revere, Nathaniel Barker, Dr. Benjamin Church, Jonathan
Williams, Benjamin Kent, John Scollay, John Pitts, Rich
ard Dana, John Rowe, Samuel Pemberton, John Ruddock,
Gibbons Sharpe, William Phillips, Robert Pierpont, William
Powell, and others of less note, whose actions were depend
ent generally upon the directions of the principal leaders.
For several years previous to the Revolution these names
appear as members of committees on great occasions where
judgment and decision were demanded. An examination
of the Town Records and the Journals of the Committee of
Correspondence reveals the name of Samuel Adams almost
always at the head of such committees from 1769 forward ;
and in the Assembly, the same general assent seems to have
been accorded him as chairman of committees for preparing
state papers.
To these should be added the ministers of Boston,
nearly all Congregationalists. With scarcely an exception
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 153
they urged, by example as well as precept, those principles
of liberty and natural justice which formed the political
creed of Boston. Since the death of Jonathan Mayhew, in
1766, Dr. Samuel Cooper had become the great theological
luminary of Boston. His discourses were remarkable for
their fervid patriotism and eloquence. Liberty as well as
religion was his theme, and no man in New England was
more thoroughly versed in the great political questions of
the day. He corresponded at a later period with Franklin,
and was intimate with every Massachusetts statesman. His
views were broad, liberal, and humane, and his learning and
acquaintance with several branches of science, as well as his
refined taste, caused his company to be much sought after
in social circles. On extraordinary occasions, when public
meetings were to be opened with prayer, Dr. Cooper was
generally desired to officiate. Dr. Charles Chauncy, who
was a near friend of Samuel Adams, was no less ardently
devoted to the civil and religious liberty of his country. He
was a plain, unpretending preacher, sincere and outspoken,
and often extravagant, but all knew him to be the honest
friend of virtue. Each congregation in Boston listened
weekly to the precepts of patriot ministers, who fearlessly
announced and defended human rights, as transmitted to
them by their ancestors. With these teachers, the people
of Boston grew to be the champions of liberty for the world,
and, led by Samuel Adams, were willing, if need be, to offer
themselves a sacrifice for the freedom of mankind.
An engraving of Samuel Adams, by Paul Revere, appeared
in the April number of the Royal American Magazine this
year, evidently taken from the Copley painting, then in John
Hancock s house. It is a rough specimen of the art, and
has but a slight trace of the majestic character contained in
the work of the eminent painter, but the likeness is suffi
ciently preserved to show the determined energy and reso
lute bearing of the original. 1 The patriot engraver and
1 The author is indebted to Samuel G. Drake, Esq., of Boston, for this and
other interesting memorials of Samuel Adams.
154 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
goldsmith always remembered Samuel Adams as the " polit
ical father." Adams engaged his services, whenever it was
possible, for emergencies and confidential business, where
courage and skill were required. He was sometimes admit
ted to the conferences of the Committee of Correspondence,
and usually rode express with the circulars from Boston to
distant places. The committee gave him their fullest confi
dence. He lived to see them all pass to their reward, while
he survived to recount the adventures of a by-gone genera
tion. As soldier, artist, and mechanic, his deeds wrought
into narrative would form volumes of exciting events, asso
ciated with America s greatest characters. 1
During the month of March a riot had occurred in Mar-
blehead, owing to the location of a small-pox hospital there,
which resulted in the burning of the building with all its
furniture. The circumstance was peculiarly mortifying to
the friends of liberty, as it tended to weaken the popular
party and strengthen their enemies. A petition from the
proprietors of the building had been sent to the Assembly,
asking for armed assistance against the mob. Elbridge
Gerry communicated the facts to Samuel Adams, who, as
the biographer of Gerry says, " like the father of the faithful,
guarded with unceasing watchfulness every avenue to dan
ger." Adams did not reply at once, having reason to believe
that " the storm, though it raged with so much violence,
would soon spend itself, and a calm ensue." The subject
was one of peculiar delicacy, and it is not unlikely that the
influence of Adams was exerted in the House to prevent im
mediate action upon the petition. He was unwilling that
the enemy should have it to say that " the friends of liberty
themselves were obliged to have recourse even to military
aid to protect them from the fury of an ungoverned mob."
He believed that the ill-feeling among the people of Marble-
head would soon cease, and the event proved the wisdom of
his advice.
1 See the frontispiece of this volume.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 155
But connected with this affair was a matter which gave
Mr. Adams much more concern than the existence of tempo
rary disturbances. 1 This was a resolution of the Committee
of Correspondence of Marblehead, that they would no longer
serve in that capacity. The consequence of such an act,
emanating from a large and important town, might prove
disastrous by example. The parent Committee at Boston,
therefore, sent a long letter to that of Marblehead, eloquently
depicting the fatal tendencies of their resignation. The style
and language is that of Adams, and his peculiar art of har
monizing differences and appealing to the judgment and
reason of men is apparent throughout. As their town had
not at the late meeting seen cause to fill the vacancies, the
letter begs leave still to address the Committee of Corres
pondence in that character. This had the desired effect.
No further disaffection is mentioned ; and four months after
wards Adams was in correspondence with the Marblehead
Committee, when he acknowledged the receipt of donations
collected by them for the poor of Boston, who were suffering
under the rigors of the Port Act.
The people of Massachusetts were meanwhile preparing
for the approaching crisis. Military companies were organ
ized, and everywhere men were learning the use of firearms
under officers of their own choosing. 2 At the close of the
late session, the Assembly had resolved that the Commissary-
General be directed to purchase five hundred barrels of
gunpowder " for his Majesty s safety in the service of the
Province, and that the said gunpowder be deposited in the
magazines in Boston and Charlestown, to be there kept for
the use of the Province." Political thinkers saw that, un
less the Ministry and Parliament receded from their unjust
claims, an armed contest must ensue.
On the 10th of May, the news arrived in Boston of the
passage of the act of Parliament for closing the harbor, and
that the seat of government was to be transferred to Salem.
1 Austin s Life of Gerry, I. 38-42. 2 Hutchinson, III. 455.
156 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
The Committee of Correspondence immediately convened,
and sent forth by the hand of Joseph Warren a circular to the
committees of the eight neighboring towns for a convention
to be held in Boston on the 12th. The news had reached
the people on their election-day. How that election was
likely to go is foreshadowed in the brief and significant
record found in the journal of the Caucus Club for the
evening of the 7th, when Samuel Adams was Moderator.
"Voted.* Same Representatives as last year."
This was equivalent to an election, for the club was gov
erned by the known wishes of the leading spirits, and its
influence extended far and wide among the people. Of the
five hundred and thirty-six votes cast, Hancock received all,
Adams all but one, Phillips all but two, and Gushing lacked
twelve of a unanimous vote. The town record for this day
says : " The choice of Representatives being over, and de
clared by the selectmen, the inhabitants were directed to
withdraw and bring in their votes for a moderator of this
meeting, in order that the town may proceed in transacting
the other affairs mentioned in the warrant. Accordingly
the inhabitants withdrew and brought in their votes, and,
upon sorting them, it appeared that Mr. Samuel Adams was
chosen." 1 Whether any cognizance was now taken of the
news from England does not appear by the record.
On Thursday, the 12th, at noon, the Boston Committee of
Correspondence again met, and voted " that the selectmen
of the town be desired to call a meeting of the inhabitants
for the following day, to consider the important and inter
esting news lately received from England." A committee-,
consisting of Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, and Joseph
Greenleaf, was chosen to prepare a circular letter to be
sent to the committees of New Hampshire, Rhode Island,
Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania,
acquainting them with the late act of Parliament for block-
1 Boston Town Eecords for May 10, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 157
ading the harbor of Boston and annihilating the trade of the
town. 1
At three o clock on the afternoon of the same day, the
committees from the towns which had been summoned on
the 10th, assembled at Faneuil Hall with the Boston Com
mittee. Charlestown, Cambridge, Newton, Brookline, Rox-
bury, Dorchester, Lynn, and Lexington were represented.
Samuel Adams was chosen chairman of the convention.
Joseph Warren had prepared a report, in which the eight
towns- unanimously agreed upon the injustice and cruelty of
the act. The proceedings were open to the public, and it
was in reality a " town meeting," for on that day, reply
ing to a letter from Elbridge Gerry of the same date, Sam
uel Adams says : " I duly received your excellent letter of
this day while I was in the town meeting. I read it there
to the great satisfaction of my townsmen, in as full a town
meeting as we have ever had." 2 The convention concurred
in the measures proposed by the Boston Committee, includ
ing that of the circular letter ; and to the suggestion that the
trade of the town could be recovered by paying for the tea,
resolved that it was unworthy even to notice the humiliating
offer.
" From our abhorrence," said they, " of the above-named extra
ordinary and oppressive act, we consider ourselves as under the
strongest obligations to exert our utmost efforts by all constitutional
means to relieve our suffering brethren in Boston, and to unite with
them in every legal and salutary measure to extricate them from
their embarrassed situation." 3
The circular letter submitted by the Boston Committee,
which the convention now made its own, was written by
Samuel Adams. It is addressed to the Committees of Cor
respondence of the Colonies first named, and signed by the
Town Clerk of Boston with the concurrence of the eight
1 Journal of the Committee of Correspondence for May 12, 1774.
2 Austin s Life of Gerry, I. 45.
3 Journal of the Committee of Correspondence for May 12, 1774.
158 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
towns represented. The paper having pointed out the injus
tice and cruelty of the act by which the inhabitants had been
condemned unheard, proceeds :
" They have ordered our port to be entirely shut up, leaving us
barely so much of the means of subsistence as to keep us from per
ishing with cold and hunger ; and it is said that a fleet of British
ships of war is to block up our harbor until we shall make restitu
tion to the East India Company for the loss of their tea, which was
destroyed therein the winter past, obedience is paid to the laws and
authority of Great Britain, and the revenue is duly collected. The
act fills the inhabitants with indignation. The more thinking part
of those who have hitherto been in favor of the measures of the
British government look upon it as not to have been expected, even
from a barbarous state. This attack, though made immediately
upon us, is doubtless designed for every other Colony who shall not
surrender their sacred rights and liberties into the hands of an infa
mous Ministry. Now, therefore, is the time when all should be
united in opposition to this violation of the liberties of all. We are
well informed that another bill is to be brought into Parliament to
distinguish this from the other Colonies, by repealing some of the
acts which have been complained of, and ease the American trade ;
but be assured you will be called upon to surrender your rights,
even if they should succeed in their attempt to suppress the spirit
of liberty here.
"The single question then is, whether you consider Boston as
now suffering in the common cause, and sensibly feel and resent the
injury and affront offered to her. If you do, and we cannot believe
otherwise, may we not, from your approbation of our former con
duct in defence of American liberty^ rely on your suspending Your
trade with Great Britain at least, which it is acknowledged will be a
great but necessary sacrifice to the cause of liberty, and will effect
ually defeat the design of this act of revenge. If this should be
done, you will please consider it will be through a voluntary suffer
ing, greatly short of what we are called to endure from the imme
diate hand of tyranny.
" We desire your answer by the bearer ; and after assuring you
that, not in the least intimidated by this inhuman treatment, we are
still determined to maintain to the utmost of our abilities the rights
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 159
of America. We are, gentlemen, your friends and fellow-country
men." l
The extraordinary effect of this appeal upon the whole
continent it is not easy to describe. It can only be fully
understood by a perusal of the documents and letters of that
time. But it is not too much to assert that no paper ever
sent out from one Colony to another produced such results.
It was in fact putting all America on its honor and manhood
to stand by the beleaguered defenders of the common cita
del. No community not entirely lost to the dictates of jus
tice and humanity could be deaf to the cry which came up
BO touchingly from those who were now devoted to the ven
geance of the most powerful nation on earth. Accordingly
we find the people of nearly every Colony coming together
during the summer, and everywhere adopting resolutions of
sympathy with Boston, andparticularly repeating its pa
thetic words, jthat they should not be left to suffer alone,
and that Boston must be considered as " snflfcriTifi in f.ha
cojnmon cause/ This expression seems to have gone
through America like an electric shock, and all the efforts
of Adams by committees and circular letters, during the
past six years, to bring about a general union, never effected
so much as this accomplished in three months. Resolutions
of towns and counties, responses from local as well as
intercolonial Committees of Correspondence, and the re
solves of Legislature, one and all contained that talismanic
sentence in their replies. " Boston must be regarded as
suffering in the common cause," suddenly became a conti
nental watchword, not the mere ebullition of the moment,
but supported by encouraging advice and generous deeds.
Private letters to England, written during the summer,
repeated it, and the royal Governors, from New England
1 The original draft is in the handwriting of Samuel Adams. The fair
copy, also, in his handwriting, is dated May 13, 1774, the day after its
adoption by the convention of committees.
160 LIFE OF SAMTTEL ADAMS. [May, 1774.
to Georgia, in their despatches told the Ministry of the
complete unanimity of the Colonies, and that Boston s ap
peal to the continent had elicited the reply from far and
near, that she would be sustained as " suffering in the com
1 See Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, Vol. I. " Correspondence
and Proceedings " through the summer of 1774.
CHAPTER XXX.
Adams presides at a Town Meeting to consider the Port Act. A CONTINEN
TAL NON-IMPORTATION LEAGUE proposed. He drafts an Appeal to the
several Assemblies. General Gage arrives and assumes Command of the
Province. His Instructions from the Earl of Dartmouth. The Seat of
Government changed to Salem. The Ringleaders to be punished. The
Port Act goes into Operation. Hutchinson sails for England. Meeting
of the Assembly at Salem. .Intrepidity of Adams. He sounds the prin
cipal Members and matures his Plans. He proposes a CONTINENTAL CON
GRESS to meet at Philadelphia. Startling Effect upon the Assembly.
He locks the Door and keeps the Key. The Governor s Messenger denied
Admission. The Adamses, Gushing, and Paine chosen Delegates. Cir
culars sent to the other Assemblies. Dissolution of the Last Assembly
under the Royal Government. John Adams enters upon his Public Career..
THUS far the proceedings against the infamous act had
been directed solely by the several Committees of Corre
spondence. It remained for the people of Boston, as a cor
porate body, to take action. We have already seen the
Committee moving the selectmen for a town meeting. In
accordance with that desire the meeting was called for Fri
day, the 13th, when a numerous assemblage convened at
Faneuil Hall ; Samuel Adams as usual presiding, and the
eloquent Dr. Cooper opening the meeting with prayer. The
edict was then read in a loud, clear voice, by Cooper, the
town clerk, fully discussed, and pronounced " repugnant to
law, religion, and common sense." The Tories, many of
whom were present, improved this occasion to represent in
glowing colors the distress and misery which must shortly
ensue among the tradesmen and working-people under the
act, and enlarged upon the apparent simplicity of the con
ditions, by which these calamities might be averted. A par
tial disposition was thus created among the timid to comply
with the terms and compensate the East India Company.
Had this course prevailed, it would have been a virtual
VOL. II. 11
162 % LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
acknowledgment that the destruction of the tea was wrong,
and the whole principle for which they had contended would
have been lost ; for, as Adams had often said, to yield any
portion, however small, was to yield the whole. The meet
ing finally voted, that, " if the other Colonies came into a
JOINT resolution to stop all importations from Great Britain
and every part of the West Indies until the act for blocking
up this harbor be repealed, the same will prove the salvation
of North America and her liberties. On the other hand, if
they continue their exports and imports, there is high reason
to fear that fraud, power, and the most odious oppression
will rise triumphant over right, justice, social happiness, and
freedom." The Moderator was then requested to transmit
this vote " to all the sister Colonies in the name and behalf
of the town, which he did on the following day in a letter to
each of the Assemblies on the continent. 1
" The people." says Adams in this paper, " receive the edict with
indignation. It is expected by their enemies, and feared by some
of their friends, that this town singly will not be able to support the
cause under so severe a trial. As the very being of every Colony,
considered as a free people, depends upon the event, a thought so
dishonorable to our brethren cannot be entertained as that this town
will be left to struggle alone."
The next day Paul Revere started as a post-rider for Phil
adelphia, where he arrived on the 20th, having left a copy of
the circular at New York on the way. Two or three hun
dred people met at Philadelphia, and, after reading the letter,
appointed a committee to reply. They considered Boston
as suffering in the common cause, recommended a general
congress of deputies to state the rights of the Colonists, prom
ised to collect the sentiments of the other Colonies on the
subject, and expressed themselves as opposed to paying for
the tea. The answers from every source held out the warm
est sympathy for Boston, and a general willingness was man-
1 Town Records for May, 1774. Bancroft, VII. 37.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 163
ifested to sustain her in the hour of trial. The messenger
had also in charge the Circular Letter from the convention
of committees to the intercolonial Committees of Correspond
ence. At the same time Samuel Adams directed a letter to
his friend James Warren of Plymouth :
" The people," he says, repeating the words of his Circular Letter
to the Colonies, " receive this cruel edict with abhorrence and indig
nation. They consider themselves as suffering the stroke of minis
terial, I may more precisely say Hutchinsonian vengeance, in the
common cause of America. I hope they will sustain the blow with
a becoming fortitude, and that the cursed design of intimidating
and subduing the spirits of all America will, by the joint efforts of
all, be frustrated. It is the expectation of our enemies, and some
of our friends are afraid that this town singly will not be able to
support the cause under so severe a trial. Did not the very being
of every seaport town, and indeed of every Colony, considered as a
free people, depend upon it, I would not even entertain a thought
so dishonorable of them as that they would leave us now to struggle
alone.
" I enclose you a copy of a vote passed by this town at a very full
meeting yesterday, which stands adjourned till Wednesday next, to
receive the report of a committee appointed to consider what is
proper further to be done. The inhabitants, in general, abhor the
thought of paying for the tea, which is one condition upon which we
are to be restored to the grace and favor of Great Britain. Our
Committee of Correspondence have written letters to our friends in
the Southern Colonies, and they are about writing to the several
towns in this Province. The merchants of Newburyport have ex
hibited a noble example of public spirit, in resolving that, if the
other seaport towns in this Province alone will come into the meas
ure, they will not trade to the southward of South Carolina nor to
any part of Great Britain and Ireland, till the harbor of Boston is
again open and free, or till the disputes between Britain and the
Colonies are settled upon such terms as all rational men ought to
contend for. This is a manly and generous resolution. I wish
Plymouth, which has hitherto stood foremost, would now conde
scend to second Newburyport. Such a determination, put into prac
tice, would alter the views of the nation, who are in full expectation
164 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
I
that Boston will be unthonght of by the rest of the continent, and
even of this Province, and left, as they are, devoted to ruin. The
heroes who first trod on your shore fed on clams and muscles, and
were contented. The country which they explored and defended
with their richest blood, and which they transmitted as an inheri
tance to their posterity, affords us superabundance of provision.
Will it not be an eternal disgrace to this generation if it should now
be surrendered to that people, who, if we must judge of them by one
of their laws, are barbarians. Impius haec tarn culta novalia miles
habebit ? Barbarus has segetes ? If our brethren feel and resent
the affront and injury now offered to this town, if they realize of
how great importance it is to the liberties of America that Boston
should sustain this shock with dignity, if they recollect their own
resolutions to defend the public liberty at the expense of their for
tunes and lives, they cannot fail to contribute their aid by a tempo
rary suspension of their trade." *
While the town meeting of the 13th was sending forth its
appeal to the sister Colonies for union and sympathy, the
frigate Lively was sailing up the harbor with General Gage,
as Governor of Massachusetts and Commander-in-Chief of
the Continent. A few days afterwards, he wrote to the Earl
of Dartmouth : " The Act for shutting up the port got here
before me, and a town meeting was holding to consider it at
the time of my arrival in the harbor." 2 When the ship
anchored, Gage proceeded immediately to Castle William,
where, in accordance with his instructions, he had an inter
view with Hutchinson, who remained there with him. One
contemporary account says, the members of the Council
were summoned and addressed by the Captain-General on
public affairs. On Tuesday, the 17th, he landed at Long
Wharf amidst the discharge of cannon from ships and bat
teries. He was met by a number of the members of both
Houses and many principal gentlemen of the town, and was
escorted by the Boston Cadets, who were under arms await-
1 S. Adams to James Warren, May 14, 1774 (Massachusetts Historical
Society s Collections, Fourth Series, IV. 390).
2 Gen. Gage to the Earl of Dartmouth, May 19, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 165
ing his arrival, commanded by John Hancock. His com
mission was borne before him in the procession. Several
military companies of horse and foot were drawn up in King
Street, who saluted him as he passed, and his Excellency
politely returned the courtesies. He entered the Council
Chamber and his commission was read, and, after the usual
ceremonies, he was sworn in by the President of the Council.
A proclamation was then read by the High-Sheriff in the
balcony of the State-House, continuing all officers in their
places till further orders, which was answered by cheers,
and firing of cannon from the batteries and company of
artillery, and three vollies from the respective companies.
An excellent entertainment was provided at Faneuil Hall,
which was attended by members of the Council, " several of
the Representatives," a number of the clergy and other
respectable gentlemen. Many loyal toasts were drunk, and
the strictest harmony and decorum observed. After dinner,
his Excellency rode in a carriage to the Province-House. 1
Such is the account given in the Boston Evening Post
of Gage s reception. It was marked with all the formality
possible, with the view of overawing the spectators, but it is
easy to see that the people looked on with coldness. The
day was stormy, the heavens lowering over the scene, as if
lamenting the miseries which were about enveloping the
land. But the " rain and badness of the day " could not
prevent a vast concourse of people from assembling to view
the pageant.
The portraits of Gage indicate his character ; affable and
mild, but of feeble will, and without spirit to carry out the
measures of his master. It was expected that he would
have force of character sufficient to produce a salutary effect
upon the refractory people of Boston, and his orders for the
arrest of the leaders were explicit enough.
" Your authority as first magistrate," said Dartmouth in his in-
1 Boston Evening Post, May 23, 1774, and Boston Gazette of the same date.
166 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
structions from the King to the Captain- General, " combined with
the command over the King s troops, will, it is hoped, enable you to
meet every opposition, and fully to preserve the public peace, by
employing those troops with effect, should the madness of the peo
ple on the one hand, or the timidity or want of strength of the peace-
officers on the other, make it necessary to have recourse to their
assistance.
" The proceedings of the body of the people at the town of Boston
in the months of November and December last were of such a
nature and criminality as to have fixed a deep degree of guilt upon
those who were the principal ringleaders and abettors of those pro
ceedings The King considers the punishment of those offend
ers as a very necessary and essential example to others of the ill
consequences that must follow from such an open and arbitrary
usurpation, as to tend to the subversion of all government and the
rendering civil liberty unsafe and precarious." x
Lord North, too, in presenting to the House of Commons
Hutchinson s letters containing the proceedings of the late
session of the Massachusetts Legislature, had marked out
" the ringleaders and forerunners of these mischiefs " for
condign punishment, and, said he, "a prosecution has al
ready been ordered against them by his Majesty s servants." 2
But though Gage soon had large accessions to the military
force, he feared to proceed to extremities. A gentleman in
New York wrote to a friend in Scotland soon after the in
ception of these measures. " Should the import of this bill
prove to be what is surmised of it, viz. the sending home
those suspected or charged with any act against government
to stand trial in Westminster Hall, you must not be sur
prised to find all America in flames." 8 The seizure of either
of the principal leaders would have been the signal for a
general uprising, which was now only prevented by the
habitual respect accorded to the counsels of the guiding
spirits.
1 Earl of Dartmouth s instructions to Gage, April 9, 1774.
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 113. 8 Ibid., col. 302.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 167
The day after Gage s reception, Samuel Adams addressed
a letter to Arthur Lee, in reply to one probably received by
the vessel which had brought the new Governor. Referring
to the Port Act, he says :
" For flagrant injustice and barbarity, one might search in vain
among the archives of Constantinople to find a match for it. But
what else could have been expected from a Parliament too long
under the dictates and control of an administration which seems to
be totally lost to all sense and feeling of morality, and governed by
passion, cruelty, and revenge ? For us to reason against such an
act would be idleness. Our business is to find means to evade its
malignant design. The inhabitants view it, not with astonishment,
but indignation. They discover the utmost contempt of the framers
of it, while they are yet disposed to consider the body of the nation
(though represented by such a Parliament) in the character they
have sustained heretofore, humane and generous. They resent the
behavior of the merchants in London, those I mean who receive
their bread from them, in infamously deserting their cause at the
time of extremity. They can easily believe that the industrious
manufacturers, whose time is wholly spent in their various employ
ments, are misled and imposed upon by such miscreants as have
ungratefully devoted themselves to an abandoned Ministry, not re
garding the ruin of those who have been their best benefactors.
" But the inhabitants of this town must and will look to their own
safety, which they see does not consist in a servile compliance with
the ignominious terms of this barbarous edict. Though the means
of preserving their liberties should distress and even ruin the British
manufacturers, they are resolved (but with reluctance) to try the
experiment. To this they are impelled by motives of self-preserva
tion. They feel humanely to those who must suffer, but, being
innocent, are not the objects of their revenge. They have already
called upon their sister Colonies (as you will see by the enclosed
note 1 ), who not only feel for them as fellow-citizens, but look upon
1 The " enclosed note " was his own circular to the several Assemblies, and
its effects were presently seen. Lieutenant-Governor Bull, writing to the Earl
of Dartmouth from Charleston, S. C., July, 1774, says: "I had expectations
that the measures taken by the Parliament, relative to Boston, would have had
some happy effect towards composing the disturbances in this Province, which
168 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
them as suffering the stroke of ministerial vengeance in the common
cause of America ; that cause which the Colonies have pledged
themselves to each other not to give up. In the mean time I trust
in God this devoted town will sustain the shock with dignity, and,
supported by their brethren, will gloriously defeat the designs of
their common enemies. Calmness, courage, and unanimity prevail.
While they are resolved not tamely to submit, they will, by refrain
ing from any acts of violence, avoid the snare that they discover to
be laid^for them by posting regiments so near them." 1
Hutchinson, now shorn of his titles, and supplanted by a
Captain-General with absolute power over the lives of the
Americans, was reduced to little more than an idle specta
tor of the movements of government. Save as an adviser,
he was at last powerless for mischief, and only awaited
the sailing of the first vessel, to leave forever the shore of
a country on the verge of a devastating war brought on
chiefly by his own infamous machinations. He now looked
forward, however, with no misgivings on his own account,
and even anticipated political preferment as the reward of
his treachery and misrepresentations. A few days before
his departure, a number of Tory merchants and traders,
one hundred and twenty in number, addressed him in a
strain of fulsome adulation, lamenting the loss of so good
a Governor, protesting against the destruction of the tea,
and offering to bear their proportion of whatever damages
might be assessed for the East India Company. Among
the signers were Harrison Gray, father and son, John Sin
gleton Copley, Samuel H. Sparhawk, and others well known
in the town. 2 Hutchinson returned answers to this and a
similar document from a number of lawyers, promising to
seemed to have subsided a little last winter, but it has taken a contrary turn.
Their own apprehensions and thoughts, confirmed by the resolutions and cor
respondence from the other Colonies, have raised a universal spirit of jealousy
against Great Britain and of unanimity towards each other; I say universal,
my Lord, for few who think otherwise are hardy enough to avow it publicly."
1 S. Adams to A. Lee, May 18, 1774.
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 362.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 169
exert himself for them on his arrival in England. A pro
test, signed by the merchants and traders of Boston, as
voted unanimously at a very full town meeting, was pub
lished immediately after this, claiming that the adulatory
address had been " handed about and signed in a private
manner by sundry persons, who style themselves merchants."
They " utterly disclaim the address and disavow a measure
so clandestinely conducted, and so injurious in its tendency."
The ex-Governor sailed for England on the 1st of June, and
the Gazette chronicled the departure of " Thomas Hutch-
inson, Esq." 1
The last Legislature of Massachusetts under the royal
charter met at Boston on the 26th of May. Many had felt
sad with the apprehension that the late election would be
the last of the kind, and the same feeling must have pre
vailed as to the Assembly. The change from Hutchinson to
Gage was from bad to worse, as far as arbitrary measures
were concerned, though the new Governor harbored no such
personal animosities as rankled in the breast of Hutchinson.
In his opening address he notified the two Houses that, on
the 1st of June, he should remove the Legislature to Salem
by royal command, and recommended their attention to the
general business of the session. No immediate reply was
made, and the temper of Gage soon displayed itself in his
action with the newly elected Councillors, of whom he re
jected no less than thirteen, among them Bowdoin, Dexter,
Phillips, and John Adams. 2
We have already traced the origin of the Congress of 1774
to Samuel Adams, who, as early as January, 1773, had en
tertained the idea (evidently no new conception even at that
time), and all through the summer of that year had been
agitating it in the Gazette and private correspondence. The
idea, opposed at first by some less decided characters, 8 but
gradually supported by the great majority, was now regarded
1 Boston Gazette, June 6, 1774.
8 Journal of the House for 1774. 8 See, ante, II. 81, etc.
170 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
with general favor, and it was expected that Massachusetts
would fix the time and place for the meeting. 1 The New
York Committee of Correspondence had already proposed a
" general Congress," and sent their proposal formally to the
other Colonies. Samuel Adams was prepared to act in
Boston, and on the 28th of May was on the point of in
troducing resolutions for a Congress of deputies from the
several Provinces to convene at Philadelphia, when the Gov
ernor unexpectedly prorogued the Assembly to meet early
in the next month at Salem. 2
Gage was in doubt for a few days after his arrival, as to
the prudence of attempting to enforce the Port Act. The
naval and revenue officers, however, with whom he con
versed, advised him to proceed with firmness, and on the 1st
day of June, at noon, the Custom-House was closed ; 3 the
harbor shut up against all inward bound vessels, and, after
the 14th, none were allowed to depart. The bells were sol
emnly tolled, and every appropriate token of mourning
shown by the people, and, even in Virginia, the public sen
timent declared itself in fasting and prayer. In Philadelphia
business ceased for the day, nine tenths of the inhabitants,
excepting the Quakers, closed their houses, and the bells
were tolled muffled. 4 Bancroft thus graphically pictures
the sudden transformation of an industrious, thriving town
into a scene of idleness and want :
" The inhabitants of the town were chiefly traders, shipwrights,
and sailors ; and since no anchor could be weighed, no sail unfurled,
no vessel so much as launched from the stocks, their cheerful indus
try was at an end. No more are they to lay the keel of the fleet
merchantman, or shape the rib symmetrically for its frame, or
strengthen the graceful hull by knees of oak, or rig the well-propor
tioned masts, or bend the sails to the yard. The King of that
country has changed the busy workshops into scenes of compulsory
idleness, and the most skilful naval artisans in the world, with the
1 Bancroft, VII. 62. 2 Bancroft, VII. 48.
8 Compare Barry s Massachusetts, II. 481. * Gordon, I. 364.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 171
keenest eye for forms of beauty and speed, are forced by act of
Parliament to fold their hands. Want scowled on the laborer as
he sat with his wife and children at his board. The sailor roamed
the streets listlessly, without hope of employment. The law was
executed with a rigor that went beyond the intentions of its authors.
Not a scow could be manned by oars, to bring an ox or a sheep or
a bundle of hay from the islands. All water-carriage from pier to
pier, though but of lumber, or bricks, or lime, was strictly forbidden.
The boats between Charlestown and Boston could not ferry a parcel
of goods across Charles River ; the fishermen of Marblehead, when
from their hard pursuit they bestowed quintals of dried fish on the
poor of Boston, were obliged to transport their offering in wagons
by a circuit of thirty miles. The warehouses of the thrifty mer
chants were at once made valueless ; the costly wharves, which
extended far into the channel, and were so lately covered with the
produce of the tropics and with English fabrics, were become soli
tary places ; the harbor, which had resounded incessantly with the
cheering voices of prosperous commerce, was now disturbed by no
sounds but from British vessels of war." l
But the prayer of Boston in her hour of distress was heard.
Before the act went into force, the dreadful consequences to
the poor had been foreseen ; on the 13th of May, Samuel
Adams had prepared the pathetic appeal which elicited such
cheering replies ; and measures were taken at the town meet
ing, in anticipation, for the relief of those who, from loss of
employment, would be the first to encounter want. 2 On
the day after the act went into operation, news arrived of the
passage of two bills, one arbitrarily changing the charter,
and the other sustaining the army in any deeds of violence
in enforcing the new system. The people met their hard fate
with a dignity which felt the responsibility of a nation s
wrongs, and which would not endanger the event by any
act of precipitation. The letter from Philadelphia had
offered sympathy, but advised the people of Massachusetts
to satisfy the demands of the East India Company, if that
would put an end to the controversy and restore consti-
1 Bancroft, VII. 56, 57. a Bancroft, VII. 37.
172 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
tutional liberty. 1 This was received in Boston with impa
tience, but Samuel Adams suppressed all murmurs. " I am
fully of the Farmer s sentiments," said he ; " violence and
submission would at this time be equally fatal " ; and, says
Bancroft, " he exerted himself the more to promote the im
mediate suspension of commerce."
Soon after the news arrived of the two additional acts, the
Committee of Correspondence held a meeting, and, on the
5th of June, Joseph Warren reported a " Solemn League
and Covenant " for the suspension of all commerce with the
Island of Great Britain until the repeal of the Port Act and
the restoration of the charter rights of the Colony. The sub
scribers agreed that they would not purchase or consume,
nor suffer others to purchase or consume, merchandise
which should arrive from Great Britain after the last day of
August next ensuing. Those who should refuse to sign the
agreement were to be considered in the same light as " con
tumacious importers " ; all commercial connections with
them were to be withdrawn forever, and their names were
to be published to the world. 2 , Copies were sent to every
town in Massachusetts for subscription, and, though laughed
at by the Tories at first, soon became more formidable than
any non-consumption agreement that had yet been set in
motion.
In accordance with the proclamation of the Governor, the
Legislature met at Salem on the 7th of June. Samuel Ad
ams hastened from the committee-room at Boston, where he
had been engaged up to the last moment in arranging the
details for an ensuing meeting ; but, being detained on the
way, he did not reach the hall in the new seat of govern
ment, where the Assembly had gathered, until some time
after the appointed hour for opening the Court. The Tories,
who had grown unusually bold since the arrival of a mili
tary Governor, could not conceal their exultation at his pro-
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 341, 342. Bancroft, VII. 47.
8 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 398.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 173
longed absence, and asserted that he was afraid to trust him
self outside of Boston. Some of them asked sneeringly,
" Where is your leader ? " The Whig party began to be
alarmed at his absence, coupling it with the recent threats
of a seizure of some of the patriot chiefs. A report was, in
fact, current in Salem that Adams and Hancock had been
arrested that day, and were to be shipped to England for
trial. Their suspense was not of long duration. While the
subject was discussed, Adams arrived and entered the hall,
where, besides the members, were a throng of spectators,
both Whigs and Tories, who had been attracted by the nov
elty of the situation and the belief that the House was about
to adopt some extraordinary measures relative to the Port
Act. A member of the administration party, in a gold-laced
coat, pressed by the crowd, had taken the place assigned to
the Clerk of the House, and, with an air of insolent assur
ance, seemed disposed to retain the seat. Adams, bending
his gaze intently on the intruder and a group who sur
rounded him, said in his clear and emphatic tone : " Mr.
Speaker, where is the place for your Clerk ? " The eyes of
the assemblage followed those of Adams, and, after a mo
mentary silence, the Speaker directed him to the chair and
desk which had been prepared. " Sir," said he, " my com
pany will not be pleasant to the gentlemen who occupy it.
I trust they will remove to another part of the House." The
tone and bearing of the man had its effect. The request
was complied with, and Adams, commencing his accustomed
duties, soon effaced any impression as to his having been
delayed by his fears. 1
Both Houses replied to the Governor s opening speech.
The Assembly protested against the arbitrary removal of
the Court from its legal and accustomed place at Boston.
The Council, in a respectful message on the 9th, announced
their loyalty to their sovereign, their invincible attachment
to their rights and liberties, and expressed the wish that the
1 Account by an eyewitness of the scene.
174 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
principles and general conduct of Gage s administration
might be a happy contrast to that of his two immediate
predecessors. At this point of the reading the Governor
interrupted the chairman, refusing to receive an address
reflecting upon his predecessors, and soon after sent the
Council a bitter message, denouncing the address as an
insult upon his Majesty and the Lords of the Privy Coun
cil, and an affront to himself. 1
Having been foiled in his proposed measure of a general
Congress by the prorogation of the General Assembly in the
last month, Samuel Adams kept the subject constantly in
view at Salem, and was prepared to introduce it when the
proper moment should arrive. Caution, however, was ne
cessary ; for at the slightest inkling of such an intention,
the Governor would dissolve the Court, and the attempt
would be frustrated. He therefore used all his secrecy and
energy, studying the sentiments of the members. The Rep
resentatives, as if conscious of the crisis, now appeared in
greater numbers than had ever before been known. The
proposal for a Congress had already been made in other
Colonies, but all eyes were fixed upon the Legislature of
Massachusetts for the governing movements. A committee
of nine 2 on the state of the Province had been appointed in
the Assembly, and Adams, who was chairman, had probably
decided on the plan of action before he left Boston. The
committee, consisting of the principal members of the House,
met repeatedly, but could not agree upon their report. Ad
ams observed that some were for mild measures, 3 and he
soon perceived what course must be taken. Those who
were with him found themselves environed with difficulties,
being constantly watched by the royal officers. One of the
committee was Daniel Leonard, who professed patriotism,
but was known to most of the members as lukewarm in the
cause. It was necessary to guard against him, and the com-
1 Bradford s State Papers, p. 415.
a Journal of the House for 1774". Gordon, I. 365.
1774 -1 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 175
mittee, by entertaining at their meetings nothing but vague
propositions for conciliation, allowed Leonard to deceive
himself and the Governor with whom he secretly com
municated into the belief that concession would be rec
ommended by the Legislature, and compensation to the
East India Company advocated. So perfectly was the pro
ject kept from Leonard, that he returned to Taunton on
legal business. 1 The committee continuing its meetings,
Adams conferred with his friend James Warren, directing
him to keep them in play while he called a caucus of his
colleagues at some specified place, where Warren was to
meet him that evening. His object was to bring about the
appointment of delegates to a Congress, independent of the
committee, by first disclosing his plan to a few trusty mem
bers of the Assembly, and, having persuaded them, then
adding more and more. On the first evening he secured
a meeting of five, and, repeating his exertions, had a larger
number the next night, and on the third more than thirty.
These proceedings were conducted with the utmost secrecy,
the popular leaders taking the sense of the members in
a private way, until they found they had a majority of
the House, and were prepared for the consummation of the
plan. 2
In the mean time, Joseph Warren, who assumed the lead
in Boston during the absence of Samuel Adams, was exert
ing all his influence to retard the efforts of a large number
who were industriously advocating an indemnity to the East
India Company. To his friend he wrote :
"This afternoon was a meeting of a considerable number of
tradesmen of this town, but, after some altercations, they dissolved
themselves without coming to any resolutions ; for which I am very
sorry, as we had some expectations from the meeting. We are in
dustrious to save our country, but not more than others to destroy
1 Bancroft, VII. 62, 63. Compare General Gage s letter to the Earl of
Dartmouth, Salem, June 26, 1774.
2 Gordon, I. 365.
176 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
it. The party who are for paying for the tea, and, by that, for
making way for every compliance, are too formidable. However,
we have endeavored to convince our friends of the impolicy of giv
ing way in a single article, as the party will certainly gain strength
for a total submission, by our having sacrificed such a sum as they
demand for the payment of the tea. I think your attendance can by
no means be dispensed with over Friday, as I believe we shall have
a warm engagement." l
But, as we have seen, a higher duty kept Adams at Sa
lem. His plans being matured, and all the details arranged,
even to the drafting of the resolutions, Friday, the 17th, was
fixed upon as the time for accomplishing them. On that
day, when one hundred and twenty-nine members were pres
ent, 2 Adams, at the head of the committee of nine, produced
his resolutions, first taking the precaution to have the door
locked, as at the closing of Hutchinson s last session in
March ; and to have the door-keeper ordered to let no per
son in nor suffer any to depart. 3 He then introduced the
resolves, to the astonishment of those who were not in the
secret. 4 They provided for the appointment of five delegates
consisting of James Bowdoin, Thomas Gushing, Samuel
Adams, John Adams, and Robert Treat Paine, any three of
whom should be a quorum, to meet such committees or del
egates from the other Colonies as had been, or might be,
appointed, either by their respective Houses of Burgesses or
Representatives, or by convention, or by Committees of Cor
respondence, appointed by the respective Houses of Assem
bly, on the 1st of September, at Philadelphia, or any other
place that should be judged most suitable by the joint com
mittees. 6 Such was the apprehension of some members, that^
they were desirous to waive the subject ; but the order for
bidding the departure of any member prevented their quit
ting the hall. It is probable that attempts were made to>^
1 J. Warren to S. Adams, June 15, 1774. 2 Bancroft, VII. 64.
* Sketch of S. Adams in Sanderson s Biography of the Signers, IX. 308.
4 Judge Sullivan s Biographic Sketch, October, 1803.
* Journal of the House for 1774.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 17 T
pass, for the door-keeper wavered, and was uneasy at the
responsibility resting upon him. To relieve him of the
charge, Samuel Adams took the key into his own keeping. 1
But before the question was put to vote, an administration
member made a plea of illness, and was allowed to leave the
House. He hastened to inform the Governor of what was
happening, and Gage as quickly sent Thomas Flucker, his
Secretary, to dissolve the Assembly. That official found
the door locked, the key being in Mr. Adams s pocket, and
was unable to obtain admission. 2 He then directed the
messenger to enter and tell the Speaker that the Secretary
had a communication from his Excellency, and desired he
might be admitted to read it. The messenger presently
returned and reported that he had so informed the Speaker,
who had mentioned it to the House, and their orders were
to keep the door fast. The news of this state of affairs had
now got abroad, and a great crowd, attracted by the extraor
dinary nature of the scene, had collected about the doorway
and upon the stairs leading to the Representatives Chamber.
To these, for the want of a more responsible audience, the
Secretary read the order, several members of the House, 8
who, it appears, had not been present at the proceedings,
being among the listeners. He then retired and repeated
the paper to the Council. That his Excellency had lost no
time in preparing his proclamation is evident from its singu
lar brevity, the whole, from the " whereas " to " God save
the King," occupying but eleven lines. 4
Ignoring the existence of the Secretary and his perform
ance outside, the Assembly pursued their plan without fal
tering. The delegates were elected, only twelve voices
dissenting ; and as no funds to meet the necessary expenses
could be legally obtained from the treasury without the
1 Sketch in Sanderson s Signers, IX. 308.
2 Compare Gordon, Bancroft, and Barry.
8 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 422. Journal of the House
for 1774.
4 Bradford s State Papers, p. 416.
VOL. II. 12
178 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
Governor s acquiescence, every town in the Province was
assessed in proportion to the last tax-list, and the sum of
five hundred pounds was thus provided. Resolutions were
then adopted for the relief of Charlestown and Boston, as
suffering under the hand of power in support of the liberties
of all America ; renouncing the use of tea, discontinuing
the consumption of all goods and manufactures imported
from Great Britain, and giving all possible encouragement
to home productions. These resolutions and the vote for
delegates, together with a carefully prepared list of the
amount of money to be raised in each town, were sent forth
in a printed circular, signed by Samuel Adams, and direct
ed to the Selectmen. 1 Having completed their object, and
having no further business to transact, they obeyed the
mandate for dissolution. On the same day, Gushing, as
Speaker of the House, sent to the sister Colonies the offi
cial notification of these proceedings, not doubting that they
would be agreed to, and desiring, if they should, that notice
of the ratification might be sent to him as soon as possible.
That to the Assembly of Pennsylvania reached the hands
of their Committee of Correspondence, who, on the 19th of
July, presented it to the House.
These proceedings, so important as giving the Revolu
tion a national character, were led to success by the mas
ter-spirit of New England, Samuel Adams. His vigilance
and sagacity supplied him with resources for every situa
tion, and his counsels were followed with absolute confi
dence. Every move was systematically progressive. Each
measure evinced such wisdom that in no one instance was
it necessary to recede. Everything was founded upon the
principle of justice and planned with a perfect knowledge
of the popular character
John Adams for several years had studiously held aloof
1 Fiinted circular to the Selectmen of the Towns of Massachusetts. The
resolutions adopted on this occasion were brought to the House by Mr. Adams.
The replies of the towns, with the money enclosed, were all directed to him at
Boston.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 179
from public business. In placing him upon the list of dele
gates, Samuel Adams doubtless saw the means of bringing
the patriotism and abilities of his kinsman into prominence.
He had in vain solicited him to act as orator, two years be
fore, at the Old South, and, as he saw such legal talents
idle in the public cause, he doubtless used those powers of
persuasion for which he was so remarkable to conquer that
aversion to political life. It is certain that Samuel Adams
had arranged his plan for a Congress before the Court was
removed to Salem, and it is highly probable that he was
mainly instrumental in bringing John Adams to become a
delegate. " Sink or swim, live or die, survive or perish,
with my country, is my unalterable determination," he said
soon after to Sewall, his friend and associate at the bar.
The public career of John Adams now commenced, 1 and
henceforth his path was to be broader, and his career
greater, until he became the executive head of a free and
independent nation.
At the very moment when the Assembly were appointing
delegates to a ContiiientaL-Congress, a town meeting had
convened at Boston. It was for this occasion that Joseph
"Warren had written to Samuel Adams to be present if possi
ble, as they expected a " warm engagement." John Adams
was made moderator in his absence. The subject for dis
cussion was the scheme of indemnifying the East India
Company for the loss of their tea, a point which had been
ardently pressed by many influential persons, and was sug
gested by respectable people in the other Colonies. Franklin
had advised it, and numerous wealthy tradesmen and others
in the administration party had offered to contribute their
proportion. Dr. Warren, in his letter to Samuel Adams,
1 Bancroft, VII. 8, 65. Compare Frothingham s Siege of Boston, where it
is stated (p. 21) that Samuel Adams was now " commencing his career," and
John Adams " continuing a brilliant service." This error, occurring in a
work widely and deservedly quoted for its general accuracy, is noticed as
indicating how little has hitherto been understood of the public services of
Samuel Adams.
180 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June, 1774.
deplored the number of those who were willing to make
such a compliance, and it is clear that the leaders in Boston
looked forward to the occasion with no little interest. But
the patriotism of the masses was superior to all other consid
erations ; and when the friends of such a plan were invited
freely to speak their minds before the assemblage, not one
was found to advocate the measure.
CHAPTER XXXI.
Adams Chairman of the Donation Committee. Its Beneficent Objects. The
Tories endeavor to annihilate the Committee of Correspondence. Ad
ams its Champion in Faneuil Hall. His Activity, Cheerfulness, and
Courage. The " Solemn League and Covenant." Gage issues a Proc
lamation against it. Adams defends the Non-importation Scheme. Con
spiracies to arrest Adams and other Patriots. Warnings from his Friends.
The Government attempts to corrupt him by Bribery.
AT the town meeting of the 30th of May, a committee,
consisting of Rowe, Boylston, Phillips, Warren, Quincy,
Molineiix, John Adams, Inches, and Appleton, with Samuel
Adams as chairman, had been appointed to report upon
some plan for the relief of those who would probably be
the first sufferers by the enforcement of the Port Act. It
would appear that letters soliciting relief from abroad had
already been sent ; for at this meeting it was voted, that all
donations to the poor of the town should be delivered to the
Overseers of the Poor for distribution by them in concert
with the above named committee. 1 The responses to these
appeals began to appear towards the close of June, and gen
erous stores of provisions thenceforth continued to pour in.
to the relief of Boston. The contributions showed how per
fectly united was the whole Province ; for scarcely a con
siderable town but sent its quota, while from the .other
Colonies came continual gifts of sheep and oxen, potatoes,
corn, pork, bread, and flour. A donation committee was
appointed later in the summer to distribute these supplies
" according to their best discretion." 2 This committee num
bered twenty-six, and included some of the principal and
1 Town Eecords for June, 1774.
2 The correspondence between this committee and the contributors of dona
tions is published in the Massachusetts Historical Society s Collections, Fourth
Series, IV. 1 - 278.
182 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
wealthiest men of Boston. Samuel Adams, as chairman,
generally governed its proceedings, presided at its meetings,
and penned much of its correspondence. During his absence
at the Congress in Philadelphia, in August, September, and
October of this year, he continued his exertions to procure
contributions from the other Colonies, and, on his return,
resumed by common assent his position at the head of the
committee. King George had indeed sowed dragon s teeth
when he attempted to starve the Bostonians into submission.
The Tories, having failed in their efforts for the indemni
fication of the East India Company, determined to strike at
the root of their difficulties, and now planned no less an en
terprise than the annihilation of the Committee of Corre
spondence. Warren s " Solemn League and Covenant " had
already been extensively circulated, and they resolved to
make this a basis of operations. For this purpose, a petition
having been presented to the Selectmen for a town meeting,
signed by the requisite number of citizens, the people assem
bled on the 27th, in great numbers, at Faneuil Hall, willing
to listen patiently to the arguments of their enemies. It is
not probable, however, that the real intention was suspected.
The gathering quickly swelled beyond the capacity of the
hall ; for now that thousands were thrown out of employ
ment, every public meeting was more than ever thronged ;
and the Tories shrewdly argued that, with starvation star
ing the inhabitants in the face, they would be likely to vote
for the apparently slight concession of paying for the tea,
which would eventually throw open the harbor and restore
trade. After Samuel Adams had been selected to preside,
the meeting adjourned to the Old South, where the accom
modations were more ample. When quiet was restored in
the vast assemblage, on motion, the " Solemn League and
Covenant " and a number of letters were read to the meetr
ing, whereupon one of the Loyalists proposed " that a vote
of censure be passed by the town upon the conduct of the
Committee of Correspondence, and that the said Committee
be annihilated."
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 183
Adams immediately arose at the moderator s desk, and
desired that, if the conduct of that body was to be considered,
another person might be appointed to the chair ; and " dur
ing that debate," Thomas Gushing acted as moderator.
Adams was the father and life of the Committee, and to him
it fell appropriately to defend it when attacked. He de
scended to the floor of the church, and there the subject was
discussed, " the gentlemen in favor of the motion being
patiently heard ; but it being dark, and these declaring that
they had nothing further to offer, it was voted to defer the
consideration thereof to the adjournment." 1 The debate
recommenced at ten o clock the next forenoon. The theme
was particularly calculated to nerve Adams to the use of all
his powers. The arguments brought forward by the Loyal
ists for the occasion, the appeals to the crowds of laboring
men and mechanics to ward off the misery which was slowly
enveloping their families, were such as needed to be answered
in kind. It must ever be regretted that no full report was
made of the harangues and speeches of this exciting epoch ;
but the newspapers of the day contain only the briefest allu
sions to them. What Samuel Adams advanced was ad
dressed to the understanding rather than the passions of his
auditors. His was a style of oratory which, though it rose
with the occasion and was peculiarly impressive, was never
ornate or grandiloquent. Thoroughly master of his sub
ject, and carrying conviction by the earnestness of his man
ner as well as the soundness of his views, he was listened to
with profound attention. His style of public address has
been sometimes compared to that of Franklin. He often
illustrated his subject with anecdotes. The Analectic Maga
zine, early in the present century, published an instance of
1 Bancroft says : " The patriot Samuel Adams, finding himself not only pro
scribed by the King, but on trial in a Boston town meeting, left the chair and
took his place on the floor. His enemies summoned the hardihood to engage
with him in debate, in which they were allowed the utmost freedom." His
tory, VII. 68, 69.
184 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
this, which has been associated with the occasion now under
consideration.
" A meeting was called in Boston, in consequence of some new
inroads upon the rights and liberties of the people. Adams, who
sat silent, listening to all their violent harangues, at last rose, and,
after a few remarks, concluded with saying : A Grecian philoso
pher, who was lying asleep upon the grass, was aroused by the bite
of some animal upon the palm of his hand. He closed his hand sud
denly as he awoke, and found that he had caught a field-mouse.
As he was examining the little animal who dared to attack him, it
unexpectedly bit him a second time ; he dropped it, and it made its
escape. Now, fellow-citizens, what think you was the reflection he
made upon this trifling circumstance ? It was this : that there is no
animal, however weak and contemptible, which cannot defend its
own liberty, if it will only Jlght for it/
" The cause of American Independence," continues the writer of
the anecdote, who was a contemporary and admirer of Adams,
" owed much to the zeal and intrepidity of this individual. In
comparison with politicians of expediency and intrigue, his love of
liberty, his sincerity, his honesty, and his consistency of character
raised him into true dignity. Compared with those who have
governed empires and swayed the fate of nations, but whose history
is tarnished by corruption and venality, the memory of this humble
patriot is enrolled among the defenders of his country, and repeated
with gratitude and respect by the meanest citizen of that state
which he contributed to render free." 1
It was now that he drew a picture of the future greatness
of America as she must one day become under the influx
of population from Europe and by her vast natural resources ;
and he pointed out a great empire of the West for the resi
dence of millions yet unborn, the posterity of those whose
happiness it was to prepare the way by their virtue and
courage for the generations who were to follow.
"An empire is rising in America," said he. "Britain, by her
multiplied oppressions, is accelerating that independency which she
1 Percy Anecdotes, Vol. II. Analectic Magazine, February, 1814,111. 235.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 185
dreads. We have a post to maintain, to desert which would entail
upon us the curses of posterity. The virtue of our ancestors
inspires us. For my part, I have been wont to converse with
Poverty; and however disagreeable a companion she may be
thought to be by the affluent and luxurious, who never were
acquainted with her, I can live happily with her the remainder of
my days, if I can thereby contribute to the redemption of my coun
try. Our oppressors cannot force us into submission by reducing
us to a state of starvation. We can subsist independently of all the
world. The real wants and necessities of man are few. Nature
has bountifully supplied us with the means of subsistence ; and if
all others fail, we can, like our ancestors, subsist on the clams and
muscles which abound on our shore." l
Such is the outline of a speech of some duration, as re
membered some years afterwards by one who was present at
this or a similar meeting, about the time of the Port Act ;
and, lacking the precise date, it may with propriety be intro
duced on the present occasion. " Samuel Adams," said a
distinguished divine, " was one of Plutarch s men. Modern
times have produced no character like his that I can call to
mind." The remark is merited. Utterly ignoring himself,
and devoid of affectation or display, he lived with but one
soul-inspiring thought, the welfare and happiness of his
fellow-countrymen. Their endurance and virtue he knew
must lead on to the independence of his country. Towards
that single purpose he bent his wonderful energies, and,
seeming to personify the spirit of freedom, he kept his gaze
rivetted upon the great prize to which every event was les
sening the distance. As Adams had resigned the modera
tor s chair for the express purpose of entering the lists in
defence of the committee, he must have spoken long and
earnestly on the subject. The town record states that the
debate on this second day was of long continuance, but
finally the question was put as to annihilating the Com-
1 Compare letter of Adams to James Warren, in which this same senti
ment is expressed (ante, pp. 163, 164). See also Bancroft, VII. 59, 60.
186 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
mittee, when a great majority voted in the negative ; and
then almost the entire meeting responded ay to the follow
ing motion :
" That the town bear open testimony that they are abundantly
satisfied of the upright intentions, and much approve of the honest
zeal of the Committee of Correspondence, and desire that they will
persevere with their usual activity and firmness, continuing stead
fast in the way of well doing." x
It cannot be supposed that Adams and his friends were
much in doubt as to the issue of this trial of strength
between the Loyalists and the Patriots ; but the occasion
was one of more than ordinary interest, as being the final
attempt of the administration party to carry their measures
by legal means in Boston. That party never again essayed
to sound the opinions of the people as to the iron rule of
England, and thenceforth fell hopelessly back upon military
power. It is easy to believe that they rallied all their forces
with the expectation of carrying the day ; and that Governor
Gage had some influence in the affair may be inferred from
the particular mention he made of this failure soon after,
in a letter to the Earl of Dartmouth. The fact shows how
powerful a loyal interest yet existed, whose machinations
were constantly to be guarded against by the patriot lead
ers. Gage says, " The design of the better sort of people "
was " to make a push to pay for the tea and annihilate the
Committee of Correspondence ; but they were outvoted by a
great majority of the lower class," and he forwarded the
protest of the minority. This meeting, which seems to have
completely disheartened the Tories, had a cheering effect
among the friends of liberty abroad as well as among the
people of Boston.
" The attempt," said a writer in Rhode Island, a few weeks after
wards, " made by these men to annihilate your Committee of Cor
respondence was very natural. The robber does not wish to see
1 Town Records for June, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 187
our property entirely secured. An enemy about to invade a foreign
country does not wish to see the coast well guarded and the country
universally alarmed. Upon the same principles these men wish the
dissolution of the Committee. They know that a design was formed
to rob the Americans of their property ; they hoped to share largely
in the general plunder ; but they now see that, by the vigilance,
wisdom, and fidelity of the several Committees of Correspondence,
the people are universally apprised of their danger, and will soon
enter into such measures for the common security as will infallibly
blast all their unjust expectations ; and this is the true source of all
the abuse thrown upon your Committee. But oh, ye worthy few !
continue to treat all their attempts with the neglect which they
deserve. Thus the generous mastiff looks down with pity and
contempt upon the little, noisy, impertinent cur which barks at him
as he walks the streets. Your faithful services have endeared you
to the wise and good in every Colony. Continue your indefatigable
labors in the common cause, and you will soon see the happy success
of them in the salvation of your country." l
Adams himself soon after refers to his antagonists in
Faneuil Hall, and their abettors, as men
" Who, on all occasions, have taken the side of our oppressors ;
some of whom have entered into agreements for the salvation of
our rights, and in the most shameful manner violated them, declar
ing openly their disregard for their country, posterity, or anything
besides their own private property ; these, with the goodly num
ber of conscientious votaries of the damnable doctrine of passive
obedience and non-resistance, not in the mild sense of the honest
Quaker who will injure no side, but in the rigid sense of the flaming
Jacobite who would resist to the last extremity every one who
would even open his mouth in favor of the rights of mankind, or
affirm that James the Second was rightfully expelled from the
throne of Great Britain." 2
At this meeting, the town s Committee of Ways and
Means for employing the Poor (of which Samuel Adams was
1 Address " to the worthy inhabitants of the town of Boston/ Rhode Island,
July 21, 1774 (Force s American Archives, I. 626-628).
2 "Candidus," in the Massachusetts Spy, July 7, 1774.
188 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
chairman) reported that they had received very encourag
ing accounts of the readiness of their sister Colonies to aid
in the relief of the distressed Bostonians in this their ex
tremity, and the zeal and wisdom with which they acted was
soon apparent. The " Solemn League and Covenant " was
adopted in conformity with the late resolutions of the
Assembly, and shows the perfect harmony of action existing
between that body and all minor assemblages in the Prov
ince. The agreement was not confined to the towns of
Massachusetts, for which it seemed originally designed.
It reached the other Colonies, where it was generally sub
scribed. One military commander having openly declared
that he would commit the man to gaol who should presume
to sign it, upwards of a hundred persons immediately affixed
their signatures. " A wise man," says the writer of the
fact, " might easily have foreseen that this would have been
the consequence of such an imprudent threat." 1 In Ports
mouth, New Hampshire, many who professed to be of the
popular party were strongly opposed to the League as injur
ing the prosperity of the Province and directing the trade
into other channels. Gage issued a proclamation pointing
out to the people " the high criminality and dangerous con
sequence to themselves of such alarming and unprecedented
combinations " ; and he enjoined all magistrates and officers
to apprehend and secure for trial such as should presume to
publish, or offer to others to be signed, or should themselves
sign, the covenant ; and the respective sheriffs of the Prov
ince were required to cause the proclamation to be posted
up in some public place in each town. 2 The Loyalist writ
ers, too, Assailed the project in Draper s Gazette, and, with
plausible sophistry, dissuaded the people from supporting it.
This brought out Samuel Adams in its defence in the public
press ; and, on the day of the meeting at the Old South, he
addressed the people of Boston as follows :
" It is very evident a scheme has been concerted by some per-
1 Boston Gazette, July 4, 1774. 2 Rid.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 189
sons to frustrate any attempts that might be made to suspend our
trade with Great Britain, till our most intolerable grievances are
redressed. The scheme appears to be, to seem to agree to the sus
pension, in case all agreed, and then, by construing some passage in
a letter from the Committee of another Province, that they had not
agreed, to declare that the conditional signers were not holden. A
game or two of such mercantile policy would soon have convinced
the world that Lord North had a just idea of the Colonies, and that,
notwithstanding their real power to prove a rope of hemp to him,
they were a rope of sand in reality among themselves.
" I would beg leave to ask the voluminous querists referred to,
whether they conceive a non-consumption agreement would ever
have been thought of in the country, could our brethren there
have persuaded themselves that the merchants were in earnest to
suspend trade the little time there was between our receiving the
Port Bill and the appointment of a Congress, or any other general
measure come into from which a radical trade might be expected ?
2. Whether the trade, in their last meeting, declaring that their
conditional agreement was dissolved, on pretence that advices from
New York and Philadelphia were totally discouraging, was not
highly unbecoming a people whose peculiar circumstances rendered
it their duty to stop their trade to Great Britain the moment the
Port Bill reached the shore of America ? 3. Whether they con
ceived the Committee of Boston planned the non-consumption agree
ment, and sent it first into the country for their adoption ? or rather,
whether the country, enraged at their preposterous management,
did not originate the plan, and press the Committee to have it di
gested, printed, and recommended throughout the Colony ? 4. I
would inquire whether a backwardness in the Province, actually
suffering, to come into the only peaceful measure that remains
for our extrication from slavery would not naturally excuse every
other Province from taking one step for the common salvation ?
5. Whether, in that case, all the trade of the Province, whether
consisting of spring, summer, or fall importations, would, in the end,
be worth an oyster-shell ? 6. Whether all the bugbears started
against the Worcester covenant, as holding up the taking a
solemn oath to withdraw all commercial connections, which our
honest commentators tell the people means even to deny buying or
selling greens or potatoes to them, does not betray a great want of
190 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
that candor and manly generosity which is expected from well-bred
and reasonable citizens ? 7. Whether the suggestion that the
Boston merchants ceasing to import will throw the trade into the
hands of importers in other Provinces is not utterly unbecoming an
inhabitant of that town into which the beneficence of the whole
continent is ready to flow in the most exemplary manner?
, " For shame ! self-interested mortals. Cease to draw upon your
worthy fellow-citizens the just resentment of millions. If there may
be some punctilious wrong in the non-consumption agreement, the
united wisdom of the continent will surely be capable of setting
matters right at the general Congress ; and no gentleman trader, be
his haste ever so great to get rich, need distress himself so mightily
about the profits of one fall importation, if the constant clamor of the
trade for two years past, that they did business for nothing, had any
foundation." l
General Gage had discretionary orders for the seizure of
the " ringleaders " among the patriots ; but, with the irres
olution of a weak mind, he vacillated between the desire to
make a bold stroke and his fear of the determined character
of the people. Samuel Adams, Thomas Gushing, and John
Hancock were the most obnoxious, and of this trio Adams
was looked upon as " the Chief of the Be volution." 2 It is
certain that the friends of Adams were continually appre
hensive of an attempt to seize him secretly and ship him to
England for trial. Openly the scheme could not be consum
mated without an immediate outbreak ; and, had he been
arrested, it is probable that thousands from the country
would have joined Boston for his rescue. Massachusetts at
that time was the most populous Province in America, and
contained three hundred and fifty two thousand inhabitants,
or fourteen thousand more than the Province of New
York, while the people of Boston numbered seventeen
thousand. Though four regiments had arrived and en
camped on the Common, their entire force could not have
availed against the combined power of the yeomanry, had
1 " Candidas," in the Boston Gazette, June 27, 1774.
2 Bancroft, VI. 523. Barry s Massachusetts, II. 480.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 191
affairs been hurried to a crisis. Adams and his friends were
therefore safe, while Gage hesitated to assume a responsi
bility which would be tremendous in its consequences. But
at any time the blow might fall unexpectedly, and so strong
were the apprehensions that he would be seized and sent
secretly to England, that it was feared he might be taken
from his bed ; and his friends about this time insisted upon
his placing additional security at night upon the doors and
windows of his house. On the 5th day of July the Com
mittee of Correspondence, at its regular meeting, had this
subject under discussion, as the following brief record indi
cates :
" A report having been spread that some gentlemen were to be
apprehended, Voted unanimously, the above members 1 being all pres
ent, that we will attend to the business of the Committee of Corre
spondence, unless prevented by brutal force."
The danger seems to have been generally feared among
the acquaintances of Adams ; and he himself, in a letter
about this time to Richard Henry Lee, refers to the subject.
He says :
" Lord North had no expectation that we should be thus sus
tained. On the contrary, he trusted that Boston would be left to
fall alone. He has therefore made no preparation for the effects of
a union. From the information I have had from intelligent per
sons in England, I verily believe the design was to seize some
persons and send them home ; but the steadiness and prudence of
the people, and the unexpected union of the Colonies, evidenced
by liberal contributions for our support, has disconcerted them, and
they are at a loss to know how to proceed further." 2
His friend, James Warren, who looked iipon him as the
great champion of freedom in America, wrote to him from
Plymouth :
1 Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, William Molineux, William Greenleaf,
Benjamin Church, Thomas Young, William Powell, Richard Boynton, Na
thaniel Barber, Joseph Greenleaf, John Sweetser.
2 S. Adams to K. H. Lee, July, 1774 (Life of Lee, I. 99-101).
192 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
" l Beware of the Ides of March/ was a caution given to Csesar,
and his neglect of it was afterwards regretted by his friends. His
rid the world of a tyrant ; and yours may deprive your country of
the wisdom and virtue of a distinguished patriot." l
Arthur Lee writes from London :
" The Ministry seem to have lost all hope of seeing you and Mr.
Hancock here, or they would have struggled more for their sheriff
this year." 2
From Northampton the ever-watchful Hawley wrote :
" Pray, sir, let Mr. Samuel Adams know that our top Tories here
give out most confidently that he will certainly he taken up before
the Congress. I am not timid with regard to myself or friends, but
I am satisfied that they have such advice from head-quarters.
Please give my hearty regards to him, the Speaker, and all the
gentlemen of the Congress." 3
But with the knowledge that the King s order for his
arrest might at any time be executed, his firmness never
forsook him. Samuel Adams was a stranger to the senti
ment of fear ; and had he been called to the dreadful
sacrifice, he would cheerfully have mounted the scaffold,
supported by the conscious justice of the cause in which he
suffered, and serene in the belief that his fate would but
hasten the advent of American Independence.
Plans of seizure were not the only means that were sug
gested for relieving the government from his powerful oppo
sition. Knowing his poverty, it was determined in England
to tempt him with bribes, as if, like the statesmen of that
country, where places of emolument were bartered like other
property, Adams too must have his price. During the ad
ministration of Governor Hutcliinson, it was commonly re
ported that attempts had been made upon his integrity ; and
when some members of the English Ministry or their friends
1 James Warren to Samuel Adams, July 1, 1774.
a Arthur Lee to Samuel Adams, July 8, 1774.
8 Joseph Hawley to John Adams, July 25, 1774 (John Adams s Works, IX.
342-346).
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 193
wrote to that official, " Why hath not Mr. Adams been taken
off from his opposition by an office?" the Governor replied,
" Such is the obstinacy and inflexible disposition of the man,
that he never would be conciliated by any office or gift what
ever." !
Gage was perhaps privately instructed in England to
make the attempt, if an opportunity should offer. The occa
sion seemed to present itself after the dissolution of the
Assembly in June of this year, for thenceforth Adams was
deprived of his stipend as its Clerk ; and this, added to the
distress which the closing of the harbor had entailed upon
the town, left him with scarcely the means of feeding his
little family.
" By Colonel Fenton, who commanded one of the newly arrived
regiments, the Governor sent a confidential and verbal message.
The officer, after the customary salutations, stated the object of his
visit. He said that an adjustment of the existing disputes was very
desirable, as well as important to the interests of both. That he
was authorized by Governor Gage to assure him that he had been
empowered to confer upon him such benefits as would be satisfac
tory, upon the condition that he would engage to cease in his oppo
sition to the measures of government, and that it was the advice of
Governor Gage to him not to incur the further displeasure of his
Majesty ; that his conduct had been such as made him liable to the
penalties of an act of Henry the Eighth, by which persons could be
sent to England for trial, and, by changing his course, he would not
only receive great personal advantages, but would thereby make his
peace with the King. Adams listened with apparent interest to this
recital, until the messenger had concluded. Then rising, he replied,
glowing with indignation : Sir, I trust I have long since made my
peace with the King of kings. No personal consideration shall
induce me to abandon the righteous cause of my country. Tell
Governor Gage it is the advice of Samuel Adams to him no longer
to insult the feelings of an exasperated people. " 2
1 Thacher s Funeral Discourse, p. 19. The facts were supplied by the ven
erable Samuel Dexter, a friend and intimate associate of Samuel Adams.
2 Narration by Mrs. Hannah Wells in 1818.
VOL. II. 13
194 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
The contemporary historian, Gordon, writing from his own
personal knowledge, says :
" When in the chair of the first magistrate, his [Hutchinson s]
appointments to different offices were generally of men well quali
fied for discharging the duties of the same, though mostly supporters
of the government. He was advised by a British naval officer to
secure Messrs. Hancock and S. Adams, by promoting them ; but
replied that though such a scheme might answer in regard to Mr.
H., it would not as to Mr. A., for it would be only giving him more
power to aid him in his opposition, and that he should not be able
afterward to remove him. Under the charter, the Governor can
not remove from offices without the consent of the Council; and
Mr. Hutchinson knew that Mr. S. Adams s interest in the Council
would be greater than his own." x
The honesty of Adams was above the arts of his tempters.
There are numerous evidences of his having been approached,
but always with the same result. A writer in 1796 records
as the verbal statement of Joseph Warren, made to him be
fore the Revolution, that Samuel Adams, " despising British
gold," had bravely withstood the temptations of his country s
enemies. 2 Another of his contemporaries refers to a pre-
Revolutionary period, when Adams " had it in his power to
have secured to himself the most liberal bounties of the
British crown." 3 Adams himself, writing over an assumed
name, alludes, in one of his political essays, to " the mean,
underhand methods" purposely italicising the words by
which the government had attempted to prevent his exposing
the frauds of the Commissioners of the Customs. 4 Hutch
inson, in a private letter to the Ministry, deplores the fact
that Adams " could not be made dependent and taken off
by some appointment to a civil office." 6 Early in the pres-
1 Gordon, I. 357. This conforms with Hutchinson s letter to Lord Dart
mouth, Oct. 9, 1773.
2 Independent Chronicle, Boston, July 24, 1796.
8 Independent Chronicle, Dec. 11, 1788.
* " Candidus," in the Boston Evening Post, Dec. 26, 1768.
6 Hutchinson to the Earl of Dartmouth, Oct. 9, 1773.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 195
ent century, one who had personally known Samuel Adams
recorded his recollection of a conversation about the year
1792, when Adams was Lieutenant-Governor of Massachu
setts, in which this topic was touched upon. The writer
refers to a large sum that was offered by the British govern
ment. The venerable Adams ended the subject by remark
ing that" a guinea had never glistened in his eyes." 1 A
gentleman, who in 1826 " still remembered the sound of
his voice in the Old State-House," says of him, " so sensible
were the military and ministerial agents of his superior in
fluence, that it is well known their offers were almost bound
less to induce him to go over to their party, or if not, to
remain tranquil." 2 Another, who writes as though the
facts were personally known to him, speaks of Adams as one
who " chose the high honor and exalted feeling of support
ing the liberties and equal rights of his countrymen, with a
moderate fortune, to the low and grovelling dignity of a
* British pensioner of two thousand guineas per annum for
life 7 ; " 8 and this seems to tally with the remark of the ex
ecutor of Samuel Adams s estate, who repeatedly asserted
that he had seen and examined, before the papers passed
out of his hands, evidence to prove that the British govern
ment had offered the patriot one thousand pounds sterling
per annum for two lives, his own and his son s. The col
lection was long the common prey of autograph hunters, and
in the course of years the most interesting of them disap
peared, this among others. Thacher, in his funeral ser
mon, quotes the written statement of some contemporary,
that, upon the dissolution of the Legislature in 1774, Adams
was reported to have been offered a lucrative place under
government, if he would abandon the cause, but that, though
by this dissolution, he was deprived of his principal means
of support, " he reprobated the offer, choosing rather to sub
sist by individual or common beneficence, or even perish,
1 Independent Chronicle. 2 Boston Patriot, July 26, 1826.
8 Niles s Principles and Acts, p. 477.
196 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
than to sacrifice the cause of truth and betray the liberty
of his country." The fact has descended in family tradi
tion that he was thrice tempted by British emissaries, and it
has even been said that he was offered a patent of nobility
among other inducements, though of this there is no other
proof than the assertion of a contemporary and friend of
Adams, who remembered a rumor which was once current
to that effect. It is certain that his name was included in
the list of those whom the Ministry, and perhaps the King,
proposed to propitiate by creating them American peers, as
a step towards conciliation during the war. 1 Separating
vague statements from what is reliable, there is no doubt
that the humble circumstances of Adams induced the Ad
ministration to attempt his integrity ; but they had yet to
learn the incorruptible virtue of the American patriots
during the Revolution, and that where armed force could
not intimidate, bribery was equally powerless to effect their
purposes.
Although the Loyalists had been defeated at the Old
South in their effort to call down public censure upon the
Committee of Correspondence, many of their principal mer
chants signed a protest against the Covenant, which had
been scattered far and wide, together with a circular lei>-
ter from the Committee. The dissentients at the previous
meeting were the chief movers in this affair. They de
nounced the agreement as of " a most dangerous nature
and tendency," and appealed to the cupidity of the trades
people to use their influence against it, 2 and the action
of the Committee was virulently assailed. Samuel Adams
again vindicated the Committee in a detailed account of
the origin and progress of the non-importation plan, and
appealed to the people with all his powers of persuasion to
stand to the agreement until the government was forced to
redress their grievances. Referring to the opposition of the
protesting merchants, he says :
1 John Adams s Works, III. 178. 2 Boston Evening Post, July 4, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 197
" They observed that, by lengthening out the time for the recep
tion of goods, enormous quantities might be ordered, which, instead
of delegating the manufacturers to represent us, as the Philadel-
phian wisely expresses it, would render them quite easy until the
ensuing election is over ; and then farewell Liberty in every part
of Christendom. This is a concern of too much importance to be
risked against a few trifling accommodations and adjustments of
punctilios. The good sense of Newburyport and Providence, with
many other towns, perceived the necessity of drawing up the ship
ping to the wharves, and not exporting nor importing a farthing s
worth to or from Great Britain. "Would to God the merchants,
who had a non-importation forced upon them whether they would
or not, had been as spirited and consistent with their acknowledged
duty ! How abject must the men appear in the eyes of mankind
whom no species of oppression can divert from the pursuit of so
small a gain as might be made by picking gold off gingerbread !
Would not a man of true wisdom and spirit sacrifice his all, and
risk his very life, rather than run the venture of having his person
and property subjected to the absolute disposal of a British minis
ter ? And if laws may be obtained by that minister to control the
one and command the other in all cases whatever, who can say that
he is a freeman or that he really owns a farthing? Putting off
the time we should oppose such a violent attack upon us discovers
too much a disposition to submit to it. And, certainly, a plain coun
teracting the party who are in pursuit of the acknowledged sole
measure to be depended on for relief, without even proposing any
substitute in its stead, is declaring to the world that, in the esteem
of such opponents, LIFE, LIBERTY, and PROPERTY are not worth
contending for. To defer all to the decision of the approaching
Congress is, in my opinion, extremely impolitic. A relaxation in
some articles of absolute necessity, and some modifications of the
general agreement, must be inevitably left to their wisdom ; but cer
tainly the more the resolution of every part of the continent is man
ifested to maintain their sacred rights at all hazards and extremities,
the more strong will be the hands of their delegates." l
1 " Candidas," in the Massachusetts Spy, July 7, 1774.
CHAPTER XXXII.
Fortitude and Forbearance of Boston under the Port Act. The Committee
of Safety. Distressed Condition of the People. Adams plans Measures
to be pursued in Massachusetts during his Absence in Congress. He pro
poses to Dr. Warren the Suffolk County Convention. Preparations for
Departure. An Outfit from Unknown Friends. Fashionable Dress in
the Last Century. The Massachusetts Delegation set out from Boston.
Hospitalities and Public Honors paid them on their Journey. Arrival at
Philadelphia. Extraordinary Assemblage of Great Characters. Prelim
inary Meeting of the Delegates.
DURING the month of July, the Donation Committee were
in active operation. Supplies for the poor found their way to
the town from far and near by land, for nothing was per
mitted to pass even from wharf to wharf in a boat. Con
scious that their cause was that of all America, and that the
eyes of their countrymen and of the world were turned upon
them, they bore oppression with Spartan fortitude, and pa
tiently awaited the time for active measures. The spirit
to declare themselves independent of England could have
been aroused at any time by the leaders, but prudence
restrained them until the wisdom of all the Colonies could
be concentrated in Congress. There was more courage in
the calm forbearance of that devoted town than in any pas
sionate or deliberate outbreak. Perhaps the posting of
troops in Boston was with the hope that the inhabitants
could be provoked to some act which might be construed
into an excuse for firing upon them. But the sturdy towns
people had been too long and systematically engaged in the
defence of their liberties to be hurried into a conflict.
They were prepared for the event, but wisely reposed upon
the justice of their cause while a shadow of hope remained
that reason would resume her sway in the minds of British
statesmen. Besides, any armed contest, the responsibility
July, 1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 199
of which could be made to rest with the public, would in
jure the cause in the Middle and Southern Provinces, who
might charge the Bostonians with rashly precipitating a war
which could have been averted by the deliberations of the
approaching Congress. Perhaps no other people in the
world, under similar circumstances, could have remained
under such perfect self-restraint. With every circumstance
to exasperate them into madness, they quietly watched the
progress of events, and awaited only the hour when liberty
and manhood called for action.
At the meeting which appointed the Donation Committee at
Faneuil Hall, Samuel Adams being moderator, a Committee
of Safety were chosen by ballot, for the purpose of " consid
ering proper measures to be adopted for the common safety,
during those exigencies of our public affairs which may
reasonably be expected from the acts of the British Parlia
ment altering the course of justice and annihilating our free
Constitution." This committee consisted of Thomas Gush
ing, Samuel Adams, John Adams, John Hancock, William
Phillips, Joseph Warren, and Josiah Quincy. 1 Their duties,
as announced in a printed notification, one of which Gage
enclosed in a letter to the Earl of Dartmouth from Salem,
were unlike those of the Committee of Safety which was
appointed by the Provincial Congress in the following Octo
ber. They were apparently to act as a board of directors to
the general Donation Committee. Their particular atten
tion was given to such business as should " afford employ
ment to the poor in the paving and repairing of streets,
building of wharves on the town s land, the building houses
and vessels or other public work to be carried on by moneys
arising from voluntary donations, the selling of real estate
belonging to the town, and to consider what further meas
ures were proper to be taken upon the exigency of public
affairs, more especially relative to the Port Act, and to act
upon such other matters as might properly come before
1 Town Records for July 26, 1774.
200 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
them." l No accounts exist of the proceedings of this body.
Two of their number left Boston for the Congress at Phila
delphia during the next month, and, as the preliminary
steps for the Provincial Congress were taken towards the
close of that month, it is likely that their duties soon became
merged into those of that celebrated convention. A week
before this meeting took place, another committee was ap
pointed, with Samuel Adams as its chairman, to " consider
and report a declaration to be made by this town to Great
Britain and all the world." 2 The records are silent as to
what report, if any, was made, and as events crowded on,
it was perhaps considered unnecessary to proceed with the
original intention.
" This is now," said the Gazette, " the forty-eighth day since the
siege of Boston began, and notwithstanding our accumulating dis
tresses, the inhabitants continue to exhibit that calm firmness and
unanimity which astonishes our enemies. Notwithstanding a report
industriously propagated, that a number of persons in the confidence
of their fellow-citizens were to be apprehended and sent home for
trial, or we know not what, no one of them has left his ground. If
any unfair practices should hereafter take place, this Province and
continent have it in their power to do themselves justice.
" The inhabitants of this town are greatly supported under the
weight of ministerial vengeance by the kind sympathy and gener
ous donations of our brethren and friends through the Province and
continent. It indeed seems as if their prophecy would soon be ver
ified in Boston s becoming the granary of North America. May
the behavior of its inhabitants continue to deserve their praise and
bounty. A whole continent is now awake and active; one spirit
actuates the whole, and all unite in prayers to the Supreme Dis
poser of events that the liberties of America may yet be preserved.
Last Thursday was a solemn day in this town ; the shops and
streets empty, and the churches full. May the day be followed with
true repentance and amendment of life, and all the ills we suffer
now, like scattered clouds, shall pass away." 3
1 Printed notification signed by William Cooper, Town Clerk.
8 Town Records, July 19, 1774. 8 Boston Gazette, July 18, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 201
This fast was observed on the 14th of July, as a supplica
tion to Almighty God that the people might be relieved
from their distresses. " It is hoped," said the Gazette, " that
none will be permitted to spend their time in idle diversions,
more especially in resorting to the place of resort to see the
manoeuvres of the soldiery, who certainly ought on that day
to be left without a single spectator." l
Gage, in his next letter to the Ministry, thus speaks of
it:-
" The fast day appointed by the faction was kept in this town on
the 14th instant as generally and punctually as if it had been ap
pointed by authority. I might say the same of most other places,
though it was not universal ; for, in a few places, no regard was
paid to it. But the League and Covenant has not succeeded as the
faction expected." 2
In the same letter he regrets that the Loyalist merchants
had not repeated their attempt to comply with the Port
Bill ; but their signal failure at the Old South gave them no
encouragement to continue. Gage never understood the
character of the people he had been sent to control. He
was a mere soldier, and lacked all the qualifications for gov
ernment. Hutchinson was far his superior in intelligence
and administrative talent ; but the malignant, avaricious
spirit of the late Governor could only beget intense hatred
where the easy and aifable manners of Gage gained him
boon companions, though they inspired neither confidence
nor fear. It was more a lack of wisdom than the feeling of
resentment which induced him needlessly to insult the peo
ple of Massachusetts a few days after the fast, by exhorting
all persons to avoid " hypocrisy, sedition, licentiousness, and
all other immoralities." 3
About this time Samuel Adams wrote to Richard Henry
1 Boston Gazette, July 11, 1774.
2 General Gage to the Earl of Dartmouth, July 20, 1774.
8 Proclamation, dated Council Chamber, Salem, July 21, 1774.
202 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
Lee, in Virginia, acknowledging the liberal contributions
which had been made for the support of the poor.
" The inhabitants," said he, " still wear cheerful countenances.
Far from being in the least intimidated, they are resolved to un
dergo the greatest hardships rather than submit in any instance to
the tyrannical act.
" Four regiments are encamped on our Common, and more are
expected ; l but I hope the people will by circumspect behavior pre
vent their taking occasion to act. The Port Bill is followed by two
other acts, one for regulating the government of this Province,
or rather totally to destroy our free Constitution, and substituting
an absolute despotic one in its stead ; the other, for the more impar
tial administration of justice, or, as some term it, for screening from
punishment any soldier who shall murder an American for assert
ing his rights. A submission to these acts will doubtless be re
quired and expected ; but whether General Gage will find it an
easy thing to force the people to submit to so great and fundamen
tal a change of government is a question, I think, worth his consid
eration. Will the people of America consider these measures as
an attack on the Constitution of an individual Province, in which
the rest are not interested, or will they view the model of govern
ment prepared for us as a system for the whole continent ? Will
they, as unconcerned spectators, look on it to be designed only to
lop off the exuberant branches of democracy in the Constitution
of this Province, or as a part of a plan to reduce them all to sla
very? These are questions, in my opinion, of great importance,
which I trust will be thoroughly weighed in a general Congress.
May God inspire that intended body with wisdom and fortitude,
and unite and prosper their counsels.
The people of this Province are thoroughly sensible of the neces
sity of breaking off all commercial connection with a country whose
political counsels tend only to enslave them. They however con
sider the body of the nation as kept in profound ignorance of the
1 By a proclamation, signed by Gage on the 15th of July, it seems that
numbers of these troops were deserting. Pardon is offered to all who had
deserted previous to the 10th of July, and who should surrender themselves
before the 10th of August. Failing to do so, they were to expect no mercy.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 203
nature of the dispute between Britain and the Colonies, and taught
to believe that we are a perfidious and rebellious people. It is
with reluctance they come into any resolutions which must dis
tress those who are not the objects of their resentments, but they
are urged to it by motives of self-preservation ; and are therefore
signing an agreement in the several towns not to consume any Brit
ish manufactures which shall be imported after the last of August
next ; and that they may not be imposed upon, they are to require
an oath of those of whom they purchase goods. It is the virtue of
the yeomanry we are chiefly to depend upon." l
These extracts exhibit the determined character of the
opposition in Boston. The writer well knew the virtue of
that yeomanry with whose interests the sympathies of his
heart were ever interwoven ; and he knew that the country,
in its hour of trial, could lean confidingly upon the stalwart
farmers of inland Massachusetts more than upon any other
class. The Loyalists were now especially active, being sus
tained and encouraged by Gage. The Governor had already
written to the Earl of Dartmouth, announcing the arrival
of all the transports with troops, and that Lord Percy and
many others had reached Boston.
" Your Lordship," he says, " is acquainted with the usurpation
and tyranny established here by edicts of town meetings, enforced
by mobs ; by assuming the sole use and power of the press, and in
fluencing the pulpits ; by nominating and intimidating of juries, and,
in some instances, threatening the judges ; and this usurpation has
by time acquired a firmness that, I fear, is not to be annihilated at
once or by the ordinary methods. A free and impartial course of
justice, whereby delinquents can be brought to punishment, I appre
hend to be the chief thing wanting. The terror of mobs is over,
and the press is becoming free." 2
Reconciliation with a government actuated by such a spirit
as this, and thus by its agent wilfully perverting the essence
of true English liberty, as exemplified in an oppressed but
1 S. Adams to R. H. Lee, late in July, 1774 (Life of Lee, I. 99-101).
* Gage to the Earl of Dartmouth, July 5, 1774.
204 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
still loyal people, was hopeless. The administration party
stopped at nothing to accomplish their purposes. One of
their means of opposition was to circulate reports that the
Sons of Liberty, in order to make a show of assistance from
the other towns, sent money into the country to purchase
pretended free gifts, and that the Sons of Liberty themselves
were " the scum of the earth, the dregs of the people, and
poor to a proverb." At a later period, they openly accused
the Donation Committee of dishonestly appropriating the
funds entrusted to their charge. Among the many replies
of this Committee which have been preserved, acknowledg
ing donations from various sources in Massachusetts and the
other Colonies, numbers were written by Mr. Adams ; and
his letters are found until a few days before his departure
for Philadelphia, when they cease, and appear no more in
the collection until his return from Congress. To one of
the Committee of Farmington, Connecticut, who sent four
hundred bushels of rye and Indian corn, he says :
" You may be assured that the friends of liberty and a righteous
government are firm and steady to the common cause of American
rights. We are in hopes to keep our poor from murmuring, and
that, by the blessing of Heaven, we shall shortly be confirmed in that
freedom for which our ancestors entered the wilds of America." l
To the Committee of Wethersfield, Connecticut, who sent
a similar gift, he writes :
" This town is suffering the stroke of ministerial vengeance, as
they apprehend, for the liberties of America ; and it affords them
abundant satisfaction to find that they have the concurrent senti
ments of their brethren in the sister Colonies in their favor, evidenced
by the most liberal acts of munificence for their support. While
they are thus encouraged and supported, I trust they will never be
so ungrateful to their friends, as well [as] so lost to a sense of virtue,
as to give up the glorious cause. They have need of wisdom and
fortitude to confound the devices of their enemies and to endure the
1 S. Adams to Fisher Gay of Farmington, August 4, 1774 (Mass. Hist. So
ciety s Collections, Fourth Series, IV. 15, 16).
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 205
hard conflict with dignity. They rejoice in the approaching general
American Congress, and trust that, by the Divine direction and bless
ing, such measures will be taken as will bring about a happy issue
of the present glorious struggle, and secure the rights of America
upon the permanent principles of equal liberty and truth." 1
Marblehead sent two hundred and twenty-four quintals of
good eating fish, "one and three quarter casks of olive oil, *
and " thirty-nine pounds, five shillings, and threepence in
cash." To its Committee of Donations, Adams replied :
" It was, in all probability, the expectation of Lord North, the
sister Colonies would totally disregard the fate of Boston, and that
she would be left to suffer and fall alone. Their united resolution,
therefore, to support her in the conflict will, it is hoped, greatly per
plex him in the further prosecution of his oppressive measures, and
finally reduce him to the necessity of receding from them. While
we are thus aided by our brethren, you may depend upon it that
we shall not disgrace the common cause of America by any sub
missions to the barbarous edict. Our inhabitants still wear cheer
ful countenances, and they will be supported by the beneficence of
our friends, notwithstanding one of your addressers meanly insinua
ted to a gentleman of South Carolina, at Salem, yesterday, that they
would receive no benefit from the large donation of rice received
from that place. Such an intimation discovers a degree of deprav
ity of heart which cannot easily be expressed. I have received a
letter from your [Committee ?] to our Committee of Correspond
ence, which I shall lay before them at their meeting this evening." 2
Up to the time of Adams s leaving for Congress, the an
swers to letters were written by himself, Samuel Patridge,
Nathaniel Appleton, and David Jeffries; after which,
the 9th of August, Joseph Warren, Appleton, Benjamin
Austin, and Jeffries were the principal correspondents. Jef
fries, particularly, seems, to have acted as scribe of the
Committee, as his letters are the most numerous. These
1 S. Adams to E. Williams of Wethersfield, July 29, 1774 (Ibid., pp. 19,20).
2 S. Adams to the Committee of Correspondence of Marblehead, August 2,
1774 (Ibid., pp. 30-32).
206 LIFE OF SAMUFX ADAMS. [Aug.
records show that the most substantial evidences of sympa
thy came from the two Carolinas. The donations were gen
erally landed at Salem, or at other adjacent seaports, and
carted thence to the distressed town. As the time ap
proached for the departure of the delegates, Adams consult
ed with his confidential friends as to their future plans. On
parting with the Committee of Correspondence, whose pro
ceedings he had directed from the moment of its organization,
he gave them advice which the members treasured up as
" instructions " to be observed during his absence. 1 To
his last evening in Boston he was actively engaged. As
chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means for the relief
and the employment of the poor, he attended daily at stated
hours with the other members at Faneuil Hall.
In selecting Philadelphia for the meeting of the general
Congress, the Massachusetts Assembly had doubtless been
influenced by the comparatively retired position, and con
sequent safety from interference, as well as by the central
location. A similar reason actuated Samuel Adams in rela
tion to the Massachusetts Assembly, whose sessions he knew
might at any time be arbitrarily interrupted in Boston or
Salem. He therefore formed a project of calling a congress
of deputies from Boston and the adjoining towns, similar
to the convention of committees which had assembled in
May last, to meet at some inland town in Suffolk County. 2
This body would form the nucleus of a more extended
Provincial Congress of all the towns in Massachusetts when
ever the occasion should require. He proposed the idea to
Joseph Warren, to be carried into execution as soon after his
departure for Philadelphia as circumstances might demand.
The plan was well understood among the varioiis Com
mittees of Correspondence in the county, so that at the
adjourned town meeting of the 9th of August, held at Fan
euil Hall, Samuel Adams acting as moderator, the first steps
1 Benjamin Church to Samuel Adams, Sept. 29, 1774.
8 Bancroft, VII. 108, 109. Kent and Warren to Adams, see Chap. XXXIII.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 207
were taken. This was the day before the departure of
Adams and his colleagues for Philadelphia. Among the
proceedings were a preamble and vote, showing how far the
scheme had been matured. " It having been suggested as
probable that some towns in the county were about apply
ing for a meeting of deputies from the several towns in the
county," the " Committee of Correspondence and the Select
men were directed to choose five persons for the county
Congress in case application should be made for that pur
pose." 1 The preliminary move was thus made towards
the Suffolk County Congress, which assembled on the first
Monday in September, at Dedham, and adopted Warren s
celebrated memorial to the Continental Congress.
This was the first time that Samuel Adams is known to
have left his birthplace for more than a few days, and then
only on short visits to the adjacent towns. In 1774, a jour
ney to Philadelphia from Boston was an undertaking of no
ordinary importance. Paul Revere, as an express rider,
might accomplish the distance there and back in ten or
twelve days ; but it could be no such fleet achievement for
gentlemen of the age and dignity of the Massachusetts dele
gates. Adams would necessarily leave his family in strait
ened circumstances and environed with the dangers of a
besieged town ; but his son, Dr. Adams, remained, and troops
of friends surrounded them. There was less reason for the
other delegates to feel anxious. The wealth of Gushing,
who had taken Bowdoin s place in the delegation, shielded
his family from the contingencies of want ; Paine resided at
Taunton, where the perils of the war would not be likely to
reach ; and John Adams, seeing the approaching storm, had
removed his family to Braintree. " They could not, indeed,"
he says, " have remained in safety in Boston." 2
An instance of the popular esteem for Samuel Adams was
related by his daughter. About a week before he set out
for Congress, while seated at his evening meal, a knock
1 Town Records for August, 1774. 2 John Adams s Works, II. 340.
208 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
was heard at the door. It proved to be a well-known tailor,
who politely asked that Mr. Adams should allow him to take
his measure. The request excited some curiosity in the
family, and the ladies were particularly desirous to know
who had sent him, but he firmly refused to give any expla
nation, and finally the measure was taken, when the tailor
bowed and took his leave. The family seated themselves
again, and were speculating upon what this could mean,
when they were attracted by another knock at the door.
This time the most approved hatter in Boston introduced
himself, and desired to get the size of Mr. Adams s head.
He had hardly disappeared before a shoemaker came, and
was followed by one or two others on similar errands, each
observing a strict silence as to the persons whose orders they
were obeying. A few days afterwards, a large trunk was
brought to the house and placed in the front entrance, di
rected to Mr. Samuel Adams. It contained a complete suit
of clothes, two pairs of shoes of the best style, a set of silver
shoe-buckles, a set of gold knee-buckles, a set of gold sleeve-
buttons, an elegant cocked hat, a gold-headed cane, a red
cloak, and a number of minor articles of wearing-apparel.
The cane and sleeve-buttons, which are still preserved, are
ornamented with the device of the Liberty-cap, which has led
to the supposition that the gift came from the Sons of Lib
erty, though any of the political clubs, or one or more pri
vate gentlemen, who knew his circumstances, may have
been the donors.
His poverty was well known to the public, and was con
sidered the more notable from the fact that he seemed to
have no desire to better his condition, or at least made no
efforts to do so ; his whole time being devoted to political
affairs. These so entirely absorbed him, that his family
must, even now, have occasionally suffered for what were
considered the necessaries of life. But the lack of t business
talent which characterized his early attempts clung to him
through life. The outfit, presented by some of his friends,
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 209
on his departure for Congress, was sent to him with a full
knowledge of this. The practice of paying the debts of
eminent men has been not uncommon in later days. The
account above given comes directly from his daughter, Mrs.
Wells. Another account, differing somewhat in detail, is
found in " The Andrews Correspondence," edited by Win-
throp Sargent, and published by the Massachusetts Historical
Society.
" The ultimate wish and desire of the high government party is
to get Samuel Adams out of the way, when they think they may
accomplish every of their plans ; but, however some may despise
him, he has certainly very many friends. For, not long since, some
persons (their names unknown) sent and asked his permission to
build him a new barn, the old one being decayed, which was exe
cuted in a few days. A second sent to ask leave to repair his
house, which was thoroughly effected soon. A third sent to beg the
favor of him to call at a tailor s shop, and be measured for a suit of
clothes, and choose his cloth, which were finished and sent home for
his acceptance. A fourth presented him with a new wig, a fifth
with a new hat, a sixth with six pair of the best silk hose, a seventh
with six pair of fine thread ditto, an eighth with six pair of shoes,
and a ninth modestly inquired of him whether his finances were not
rather low than otherwise. He replied, it was true that was the
case, but he was very indifferent about these matters, so that his
poor abilities were of any service to the public ; upon which the
gentleman obliged him to accept of a purse containing about fifteen
or twenty Johannes. I mention this to show you how much he is
esteemed here. They value him for his good sense, great abilities,
amazing fortitude, noble resolution, and undaunted courage ; being
firm and unmoved at all the various reports that were propagated
in regard to his being taken up and sent home, notwithstanding he
had repeated letters from his friends, both in England as well as
here, to keep out of the way." 1
The costume of a people has been supposed to have an
influence upon the national character. While the classical
dress of the ancients is associated with those noble senti-
1 John Andrews to William Barrell, Boston, Aug. 11, 1774.
VOL. II. 14
210 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
ments which have descended from their poets and philoso
phers, it is not unreasonable to connect the polite gravity of
our Revolutionary fathers with their formality of costume,
of which many yet living have a vivid recollection, as distin
guishing gentlemen of the last century. The Revolutionary
dress, not only among the wealthy and aristocratic, but as
worn by the plainest republicans of that remarkable era, was
typical of a dignity of character in society and in public as
semblages which it is more difficult to imagine in connection
with the habiliments of the present day. The knee-breeches,
buckled shoes, cocked hat, tie-wig, and capacious waistcoat
of a hundred years ago are now known only in prints or
statues commemorative of that period.
A well-dressed gentleman of Massachusetts is described
by one who moved in the best society as wearing his hair
powdered and tied in a long queue ; a plaited white stock ;
a shirt ruffled at the bosom and over the hands, and fastened
at the wrist with gold sleeve-buttons ; a peach-bloom coat
with white buttons, lined with white silk, and standing off
at the skirts with buckram ; a figured silk vest, divided so
that the pockets extended on the thighs ; black silk small
clothes, with large gold or silver knee-buckles ; cotton or
silk stockings ; large shoes with short quarters, and buckles
to match. This dress, which the writer sketched from the
wardrobe of a member of the Massachusetts Provincial Con
gress in 1776, was not merely the appropriate costume on
occasions of ceremony, but was adopted with more or less
exactness by the fashionable gentlemen of the day, and
belonged to a period much subsequent to that of the full
bottomed wig, red roquelet, and gold-headed cane which,
earlier in the century, were worn by persons distinguished
for their age or wealth.
The popular dress underwent few changes from the mid
dle of the last century to its close. Mr. Sullivan, who vis
ited John Hancock at his house in Beacon Street about the
year 1786, pictures him as wearing at midday " a red
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 211
velvet cap, within which was one of fine linen ; the edge of
this was turned up over the velvet one two or three inches.
He wore a blue damask gown, lined with silk, a white
plaited stock, a white silk embroidered waistcoat, black silk
small-clothes, white silk stockings, and red morocco slip
pers." This dress was undoubtedly the extreme of fashion,
and such as only one of Hancock s wealth and station would
assume.
Samuel Adams is described by the same author as " erect
in person," and wearing " a gray tie-wig, cocked hat, and
red cloak." The Copley painting in Faneuil Hall represents
him in 1772, clad in a suit of dark red cloth, cut in the
fashion of that day, yet with consistent republican plainness.
It was customary for fashionable people to have their hair
dressed at a barber s ; and it would appear, from the evidence
in the trial of Robinson, after the affray with Otis in 1769,
that swords were sometimes worn as an article of dress.
The Governor s Council in Massachusetts was perhaps the
most august assemblage in the Colonies prior to the Revolu
tion. Selected from among the wealthiest and most intelli
gent gentlemen of the Province, it approached as nearly as
possible to the formality and display usually attaching to
the subordinate institutions of royalty. John Adams, in his
Autobiography, draws a spirited picture, elsewhere quoted,
of the appearance of this body in 1770, when his kinsman
faced the Governor in their presence on the day after the
Massacre. It is probable that even their humble approach
to courtly style gave a tone to manners among certain cir
cles in society ; and when this was deprecated by the sterner
republicans, it was replied that the imposing costume and
official array served to polish the manners of the Province,
besides adding to the dignity of his Majesty s servants.
Wealthy families often sent to England for their fine
clothing, and to have articles of apparel dyed. Ladies
dresses of costly material, prior to the taxation troubles,
were sometimes brought from London completely made.
212 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
Cutlery, spectacles, books, and many valuable appurtenances
to the toilet were purchased by agents or friends in London,
and forwarded to order.
Fashionable life in the olden time is thus described by a
venerable resident of Boston early in the present century :
" Seventy years ago cocked hats, wigs, and red cloaks were the
usual dress of gentlemen; boots were rarely seen, except among
military men. Shoestrings were worn only by those who could not
buy any sort of buckles. In winter round coats were used, made
stiff with buckram ; they came down to the knees in front.
" Before the Revolution, boys wore wigs and cocked hats ; and
boys of genteel families wore cocked hats till within about thirty
years.
"Ball dress for gentlemen was silk coat and breeches of the
same, and embroidered waistcoats, sometimes white satin breeches.
Buckles were fashionable until about fifteen or twenty years, and
a man could not have remained in a ball-room with shoestrings.
It was usual for the bride, bridegroom, and maids and men attend
ing, to go to church together three successive Sundays after the
wedding, with a change of dress each day. A gentleman who
deceased not long since appeared the first Sunday in white broad
cloth, the second in blue and gold, the third in peach-bloom and
pearl buttons. It was the custom to hang the escutcheon of the
deceased head of a family out of the window over the front door,
from the time of his decease until the funeral. The last instance
which is remembered of this was in the case of Governor Han
cock s uncle in 1764. Copies of the escutcheon, painted on black
silk, were more anciently distributed among the pall-bearers, rings
afterwards, and, until within a few years, gloves. Dr. A. Eliot
had a mug full of rings which were presented to him at funerals.
Till within about twenty years gentlemen wore powder, and many
of them sat from thirty to forty minutes under the barber s hands
to have their hair craped, suffering no inconsiderable pain most
of the time from hair pulling, and sometimes from the hot curling-
tongs. Crape cushions and hoops were indispensable in full dress
till within about thirty years. Sometimes ladies were dressed the
day before the party, and slept in easy-chairs to keep their hair in
fit condition for the following night. Most ladies went to parties
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 213
on foot, if they could not get a cast in a friend s carriage or chaise.
Gentlemen rarely had a chance to ride.
"The latest dinner-hour was two o clock; some officers of the
Colonial government dined later occasionally. In genteel families,
ladies went to drink tea about four o clock, and rarely stayed after
candlelight in summer. It was fashion for ladies to propose to
visit, not to wait to be sent for.
" The drinking of punch in the forenoon in public houses was
a common practice with the most respectable men till about five
and twenty years ; and evening clubs were very common. The
latter, it is said, were more common formerly, as they afforded the
means of communion on the state of the country. Dinner-parties
were very rare. Wine was very little in use ; convivial parties
drank punch or toddy. . Half-boots came into fashion about thirty
years ago. The first pair that appeared in Boston were worn by a
young gentleman who came here from New York, and who was
more remarkable for his boots than anything else. Within twenty
years gentlemen wore scarlet coats with black velvet collars, and
very costly buttons of mock pearl, cut steel, or painted glass ; and
neckcloths edged with lace, and ruffles over the hands. Before the
Revolution, from five to six hundred pounds was the utmost of an
nual expenditure in those families where carriages and correspond
ent domestics were kept. There were only two or three carriages,
that is chariots or coaches, in 1750. Chaises on four wheels, not
phaetons, were in use in families of distinction."
On Wednesday, the 10th of August, the four delegates to
the Continental Congress met at the house of Thomas Cush-
ing, and rode thence to Coolidge s at Watertown, where they
sat down to an entertainment with a large number of gen
tlemen who had gone thither for the purpose. 1 Here the
friends, who had stood side by side in the times which had
brought them to the present crisis, took leave of each other.
In that company were probably Joseph Warren, John Han
cock, William and Samuel Cooper, Paul Revere, Josiah
Quincy, Dr. Young, Benjamin Kent, and perhaps Hawley
and James Warren. To those who were about leaving their
1 John Adams s Diary (Works, II. 340). Boston Gazette, August 15, 1774.
214 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
native Province, strange and exciting scenes might be open
ing. They were to unite their counsels with those of the
illustrious men of the South, most of whom were known
to them only by their worthy deeds, for the preservation
of American liberty, that it might be transmitted pure and
unimpaired to succeeding generations. The parting be
tween Samuel Adams and Josiah Quincy, in whose face
the hectic flush of consumption presaged his approaching
end, can be imagined. The course of the brilliant young
patriot had been watched with peculiar interest by Adams,
who might almost be termed his political preceptor. They
never saw each other again on earth. There, too, was prob
ably Dr. Adams, lately become a practising physician, and
soon to commence his active part in the service of his coun
try. To him his father confided the care of the family,
whose name alone, as it afterwards appeared, brought them
special hatred and insult from the royal authorities, when
attempting with other inhabitants to obtain a pass to quit
the town during the siege. The meeting and separation
of that company of patriot friends was affectionate and
memorable. " About four in the afternoon," says John
Adams, in his contemporary account of the scene, " we
took our leave of them amidst the kind wishes and fer
vent prayers of every man in the company for our health
and success. This scene was truly affecting, beyond de
scription affecting." Gage, in a letter to the Earl of Dart
mouth, thus comments on their departure :
" The delegates, as they are called, from this Province are gone
to Philadelphia to meet the rest who are to form the general Con
gress ; and it is thought it will be determined there, whether the
town of Boston is to comply with the terms of the Port Bill. It is
not possible to guess what a body composed of such heterogeneous
matter will determine ; but the members from hence, I am assured,
will promote the most haughty and insolent resolves, for their plan
has ever been, by threats and high-sounding sedition, to terrify and
intimidate." *
1 General Gage to the Earl of Dartmouth, August 27, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 215
Their departure is thus referred to by John Andrews :
" Intended to have written you by Robert Treat Paine, who set
out with the Committee for the Congress this morning, but did not
know of their going till now. Am told they made a very respect
able parade in sight of five of the regiments encamped on the Com
mon, being in a coach and four, preceded by two white servants
well mounted and armed, with four blacks behind in livery, two on
horseback and two footmen. Am in hopes their joint deliberations
will effect something for our relief, more particularly to concert such
measures as may be adopted by the mother country, so as to settle a
friendship between us that may be lasting and permanent." l
The party travelled in a coach provided for their special
convenience. Their journey, which was a succession of en
thusiastic receptions, may be traced by John Adams s Diary,
in which he industriously noted down the occurrences by
the way. At Hartford, where they arrived on the sixth day,
they met Silas Deane, afterwards one of the Commissioners
to France. Here they dined at the tavern with upwards of
thirty gentlemen of the place, of the first character, at their
invitation. The company appeared determined to abide by
the resolutions of the Congress ; and after the dinner, on
setting out for Middletown, a number of gentlemen in car
riages and on horseback insisted on attending them as far
as Wethersfield. Here they ascended the steeple of the
meeting-house, and looked upon the most beautiful prospect
the writer had ever seen ; and Silas Deane entertained them
cordially and genteelly at his house with punch, wine, and
coifee. The Committee of Correspondence of that town and
many other gentlemen called on them.
Continuing their journey, they were surprised at a tavern,
seven miles out of New Haven, by an assemblage of car
riages and horsemen who had come out to meet them. The
sheriff of the county, the constable of the town, and the
justices of the peace were in the train, and, as they drew
nearer the town, they met a great number more. The bells
1 John Andrews to William Barrell, August 10, 1774.
216 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
were rung as they entered ; the people, men, women, and
children, crowded to the doors and windows, as if it were a
coronation, and at nine o clock the cannon were fired.
" These expressions of respect to us," the writer says, " are in
tended as demonstrations of the sympathy of this people with the
Massachusetts Bay and its capital, and to show their expectations
from the Congress, and their determination to carry into execution
whatever shall be agreed upon. No governor of a province nor
general of an army was ever treated with so much ceremony and
assiduity as we have been throughout the whole Colony of Con
necticut hitherto, but especially all the way from Hartford to New
Haven inclusively." 1
While there, Roger Sherman, one of the delegates to the
Congress from Connecticut, called upon them at the tavern,
" a solid, sensible man." Passing through Milford, Fair-
field, Norwalk, Hamford, and Kingsbridge, they arrived at
New York on Saturday, the 20th, and remained there six
days, making the acquaintance of the principal men, and
gauging, as far as possible, the political character of the
people, and receiving an embarrassing amount of attentions,
invitations, and visits. On the 26th, they crossed to New
Jersey, dined at Elizabethtown, and put up in the city of
Brunswick, where they remained two days, and passing the
Delaware on the 29th, rode to Frankfort, where a number
of carriages and gentlemen carne out of Philadelphia to meet
them, including Mifflin, McKean, and Rutledge. They were
cordially welcomed to Philadelphia, when they rode into
town, " dirty, dusty, and fatigued." At " the tavern, the
most genteel one in America," they were introduced to a
number of other gentlemen, one of whom was Christopher
Gadsden of South Carolina, the man of all others in Amer
ica " most like Samuel Adams." As they had correspond
ed together as early as 1766, it may be supposed that this
meeting was accompanied with pleasant reminiscences, and
a mutual curiosity in each to see how the person agreed
1 John Adams s Works, II. 343.
Sept., 1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 217
with the preconceived idea. From their arrival until the
day Congress met, the Massachusetts delegates continued to
make acquaintances, among whom were Patrick Henry,
Washington, Richard Henry Lee (who had already corre
sponded with Samuel Adams, and was henceforth to be
his most confidential friend in the successive Congresses),
Charles Thompson, John Sullivan, Peyton Randolph, Dr.
Witherspoon, Henry Middleton, John Dickinson, Stephen
Hopkins, John Jay, and many other great characters of the
sister Colonies. John Adams, who still faithfully kept his
Diary, gives us the outlines of dinners, invitations, and visits.
He describes the personal appearance of several of the dele
gates, and the fears, hopes, characteristics, jealousies, and
variant opinions of many. On the evening of the 1st of
September, such of the members as had arrived met at
Smith s new tavern, and probably arranged the prelimina
ries for the approaching Congress. The day before, the
Massachusetts gentlemen had " removed their lodgings to
the house of Miss Jane Port in Arch Street, about half
way between Front Street and Second Street," by which
it appears the four occupied one house together. 1
1 John Adams s Diary (Works, II. 361).
CHAPTER XXXIII.
The First Congress assembles at Philadelphia. Eloquence of Patrick Henry.
Harmonizing Influence of Adams. He heals Sectarian Jealousies.
The First Prayer in Congress. Appointment of the Committees. Af
fairs in Massachusetts. The Province pursues the Policy laid down by
Adams. Suffolk County Convention. Warren drafts its Kesolutions.
Their Effect upon the Congress at Philadelphia. Adams defeats the
Plans of Galloway. His Influence felt at once in Philadelphia and New
England. His untiring Energy. Fears in Congress that the hardy New-
Englanders would eventually overrun the South. Adams opposes all Con
cessions to Great Britain. He is the Originator of Independence. Con
temporary Evidence of this. His Plans to popularize the Idea of a Separa
tion. The Declaration of Rights. Correspondence between Adams and
the Boston Patriots. They recognize him as their Leader and write
to him for Directions. Opinions in England concerning Adams. The
King inquires about him. Critical Condition of Affairs in Boston.
THE delegates to the Continental Congress, fifty-three in
number, met on the 5th of September at the City Tavern,
and walked thence to Carpenter s Hall, where, after an in
spection, the room was pronounced suitable for the purpose.
It was originally built for the Society of House Carpenters
of Philadelphia, and contained committee conveniences and
a library. Peyton Randolph was elected Chairman of Con
gress, and Charles Thomson Secretary. The organization
having been effected, a discussion as to the method of voting
arose, in which the question whether a little Colony should
have as much weight as a great one was considered, pending
which the Congress adjourned.
The next day, when they came together, a long and deep
silence fell upon the members. Conscious of the vast re
sponsibility resting upon them, and that their proceedings
were watched with anxious interest by all Europe as well
as by their own countrymen, each hesitated to open the
debate. The Massachusetts delegates had unquestionably
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 219
adopted it as their policy to allow the lead to be taken by
others.
" The great object here," said Gage, writing from Boston, " has
been to persuade the other Colonies to make the cause of Boston
the common cause of America ; and when the deputies for holding
the general Congress assemble, the Boston faction, it is probable, will
pay the rest the compliment of taking their advice." l
There was then as since a jealousy of the Northerners,
who, especially Samuel Adams, were regarded by the more
wealthy and aristocratic members as men of desperate for
tunes with nothing to lose ; and it was with a thorough ap
preciation of this that Adams and his colleagues wished to
have it appear that they were but following the counsels of
the others. This course was necessary, not only to maintain
the general sympathy of the other members for Massachu
setts, but for the moral effect of the action of the rest of
America on measures of government which had been di
rected against Massachusetts alone. The post of honor
had been given to Virginia, by electing one of her delegates
President, and now Patrick Henry electrified the Assembly
with a strain of impassioned reasoning and lofty eloquence.
He recited the wrongs inflicted on the Colonies, asserted the
necessity of union, declared that, by the acts of Parliament,
all government was dissolved, and advocated a new system
of representation and the preservation in its purity of the
democratic part of the Constitution. 2 Murmurs of applause
succeeded his speech ; and, in the debate which followed,
Lynch, the elder Rutledge, Richard Henry Lee, Jay, and
Gadsden engaged. As the Congress had resolved to pro
ceed with closed doors, and the members had been put under
" the strongest obligations of honor to keep the proceedings
secret until the majority should direct them to be made pub
lic," no report was ever made of these debates. An appar-
1 Gage to the Earl of Dartmouth, July 20, 1774.
8 Bancroft, VII. 128, 129.
220 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
ent unanimity was imperatively necessary to secure the
intended effect upon the world, and the publication of the
arguments for and against any proposed measures would
probably have detracted from the idea of a perfect agree
ment, and, as many wealthy and influential members pres
ent had protested against the usurpations of Britain, but
were greatly disinclined to anything like a decided rupture,
these discussions must have been warm and frequent. John
Adams, in his Diary, makes short notes of the remarks of
some, and Bancroft has woven the opinions of several into
his narrative. From these sources of information, it would
appear that neither Samuel Adams nor either of his col
leagues took a prominent part in the debates. But wise
counsels accomplished, perhaps, as much as eloquence.
Transferred from a provincial to a continental theatre,
where, instead of acting merely in conjunction with his
fellow-townsmen, he was brought into connection with the
principal men of the other Colonies, Samuel Adams now be
came the guiding intellect of the Congress, as he had before
been the leading spirit of New England. With some of these
characters, he was familiar by correspondence ; but every
where his own name was known, and himself looked upon as
the " Chief of the Revolution." His name appearing so
often at the head of important committees ; his origination
of the important measures, since the commencement of the
controversy with England, measures which had been the
keystone of the general opposition throughout the continent ;
the extent of his private correspondence, which spread his
opinions throughout America, and made him the prominent
Colonial figure in England ; his courage and decision of
character ; his great influence in the press ; his reputation
for wisdom, which had been established everywhere ; and the
fact of his having already become the principal object of royal
vengeance, these, together with his dignified presence,
caused him to be regarded in Congress as the most con
spicuous member of that body. He gave no time to the
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 221
keeping of memoranda of passing events, and only fugitive
evidences can be gathered to establish his powerful influ
ence ; but these sufficiently fix his position in that body
of the foremost men in America. All his great qualities
concurred to give weight to his opinions ; but they could
as yet be advanced only with caution and after a careful
study of those about him.
His first act in the Congress was one of conciliation. A
chief difficulty which thinking men had anticipated was the
difference of religious opinion among the members, the
New-Englanders being mainly, if not all, Congregationalists,
and the New York and Southern delegates, Episcopalians.
There were also Quakers and Presbyterians ; and it seemed
unlikely that such elements could be blended sufficiently to
unite in prayer at the opening of the proceedings, an in
dispensable feature at that day. The contrast in creeds was
not alone of religious significance. It involved, also, strong
political influences, and it was important to harmonize these
as a preliminary to the removal of other obstacles. Samuel
Adams was a strict Congregationalist, and it has been said
of him that, " in a rigid religious community, he was an ex
ample in severity of morals and the scrupulous observance
of every ordinance." Those who knew those traits in his
character would, perhaps, have singled him out as the last
one to yield or make any concession. But he now disproved
the erroneous opinion that some historians have conveyed
of him, that, in his austere piety, he was not superior to the
narrow punctilious bigotry and stubborn self-will of his Pro
vincial ancestors. 1 When it was proposed to open the Con
gress with prayer, Jay and Rutledge objected, owing to the
great difference in religious belief. Adams was prepared for
the occasion, and, with admirable tact, removed a difficulty
which at first appeared formidable. The story is briefly told
by himself in a letter written to Joseph Warren, a few days
afterwards, which Warren published in Boston. At this
1 Grahame, H. 418.
222 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
time the Loyalists in Massachusetts, as well as in the other
Colonies, were generally of the Church of England ; conse
quently, in New England, the prejudice was strongly against
Episcopalians. Warren now essayed to second the views of
Adanis, by proving that members of that Church were not ne
cessarily all Tories. He writes to " Messieurs Printers " :
" As I have been informed that the conduct of some few persons
of the Episcopal denomination, in maintaining principles inconsistent
with the rights and liberties of mankind, has given offence to some
of the zealous friends of this country, I think myself obliged to pub
lish the following extract of a letter dated September 9th, 1774,
which I received from my worthy and patriotic friend, Mr. Samuel
Adams, a member of the Congress now sitting in Philadelphia, by
which it appears that, however injudicious some individuals may
have been, the gentlemen of the Established Church of England are
men of the most just and liberal sentiments, and are high in the
esteem of the most sensible and resolute defenders of the rights of
the people of this continent.
" And I earnestly request my countrymen to avoid everything
which our enemies may make use of to prejudice our Episcopal
brethren against us, by representing us as disposed to disturb them
in the free exercise of their religious privileges, to which we know
they have the most undoubted claim, and which, from a real regard
to the honor and interest of my country and the rights of mankind,
I hope they will enjoy unmolested as long as the name of America
is known in the world.
" J. WARREN.
" After settling the mode of voting, which is by giving each Col
ony an equal voice, it was agreed to open the business with prayer.
As many of our warmest friends are members of the Church of Eng
land, [I] thought it prudent, as well on that as on some other ac
counts, to move that the service should be performed by a clergy
man of that denomination. Accordingly the lessons of the day and
prayer were read by the Rev. Mr. Duche, who afterwards made a
most excellent extemporary prayer, by which he discovered himself
to be a gentleman of sense and piety, and a warm advocate for the
religious and civil rights of America. "
1 Boston Gazette, Sept. 26, 1774. Force s American Archives, Fourth Se
ries. I. 802.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 223
The letter, of which the above is an extract, is missing.
John Adams, writing to his wife not long afterwards, de
scribes this scene more particularly.
" When the Congress first met, Mr. Gushing made a motion that
it should be opened with prayer. It was opposed by Mr. Jay of
New York, and Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina, because we were
so divided in religious sentiments, some Episcopalians, some Quak
ers, some Anabaptists, some Presbyterians, and some Congregation-
alists, that we could not join in the same act of worship. Mr.
Samuel Adams arose, and said, he was no bigot, and could hear a
prayer from a gentleman of piety and virtue, who was at the same
time a friend to his country. He was a stranger in Philadelphia,
but had heard that Mr. Duche (Dushay they pronounce it) deserved
that character, and therefore he moved that Mr. Duche, an Episco
pal clergyman, might be desired to read prayers to the Congress to
morrow morning. The motion was seconded and passed in the
affirmative. Mr. Randolph, our President, waited on Mr. Duche,
and received for answer that, if his health would permit, he certainly
would. Accordingly, next morning, he appeared with his clerk and
in his pontificals, and read several prayers in the established form,
and then read the Collect for the 7th day of September, which was
the Thirty-fifth Psalm. You must remember this was the next
morning after we heard the horrible rumor of the cannonade of
Boston. I never saw a greater effect upon an audience. It seemed
as if Heaven had ordained that Psalm to be read on that morning.
" After this, Mr. Duche, unexpectedly to everybody, struck out
into an extemporary prayer, which filled the bosom of every man
present. I must confess I never heard a better prayer, or one so
well pronounced. Episcopalian as he is, Dr. Cooper himself never
prayed with such fervor, such ardor, such earnestness and pathos,
and in language so elegant and sublime, for America, for the Con
gress, for the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and especially the
town of Boston. It has had an excellent effect upon everybody
here." 1
The result of this timely measure was most salutary, and
led the way to that eventual harmony with which Congress
1 John Adams s Works, H. 368, 369. Bancroft, VII. 131.
224 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
closed. The powerful New York Episcopalians were grat
ified by the unexpected concession, and, with those of the
South, it served to remove in some degree the prejudices
which distance and difficulty of communication assisted to
create. Joseph Reed, who had met Samuel Adams in Bos
ton in the summer of 1769, was now in Philadelphia. John
Adams says, in his Diary :
" Mr. Reed returned with Mr. Adams and me to our lodgings,
and a very sociable, agreeable, and communicative evening we had.
He says we were never guilty of a more masterly stroke of policy
than in moving that Mr. Duche might read prayers. It has had a
very good effect," &c. l
This " first prayer in Congress " has given rise to many
poems and artistic works, and has been the basis of innume
rable patriotic speeches. It might well suggest sentiments
of rythmical beauty, sublimity, and pathos. The scene was
the most momentous that had yet occurred in America.
Other congresses had been held, but not for such a purpose.
The previous assemblages of that description had entertained
no thoughts of shielding themselves from the tyranny of
their fellow-subjects. Parliament and the King had always
been regarded as the common protectors ; but now, the rep
resentatives of two and a half millions of people had met for
the redress of intolerable grievances ; to adopt measures of
retaliation ; and for the severance of all commercial relations
between America and Great Britain, until the iron hand of
oppression was removed. There stood Washington, as yet
unconscious of the mighty space he was to fill in the eyes of
the world and future generations, Richard Henry Lee, Pat
rick Henry, Gadsden, Rutledge, Samuel and John Adams,
and the brightest intellects of America, each feeling his
heart thrill with the inspired accents of a prayer uttered
under the heaving excitement of the news from the North,
that Boston had been bombarded by the British fleet, and
1 John Adams s Works, II. 377, 378.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 225
that Massachusetts and Connecticut were rising in arms.
The rumor soon proved to be incorrect, but its effect was
experienced in the additional fervor of Duchy s supplication.
On the same day Congress appointed one committee, " to
state the rights of the Colonies in general, the several in
stances in which those rights are violated or infringed, and
the means most proper to be pursued for obtaining a resto
ration of them," and another to examine and report the sev
eral statutes which affect the trade and manufactures of the
Province. The first consisted of two delegates from each
Province, and Samuel and John Adams were chosen for
Massachusetts. The peculiar wording of the resolution
giving rise to this important committee is significant. It
is almost precisely that of Samuel Adams s resolution two
years before, when he brought forward his project in Boston
for the system of committees of correspondence. The coin
cidence is so remarkable that, in the absence of all data on
the subject, it may be inferred that he who suggested the
one more than probably proposed the other. In the writ
ings of Samuel Adams, after his first proposal of a Conti
nental Congress, he had already pointed out this approaching
statement of the rights of the Colonies, showing that he con
sidered it should be the paramount duty of that body.
Meanwhile, exciting events were occurring in Massachu
setts, where Joseph Warren, now the director-in-chief, pur
sued the measures which had been concerted with Samuel
Adams before the departure of the latter for Congress. Ad
ams had arranged with his confidential friends of the Com
mittee that they should keep him informed of events in his
native Province. Of their correspondence, only a few muti
lated pieces have been preserved. On the day before he left
Boston, we have seen him presiding at a meeting in Faneuil
Hall, where the preliminary steps towards a county congress
had been taken. " I shall take care," says Warren soon
after, in a letter to his friend, " to follow your advice respect
ing the county meeting, which, depend upon it, will have
VOL. II. 15
226 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
important consequences." l And Benjamin Kent writes :
" At your particular recommendation to me and others at
parting, a county congress," <fec. 2 The occasion for this im
portant measure was not long delayed. Most of the new
Councillors appointed by writ of mandamus, under the new
act, were accepted and sworn in, but were soon forced by
the people to resign. Late in August, the Committee of
Worcester suggested a plan which resulted in a meeting in
Boston, where a Provincial Congress was resolved upon.
Middlesex acted first on these resolutions ; and one hundred
and fifty delegates met at Concord, determined to support
the laws and liberties of their country. Everywhere the
spirit of resistance was aroused ; military reviews were com
mon ; and at times thousands of armed men were on foot
prepared for battle. Gage, alarmed at the aspect of affairs,
moved the capital from Salem back to Boston, and wrote
home for more troops. The seizure by the royal forces of a
quantity of powder stored at Charlestown, and of field-pieces
at Cambridge, brought together an enraged multitude, who
obliged the Lieutenant-Governor, Oliver, and other officers,
to resign. 8 Gage erected fortifications on the Neck, the only
avenue leading from Boston, and refused to cease operations
when addressed by the Selectmen. His Excellency had en
tered the Province with the assurance that he should easily
1 Joseph Warren to S. Adams, August 24, 1774.
2 Benjamin Kent to S. Adams, August 20, 1774.
General Gage must have had an inkling as to the origin of this move
ment. Writing to the Earl of Dartmouth from Salem, August 27, 1774, he
says, in relation to the proceedings of inland counties : " It is agreed that pop
ular fury was never greater in this Province than at present ; and it has taken
its rise from the old source at Boston, though it has appeared first at a dis
tance." And again, enclosing one of the circulars calling for a meeting of
delegates to the county congress : " The copy enclosed of a letter from the
Boston Committee of Correspondence to the several counties will sufficiently
evince the intention of those leaders who by said letter, emissaries, and other
means, have contrived, while Boston affects quiet and tranquillity, to raise a
flame," &c.
8 Barry, II. 489.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 227
carry the edicts of Parliament into force ; but he now began
to comprehend the nature of the task that had been assigned
him. The whole country was in a blaze of excitement and
indignation, and the torch of war might be lighted at any
moment.
Adams and Warren had agreed that when the Suffolk
County Congress met, the latter should have ready a memo
rial to the general Congress. 1 That convention assembled at
Dedham on the 6th of September, where Warren, on the
9th, presented his memorial, resolving that no obedience was
due to either, or any part of the recent acts of Parliament,
which were rejected as the attempts of a wicked administra
tion to enslave America. They resolved to act merely on
the defensive so long as such conduct might be vindicated
by the principles of reason and self-preservation, but no lon
ger ; and to seize as hostages the servants of the Crown as an
offset to the apprehension of any persons in Suffolk County,
who had rendered themselves conspicuous in the defence of
violated liberty. A Provincial Congress was recommended,
and all tax collectors were exhorted to retain moneys in
their hands until government should be constitutionally
organized. For deliberate boldness and directness of pur
pose, these resolves exceeded anything that had yet been
adopted in America. Warren, their author, immediately
despatched them to the general Congress.
On the 21st of September, in a town meeting at Faneuil
Hall, Gushing, Samuel Adams, Hancock, and Phillips were
unanimously chosen Representatives for the General Assem
bly, which was to meet at Salem on the 5th of October. 2
This election seems to have been held rather as a legal
form, than with the belief that the Governor would conform
with his proclamation calling a meeting of the General
Court, for it must have been known that the Congressional
delegates could not return from Philadelphia in time for the
1 Bancroft, VII. 122.
* Boston Gazette, Sept. 26, 1774. Boston Town Kecords, Sept. 21, 1774.
228 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept
Assembly. 1 The town had already made choice of "Warren,
Church, and Appleton to serve in the Provincial Congress
to meet at Concord on the second Tuesday in October.
Paul Revere reached Philadelphia on the 16th, with the
Suffolk resolves, directed to the Massachusetts delegates.
They were introduced on the following day, when, having
been read " with great applause," and unanimously ap
proved, they were ordered to be published in the newspa
pers, and doubtless their effect was to arouse the popular
enthusiasm to a still greater degree. Samuel Adams, writ
ing to Dr. Chauncy soon after, enclosed the resolutions by
which Congress recommended a continuance of the charita
ble contributions from the other Colonies in aid of Boston,
and adds, that these resolves gave but a faint idea of the
spirit of the members. " I think I may assure you," he
says, " that America will make a point of supporting Boston
to the utmost." 2
Conciliation was the desire of nearly every member of this
Congress, but they were for some time divided in their opin
ions as to the proper method of redress. One of the dele
gates from Philadelphia, Galloway, a Loyalist, endeavored to
disunite and distract the counsels of the others ; and when,
towards the close of the session, it was resolved, though not
unanimously, to approve of the opposition of the people of
Massachusetts to the late acts of Parliament, and, in case of
need, for all America to support them, he, with Duane, de
sired leave to enter their protests against the measure, which
1 This is shown by the instructions to the Kepresentatives : " And as we
have occasion to believe that a conscientious discharge of your duty will pro
duce your dissolution as a House of Representatives, we do hereby empower
and instruct you to join with the members who may be sent from this and the
neighboring towns in the Province, and to meet with them at a time agreed
on, in a general Provincial Congress, to act upon such matters as may come
before you, in such a manner as shall appear to you most conducive to the true
interests of this town and Province, and most likely to preserve the liberties of
all America."
2 S. Adams to Dr. Chauncy, Philadelphia, Sept. 19, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 229
was refused. 1 This man appears not only to have acted as
a systematical opponent of the plans of Congress, but, de
spite the obligation of honor under which every member was
placed not to divulge any of the proceedings, to have served
as a spy for the Ministry, and disclosed, with evident exag
gerations, whatever would work to the disadvantage of the
Americans. As late Speaker of the Pennsylvania House
of Assembly, his statements, on his arrival in England,
were generally believed. He* proposed to the Congress, as
a means of accommodation, a plan evidently digested before
that body assembled, for a union of the Colonies under a
Grand Council, who, in conjunction with the British Parlia
ment, were to regulate Colonial affairs. 2 This was, to a
certain extent, reviving the exploded doctrine of a repre
sentation in Parliament. It was debated, however, and
found sufficient advocates to come within one vote of being
adopted. It would appear that Samuel Adams exerted all
his powers to prevent the passage of the measure. Gallo
way, referring to this occasion, says in a note in his Exami
nation :
" The plan proposed by Mr. Galloway gave the independent fac
tion much uneasiness, as they saw it contained the great outlines of
a union with Great Britain, which were approved of and supported
by a considerable majority of the gentlemen of abilities, fortune, and
influence, then in Congress, from whence they justly concluded that
it would be agreeable to the people at large ; and should it be
adopted as the ground of reconciliation, their scheme of independ
ence would be totally frustrated. Mr. Adams and his party left no
means in their power unessayed, to prevail on the members of Con
gress to reject it on the second reading, and, lest this step should
fail of success, to incense the mob in Philadelphia against it. At
this time the minds of the lower ranks of people in Philadelphia,
who were governed in a great degree by Mr. Adams, being prepared
1 Gordon s American Revolution, I. 410.
2 Hildreth, III. 46. Galloway s Testimony before the House of Com-
230 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
for the most violent measures, Mr. Galloway and his friends thought
their personal safety depended on not renewing the motion." *
However great may have been the influence of Samuel
Adams among the " lower ranks of people," from his known
democratic principles, it is not probable that he would have
excited any popular violence against Galloway or any other
Loyalist. It seems hardly probable that, under the injunc
tion of secrecy, the public could have been so well informed
of the proceedings of Congress, nor is it likely that popular
clamor would have influenced the members in their deliber
ations. The same writer, in another work, thus refers to
the parties in Congress and to the overruling influence of
Samuel Adams :
" While the two parties in Congress remained thus during three
weeks on an equal balance, the republicans were calling to their
assistance the aid of their factions without. Continued expresses
were employed between Philadelphia and Boston. These were
under the management of Samuel Adams, a man who, though by
no means remarkable for brilliant abilities, .yet is equal to most men
in popular intrigue and the management of a faction. He eats little,
drinks little, sleeps little, thinks much, and is most decisive and in
defatigable in the pursuit of his objects. It was this man, who, by
his superior application, managed at once the faction in Congress at
Philadelphia and the factions in New England. Whatever these
patriots in Congress wished to have done by their colleagues with
out, to induce General Gage, then at the head of his Majesty s
army at Boston, to give them a pretext for violent opposition, or
to promote their measures in Congress, Mr. Adams advised and di
rected to be done ; and when done, it was despatched by express to
Congress. By one of these expresses came the inflammatory re
solves of the county of Suffolk, which contained a complete declara
tion of war against Great Britain." 2
1 Examination of Joseph Galloway before the House of Commons, London,
1779, 80, pp. 52, 53.
2 Historical and Political Reflections of the Rise and Progress of the Amer
ican Revolution, by Joseph Galloway, London, 1780.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 231
The idea seems to have been generally prevalent for some
time after the Congress had adjourned. A Loyalist mer
chant at Annapolis, writing to a friend in Philadelphia, de
nounces the " treasonable purposes projected by Adams and
the Eastern republicans to carry on a formal rebellion in
the Colonies."
" The conduct," continues this writer, " of the New York Assem
bly, in acting consistently with their own dignity, and daring to
speak the true constitutional language, was received amongst us
with the most fervent plaudits. We wish your Pennsylvanians had
taken the lead in so glorious a cause. Oh ! what a falling off was
that of your Assembly, to approve of the measures which the ma
jority of the members of it, in their hearts, most sincerely con
demned. In such a government, a very different determination was
expected; but Adams with his crew, and the haughty sultans of
the South, juggled the whole conclave of the delegates." 1
The correspondence referred to by Galloway, as main
tained between Samuel Adams and his friends in Boston,
was evidently known outside their particular circle. A
writer in the Massachusetts Gazette, who had recently been
converted to the Loyalist side, professes to expose, in his
recantation, the proceedings of his late associates in one of
the interior Committees of Correspondence. Alluding to
the effect of the Suffolk resolves, he says :
"I could not help at that time seriously observing that I was
fearful we went too fast ; the Continental Congress, which was then
sitting, might not justify such very spirited resolves, and then our
cause would be injured, as we must certainly acquiesce in their de
terminations. Therefore I apprehended it would be most prudent
for us to take our hints from them, rather than lead. The reply
was, that our delegates were men of sense, and some of them good
speakers ; one of them particularly could carry almost any point he
was determined upon, therefore they must have great influence in
the Congress ; and as there was a continued correspondence kept
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 1194.
232 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept., Oct.
up between the Committee of Boston and the delegates, there was
no doubt but they were apprised of them previously to their publi
cation, and depended upon their being adopted by the Continental
Congress. Accordingly they were adopted and approved of, though
they do not appear in the pamphlet containing their doings." 1
Galloway must have known something of the letters re
ceived by Samuel Adams from his friends in Boston ; for his
allusion to the connection between him and the measures of
the patriots there, during his absence, tallies exactly with
such of the correspondence as has been preserved. During
the questions which arose on the resolution to export no
more merchandise to Great Britain, and previous to the
signing of the agreement to that effect, Rutledge and two of
his South Carolina colleagues seceded from the Congress,
and for several days all business ceased. Gadsden, however,
could not be induced to withdraw, and was ready to sign
the association, and the dissatisfied members were finally
persuaded to return, rice being excepted from the prohibited
articles. 2 Gordon, referring to this particular time, says :
" In some stage of their proceedings, the danger of a rupture with
Britain was urged as a plan for certain concessions. Upon this,
Mr. S. Adams rose up, and, among other things, said in substance :
* I should advise persisting in our struggle for liberty, though it was
revealed from Heaven that nine hundred and ninety nine were to
perish, and only one of a thousand to survive and retain his liberty.
One such freeman must possess more virtue and enjoy more happi
ness than a thousand slaves ; and let him propagate his like, and
transmit to them what he hath so nobly preserved. " 3
The historian naively adds, that this " was a flight of
patriotism, serving to show the temper of the speaker ; but
the sentiment is so hyperbolical as to throw it far beyond
the reach of practice."
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, II. 105.
* Bancroft, VH. 147.
Gordon s American Revolution, I. 410. Bancroft, VII. 151.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 233
The Congress remained in session until near the close of
October. Not the slightest vestige of a record remains
among the papers of Samuel Adams by which to identify
his part in the proceedings, other than the general idea con
veyed by the virulent attacks of the Loyalist writers and the
hints in contemporary letters. We may, however, by infer
ence, trace the evidence of his mind in the proceedings.
The Declaration of Rights and of their Violation, a non
importation and non-consumption league, the approval of
the opposition in Massachusetts to the acts of Parliament,
and the adoption of the very ideas of Samuel Adams in sev
eral of these papers, point with silent eloquence to his ever
active agency. Indeed, it would be wholly inconsistent
with probability to suppose that the energetic character who
has thus far been traced as the great leader of the Revolu
tion should have now suddenly ceased to exert any in
fluence ; especially in the deliberations of a body of far
greater importance than any that Adams had yet entered.
It has already been shown that the policy of the Massachu
setts delegates was to take little part in the debates, and to
allow others to lead on the floor, while their own particular
weight might be more quietly exerted. They may have
deviated from this course towards the close of the Congress,
when the members had become better acquainted ; and it is
very probable that the Massachusetts members were not silent
when the subjects called particularly for explanation from
Northerners. During the efforts of Galloway and his party
to establish a General Council, to act with the British Par
liament, Samuel Adams evidently spoke in no measured
terms against the plan, as is shown by Gordon s allusions to
his remarks. The Declaration of Rights exists in an un
known handwriting, thought to somewhat resemble that of
Major Sullivan of New Hampshire, a fact which may have
led John Adams, in his autobiographical account of this
subject, written thirty years afterwards, to attribute the
Violation of Rights to him. But since the handwriting is
234 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
unknown, and cannot be attributed to any member, it is as
likely to be a copy -by some amanuensis for whoever origi
nally drafted it. John Adams must have forgotten the
fact that Samuel Adams was on the committee, but leaves it
to be inferred that only himself represented Massachusetts
in deciding upon the Declaration. The name of Samuel
Adams appears first for Massachusetts, and little could have
escaped his careful revision. On comparing this Declaration
of Rights with the previous writings of Samuel Adams, the
similarity of expression and the repetition of sentences is
so remarkable as to render it more than probable that his
hand was engaged on it, either in drafting or revising. 1
Mr. Barry, in his learned and carefully written History
of Massachusetts, says : " The Declaration of Rights [in
the Congress of 1774] was substantially the same as that
adopted by the people of Boston, an abstract of which has
already been given." The historian here refers to the
pamphlet issued by the Boston Committee of Correspond
ence in 1772, above mentioned. Upon comparing the two
papers, the correctness of this observation is at once appar
ent ; and there can be no question that the author of the
one had the other before him or in his mind while writing
the report for the committee of Congress.
The resolutions, instructing the committee appointed to
prepare an address to the King, are repetitions of similar
opinions and declarations by Samuel Adams. In his Appeal
to the World, in 1769, he says : " In short, the grievances
which lie heavily upon us, we shall never think redressed,
1 Other coincidences will be found in the Boston Instructions in 1764 ; the
letters written in 1765 to gentlemen in England; the Massachusetts Eesolves
in 1765; the Petition to the King in 1768; the Essays by "Vindex"; the
Circular Letter to the other Assemblies ; the Letter of the House to Lord
Hillsborough ; the same to the Marquis of Eockingham, all in 1768; the
resolves of the House, Jan. 29, 1769 ; the resolves of the town of Boston, Nov.
2, 1772 ; the Rights of the Colonists in 1772 ; and many other state papers and
political essays by Samuel Adams during the past ten years. (See also, ante,
L 501, 502, note.)
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 235
until every act passed by the British Parliament for the
express purpose of raising a revenue upon us, without our
consent, is repealed ; till the American Board of the Com
missioners of the Customs is dissolved, the troops recalled,
and things are restored to the state they were in before the
late extraordinary measures of administration took place." 1
It is probable, too, that Lynch and Samuel Adams, who
were on the committee together to draft a letter to Gage,
on the subject of the fortifications on Boston Neck, had con
sulted on this very point with Gushing. Gordon says :
" The like sentiment was confirmed by a subsequent letter
from another quarter, after a designed conference upon the
subject with Thomas Gushing and Samuel Adams, Esqrs.,
of Boston, and Thomas Lynch, Esq., of South Carolina." 2
This stipulation, of being placed as they were at the close of
the last war, that is, before the revenue acts were passed, is
embraced as a vital principle in the address to the King and
to the people of Great Britain. The Declaration of Rights,
embodying a non-consumption and non-importation of Brit
ish goods ; the addresses to the King, the people of England,
and those of Canada and the British American Colonies ;
and a letter to the agent of the Colonies in England, were
prepared and finally adopted. These comprise the published
papers of the Congress, and occupied about seven weeks in
the discussion and arrangement of their terms.
Letters were meantime passing between Samuel Adams
and his friends in Boston, in which, on his part, he encour
aged his townsmen with the outlines, as far as his obligation
to silence would permit, of what occurred immediately relat
ing to Massachusetts.
To Joseph Warren, he says :
1 Compare the True Sentiments of America, 1768; letter of the House to
the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, and other papers in that collection
written by Samuel Adams. See also letter of the Boston Committee to ,
with the Appeal to the World, Oct. 23, 1769 (ante, I. 284, 285).
2 Gordon s American Revolution, I. 402.
236 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
" I wrote you yesterday by the post. A frequent communication
at this critical juncture is necessary. As the all-important Ameri
can cause so much depends upon each Colony s acting agreeable to
the sentiments of the whole, it must be useful for you to know the
sentiments which are entertained here of the temper and conduct of
our Province. Heretofore, we have been accounted by many
intemperate and rash ; but now we are universally applauded as
cool and judicious, as well as spirited and brave. This is the char
acter we sustain in Congress. There is, however, a certain degree
of jealousy in the minds of some, that we aim at total independency,
not only of the mother country, but of the Colonies, too ; and that,
as we are a hardy and brave people, we shall in time overrun them
all. However groundless this jealousy may be, it ought to be
attended to, and is of weight in your deliberations on the subject
of your last letter.
" I spent yesterday afternoon and evening with Mr. Dickinson. 1
He is a true Bostonian. It is his opinion that if Boston can remain
on the defensive, the liberties of America, which that town have so
nobly contended for, will be secured. The Congress have, in their
resolve of the 17th instant, given their sanction to the resolutions
of the county of Suffolk, one of which is to act merely upon the
defensive so long as such conduct may be justified by reason and
the principles of self-preservation, but no longer. They have
great dependence upon your tried patience and fortitude. They
suppose you mean to defend your civil Constitution. They strongly
recommend perseverance and a firm and temperate conduct, and
give you a full pledge of their united efforts in your behalf. They
have not yet come to final resolutions. It becomes them to be delib
erate. I have been assured, in private conversation with individ
uals, that if you should be driven to the necessity of acting in self-
defence of your lives or liberties, you would be justified by their
constituents, and openly supported by all the means in their power.
But whether they will ever be prevailed upon to think it necessary
for you to set up another form of government, I very much ques-
1 John Adams, in his Diary for Sept. 24, says : " Dined with Mr. Charles
Thomson, with only Mr. Dickinson, his lady and niece, in company. A most
delightful afternoon we had Mr. Dickinson gave us his thoughts and
correspondence very freely."
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 237
tion, for the reason I have suggested. It is of the greatest impor
tance that the American opposition should be united, and that it
should be conducted so as to concur with the opposition of our
friends in England." *
A letter received by Adams about this time gives him a
description of the excitement for many miles around Boston,
when the false alarm was given that the town was bom
barded by the British fleet. The news spread with unex
ampled rapidity, and, in less than twenty-four hours, more
than thirty thousand men were under arms, and marching
towards Boston, and had proceeded twenty or thirty miles
before they were undeceived. One body came from Con
necticut under command of Putnam.
" By the enclosed papers," wrote Dr. Young, " you will perceive
the temper of your countrymen in the condition your every wish,
1 Samuel Adams to Joseph Warren, Philadelphia, Sept. 25, 1774. This
apprehension that New-Englanders would eventually overrun and subjugate
the South was common among the Southern statesmen. It extended far into
the war of the Revolution, and there are indications of it during Washington s
administrations and to the close of the century. General Greene, in a letter to
Samuel Ward, dated at Prospect Hill, Dec. 31, 1775, says, referring to this
Congress :
"From whence originates that groundless jealousy of the New England
delegates ? I believe there is nothing more remote from their thoughts than
designs unfavorable to the other Colonies. For my own part, I abhor the
thought, and Cannot help thinking it highly injurious to the New England
people, who ever have been distinguished for their justice and moderation. I
mentioned this subject to Mr. Lynch and Colonel Harrison, who assured me
there was no such sentiment prevailing in Congress, nor among the Southern
inhabitants of any respectability. I am sorry to find they were mistaken."
Joseph Warren, in a letter to Adams, May 14, 1775, suggests the sanc
tioning by Congress of a civil government for Massachusetts in order to calm
the apprehensions of Southerners as to New England aggressions. General
Gage, writing to Lord Dartmouth, Oct. 15, 1775, speaks of the reported
" divisions in Congress, and jealousy of the New England members." Samuel
Adams, as " Candidus," in one of his essays, written in January, 1776, at
Philadelphia (see Chap. XXXIX.), endeavors to allay the fears of the Quakers
that the Northern Presbyterians would overrun them after a separation from
England. A particular allusion to it will be found in a letter of Arthur Lee
to Samuel Adams, Feb. 28, 1778 (see, post, Chap. XL VII.) ; and also a letter of
George Clymer to Josiah Quincy, June 13, 1774 (Life of Quincy, pp. 164 - 168).
238 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
every sigh, for years past, panted to find it ; thoroughly aroused,
and unanimously in earnest. Something very important will inevi
tably come of it. That treacherous, sneaking, and cowardly action
of seizing our Province powder set all the country in a flame.
Every one now feels the matter coming home to him. It gave me
much pleasure to see the behavior of the people of Cambridge.
When Dr. Warren and I arrived there, Judge Danforth was ad
dressing perhaps four thousand people in the open air ; and such
was the order of that great assembly, that not a whisper interrupted
the low voice of that feeble old man from being heard by the whole
body. And when their committee had heard and were satisfied of
Colonel Phipps s vindication of his conduct, and promise to call in
his veneris, and marshalled them to take their minds upon it, they
kept their particular stations for three hours in the scorching sun of
the hottest day we have had this summer. Such patient endurance
is certainly a principal ingredient in the composition of that charac
teristic emphatically styled a good soldier. The Western Post tells
us that the people from the river had reached Worcester, Shrews
bury, &c., when they were met by expresses, telling them that the
business was over; and it merrily said, that, had not Worcester
men been absent themselves, the town would not have held the
volunteers. The smallest computation was twenty thousand." 1
1 Dr. Thomas Young to Samuel Adams, Sept. 4, 1774. This letter was
doubtless shown to Caesar Rodney. See Niles s Principles and Acts of the
Revolution, pp. 339, 340.
Dr. Young was among the earliest and most uncompromising of the Boston
patriots. He was a member of the Committee of Correspondence, and a val
ued friend of Samuel Adams. In November, 1772, a Dr. Aaron Davis had
published in one of the papers an attack upon Dr. Young for his religious and
political opinions. In this instance, as in the case of Dr. Chauncy, in March,
1769, Mr. Adams assumed the cause of his friend, which involved an issue of
great and immediate importance ; and though the Doctor had prepared an
answer himself, the publishers of the Boston Gazette state that it was omitted,
as space for that subject had been pre-engaged by " Vindex." The Tory
writer is handled without mercy. "The weakness of an adversary," says
Mr. Adams, "with a man of understanding, will frequently disarm him of
his resentment. Who would choose to enter the list when even victory is
attended with disgrace ? Aaron Davis, as a huckster of small wares within
the bar-room, or laudably vending milk and water, might have grubbed on
unnoticed and not superlatively contemptible. But when he so far mistakes
his proper department as to blunder into the field of politics, and assume a
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 239
This letter referred to the action of the people immedi
ately after the seizure of the powder stored by the Province
at Charlestown, when the multitude repaired to Cambridge,
and obliged Chief-Justice Oliver and other important officers
to resign. Another is from Dr. Church. In common with
those from Warren, Pitts, Kent, and the other leaders who
remained in Boston, it is an unmistakable evidence of the
controlling influence of Samuel Adams in directing political
movements, and of the paternal regard in which all held his
advice. Every letter recurs to the parting instructions of
the chief; and, as the prospect darkened over the land, they
longed for his return to resume the helm. Church says :
"Your most valued favor by Mr. Revere I received, and am
happy to find such unanimity and firmness in your important coun
cils. You cannot conceive, and I believe I need not assure you,
that, considering the ticklish, the precarious, the hazardous situa
tion of public matters, a state of suspense is extremely painful. We
are eternally in effort. I remember your instructions to the Com
mittee before you departed, and have endeavored (boasting apart)
not to be the most backward in doing my duty. We meet daily,
daily occurrences demand our attention. An armed truce is the
sole tenure by which the inhabitants of Boston possess life, liberty,
and property. Hourly threatened, hourly alarmed, we hold them
still. How long, Lord ! how long ? . . . . Are your letters, my
friend, designedly oracular ? Our Provincial Congress meet Octo
ber 12.
" Let me urge that your responses may graduate with my con
ceptions. What shall we do ? that is the question. A prevail
ing discontent, a threatened insurrection, no government except a
detested military one ; the operations of this distressed community
painfully suspended, till we may govern ourselves by your dictates ;
the most formidable fortifications at the gates nearly completed;
trenches formed and cannon planted in the embrasures ; provisions
stopped, and conveyances of goods of all kinds between Boston and
Charlestown ; a line of batteries to be erected from the ferry to
dictatorial and offensive part, we are compelled with reluctance to scourge the
insect, though convinced t is but an insect still."
240 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
Barton s Point, with pickets ; the hill on Dorchester Neck to be for
tified; a ditch and drawbridge upon the Neck; thus are we im
mediately to be surrounded, and can we be at ease ? The appre
hending of some individuals is still the burden of the song, and still
we laugh at them. The country is very uneasy ; long it cannot be
restrained. They urge us, and threaten to compel us to desert the
town. They swear the troops shall not continue unmolested. Pray
direct us what we shall do. The utmost extent of their forbear
ance is limited to the rising of Congress. The troops here behave
insolently. They ridicule and vilify the inhabitants incessantly.
They challenge and stop passengers coming into town, and two
instances have lately occurred where they have stabbed the horses
of persons who would not stop at their bidding." l
This letter, while it sketches the condition of Boston and
the military operations of Gage, aifords a glimpse of that
despondency which not long after took possession of Church,
and induced him to desert the cause which, barring some
backsliding, he had so long and ably sustained. A heartier
and more trusty correspondent was John Pitts, a merchant
of large wealth, and one of the most useful members of the
Committee. He writes to Mr. Adams :
" The Committee of Correspondence are firm. In your absence
there has been, as usual, the improvement of the ready pens of a
"Warren and Church, the criticism of a Greenleaf, the vigilance and
industry of a Molineux, and the united wisdom of those who com
monly compose the meeting ; but when I have been there, I have
sometimes observed the want of one who never failed to animate.
After referring you to Mr. Tudor for particulars of our political
affairs, I have only to express my ardent wishes for a happy deter
mination of your Congress, after which, that we may see you again,
as soon as may be, for, as iron sharpeneth iron, so doth the coun
tenance of a man his friend. " 2
" The same opinion of the great character of Samuel Ad
ams apparently pervaded all classes of people alike. His
1 Dr. Benjamin Church to Samuel Adams, Sept. 29, 1774.
2 John Pitts to Samuel Adams, Oct. 16, 1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 241
judgment was such that, in the stormiest days preceding the
outbreak of the war, it was common among the vulgar and
uneducated to assert that he was actually gifted with proph
ecy, and not a few believed that he held peace or war in
his keeping. Several curious instances of this superstition
have been handed down. In whatever direction we turn,
this infallible reliance on his wisdom appears. His fellow-
laborers in the cause of freedom went to him for light and
guidance in the times of darkest peril ; and even the few
who had differed with him in policy came to be convinced
that his views and deductions were correct, and his advice
that of experience and sagacity. 1
The correspondence between Adams and the friends of
liberty in England is sometimes at this period anonymous,
for obvious reasons. The accounts carried thither by many
who arrived from America, and were able to describe him
from a personal acquaintance, probably aided to create the
general opinion of his great influence. Even Majesty re
garded him as the soul of the Revolution, and there was
not one of the Ministry but had made him a subject of
conversation. Bernard s letters, and particularly those of
Hutchinson, raised him as a conspicuous landmark on the
American side. King George held an interview with Hutch
inson as soon as the ex-Governor could be hurried to the
palace on his arrival in London. His Majesty knew that
Samuel Adams was poor, and he asked, " What gives him
his influence ? " to which Hutchinson answered, " A great
pretended zeal for liberty, and a most inflexible natural
temper. He was the first who asserted the independency of
the Colonies upon the supreme authority of the kingdom." 2
He had already written from Boston that the patriot was
above price. In the Southern Colonies, the character of
Adams as a statesman was universally respected, though
1 The letter of Josiah Quincy to his wife on this subject is hereafter given.
2 Bancroft, VII 72. Hutchinson, III. xiv. (This is in the Preface contained
only in that part of the edition intended for the English market.)
VOL. II. 16
242 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
some accused him of what the Loyalists repeatedly laid at his
door, the design of revolutionizing the country for selfish
purposes ; but this idea prevailed only among those who
were totally ignorant of the man. Among the Loyalists in
Boston he was still the particular mark for vengeance. As
the news of the resolutions indorsing the action of the Suf
folk resolves reached Boston, Admiral Montagu wrote :
" I see some pretty resolves from Concord, and the proceedings
from Philadelphia seem to go on well for a civil war I
doubt not but that I shall hear Mr. Samuel Adams is hanged or
shot before many months are at an end. I hope so at least." 1
Of the many letters written by Adams during his stay in
Philadelphia, only two or three are extant. These breathe the
same spirit, advising his countrymen to prepare for war,
which, though he did not deem it prudent to assert as much,
he even now saw was inevitable. He was too deeply read in
human nature to entertain any other belief than that the
King and Ministry could not now be diverted from their dar
ling policy of subduing America. To Dr. Young, he says :
"I have written to some of our friends to provide themselves
without delay with arms and ammunition, to get well instructed in
the military art, to embody themselves, and prepare a complete set
of rules, that they may be ready in case they are called to defend
themselves against the violent attacks of despotism. Surely the law
of self-preservation will warrant it in this time of danger and doubt
ful expectation. One cannot be certain that a distracted minister
will yield to the measures taken by Congress, though they should
operate the ruin of the national trade, until he shall have made fur
ther efforts to lay America, as he imperiously expressed it, prostrate
at his feet. " 2
Hutchinson s statement to the King, already quoted, that
Samuel Adams was the first man who asserted the indepen
dency of the Colonies, was one which he had often made
1 Sargent s Life of Andre , p. 67.
1 Samuel Adams to Dr. Young, Philadelphia, Oct. 17. 1774.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 243
before leaving America. 1 His letters to the Ministry repeat
edly assert it, and there can be no doubt as to the sentiments
of Adams on this subject after the summer of 1768, up to
which time he had desired and expected that the differences
with the mother country would be arranged, and the reve
nue acts totally repealed. But the certainty that military
coercion was near, and the evidence of its approach in the
preparations at that time for an army and ships of war to be
stationed at Boston, brought him to a definite conclusion.
He perceived the necessity of a distinct republic in the West
ern Continent ; and though he was then before his time with
the idea, he knew how to advance without alarming others
by precipitate movements. He endeavored to cultivate the
public mind up to a positive hatred of kingcraft and its min
ions, and was unwearying in his efforts to encourage an
independent spirit among the " common people." Bancroft
brings forward a strong array of evidence on this subject ;
and the affidavits of royal spies, now on file in the London
State Paper Office, attest the accuracy of the statement, that
he was all powerful among the people of Boston, from 1768
forward, in advancing the idea of independence. Among
the ship-yards and at public meetings, he reasoned on the
subject ; and his political essays, prior to the outbreak of
hostilities, approach the favorite theme ; and although they
do not openly advocate it, they are always potent arguments
against the slavishness of submitting to arbitrary power, and
aim to indoctrinate the people with the spirit to wrestle with
tyranny when the appointed hour should come. Judge Sul
livan, the personal friend and admirer of Adams, is positive
on this point. He says of him in his Biographic Sketch,
written a few days after the late Governor s death :
" There is no doubt among his intimate friends, and, indeed, it is
well known to his confidential compatriots, that he was the first
1 Hutchinson to Lord Dartmouth, Oct. 9, 1773 (ante, n. 98-102). Hutch-
inson s History, III. 134, 264, 265. Hntchinson to Gen. Mackay, Aug. 14,
1771 ; and to Commodore Hood, July 11, 1770.
244 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
man in America who contemplated the idea of a separation of the
Colonies from the mother country. He was convinced that the
connection could not be continued upon a plan which would secure
to the Colonists what was then called the rights of Englishmen.
His exertions, therefore, all tended to a separation. By his speeches
and Gazette productions, a large majority was procured and main
tained in Massachusetts in opposition to the claims of the Min
istry." l
It seems to have been the general voice of the enemies
as well as of the friends of Adams, that he was the earliest,
as he was the unceasing, promoter of American indepen
dence. Such a mass of concurrent testimony is irresist
ible. The former used the fact with the Ministry to
establish his guilt, and secure his execution for treason ;
and the latter, after the Revolution, remembered it in evi
dence of his courage and foresight, and as a token of how
richly he merited the gratitude of his countrymen. Not
only Governor Hutchinson bears repeated testimony, in his
secret letters and in his History, that Samuel Adams was the
first who promulgated the idea of independence, but Gordon
states it as a well-known fact, that " Mr. Samuel Adams had
long since said in small confidential companies, 4 This coun
try shall be independent, and we will be satisfied with noth
ing short of it. This was many years before ordinary
minds had seriously considered such a contingency. Others
may have speculated even a century before upon the desti
nies of America and the possible establishment here, in the
course of time, of a Western empire ; but it was in the
brain of Samuel Adams that the idea of a direct and abso
lute separation from England originated ; and he led all
other men in America in the active dissemination of that
idea, until its eventful accomplishment.
This brings us to the consideration of the question, how
1 Sullivan s Biographic Sketch in the Boston Independent Chronicle, Oct.
10, 1803. See also Chap. XLIL (June, 1776), where other contemporary
evidence is given on this subject.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 245
far he permitted his grand object to become apparent in the
present Congress. Ardently as he desired the consum
mation of his cherished design, he saw that forbearance
and patience were yet the qualities for his countrymen to
exercise. He knew that a premature conflict in Boston,
the only place where, under the circumstances, it could
occur, would arm the Loyalists with tenfold power, and
probably neutralize the sympathy for his native Province
which now burned brightly throughout America. It was
only after lengthy debate that some of the Southern dele
gates in Congress had been induced to sign the American
Association, and even then the agreement was with diffi
culty effected by making concessions to South Carolina.
As we have seen by the letters of Samuel Adams to his
friends in Boston, many of the members were jealous of the
hardy and brave New England people, whom they regarded
as aiming at a separation ; and nothing could in their eyes
be more dreadful to contemplate than such a proposition.
Caution was especially necessary. Adams, therefore, during
the sitting of this Congress, remained silent on the subject
of independence. He was possessed of all the patience and
enduring fortitude that he so repeatedly enjoined upon his
fellow-countrymen, and he could well abide the appointed
time. Hence, though the Massachusetts delegates in Con
gress took but small part in the debates, confining them
selves chiefly to committee labors, Adams was well pleased
with the proceedings, particularly with the result of the
debate on the Declaration of Rights. James Lovell, writing
to Josiah Quincy, says :
"I am informed that a letter was yesterday read in Provincial
Congress from Mr. S. Adams, purporting that things went in the
Continental Congress, without any motion of our members, as per
fectly to his liking as if he were sole director, and that in a very few
days, he doubted not, his friends here would receive the most satis
factory intelligence." l
1 Lovell to Quincy, Oct. 28, 1774 (Quincy s Life of Quincy, p. 188). Force s
American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 949.
246 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct., 1774.
Yery soon after his arrival a.t Philadelphia, Samuel Ad
ams received encouraging intelligence from his brother-in-
law, Andrew Elton Wells, who had settled in Georgia, and
with whom he had corresponded for several years on public
affairs. At a meeting of a portion of the people of that
Province, by deputies from the several parishes, in August
of this year, Noble Wimberly Jones, Telfair, Clay, Wells,
and others had been appointed a committee to receive
subscriptions for the suffering poor of Boston. The same
convention, which was held at Savannah, having adopted
resolutions concurring with the sister Colonies in every
constitutional measure for the redress of American griev
ances, appointed a general Committee of Correspondence to
communicate with the Committees of the other Provinces.
Andrew Elton Wells was a member of this body, and it is
not unlikely that his usefulness was largely increased by
the reflection that he was acting in a cause so dear to his
distinguished relative in his native Province.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Eeturn of the Massachusetts Delegates. Their Reception at Boston.
Adams enters the Provincial Congress. He urges that Body to prepare
for the Last Resort. The Crisis approaching. Inflammatory Placards
against the Leading Patriots. The American Question in Parliament.
Chatham urges Conciliation. The Ministerial Policy prevails. Peti
tions of the General Congress rejected. Massachusetts declared to be in a
State of Rebellion. The King and Parliament pledged to subdue the
Colonies. Character of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. Suffer
ing in Boston under the Port Act. Supplies pour in from the other
Colonies. Adams Chairman of the Donation Committee. His Replies
to the Donors. Plans to seize the Principal Leaders. Public Anxiety
for Adams and Hancock. Andrew Elton Wells.
ON the 26th of October the Continental Congress closed
its session, having appointed a second convention of all the
North American Colonies, by their deputies, for the ensuing
May. The delegates spent the evening together at the City
Tavern, and on the 28th the Massachusetts members took
their departure for home "in a very great rain." They
returned by the way of New York, where Mr. Paine re
mained to take the packet to Newport, on his way to Taun-
ton. The other three reached Boston by the post route, and
arriving on the evening of the 9th of November, were ush
ered into the town by the ringing of bells and other demon
strations of joy. The approach of the delegates had been
previously announced, and their friends had been all day
expecting them. Gordon, whose History shows that he was
much impressed with the important part acted by the subject
of this biography, says, on closing the account of the Conti
nental Congress : " Mr. S. Adams having seen a happy
issue to the important deliberations of the General Congress,
after his return, repaired to the Massachusetts Provincial
Congress to aid in their deliberations." l
Gordon s American Revolution, I. 411.
248 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
The letters which Samuel Adams received, while at Phila
delphia, had prepared him for the condition of affairs existing
on his return. Boston was now, in every respect, the for
tress of liberty, and all eyes were turned upon its inhabit
ants, in whose fortitude and courage the people of America
had perfect reliance. The sufferers knew that the other
Colonies would ardently support them in the last appeal,
and it was their duty to forbear to the utmost, the better to
merit the confidence of the rest of the continent ; but it was
with the greatest difficulty that the rage of the population
of the capital and surrounding towns could be restrained.
An eye-witness of these events, one well qualified to write
of Samuel Adams and his public measures, says :
"When Mr. Adams returned from Congress, in the fall of this
year, he gave but little encouragement that the petition [of the
Continental Congress to the King] would be attended to, and there
fore he urged the Provincial Congress, by establishing magazines,
to be prepared for the last resort. The Parliament could not, con
sistently with the English Constitution, relinquish its authority
over the Colonies ; nor could the Colonies, consistently with their
rights as freemen, submit to a legislature in whose election they
had no suffrage. This was not concealed from Mr. Adams ; but an
open avowal of his principles and plans would have disconcerted
the Whig cause, and destroyed the force of the opposition." 1
The Governor had issued writs, convening the General
Assembly at Salem on the 1st of October ; but before that
time he dissolved it by proclamation, when the plan which
had been agreed upon in such a contingency was carried
into effect, and the Representatives, meeting on the appoint
ed day, resolved themselves into a Provincial Congress,
which held its first session on the 7th of October at Salem,
where, having chosen Hancock their Chairman, and Lincoln
Clerk, they adjourned to Cambridge. Of the four delegates
to the Continental Congress, Samuel Adams and Gushing
had been elected to this Provincial Congress from Boston
1 Judge Sullivan s Sketch of Samuel Adams, 1803.
1774.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAM9. 249
during their absence. The Congress, on organizing, ap
pointed a committee to consider the state of the Province,
who soon after reported an address to Gage. In this they
avowed their attachment to Great Britain, but complained
of the acts of Parliament, and the concentration of the mili
tary forces at Boston. The Governor replied that he was
acting only in self-defence, called the Congress a violation
of the charter, and required them to desist from their illegal
proceedings. But the Committee on the State of the Prov
ince had already arranged their plans, and, at their recom
mendation, a Committee of Safety was appointed. This was
a power springing, like the Committee of Correspondence,
directly from the people, and superseding, to a great extent,
the functions of that remarkable system.
The Provincial Congress had adjourned before the four
delegates reached Boston, and did not meet again until the
last week in November. They found the town suffering all
the rigors of a blockade, and an insolent soldiery in full
possession, insulting the inhabitants, and waiting only the
fitting opportunity to imbrue their hands in the blood of its
citizens. That the constantly repeated threat to seize the
leaders, and transport them to England for trial, was not
carried into execution, is to be imputed solely to the Gover
nor s conviction that the attempt would lead to instant
hostilities ; and of the result of a sudden conflict, those who
were not mere braggarts among the officers could have but
one opinion, when they knew that thirty thousand men had
been in arms on one occasion, and were actually far on their
way to attack the troops, supposing the fleet had commenced
bombarding the town. But in England there was a less
favorable opinion of the strength of the Provincials, and it
was doubtless the wish, as well as the expectation, that the
" faction," as Bernard and Hutchinson had long termed the
patriots, should be crushed out and the injured trade of the
country restored. What the Loyalists in Boston hoped for
may be inferred by the following letter, which was thrown
into the camps of the British troops :
250 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
"TO THE OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS OF HIS MAJESTY S
TROOPS IN BOSTON.
" It being more than probable that the King s standard will soon
be erected from rebellion breaking out in this Province, it s proper
that you soldiers should be acquainted with the authors thereof, and
of all the misfortunes brought upon the Province. The following is
a list of them, viz. : Messrs. Samuel Adams, James Bowdoin, Dr.
Thomas Young, Dr. Benjamin Church, Capt. John Bradford,
Josiah Quincy, Major Nathaniel Barber, William Molineux, John
Hancock, William Cooper, Dr. Chauncy, Dr. Cooper, Thomas
Gushing, Joseph Greenleaf, and William Denning. The friends
of your King and country and of America hope and expect it
from you soldiers, the instant rebellion happens, that you will put
the above persons to the sword, destroy their houses, and plunder
their effects ! It is just that they should be the first victims to the
evils they have brought upon us.
"A FRIEND TO GREAT BRITAIN AND AMERICA.
" N. B. Don t forget those trumpeters of sedition, the printers
Edes and Gill, and Thomas." *
It is a remarkable fact that this " black list," like that of
others of a subsequent date, is headed with the name of the
" Chief Incendiary " ; and that six of these were of the
number who, in the previous winter, had signed the mutual
agreement in the Boston Committees of Correspondence, im
mediately after the destruction of the tea. Almost at the
same time, the popular leaders were discussed in England
as objects of particular vengeance. " The patriots may make
themselves easy," said one, " in regard to the naked poles
on Temple Bar, which they have made such a rout about
lately, as in all probability they will soon be decorated with
some of the patriotic noddles of the Boston saints." 2
1 Boston Evening Post for Sept. 19, 1774; and New York Gazetteer for
Sept. 8, 1774.
2 Extract from a London Journal, quoted in the Boston Gazette, Oct. 17,
1774.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 251
Whatever effect this may have had in England, it was
very far from intimidating either the objects of these denun
ciations or the people of America generally. A gentleman
of Philadelphia, writing to a member of the British Parlia
ment at the close of the year, says :
" There cannot be a greater error than to suppose that the pres
ent commotions in America are owing to the arts of demagogues.
Every man thinks and acts for himself in a country where there is
an equal distribution of property and knowledge. It is to no pur
pose to attempt to destroy the opposition to the omnipotence of Par
liament, by taking off our Hancocks, Adamses, and Dickinsons. Ten
thousand patriots of the same stamp stand ready to fill their places.
Would to Heaven our rulers would consider these things in time ;
one more rash and unjust action on your side the water may divide
us beyond the possibility of a union. For God s sake, try to rouse
up the ancient spirit of the nation ; we love you ; we honor you as
brethren and fellow-subjects ; we have shared in your dangers and
glories ; only grant us the liberty you enjoy, and we shall always
remain one people. Let the bond of our union be in the crown
of Great Britain." 1
The Provincial Congress convened again on the 23d of No
vember. Their second resolution on meeting was, " That the
gentlemen who were members of the late Continental, and are
of this Provincial Congress, be joined to the Committee on the
State of the Province " ; and on the following day, the chair
man of the Continental delegation having reported in brief
the proceedings of the body at Philadelphia, their action was
soon after endorsed, and the grateful acknowledgments of
Massachusetts were tendered to its patriotic members. An
other resolution, passed a day or two after, enjoins it upon
every member " to give constant attendance, and in case
they should be under a necessity of absence, to signify the
same to the Congress, in order to their obtaining leave to
withdraw." 2 The journals prudently omit to state the rea-
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 1066.
2 Journal of the Provincial Congress, p. 51.
252 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nor.
sons for this resolution, but it may be traced in the pages of
the historian of the time. Gordon says :
" When the Provincial Congress met again, having Mr. Samuel
Adams present with them, they pushed their preparations for hostile
opposition. These exertions suited not the feelings of many in Con
gress. Through timidity they began to sicken at heart, and upon the
plea of sickness, begged leave to return home, and were indulged.
Mr. S. Adams penetrated the cause of their complaint, and, in order
to stop the epidemical distemper, expressed his great unwillingness
that when members were not well, they should be allowed to return,
but proposed they should be enjoined, upon getting back, to inform
the towns they were no longer represented, so that others might be
sent to supply their absence. This proposal soon cured the malady ;
for the disordered chose to remain in Congress rather than incur the
displeasure of their constituents, and be supplanted by new succes
sors." *
It has been verbally stated by a member of this Congress,
that Samuel Adams repeatedly pressed upon them a more
careful attention to the too frequent practice by the British
troops of marching into the interior. That if this was allowed,
the people would gradually become familiar with military
parade, which, becoming less a matter of note, would lull to
rest the popular vigilance. He recommended that they
should be forcibly prevented from penetrating, at any time,
into the heart of the Province. This he said on several pub
lic occasions and in this Congress ; he urged that if the troops
marched out with their baggage they should be opposed, and
in no case suffered to go more than ten miles into the coun
try. But however appalled some of the members may have
been at the terrible crisis which they saw was inevitable, it
needed no oratory nor powers of persuasion to keep that
body of devoted men firm in the great cause. The tone of
the reports and addresses emanating from them evinces a
pure and self-sacrificing patriotism, which no terrors could
subdue. There may have been, there undoubtedly were,
1 Gordon s American Revolution, I. 416. Bancroft, VII. 182.
1774.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 253
as in all public bodies, vacillating or timid characters, who
were led by the more resolute. All history shows that delib
erating assemblies, as well as great public movements, have,
their guiding spirits ; but probably no convention exercising
powers of government was ever more unanimous, and cer
tainly none ever acted with a deeper moral conviction of the
right and justice of their cause. This Congress included the
most eminent men for wealth and character in Massachusetts.
Besides Samuel Adams, it numbered among its members
Hancock, Joseph and James Warren, John Adams, Hawley,
Cushing, Paine, Gerry, Church, Appleton, Lincoln, Picker
ing, Winthrop, Gardner, Dana, Prescott, Bowers, and Ward,
all distinguished in the popular cause, and some of them its
supporters in debate, with the pen, and with the sword.
Many other members could be mentioned, whose career had
been confined to their particular locality, for each of whom
might have been prepared a^ biography of rare interest con
nected with the stirring events of their day ; but time has
swept all but their names into oblivion.
The town of Boston now deemed it proper to take some
action upon the resolutions of the late Continental Congress
for the observance of their non-importation agreement ; and
at a meeting at Faneuil Hall on the 7th of December, Samuel
Adams being moderator, a large committee was appointed,
with Adams as chairman, to carry those resolves into effect.
These names included the principal citizens in Boston, any
seven of whom should be a quorum. 1 At the same meeting,
Adams, Church, and Warren were made a committee to re
port, at the adjournment, an answer to Gage s reply to the
letter of Peyton Randolph, during the sitting of the late Con
tinental Congress. 2 The letter referred to had been prepared
in Congress by a committee consisting of Lynch, Samuel Ad
ams, and Pendleton ; and as it related particularly to the for
tifications then erecting around Boston, it is probable that
1 Boston Town Records for December, 1774.
8 Journal of the First Continental Congress, p. 25.
254 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
Adams, as the only representative of Massachusetts on the
committee, had been selected to draft it. The reply of
Gage to this letter was now considered as containing" divers
gross mistakes to the prejudice of the town." The answer
to it by the committee was reported on the 30th, and unani
mously adopted. It takes up the assertions of Gage in detail,
and completely exposes their falsity. The numerous out
rages perpetrated under a military government are enume
rated with feeling and eloquence. 1 The seizure of the Colo
ny s powder ; the dispersal of the Assembly ; the erection of
fortifications on Boston Common and the Neck ; the violent
appropriation of arms belonging to private persons ; the
pointing of cannon against the town ; the refusal to allow
citizens to cross the ferry to Charlestown after eight o clock
in the evening; the stopping and detaining of persons in
vehicles ; the beating and confining others, and stabbing of
their horses, and like abuses, are plainly set forth, and
present a powerful array of facts against a tyrannical govern
ment. The report having been accepted, the chairman was
desired by the meeting to transmit a copy to Peyton Ran
dolph. Then, having adopted resolutions acknowledging
the generous donations from the other Colonies, the town
made choice of Gushing. Samuel Adams, John Hancock,
Joseph Warren, Benjamin Church, Oliver Wendell, and John
Pitts as delegates to the second Provincial Congress, to be
held at Cambridge on the 1st of the ensuing February.
The new year opened with gloomy prospects. The poor
of Boston, brought to the verge of starvation by the cruel
blocking up of their port, were yet preserved from perishing
by the continued donations from the neighboring towns and
the other Colonies, though these gifts had generally to be
brought in by tedious, circuitous routes over land, as no
loaded boat was allowed to move in any part of the harbor.
Samuel Adams wrote to Arthur Lee that the infamous act
1 Boston Town Records for December, 1774. Force s American Archives,
Fourth Series, I. 1077 - 1079.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 255
was enforced with a rigor beyond the intention of its framers ;
but the royal officers replied, when taxed with their heart-
lessness, that they were not disposed to abate in the severity
of the law. Not content with a malignant exercise of the
arbitrary power placed in their hands, the government offi
cers and Loyalists exerted themselves to destroy public con
fidence in the Donation Committee, by circulating falsehoods
respecting their disposal of the moneys entrusted to them.
This was done so industriously, that the Committee at length
found it necessary to repel the charge in a circular, signed
by Samuel Adams as chairman, publicly contradicting the
slanderous reports, " that each member of the Committee
was allowed six shillings, and some said half a guinea, for
every day s attendance." The Committee declared the re
port to be groundless, and said " that they had attended
and acted in their office, and would continue to do so, with
out any intention, hope, or desire of receiving any other re
ward in this life but the pleasure which results from a con
sciousness of having done good. So satisfied are they of
their own disinterested motives and conduct in this regard,
that they can safely appeal to the Omniscient Being for their
sincerity in this their declaration." Other equally scanda
lous accusations are refuted ; the public are invited to exam
ine their carefully kept books, containing records of the
whole of their proceedings ; and the Committee challenge
any person whatever to make it appear that there is any just
foundation for such reports. " Until this reasonable demand
is complied with, they confide in the justice of the public,
that no credit will be given to reports so injurious to the
Committee and to this oppressed and insulted people."
The infamous attacks must have been widely and ac
tively circulated to require so emphatic a denial ; but it was
necessary to use every effort to prevent a discontinuance of
the donations through the falsehood of unscrupulous Tories.
A northern winter was upon the country, and fuel was scarce
and difficult to obtain upon any terms ; but the people
256 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
stubbornly bore their hardships and calmly awaited the
issue.
The British officers affected to despise the rustic bands,
who were drilling in every county, 1 but the Provincials, as
they viewed the construction of the works on the Neck, held
them equally in contempt, and compared them derisively
with the fortifications they had faced at Louisburg fifteen
years before. No thinking man now doubted that a conflict
was near. The seizure of the public stores and the words
of bitter hate which were constantly passing between the
soldiers and the inhabitants it was seen could be only the
short forerunners of bloody work. Many of the British
troops continued to desert, despite the watchfulness of their
officers and the rewards offered for their apprehension.
Adams, in one of his letters, thus alluded to the condition
of the town and the soldiery :
" From the beginning of this great contest, I have seen Virginia
distinguishing herself in the support of American liberty ; and in
the liberal donations received from all parts of that Colony for the
sufferers in this town, we have had abundant testimonies of their
unanimity and zeal for that all-important cause. I have the pleas
ure to assure you that the people of this Colony (saving a few detest
able men, most of whom are in this town) are also firm and united.
General Gage is still here with eleven regiments, besides several
detachments, yet it is generally supposed that there are not more
than two thousand five hundred effective men in all. They have
1 This idea of superiority over the rustic populations of America was not
confined to the British soldiers. Curwen, after his flight to England, though
an inveterate Tory, thus refers in his Diary (Dec. 18, 1776) to the opinion
entertained in England of Americans : " It is my earnest wish the despised
Americans may convince these conceited islanders that, without regular stand
ing armies, our continent can furnish brave soldiers and judicious and expert
commanders, hy some knock-down, irrefragible argument, for then, and not
till then, may we expect generous or fair treatment. It piques my pride, I
confess, to hear us called our Colonies, our Plantations, in such terms, and with
such airs, as if our property and persons were absolutely theirs, like the vil
lains and their cottages in the old feudal system so long since abolished,
though the spirit or leaven is not totally gone, it seems."
1775 J LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 257
been very sickly through the winter past, many have died, and
many others have deserted. I have seen a joint list, and I believe
it to be a true one, of the Royal Irish and the detachments from
the Sixty-Fifth, in which the whole number was one hundred and
sixty-seven, and only one hundred and two of them effective. But
though the number of the troops are diminished, the insolence of
the officers (at least some of them) has increased. In private ren
contres I have not heard of a single instance of their coming off
other than second best." l
The American question was brought forward in January in
the House of Lords, when the Earl of Chatham resumed his
seat, after a long retirement, and, in the presence of many
Americans, who watched the momentous passing events
with the most intense interest, exerted all the energy of his
declining years in the cause of British freedom, now trodden
under foot in America. His venerable appearance and great
renown attracted all eyes, and the greatness of the occasion
called forth his most glowing eloquence. He urged the
repeal of the acts, pronounced a grand panegyric on the
late Continental Congress, whose solidity of reasoning, force
of sagacity, and wisdom of conclusion under such a compli
cation of difficult circumstances no nation or body of men
could, in his opinion, excel. To attempt to impose servi
tude upon such men, to establish despotism over such a
mighty continental nation, must be vain and futile.
" But it is not merely repealing these acts," said he, " that can
win back America to your bosom. You must repeal her fears and
resentments, and you may then hope for her love and gratitude.
Now, insulted with an armed force, irritated with a hostile array
before her eyes, which is a bar to all confidence and cordial recon
cilement, her concessions, even if you could force them, would be
suspicious and insincere. We shall be forced ultimately to retract ;
let us retract while we can, not when we must. Whoever advises
the enforcement of these acts must do so at his peril. They must
be repealed ; you will repeal them ; I pledge myself for it, that you
1 Samuel Adams to Bichard Henry Lee, March 21, 1775.
VOL. II. 17
258 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
will, in the end, repeal them. I stake my reputation on it. I will
consent to be taken for an idiot, if they are not finally repealed.
There is no time to be lost. Every moment is big with danger.
Nay, while I am now speaking, the decisive blow may be struck,
and millions involved in the consequence. The very first drop
of blood will make a wound that will not easily be skinned over.
Years, perhaps ages, may not heal it. It will be irritabile vul-
nus, a wound of that rancorous, malignant, corroding, festering
nature, that in all probability it will mortify the whole body.
Repeal, therefore, my Lords ! repeal, I say ! Thus will you con
vince America that you mean to try her cause in the spirit and by
the laws of freedom and fair inquiry, and not by the code of blood.
How can she trust you with the bayonet at her breast ? She has
all the reason in the world to believe that you mean her death or
bondage. Avoid, then, this humiliating, disgraceful necessity. To
conclude, if the ministers thus persevere in misadvising the King,
I will not say that they can alienate the affections of his subjects
from the Crown ; but I will affirm that, the American jewel out
of it, they will make the Crown not worth his wearing : I will
not say that the King is betrayed ; but I will say that the nation
is ruined." *
With such spirited and almost inspired eloquence did
this illustrious man plead the cause of America, and predict
with prophetic foresight the disastrous consequences of a per
sistence in the present policy. At the same time he moved
an address to the King for the removal of the troops from
Boston, in order to open a way to reconciliation. The Mar
quis of Rockingham and Lords Shelburne and Camden sup
ported the motion, but the majority of peers defeated it.
The same spirit was evinced in the House of Commons,
where the memorial from the Continental Congress, pre
sented by Franklin, Lee, and Bollan, was rejected. Lord
Chatham, indulging some lingering hopes of conciliation,
introduced, after a consultation with Franklin, a bill " for
1 Barry s Massachusetts, II. 502. A fuller report of this speech may be
found in Gordon s History, I. 298-302; and still another report in Force s
American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 1494 - 1498.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 259
settling the troubles in America, and for asserting the su
preme legislative authority and superintending power of
Great Britain over America " ; but the project met with no
better success. 1 A joint address to the King, declaring
Massachusetts in a state of rebellion, was voted on the 9th
of February, beseeching his Majesty to pursue the most
effectual measures for assuring due obedience to the laws,
and solemnly pledging their lives and fortunes to maintain
the just rights of the Crown and of the two Houses of Par
liament. Lord North immediately followed with a bill for
restraining the commerce of several of the Colonies, and pro
hibiting their fisheries on the banks of Newfoundland. Nu
merous and powerful petitions were presented against this
cruel measure from many sources, and, while it was pending,
the same nobleman procured the passage of a " conciliatory
proposition," so called, by which he attempted to disunite
the Colonies by offering to forbear to tax any Province
which would contribute a sum satisfactory to his Majesty
for the common defence. This plan conceded nothing, and
only exhibited the hesitancy of the minister in the prosecu
tion of his measures. The Americans were to be driven into
slavery at the cannon s mouth. The King replied to the
joint address on the 10th of February, pledging himself to
" the most speedy and effectual measures for enforcing due
obedience to the laws and the authority of the supreme Leg
islature." Additional plans were entertained by Chatham
and Burke from this time, until after blood had flowed at
Lexington ; but the last hope had in reality vanished with
the solemn interchange of pledges between King and Parlia
ment to appeal to the sword.
The second Provincial Congress convened at Cambridge
on the 1st of February, and elected Hancock President, and
Lincoln Secretary. Immediately on the organization, Han
cock, Hawley, Adams, Warren, Paine, Pitts, Holton, Heath,
1 Grahame s History, under date Feb. 1, 1775. Parliamentary Debates in
Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 1504-1515.
260 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
Gerrish, Gushing, Ward, and Gardner were appointed a
Committee on the State of the Province, 1 whose duties were
constant and arduous, relating to financial matters and gen
eral detail, and requiring close attention. This Congress
now assumed and exercised all legislative power in Massa
chusetts. They had completely superseded the old General
Court, and their resolutions were considered as in all re
spects binding. The particular part taken by Samuel Ad
ams in this session can only be inferred from the frequent
occurrence of his name in the pages of its journals, and the
letters which at this time appear to be written in odd min
utes snatched from the pressing demands of committee busi
ness, where all were busily engaged in the organization and
conduct of a new government, whose aim it was to place the
Province in a condition for war, and manage the strange
and unprecedented events hurrying fast upon each other.
Adams must have been as usual active and indefatigable.
The members were placed under pledge of honor not to di
vulge the debates, and their subjects are thus left to conjec
ture. The body itself was the most remarkable in some re
spects that had yet convened in America. As their name
signified, they were Provincial in character, compared with
the general Congress which had assembled at Philadelphia ;
but though the last named body was composed of the prin
cipal gentlemen of every Colony, and was the collected wis
dom of a continent, it might be said that their deliberations
were entirely upon occurrences happening at Boston. The
Provincial Congress met on the same business, in the very
Province against which the vengeance of Britain was di
rected. The Continental Congress had long hesitated to
adopt even the non-importation and non-consumption agree
ments, but the assemblage at Cambridge had ceased peti
tioning, and having assumed the forms and acts of supreme
local power, had already set in motion new wheels of gov
ernment, and was, to all intents and purposes, the Legis-
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 84.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 261
lature of a people wholly separated from Great Britain.
Officers holding their appointments under the Crown took no
part in their deliberations, and even the Governor was treat
ed with as the agent of a foreign nation. No titled person
age, no scion of nobility, occupied any position among them.
They were a body of Provincial statesmen, mostly untutored
in the arts of diplomacy, but not surpassed in any civilized
society in the world for intelligence and devotion to the
rights of mankind. Courage, determination, sagacity, piety,
and all the qualities which compose true greatness in men,
were there ; and time has proved the consummate wisdom
of all their measures.
Among the earliest proceedings of this body was the elec
tion of Hancock, Gushing, Samuel and John Adams, and
Robert Treat Paine, as delegates to the second Continental
Congress to meet in May at Philadelphia ; and the sum of
one hundred pounds sterling was directed to be paid to each
of them by Henry Gardner, the Treasurer of the Province,
to defray their expenses in that service. 1 They would not
depart for Philadelphia until May, and, in the interim, great
events were to happen. The approach of bloodshed grew
every day more imminent. During this month, the King s
speech of March in the previous year, and the answering ad
dresses of the two Houses of Parliament, had been published
in Boston. Even these documents revealed a determination
to put an immediate stop to the disorders, and secure the
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, pp. 86 95. In explanation of the
continual use of the name of " Mr. Adams " as a member of committees during
the session of this second Provincial Congress, it should be stated that John
Adams was not a member, though he had been added to the list of deputies
from his native town to the first Congress sitting at Cambridge in November,
1774, and with Paine was summoned to appear as speedily as possible to
make up the Continental delegation, whose presence was desirable. The name
of John Adams does not occur in the roll of members of the present assem
blage ; and there is a blank in his Diary all through this period, showing that
he had no hand in the proceedings. Samuel Adams was a member of both
the first and second Provincial Congress, and an acting member of the Com
mittee of Safety.
262 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
dependence of the Colonies upon the Crown and Parliament.
The later addresses had not yet reached America. The power
of Britain was at last to be launched against the refractory
Colonists, some of whom had already been designated as the
objects of royal displeasure. At the head of the marked list
stood the name of Samuel Adams.
Surrounded with the securities of society and a protecting
government, it is difficult now to go back, even in imagina
tion, and depict the vague terrors which at that time must
generally have attached to the idea of a separation of the
Colonies from the parent country. Multitudes, indeed, sup
ported by the consciousness of a righteous cause, and the
knowledge that there was still some public sentiment in
their favor in England, and that great and good men were
battling for them in the national councils, looked upon rec
onciliation as by no means hopeless, or felt nerved to brave
the threatened shock. But, on the other hand, there was a
large class who brooded with doleful misgivings over the
probable result, and would fain have yielded up American
principles for the peace and security which obedience would
have ensured. The Loyalists, numerous and powerful, lost
no opportunity to throw discredit upon the popular move
ments. Some pursued this course from a sincere conviction
that the opposition to Parliament was founded in error, and
instigated, as the government writers took care to assert,
by needy malcontents. Others, under the firm belief that
patriotism must eventually be crushed out by the irresistible
power of England, adopted what appeared to be the strongest
side, and remained loyal with the hope of future preferment.
Many were attached to either side by interest, family con
nections, fear, or example, without fully comprehending the
principles at stake. That prestige, always attending exist
ing power in whatever form, was now wielded with peculiar
force by the Loyalists, who united the consciousness of gov
ernment favor to the confident demeanor often accompany
ing an association with titled or official dignitaries. Fashion,
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 263
wealth, and an assumed social superiority had their influ
ence. Persuasion, able writing, bribes, and threats were all
used, and strong loyal associations were formed ; and over
all the dread power of Britain was held with menacing
aspect. Gage had been censured for his inactivity, and was
urged to take the offensive. But though an ignominious
death seemed to be ever hovering about the leaders, they
were not intimidated. One of the methods used to demor
alize public sentiment was the posting of placards about the
town by the Loyalists, denouncing the principal men in the
popular cause. The following is a specimen :
"FRIENDS, COUNTRYMEN, AND CITIZENS:
" Have you read and weighed his Majesty s speech ? the address
of the Lords and Commons of Great Britain ? I fear we have got
into the wrong box ! Therefore let us not any longer be led by
frenzy, but seize upon and deliver up to justice at once those
who have seduced us from our duty and happiness, or, depend upon
it, they will leave us in the lurch ! nay, I am assured some of them,
who had property, have already mortgaged all their substance,
for fear of confiscation ; but that shall not save their necks, for I
am one (of forty misled people) who will watch their motion, and
not suffer them to escape the punishment due to the disturbers of
our repose. Remember the fate of Wat Tyler; and think how
vain it is for Jack, Sam, or Will 1 to war against Great Britain, now
she is in earnest ! It is greatly inferior to the giants waging war
against Olympus. These had strength, but what have we? Our
leaders are desperate bankrupts. Our country is without money,
stores, or necessaries of war ; without one place of refuge or defence !
If we were called together, we should be a confused herd, without
any disposition to obedience, without a general of ability to direct
and guide us ; and our numbers would be our destruction ! Never
did a people rebel with so little reason ; therefore our conduct cannot
be justified before God. Never did so weak a, people dare to con
tend with so powerful a state ; therefore it cannot be justified by
prudence. It is all the consequence of the arts of crafty knaves
1 Supposed to refer to Hancock, Adams, and Cooper.
264 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
over weak minds and wild enthusiasts, who, if we continue to follow,
will lead us to inevitable ruin.
" Rouse, rouse, ye Massachusetians, while it be yet time ! Ask
pardon of God, submit to your King and Parliament, whom we
have wickedly and grievously offended. Eyes had we, but saw not ;
neither have we heard with our ears. Let not our posterity curse
us for having wantonly lost the estates that should have been theirs,
or for entailing misery upon them, by implicitly adhering to the
promises of a few desperadoes. Let us seize our seducers, make
peace with our mother country, and save ourselves and children.
Amen!
"A YEOMAN OF SUFFOLK COUNTY.
" BOSTON, Sabbath Eve, Feb. 5, 1775." l
The Donation Committee for the distribution of the sup
plies sent for the relief of Boston continued actively en
gaged in its good work, and Samuel Adams remained its
chairman. On his return from Philadelphia, he resumed
his post, and we find him among the most industrious in
responding to the many acts of charity. On receiving a gift
of flour from New York, he replies to the committee in that
Colony :
" While we acknowledge the superintendency of Divine Provi
dence, we feel our obligations to the sister Colonies. By their
liberality they have greatly chagrined the common enemies of
America, who flattered themselves with hopes that, before this day,
they should starve us into a compliance with the insolent demands
of despotic power. But the people, relieved by your charitable
contributions, bear the indignity with becoming patience and forti
tude. They are not insensible of the injuries done them as men,
as well as free Americans, but they restrain their just resentment
from a due regard to the common cause."
George Reed, afterwards a signer of the Declaration of
Independence, in the Delaware delegation, sent, in connec
tion with Mr. Van Dyke, upwards of nine hundred dollars.
1 Handbill distributed through Boston on Monday, February 6, 1775
(Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, I. 1216).
1775.J LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 265
Mr. Adams, deputed by the Donation Committee to acknowl
edge the gift, says in reply :
" They have directed me to request that you would return their
sincere thanks to the people of New Castle County for their great
liberality towards their fellow-subjects in this place, who are still
under the hand of oppression and tyranny. It will, I dare say,
afford you abundant satisfaction to be informed that the inhabitants
of this town, with the exception only of a contemptible few, appear
to be animated with an inextinguishable love of liberty. Having
the approbation of all the sister Colonies, and being thus supported
by their generous benefactions, they endure the most severe trials
with a manly fortitude, which disappoints and perplexes our common
enemies. While a great continent is thus anxious for them, and
constantly administering to their relief, they can even smile with
contempt on the feeble efforts of the British administration to force
them to submit to tyranny, by depriving them of the usual means
of subsistence. The people of this Province behold with indigna
tion a lawless army posted in its capital, with a professed design to
overturn their free Constitution. They restrain their just indigna
tion, in hopes that the most happy effects will flow from the united
applications of the Colonies for their relief." l
The Union Fire Club at Salem sent forty pounds in cash,
and Adams writes in acknowledgment :
" It is an unspeakable consolation to the inhabitants of this de
voted town that, amidst the distress designed to have been brought
upon them by an inhuman as well as arbitrary minister, there are
many whose hands and hearts are open for their relief. You, gen
tlemen, are among the happy number of those of whom it is said,
the blessing of him that is ready to perish hath come upon us, and
through your liberality the widow s heart [is made] to sing for joy.
" Our friends have enabled us to bear up under oppression to the
astonishment of our enemies. May Heaven reward our kind bene
factors tenfold ; and grant to us wisdom and fortitude that, during
this hard conflict, we may behave as becomes those who are called
to struggle in so glorious a cause, and by our patience and perse-
1 This letter, in the autograph of Samuel Adams, is still preserved among
the papers of George Keed.
266 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
verance at length frustrate the designs of our country s inveterate
foes."
A donation was made by Amelia and Dinwiddie in Vir
ginia, directed to Samuel and John Adams, and the former,
in acknowledging the gift, says :
"Thus united and resolved to aid each other, may not the Colo
nies indulge a prospect that, under the influence of Divine Provi
dence, the plans of a corrupt and infatuated British administration
to enslave them will soon be defeated ? and that the restoration and
establishment of the liberties of America may be the happy fruits
of all our sufferings, is the ardent wish of the Committee, in whose
behalf
"I subscribe, &c."
Richard Randolph of Henrico County, Virginia, sent a
large shipment of corn and grain from gentlemen in that
vicinity, and Adams, at the request of the Committee re
turned their thanks.
"The Colony of Virginia made an early stand by their ever-
memorable resolves, in 1765, against the efforts of a corrupt Brit
ish administration to enslave America, and has ever distinguished
herself by her exertions in support of our common rights. The
sister Colonies struggled separately, but the Minister himself has at
length united them, and they have lately uttered language that will
be heard. It is the fate of this town to drink deep of the cup of
ministerial vengeance ; but while America bears them witness that
they suffer in her cause, they glory in their sufferings. Being thus
supported by her liberality, they will never ungratefully betray her
rights. Inheriting the spirit of their virtuous ancestors, they will,
after their example, endure hardships, and confide in an all-gracious
Providence. Having been born to be free, they will never disgrace
themselves by a mean submisssion to the injurious terms of slavery.
These, sir, I verily believe to be the sentiments of our inhabitants ;
and, if I am not mistaken, such assistances are to be expected from
them as, you assure us, are most sincerely and unanimously wished
by every Virginian."
In reply to the donations of corn, wheat, and bread from
1775 -1 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 26T
Spottsylvania, Virginia, forwarded by Charles Dick, Charles
Washington, and George Thornton, Adams says :
" I trust in God that this much injured Colony, when urged to it
by extreme necessity, will exert itself at the utmost hazard in the
defence of our common rights. I flatter myself that I am not mis
taken, while they deprecate that necessity, they are very active in
preparing for it."
From Westmoreland County, Virginia, John Augustine
Washington sent more than a thousand bushels of grain fur
nished by that county.
" Your candid opinion," replies Samuel Adams, " of the inhabit
ants of this town, as having some share in defending the common
rights of British America, cannot but be very flattering to them,
and it will excite in them a laudable ambition by their future con
duct to merit the continuance of it. They are unjustly oppressed,
but, by the smiles of Heaven and the united friendship and support
of all North America, the designs of our enemies to oblige them to
make base compliances, to the injury of our common cause, have
been hitherto frustrated. They bear repeated insults of the gross
est kind, not from want of the feelings of just resentment, or spirit
enough to make ample returns, but from principles of sound policy
and reason. Put your enemy in the wrong, and keep him so, is a
wise maxim in politics as well as in war. They consider them
selves as connected with a great continent, deeply interested in
their patient sufferings. They had rather, therefore, forego the
gratification of revenging affronts and indignities, than prejudice
that all-important cause, which they have so much at heart, by pre
cipitating a crisis. When they are pushed by clear necessity for
the defence of their liberties to the trial of arms, I trust in God they
will convince their friends and their enemies of their military skill
and valor. Their constant prayer to God is, to prevent such neces
sity, but they are daily preparing for it. I rejoice with you, sir,
in most earnestly wishing for the speedy and full restoration of the
rights of America, which are violated with so high and arbitrary a
hand, and am, in behalf of the Committee, with great respect,
" Your obliged and affectionate friend and countryman,
" SAMUEL ADAMS." l
1 Extracts from letters of Samuel Adams for the Donation Committee of
268 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
Such is the tone of Adams s letters from the Committee to
Boston s benefactors. They breathe a spirit of courage and
devotion, and a firm reliance upon the willingness of the
New-Englanders to meet whatever issue might be forced
upon them. Adams had long since resigned all hope of
conciliation. He knew that the Americans had either to
submit unconditionally or to fight, and it was with him only
a question of time when the struggle should commence.
But he still observed his favorite maxim, " Keep your enemy
in the wrong." By remaining on the defensive, the conflict
must be opened by the royal troops, and the sympathies of
the Southern Colonies be increased and insured. In every
one of his committee letters to the other Colonies, Adams is
particular to impress it upon them, that Boston was suffer
ing in the common cause, and that the patience and forti
tude of its inhabitants was based upon the encouragement
extended from the rest of America.
" Call me an enthusiast," said he, " this union among the Colo
nies and warmth of affection can be attributed to nothing less than
the agency of the Supreme Being. If we believe that Pie superin
tends and directs the affairs of empires, we have reason to expect
the restoration and establishment of the public liberties." 1
The next day after the King s address to Parliament,
pledging himself to enforce obedience from the Americans,
a gentleman in London writing to his correspondent in the
Colonies, says :
" But now you are to be left to your own prudence : your own
wisdom will tell you no longer to depend upon England to help
you. I had twenty gentlemen this day called on me, and all say,
pray write to your friends to declare those rebels who will not fight
for their country ; for there is gone down to Sheerness seventy-
eight thousand guns and bayonets to be sent to America, to be put
into the hands of the negroes, the Roman Catholics, and the Cana-
Boston to various contributors (Mass. Hist. Society s Collections, Fourth
Series, IV. 165, 168, 174, 185, 211, 239).
1 Bancroft, VII. 251, 252.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 269
dians, and all the wicked means on earth used to subdue the Colo
nies. I don t write this to alarm you, but you must not any longer
be deceived. Orders have now gone out to take up Mr. Hancock,
Adams, Williams, Otis, and six of the head men of Boston. I have
now a copy of the proceedings before me. My heart aches for Mr.
Hancock. Send off expresses immediately that they intend to seize
his estate, and have his fine house for General =***** *." *
Another friend of America had already written from Lon
don :
" From unquestionable authority I learn that, about a fortnight
ago, despatches were sent from hence by a sloop of war to General
Gage, containing, among other things, a royal proclamation, declar
ing the inhabitants of Massachusetts Bay, and some others in the
different Colonies, actual rebels, with a blank commission to try
and execute such of them as he can get hold of. With this is sent
a list of names to be inserted in the commission, as he may judge
expedient. I do not know them all ; but Messrs. Samuel Adams,
John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, and John Hancock, of Massachu
setts Bay, John Dickinson of Philadelphia, Peyton Randolph of
Virginia, and Henry Middleton of South Carolina, are particularly
named, with many others. This black-list the General will no
doubt keep to himself, and unfold it gradually as he finds it con
venient.
" Last Friday night, the 27th instant, in a Privy Council, the
American measures were all settled by the Ministry. Part of them
is, to pass an act of Parliament inflicting pains and penalties on
particular persons and Provinces in America, to countenance the
infamous proclamation and commission already Bent to General
Gage." 2
Still another writes from London :
u It is current here, that orders are sent from hence to seize upon
1 Letters dated London, Feb. 10, 1775 (Force s American Archives, Fourth
Senes, I. 1224).
2 Letter from a gentleman in London to a friend in New York, Jan. 30,
1775 (Ibid., col. 1202).
270 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
particular persons. A prudent caution, therefore, is necessary, for
in fact we are in a state of warfare. " l
An English newspaper, reflecting the general impression
as to the seizure and execution of the popular leaders,
says :
" The fate of the members of the American rebellion has been
more than once violently agitated in the Privy Council ; but the
dice at last are thrown ; and the following of the Continental Con
gress are destined to the cord, Hancock, Adams, and Franklin.
The remainder of this truly honorable Assembly are to be ban
ished his Majesty s British and American dominions." 2
The intimate friends of Adams and Hancock urged them
repeatedly to retire from Boston into the country at this
time ; and at their solicitations the family of Adams, at a
later period, removed to Cambridge, where the Provincial
Congress was sitting. Here they remained at the house of
Francis Wells, the father-in-law of Samuel Adams. Yery
soon after this, the Congress adjourned to meet at Concord.
The oldest son, Andrew Elton Wells, was meantime in
Georgia, and proved one of the sturdiest supporters of
American rights in a Colony where only a small portion of
the people were with the patriots. His letters to Samuel
Adams, most of which have unfortunately been destroyed,
were filled with intelligence of the general sentiment there,
and portrayed the difficulties which the New England set
tlers were obliged to encounter among the violent Loyalists.
After the last summer s convention at Savannah, where, as
one of the county deputies, he had endorsed the action of
the Continental Congress in a series of resolutions, curi
ously resembling those of Samuel Adams in the Massachu
setts Legislature of 1765 and 1769, defining the common
rights of Englishmen, Mr. Wells became a resident of
Savannah, and was the proprietor of a warehouse and wharf
1 Letter from London, dated Feb. 10, 1775 (Ibid., col. 1224).
8 From a London newspaper of February, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 271
a short distance below the town. A quantity of sugar
stored there was seized by the royal authorities, on the
refusal of the owner to pay the customary duties. On the
night of the 15th of February, an armed party disguised,
with their faces smutted, attacked the wharf, threw the
guard of seamen into the river, tarred and feathered the tide-
waiter, and carried off the hogsheads of sugar. It was
thought that one of the guard was drowned. Sir James
Wright offered a reward of fifty pounds for the detection of
any of the rioters, and pardon to those who would turn
state s evidence ; but the most careful search failed to elicit
any facts, and the property never again fell into government
hands. Andrew Elton Wells is said to have been the origi
nator of this " sugar party," as his brother always named it.
He was also instrumental in forwarding supplies to the re
lief of Boston during the summer of 1775, being a member
of the Savannah Donation Committee. In July of this year,
Wells was one of the three Representatives from the district
of Yernonburgh to the Provincial Congress of Georgia,
which met at Savannah. The strong royalist influence in
that Province had hitherto defeated the object of the patri
ots, and some of the delegates to this Congress refused to
take their seats. Such was the case with one of the col
leagues of Wells. The Convention, however, now represent
ing the Province more generally, adopted all the measures
of the Continental Congress, and approved of the Declara
tion of Rights. In 1808, the widow of Samuel Adams be
queathed a portion of her estate to the children of her late
brother, who were residing in Burke County, Georgia.
CHAPTER XXXY.
The Provincial Congress warns the Militia to be in Readiness for Service.
Adams predicts the Nearness of American Independence. Adams and
Warren dispatch a Secret Agent to Canada. His Observations at Mon
treal. Result of the Mission. Warren pronounces the Annual Oration.
Scenes in the Old South. Committee on the State of the Province,
They propose an Armed Confederation of the New England Colonies for
Mutual Defence. Deputies sent to Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New
Hampshire. The Alliance consummated.
DURING this session of the Provincial Congress, Samuel
Adams was chairman of a committee appointed for the pur
pose of warning the people of the imminent danger they
were in from the hostile disposition of Great Britain, that
there was reason to fear their sudden destruction would
be soon attempted, and to urge upon them the importance
of preparing for the event. The resolutions to that effect
were reported on the same day, and were ordered to be
printed in the newspapers.
" Whereas it appears to this Congress, from the present disposition
of the British Ministry and Parliament, that there is real cause to
fear that the most reasonable and just applications of this continent
to Great Britain, for * peace, liberty, and safety, will not meet with
a favorable reception ; but, on the contrary, from the large reinforce
ment of troops expected in this Colony, the tenor of intelligence
from Great Britain, and general appearances, we have reason to
apprehend that the sudden destruction of this Colony in particular
is intended, merely for refusing, with the other American Colonies,
tamely to submit to the most ignominious slavery ;
" Therefore Resolved, That the great law of self-preservation calls
upon the inhabitants of this Colony immediately to prepare against
every attempt that may be made to attack them by surprise ; and it
is, upon serious deliberation, most earnestly recommended to the
militia in general, as well as the detached part of it in minute-men,
Feb., 1775. LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 273
that they spare neither time, pains, nor expense at so critical a junc
ture, in perfecting themselves forthwith in military discipline, and
that skilful instructors be provided for those companies which may
not already be provided therewith. And it is recommended to the
towns and districts in this Colony, that they encourage such persons
as are skilled in the manufacturing of fire-arms and bayonets, dili
gently to apply themselves thereto, for supplying such of the inhab
itants as may still be deficient.
" And for the encouragement of American manufacturers of fire
arms and bayonets, it is further Resolved, That this Congress will
give the preference to, and purchase from them so many effective
arms and bayonets as can be delivered in a reasonable time, upon
notice given to this Congress at its next session." l
It had long been the wish of Adams to encourage Ameri
can manufactures, and to have his countrymen perfect them
selves in military exercises. Such is the tenor of many of
his previous letters, and he had introduced resolutions to
that effect in the Assembly. The next day, he wrote to
Arthur Lee from Cambridge :
" The sudden dissolution of the late Parliament was a measure
which I expected would take place. I must needs allow that the
Ministry have acted a politic part ; for if they had suffered the elec
tion to be put off till the spring, it might have cost some of them
their heads. The new Parliament can with a very ill grace im
peach them for their conduct, after having so explicitly avowed it.
The thunder of the late speech, and the servile answers, I view as
designed to serve the purposes of saving some men from the block.
I cannot conclude that Lord North is upon the retreat, though there
seems so be some appearance of it. A deception of this kind would
prove fatal to us.
" Our safety depends upon our being in readiness for the extreme
event. Of this the people here are thoroughly sensible, and from
the preparations they are making, I trust in God they will defend
their liberties with dignity. If the Ministry have not abandoned
themselves to folly and madness, the firm union of the Colonies
must be an important objection. The claims of the Colonies are
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, pp. 102, 103.
VOL. II. 18
274 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
consistent [obliterated] as necessary to their own existence as free
subjects, and they will never recede from them. The tools of power
here are incessantly endeavoring to divide them, but in vain. I
wish the King s Ministers would duly consider what appears to me
a very momentous truth, that one regular attempt to subdue those in
any other Colony, whatever may be the first issue of the attempt,
will open a quarrel which will never be closed, till what some of
them affect to apprehend, and we sincerely deprecate, will take
effect. Is it not, then, high time that they should hearken, not to
the clamors of passionate and interested men, but to the cool voice
of impartial reason ? No sensible minister will think that millions
of free subjects, strengthened by such an union, will submit to be
slaves. No honest minister would wish to see humanity thus dis
graced.
" My attention on the Provincial Congress now sitting here will
not admit of my enlarging at present.
" I will write you again by the next opportunity, and, till I have
reason to suspect our adversaries have got some of my letters in
their possession, I yet venture to subscribe,
" Yours affectionately,
" S. ADAMS. 1
"ARTHUR LEE, ESQ."
A part of the business which so engaged the " attention "
of Adams on this day is indicated by a resolution, empow
ering the Boston Committee of Correspondence to establish
" an intimate correspondence with the inhabitants of the
Province of Quebec," and to carry the plan into immediate
execution. 2 In the previous Congress, in November, he
had been one of a committee for a similar purpose, but the
subject was postponed until the present session. There
exists in the handwriting of Samuel Adams the draft of a
letter from the Committee of Correspondence " to gentle
men who are friends of liberty in Montreal and Quebec."
He often discussed the subject of Canada with Warren, and
they twice despatched secret agents thither to make obser-
1 Adams to Lee, Feb. 14, 1775.
2 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 100.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 275
vations for future use. In England, the connection of
Adams with plans for the reduction of Canada was well
known, and he was supposed to be the originator of the
schemes for that purpose. The letter of the Committee
explains the circumstances and cause of the dispute between
England and America, and the certainty that the recent
acts of Parliament are not alone intended to enslave one
part of the continent, but the whole of British America. It
congratulates the people of Quebec on the true sentiments
of liberty they have lately manifested, and cordially invites
the co-operation of the Northern Colonies in the necessary
means of obtaining relief from the common grievances.
The paper, which is carefully written, and well fitted to
have an influence in the North, is signed by its author as
chairman, and Joseph Warren and Mackay. 1
The object of Adams and Warren was, to effect the same
union of sentiment between the Northeastern British Prov
inces that had already been accomplished with the South.
Not many years had passed, since the men of Massachusetts
had marched to Canada, wrested it from the French, and
added it to the British dominions. They conceived that
the task might now be repeated for America, could a large
party be found in Montreal or Quebec to favor the attempt ;
and it was with the view of ascertaining the state of public
feeling there, preparatory to bringing them into the Colo
nial union, that this movement was commenced. Besides
this, a correspondence was opened by Adams and Warren
(as members of the Massachusetts Committee of Safety)
with the Committee of Montreal, a body which seems to
have had some affiliation with the popular measures in New
England. These letters from both Committees bear the
same date, and were despatched by John Brown, a brave
and trusty adventurer, believed to have been one of two
brothers who led the party to destroy the Gaspee in Rhode
Island in 1772. This secret agent went by the way of
1 The original draft is dated "Boston, Feb. 21, 1775."
276 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
Albany, and, finding the lakes impassable, proceeded to St.
John s, where he arrived after fourteen days travel, suffer
ing great hardships on Lake Champlain and the surround
ing country, which was under ice and water. On reaching
Montreal, he delivered his letters, and obtained valuable
information relative to the " Province of Quebec." He
found that Governor Carleton had refused the application to
print the address to the people of Canada, proceeding from
the late Continental Congress, had abridged the liberty of
the press, and now held the troops in readiness to march
against Boston at the shortest notice. Through the industry
and exertions of the friends of American liberty, their ene
mies had not yet been able to raise ten men for Administra
tion. Brown moved actively and quietly among the French
people, the priesthood, the hunters, and the Indians, who had
peremptorily refused " to fight Boston." Numbers of French
gentlemen had tendered their services to the Governor to
raise a Canadian army, and join the King s troops ; but Carle-
ton, who had officers enough, complained only of the want
of soldiers. The long letter in which this information was
conveyed graphically describes the French and English
character in Canada, and presents the condition of public
affairs and society there with evident truth, and the style
of one practised in such tours of observation. One thing
the writer mentioned was to be kept a profound secret,
the plan already prepared by the people in the New Hamp
shire grant (Vermont) for the capture of Ticonderoga,
should hostilities be commenced by the royal troops. 1
The Committee of Montreal, in their reply, after acknowl
edging the receipt of the letter from Adams and Warren,
express their sorrow for the afflictions of New England, "but
alas ! " say they, " we are more the objects of pity and com
passion than yourselves." Divided by interest, religion,
manners, and language, they lived under constant appre
hensions of evils to come, from the unlimited power of the
1 J. Brown to Samuel Adams and J. Warren, March 29, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 277
Governor, which struck all opposition dead ; while few dared
to vent their griefs, but groaned in silence. Without the
numbers or the wealth to be of any service, they cast them
selves into the arms of the sister Colonies, relying upon the
wisdom, vigor, and firmness of the general Continental Con
gress for their protection, and hoping they would entertain
no animosity or resentment against them, because they could
not join in the ensuing Congress, which, were they to at
tempt, the Canadians would join the government to frus
trate. The bulk of the people, both English and Canadians,
wished well to the American cause, but dared not stir a fin
ger to help them, " being of no more estimation in the polit
ical machine than the sailors are in shaping the course or
working the ship in which they sail." l This letter was
probably written by Thomas Walker, who was in correspon
dence with Samuel Adams and Warren, and had already
returned a preliminary answer from Montreal by a Mr.
Jeffers of Boston. The information acquired by the Com
mittee of Safety, through these messengers, proved of the
highest importance, and enabled them to act in conjunction
with the patriots farther north. The hint in Brown s letter
respecting Ticonderoga was soon after acted upon, showing
how reliable was his intelligence. The prudence and cour
age of Brown made him henceforth sought after by the Pro
vincial Congresses, to obtain accurate information as to the
movements of the enemy ; and soon after his return from
this mission, General Schuyler, then in command of the
Northern army, despatched this trusty emissary, now pro
moted to be a major, to Canada again. He served with dis
tinction in the war, and his exploits were officially praised
by those in authority.
After a session of sixteen days, the Provincial Congress
adjourned on the 16th of February, to meet on the 22d of
March at Concord. In the interim, besides attending to the
1 Committee of Montreal to the Committee of Safety of Massachusetts,
Montreal, April 28, 1775 (Journals of the Provincial Congress, pp. 751, 752).
278 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
duties of the Committees of Correspondence, both that of
Boston and one appointed by the Congress to maintain com
munication, in its name, with the neighboring Colonies, 1
Adams is also found acting with the Committees of Safety
and Supplies. 2 Their journals show that the Province was
considered as being in a state of war, and every preparation
was made for the approaching conflict. Gage s spies found
the inland towns armed and drilling ; and at one meeting of
the Committee of Safety, when Adams was present, meas
ures were adopted to meet the British troops, " if sallies "
should be attempted into the country by night.
The usual oration was this year pronounced by Joseph
Warren at the Old South, on the anniversary of the Boston
Massacre. Adams was chairman of the committee appointed
on the last occasion to procure an orator for the ensuing
year, 3 and he knew that, now the town was in possession of
the British troops, an unusual degree of coolness and deter
mination would be required ; but Warren, learning that
threats had been made, solicited for himself this post of
danger ; and, on the 5th of March, the church was crowded
to hear him. Samuel Adams was moderator of the meet
ing, which appears to have waited for some time for the
orator. The scene is thus described, in Rivington s paper,
by a Loyalist, writing from Boston :
"On Monday, the 5th instant, the Old South Meeting-house
being crowded with nobility and fame, the Selectmen, with Adams,
Church, and Hancock, Cooper, and others, assembled in the pulpit,
which was covered with black, and we all sat gaping at one another
above an hour expecting ! At last, a single horse chair stopped at
the apothecary s, opposite the meeting, from which descended the
orator (Warren) of the day ; and entering the shop, was followed
by a servant with a bundle, in which were the Ciceronian toga, etc.
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 106.
2 Journal of Committees of Safety and Supplies (Journals of the Provincial
Congress, pp. 512, 513).
8 Boston Town Records for March, 1774.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 279
"Having robed himself, he proceeded across the street to the
meeting, and being received into the pulpit, he was announced by
one of his fraternity to be the person appointed to declaim on
the occasion. He then put himself into a Demosthenian posture,
with a white handkerchief in his right hand, and his left in his
breeches, began and ended without action. He was applauded
by the mob, but groaned at by people of understandiag. One of the
pulpiteers (Adams) then got up and proposed the nomination of
another to speak next year on the bloody Massacre, the first time
that expression was made to the audience, when some officers
cried, O fie, fie ! The gallerians apprehending fire, bounded out
of the windows, and swarmed down the gutters, like rats, into the
street. The Forty-third Regiment returning accidentally from ex
ercise, with drums beating, threw the whole body into the great
est consternation. There were neither pageantry, exhibitions, pro
cessions, or bells tolling as usual, but the night was remarked for
being the quietest these many months past." l
Another account sent to the same paper by a Loyalist,
discloses the fact that an organized attempt was on foot to
break up the meeting, should any expression escape the
orator, tending to reflect upon the King or royal family,
and this occasion had undoubtedly been decided upon as an
opportune moment to commence an onslaught upon the
people. Not only the account of a letter-writer in Boston,
during this month, indicates such an intention, but infor
mation revealing the whole plan was sent to England, and
there published in the following winter. A writer in Lon
don says :
" A short time before the skirmish at Concord, Massachusetts,
the officers of the army being highly incensed by the inhabitants
of Boston, from many insults which had been offered them, and
exasperated by the many inflammatory preachings and orations
delivered from the pulpit, resolved privately to take an opportunity
to seize the promoters of these discourses, the principals of which
were Adams, Hancock, and Doctor Warren. The scheme was now
1 Loring s Hundred Boston Orators, p. 60.
280 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
laid, and the young man fixed upon to carry it into execution was
an ensign in the array, who was to give the signal to the rest, dis
tributed about the church, by throwing an egg at Doctor Warren in
the pulpit. However, this scheme was rendered abortive in the
most whimsical manner, for he who was deputed to throw the egg
fell in going to the church, dislocated his knee, and broke the egg,
by which means the scheme failed; and the skirmish at Concord
happening within a few days, these worthy patriots of their country
retired to Roxbury." J
Adams directed the front seats in the church to be va
cated, and invited the British officers, about forty of whom
were present, to occupy them. A number, however, seated
themselves on the stairs of the pulpit, and the whole of the
military present continually interrupted Warren by laugh
ing, hemming, and coughing. The oration must, indeed,
have been unpalatable to them, for it treated of the baleful
effects of standing armies in times of peace, while the assem
blage itself was in fact a town meeting, a portion of the
democratic system which an army had been sent to sup
press. Their efforts, however, did not succeed. One of the
officers attempted to intimidate Warren by holding up one
of his hands with several pistol-bullets on the open palm ;
but the orator, without discontinuing his discourse, dropped
on them a white handkerchief. Every move on the part of
the royal troops, as well as the populace, showed that each
was awaiting some action of the other for the commence
ment of bloodshed. A volcano was ready to burst forth,
and the time for the eruption was not far distant. The
people, who were governed implicitly by the advice of their
leaders, knew the importance of acting as yet on the defen
sive for the purpose of preserving their position with the
sister Colonies. Samuel Adams, alluding to this scene in
the church, soon after wrote to a friend in Virginia :
" I had long expected that they would take that occasion to beat
1 Extract from a London paper, quoted in the Virginia Gazette, Dec. 2,
1775 (Moore s Diary of the Revolution, I. 157).
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 281
up a breeze, and therefore (seeing many of the officers present
before the orator came in), as Moderator of the meeting, I took
care to have them treated with civility, inviting them into conven
ient seats, so that they might have no pretence to behave ill ; for it
is a good maxim in politics, as well as in war, to put and keep the
enemy in the wrong. They behaved tolerably well until the oration
was finished, when, upon a motion made for the appointment of
another orator, as usual they began to hiss, which irritated the
assembly to the greatest degree, and confusion ensued ; they, how
ever, did not gain their end, which was apparently to break up
the meeting, for order was soon restored, and we proceeded reg
ularly, and finished the business. I am persuaded, were it not for
the danger of precipitating a crisis, not a man of them would have
been spared." l
On the 22d of March, the Congress met at Concord,
pursuant to adjournment, when Gerry, Paine, and Adams
were appointed a committee to bring in a resolve, express
ing the sense of the Congress, that " for this people to relax
in their preparations to defend themselves would be attend
ed with the most dangerous consequences." The report
was presented the same afternoon, and was ordered to be
printed in all the newspapers. 2 It pointed out the danger
of subjugation, and exhorted the inhabitants to be ready to
oppose with firmness and resolution, at the utmost hazard,
every attempt for that purpose. The constant industry of
the Committee on the State of the Province is indicated by
the frequency of their reports 011 the most vital subjects ;
and the unanimity with which these were adopted, as fast
as submitted to the Assembly, shows the perfect confidence
reposed in the wisdom of this body. Adams, also, repeat
edly appears on special committees with the principal men
of the Congress. He was chairman of one, consisting of
himself, Gushing, and Colonel Patterson, to draft a letter to
the Rev. Samuel Kirkland, the celebrated missionary among
1 S. Adams to K. H. Lee, March 21, 1775.
2 Journals of the Provincial Congress, pp. 109, 110.
282 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
the Indians, and an address to the Chief of the Mohawks,
with the view of securing the friendship of that powerful
tribe during the coming struggle. The adventurer, Brown,
writing to Adams and Warren from Montreal, had particu
larly referred to the repeated efforts of the British author
ities to enlist the savage Indian nations of Canada and the
Northwest against the Colonists. The letter to Dr. Kirk-
land, alludes to this.
" We are induced to take this measure, as we have been informed
that those who are inimical to us in Canada have been tampering
with those nations, and endeavoring to attach them to the interest
of those who are attempting to deprive us of our inestimable rights
and privileges, and to subjugate the Colonies to arbitrary power.
From a confidence in your attachment to the cause of liberty and
your country, we now transmit to you the enclosed address, and
desire you would deliver it to the Sachem of the Mohawk tribe,
to be communicated to the rest of the Five Nations, and that you
would use your influence with them to join with us in the defence
of our rights ; but if you cannot prevail with them to take an active
part in this glorious cause, that you would at least engage them to
stand neuter, and not by any means to aid and assist our enemies."
The address to the Mohawks was written by Samuel
Adams, as is indicated by fragments still existing of the
original draft in his handwriting, before being amended by
the Congress, previous to its adoption. To reach and secure
the sympathies of those rude savages required a -different
style of writing from that of the state papers of the day ; and
it is to show how admirably the writer combined dignity of
sentiment with the simple and touching language suited to
the occasion that the letter is introduced.
" BROTHERS, We, the delegates of the inhabitants of the Prov
ince of the Massachusetts Bay, being come together to consider what
may be best for you and ourselves to do, in order to get ourselves
rid of those hardships which we feel and fear, have thought it our
duty to tell you, our good brothers, what our fathers in Great
Britain have done and threaten to do with us.
1775.J LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 283
" Brothers, You have heard how our fathers were obliged by
the cruelty of their brethren to leave their country ; how they
crossed the great lake and came here ; how they purchased this
land with their own money ; and how, since that time, they and we,
their sons and grandsons, have built our houses and cut down the
trees, and cleared and improved the land at their and our own ex
pense ; how we have fought for them, and conquered Canada and
a great many other places which they have had and have not paid
for ; after all which and many other troubles, we thought we had
reason to hope that they would be kind to us, and allow us to enjoy
ourselves, and sit in our own houses, and eat our own victuals in
peace and quiet ; but alas ! our brothers, we are greatly distressed,
and we will tell you our grief; for you, as well as we, are in danger.
" Brothers, Our fathers in Great Britain tell us our land and
houses and cattle and money are not our own ; that we ourselves
are not our own men, but their servants ; they have endeavored to
take away our money without our leave, and have sent their great
vessels and a great many warriors for that purpose.
" Brothers, We used to send our vessels on the great lake,
whereby we were able to get clothes and what we needed for our
selves and you ; but such has lately been their conduct that we can
not ; they have told us we shall have no more guns, no powder to
use, and kill our wolves and other game, nor to send to you for you
to kill your victuals with, and to get skins to trade with us, to buy
you blankets and what you want. How can you live without pow
der and guns ? But we hope to supply you soon with both, of our
own making.
" Brothers, They have made a law to establish the religion
of the Pope in Canada, which lies so near you. We much fear
some of your children may be induced, instead of worshipping
the only true God, to pay his dues to images made with their own
hands.
" Brothers, These and many other hardships we are threatened
with, which, no doubt, in the end will equally affect you ; for the same
reason they would get our lands, they would take away yours. All
we want is, that we and you may enjoy that liberty and security
which we have a right to enjoy, and that we may not lose that good
land which enables us to feed our wives and children. We think it
our duty to inform you of our danger, and desire you to give notice
284 , LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
to all your kindred ; and as we much fear they will attempt to cut
our throats, and if you should allow them to do that, there will
nobody remain to keep them from you, we therefore earnestly
desire you to whet your hatchet, and be prepared with us to defend
our liberties and lives.
" Brothers, We humbly beseech that God who lives above,
and does what is right here below, to enlighten your minds to
see that you ought to endeavor to prevent our fathers from bring
ing those miseries upon us; and to his good providence we com
mend you."
Besides this address, there appears another to the Stock-
bridge Indians, a number of whom had enlisted as minute-
men, emanating from the Committee on the State of the
Province, and apparently written by Adams ; no proof, how
ever, remains of his authorship. They also reported as
to " what movements of the troops should make it fit to call
the militia together to act on the defensive." This report,
of which no copy exists in the journal, was read and con
sidered in paragraphs and passed unanimously ; and it
was agreed that when notice was given for the assembling
of the Provincial forces, the Congress should repair without
delay to the place to which they should be adjourned. 1 Un
til the close of this session, the Committee on the State of
the Province, composed of the chief intellects, appear to
have exercised entire control over the Congress. It had
originated that active working agency, the Committee of
Safety, which, with Hancock as its chairman, was vested
with almost supreme power. Acting under a code of rules
prepared by the first Committee, they were authorized to
assemble the militia of the Province, wherever and when
ever they deemed it necessary to repel any attempt to en
force the late acts of Parliament, and could thus, at their
own option, have precipitated England and America into a
bloody struggle, had the occasion presented itself. They
met at Concord during March and April. The Committee
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 112.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 285
on the State of the Province evidently digested the measures
of the Congress, and had them fully prepared before report
ing plans of action. There is scarcely one instance where
any of their decisions were recommitted. Sometimes the
members being absent, owing to the cold, uncomfortable
condition of the Assembly-room, it was necessary to order
the door-keeper to summon them to hear and vote upon
these reports. 1
On the 8th of April, when one hundred and three were
present, the door-keeper having been directed " to call in the
members, and call none out until the further order of the
Congress," the Committee on the State of the Province
reported a resolve on a momentous question, which finally
passed with but seven opposing voices. This provided for
an armed alliance of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode
Island, and New Hampshire, to raise and equip a general
army, and with this view to send delegates immediately to
negotiate with the said other governments. 2 In deciding
upon this measure, the Congress, not limiting itself to the
direction of affairs in Massachusetts, was desirous, on the
old plan of union originating with Adams, three years
before, in the Committees of Correspondence, to bring all
New England into a confederation for the common defence.
The four sister Provinces would then be in arms, and virtu
ally be at war with Britain. Three delegates were elected
to treat with each of the New England Colonies, receiving
their written instructions from the ruling committee, who
also decided upon the number of men who would be re
quired for the proposed allied army. 3
The quick succeeding events probably disconcerted the
original plan to some extent, though it was in the main suc-
1 One of the resolutions reads : " In consideration of the coldness of the
season, and that the Congress sit in a room without fire, Resolved, That all
those members who incline thereto may sit with their hats on while in Con-
ess."
8 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 135. 8 Idem, pp. 136-138.
286 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
cessful, and the several deputies departed on -their mission.
Colonel Foster, who had been selected for Connecticut, ap
pears in Brookfield two weeks later, whence he writes to the
President of the Massachusetts Congress, that in his inter
view with Governor Trumbull, the latter decided to call a
special session of the Legislature at Hartford, 1 which met
immediately, and ordered the enlistment and equipment
of six regiments of militia for the defence of that Colony,
and provided for the support of such as had started for
Massachusetts on hearing the news of Lexington. 2 Of the
delegates to New Hampshire, neither Freeman nor Gerry per
formed their mission ; but the Congress sent James Sulli
van of Biddeford, with despatches to solicit the co-operation
of that Province. He writes from Exeter of the success of
his " embassy " ; 3 and on the meeting of the New Hampshire
Provincial Congress, and the arrival of additional delegates
from Massachusetts, the forces raised were organized as a
portion " of the New England army." 4 The Rhode Island
mission originally consisted of Colonel Walker, Dr. Perkins,
and James Warren of Plymouth. But on the 20th of April,
the two deputies named as being at Providence were War
ren and Dr. Pynchon, who were waiting to consult the
Assembly on their errand. 5 The business was afterwards
more particularly confided to Edward Rawson, who reached
Providence while the Legislature was in session. 6 The
Rhode Island House immediately voted to equip an army
of fifteen hundred men for the safety of the Province, and,
if necessary, " to join and co-operate with the forces of the
neighboring Colonies." 7 Darius Sessions, the Deputy-Gov
ernor, and three others of the upper House dissented, fearing
" the fatal consequences to their charter privileges," and be
lieving that such a co-operation with the rest of New Eng
land " would involve the Colonies in the horrors of a civil
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, II. 363, 372, 378.
8 Ibid., pp. 411-422. 3 Ibid., p. 393. * Ibid., pp. 652, 657.
6 Ibid., p. 362. Ibid., p. 389. T Ibid., p. 390.
1775.J LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 287
war " ; but the action of the other branch was unanimous.
Thus New England alone formed a defensive league against
the power of Britain, the project emanating from the
Committee on the State of the Province in the Massachu
setts Congress. 1 But for the sudden affair at Lexington,
the original order of the embassies might not have been
changed. That event hastened the consummation of the
scheme, which, however, had no bloodshed occurred, would
have been steadily pursued by Massachusetts. 2
1 The agency of Mr. Adams in the Committee on the State of the Province
is continually shown by the journals of this Congress ; and although his name
is not found among those appointed as a Committee of Safety, yet his pres
ence at their important meetings is indicated by the records.
2 The proposition afterwards made by Samuel Adams to Dr. Franklin at
Philadelphia, to declare the New England Colonies independent of Great
Britain, if others were disposed to hold back, may have been in some way con
nected with this armed alliance. See p. 358 of this volume.
CHAPTER XXXYI.
Approach of Hostilities. Expedition to destroy Military Stores, and to
seize Adams and Hancock. They are warned by their Friends. March
of the British to Lexington and Concord. First Blood of the Revolution
ary War. Uncontrollable Joy of Adams. He sees the Dawn of Inde
pendence. Adams and Hancock set out for the Second Continental
Congress. Secret Meeting with Governor Trumbull at Hartford. Con
sultation with the New York Committee of Safety. Eeception of the Mas
sachusetts Delegates at New York. Escort through New Jersey. Their
Entrance into Philadelphia.
THE event to which Samuel Adams had long looked for
ward, and the result of which he knew must necessarily be
American Independence, was now at hand. He had stated
it in his letters as an absolute certainty, that " one regular
attempt to subdue those in any other Colony, whatever
might be the first issue of the attempt, would open a quarrel
which would never be closed till " America was free. 1 That
attempt was now made. Certain movements among the
troops in Boston indicated that an expedition into the
country was planning, and the Committees of Safety and
Supplies, upon information sent to Samuel Adams, ener
getically engaged in removing cannon, ammunition, and
provisions to places of security. 2 The approach of hostili
ties caused many families to remove from Boston into the
country ; and the Congress recommended the Committee of
Donations to afford all assistance in their power to poor
families to aid them in quitting the town. 3 They adjourned
on the 15th of April, to meet at the same place on the 10th
of May.
Preparations were meantime going forward with all possi-
1 S. Adams to A. Lee, Feb. 14, 1775. 2 Gordon, I. 476.
8 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 142.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 289
ble secrecy, among the British forces in Boston, for an ex
pedition to Concord to seize the stores collected there, and
destroy the magazines. Another object was to obtain pos
session of Adams and Hancock. The extracts already given
from letters written in February prove that the seizure of
these two patriots, either to hold them as hostages or send
them for trial to England, where their death was decided
upon, had been a prime object with the Ministry. Nothing
prevented the execution of this plan, but the certainty that
such an attempt would be resisted by the whole force of the
Province. Had he dared, Gage would have ordered the
capture of all the leaders who were present at Warren s
oration in March. No better opportunity could ever again
offer ; but the fact of these citizens thus boldly arraying
themselves in public with the sentence of death hanging
over them proves their confidence in the ability of the Prov
ince to sustain itself, while the hesitancy of Gage does not
accord well with the superiority claimed by the British
troops. That the fatal sentence had already gone out, there
is little reason to doubt. A gentleman, writing from Lon
don to a friend in Boston about this time, says :
" A steady friend to America called upon me this afternoon to
acquaint me with the following intelligence communicated to him
by .... this day, which you may rely on as a fact. The ....
said that the administration, on Friday, received advices from
General Gage to the 18th of March, wherein he acknowledges the
receipt of the King s order to apprehend Messrs. Gushing, Adams,
Hancock, &c., and send them over to England to be tried ; but that
the second orders, which were to hang them in Boston, he said, the
General had not then received. The General expressed his fears on
the occasion ; and, in hopes of their being reversed, he should delay
the execution a while longer, because he must, if the orders were
fulfilled, come to an engagement, the event of which he had every
reason to apprehend would be fatal to himself and the King s troops ;
as the Massachusetts government had at least fifteen thousand men
ready trained for the onset, and, besides, had every public and pri
vate road occupied by the militia, so as to prevent his marching
VOL. II. 19
290 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
into the country, and which were, at the same time, ready to facili
tate any attempt against the army ; in which unwelcome situation
he earnestly wished for a reinforcement, if that disagreeable order
must be effected." 1
It was indeed reported in high circles in England, that
when the General received orders to send the leaders
across the Atlantic, he returned for answer that, should he
attempt any such thing, that would be the last letter they
would ever receive from him, for he should be knocked on
the head. 2 But as spring advanced, and the news arrived
of reinforcements on the way, he grew bolder, and resolved
to carry into practice his plan of seizing the obnoxious lead
ers, 3 which thus far he had lacked the resolution to venture
upon. After the adjournment of Congress, Adams and
Hancock went to Lexington, where they remained several
days at the house of the Rev. Jonas Clark. A number of
intimations were sent to them of the intended movement
and of their personal danger ; but Adams thought that the
military stores were rather the object of the expedition,
since, to seize upon two persons, a smaller force would be
employed. He had not seen the government despatches to
Gage, directing the apprehension of Hancock and himself,
and he was unquestionably mistaken. In the old Revolu
tionary play, at the period of the Lexington battle, Gage is
made to say :
" If Colonel Smith succeeds in his embassy (and I think there is
no doubt of it), I shall have the pleasure this evening, I expect, of
having my friends Hancock s and Adams s good company. I 11
make each of them a handsome pair of iron ruffles, and Major
Provost shall provide a suitable entertainment." 4
Gordon says, " A daughter of liberty, unequally yoked in
1 Letter dated April 25, 1775. Force s American Archives, Fourth Series,
II. 386. Compare Gordon, I. 502.
2 Walpole s Reign of George the Third, I. 486.
8 Frothingham s Siege of Boston, p. 46.
4 Loring s Hundred Boston Orators, p. 85.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 291
point of politics, sent word by a trusty hand to Mr. Samuel
Adams, residing in company with Mr. Hancock at Lexing
ton, about thirteen miles from Charlestown, that the troops
were coming out in a few days." 1 Elbridge Gerry also
despatched an express to Hancock, warning him that offi
cers of the royal army had been sent out in advance of the
troops, and that some evil design was suspected. The two
patriots were also apprised of their danger by Mr. Ballard
and by Dr. Warren, who observed the movements of the
troops, and sent Paul Revere post-haste to convey the warn
ing. 2 To prevent an alarm as far as possible, officers had
been stationed on the night of the 18th along the roads lead
ing from Boston, and several expresses were stopped. Three,
however, arrived, a verbal one, one from Warren, and
one from Richard Devens, a member of the Committee of
Safety. 3 The royal troops, eight hundred in number, com
menced moving at ten o clock, under Lieutenant-Colonel
Smith. They embarked at the foot of the Common, landed
at Lechmere s Point, crossed the marshes, and proceeded in
perfect silence upon the West Cambridge road. As they
passed the house where several members of the Provincial
Congress were lodged, the inmates looked out upon the ar
ray of polished arms glittering in the bright moonlight. An
officer and file of men were suddenly detached, and sent to
search the house, when Gerry and Orne escaped, and the
troops continued their march.
Paul Revere had previously concerted with Colonel Co-
nant and some others in Charlestown that, if the British
went out by water, he would display two lanterns in the
North Church steeple, and if by land, one, as a signal that
the news might be conveyed to Lexington, should the com
munication with the peninsula be cut off. Having instructed
a friend to that effect, he was rowed across Charles River.
1 Gordon s History, I. 476.
2 Lo ring s Hundred Boston Orators, p. 81.
8 Frothingham s Siege of Boston, p. 58.
292 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
It was the young flood, the ship was winding, and the
moon rising. Landing in Charlestown, Revere found that
his signal had been understood. He then took horse, and
rode towards Lexington. 1 After several adventures on the
way, in which he narrowly escaped capture, he reached the
house of Mr. Clark about midnight, and gave the alarm.
He was just in time to elude the vigilance of the British
in Boston ; for Earl Percy, having accidentally ascertained
that the secret was out, gave orders to allow no person to
leave the town. Revere found the family at rest, and a
guard of eight men stationed at the house, for the protec
tion of Adams and Hancock. He rode up, and requested
admittance, but the Sergeant replied that the family be
fore retiring had desired that they might not be disturbed
by any noise about the house. " Noise ! " replied Revere,
" you ll have noise enough before long. The Regulars are
coming out ! " He was then admitted. 2 About one o clock
on the morning of the 19th, the militia were mustered on
the green near the meeting-house, and messengers sent for
additional information. By two o clock, the countrymen
numbered one hundred and thirty. The guns were loaded
with powder and ball in the presence of Adams, Hancock,
and Clark. One of the messengers returning with the re
port that no troops could be seen, and the weather being
chilly, the men. were dismissed with orders to appear again
at beat of drum. Most of them retired to Buckman s
Tavern, near by.
Colonel Smith had marched his column but a few miles,
when the ringing of bells and firing of guns satisfied him
that the country was alarmed. He immediately detached
six companies of light infantry, under command of Major
Pitcairn, with orders to press forward, and secure the two
bridges at Concord, while he sent back for reinforcements.
By capturing those whom he met upon the road, Pitcairn
1 Paul Revere s narrative, in Loring s Boston Orators, pp. 81-84.
2 Frothingham s Siege of Boston, pp. 58, 59.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 293
prevented the news of his approach from going before him,
until he came within a mile and a half of Lexington meeting
house, when a horseman, who had succeeded in eluding the
troops, galloped into the village. Then, about seventy towns
people assembled as the drums beat, and at the sound the
British halted to load. The advance guard and grenadiers
then hurried forward at double quick, and when within five
or six rods of the Provincials, Pitcairn shouted, " Disperse,
ye villains ! ye rebels, disperse ! Lay down your arms !
Why don t you lay down your arms and disperse ? " 1 Most
of the minute-men, undecided whether to fire or retreat,
stood motionless, having been ordered by their commander
not to fire first. Some were joining the ranks, and others
leaving them, when Pitcairn in a loud voice gave the word
to fire, at the same time discharging his pistol. The order
was obeyed at first by a few guns, which did no execution,
and immediately after by a deadly discharge from the whole
British force. A few of the militia, no longer hesitating,
returned the fire, but without serious effect. Parker, see
ing the utter disparity of forces, ordered his men to disperse.
The Regulars continued their fire while any of the militia
remained in sight, killing eight and wounding ten. 2 The
village green, where this event took place, has been aptly
termed by the historian, " a field of murder, not of battle."
A few farmers had assembled, willing to defend their homes,
but determined not to commence hostilities, and unsuspi
cious of the sudden onslaught. The firing was soon over,
and the royal troops remained masters of the field ; but the
sacrifice of that little band revolutionized a world. It was
the first scene in the drama which was to carry with it the
destinies of mankind. Adams and Hancock, as the soldiers
made their appearance, were persuaded to retire to the ad
jacent village of Woburn, their safety being regarded as of
the utmost importance. Passing through the fields, while
the sunlight glistened in the dew of the fresh spring morn-
1 Bancroft, VII. 293. 2 Frothingham s Siege of Boston, p. 63.
294 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
ing, Adams felt his soul swell with uncontrollable joy as he
contemplated the mighty future, and with prophetic utter
ance of his country s dawning independence, he exclaimed,
" ! what a glorious morning is this ! " l
The British troops immediately continued their march to
Concord, and as yet in too great force to warrant the Pro
vincials in attacking them. On reaching the town, the
North and South Bridges were secured by the Regulars, when
the search for stores commenced. Meantime, the militia of
Concord and surrounding towns formed, and a detachment,
under Major Buttrick, drove the enemy in confusion from
the North Bridge, and pursued them towards their main
body. 2 Having destroyed a quantity of flour, spiked two
cannon, thrown some balls into the river, and rifled a- few
private dwellings, the troops prepared for their return to
Boston. As the drums were sounding on every road lead
ing to Concord, and militia-men were hurrying in from all
quarters, the British commander saw the necessity of speedy
movements. He pushed on with his command, but was
met with a galling fire from behind trees, walls, and rocks,
so that the march was fast changing into a confused retreat.
A series of sharp fights ensued along the road, until the
troops, harrassed and wearied out, began to run, and were
1 The account comes originally from Gordon (I. 479). Various writers
have quoted the words, which have become classical. Everett in his Concord
Address, in 1825, investing it in his own beautiful language, says : "That
memorable exclamation, than which nothing more generous, nothing more
sublime, can be found in the records of Grecian or Roman heroism." And in
the graphic picture by Bancroft : " Heedless of his own danger, Samuel
Adams, with the voice of a prophet, exclaimed, ! what a glorious morn
ing is this ! for he saw that his country s independence was rapidly hasten
ing on, and, like Columbus in the tempest, knew that the storm did but bear
him the more swiftly towards the undiscovered world." Gordon adds to his
contemporary description of the scene : " His companion did not penetrate
his meaning, and thought the allusion was only to the aspect of the sky " ;
and Eliot, who passed his life among those with whom these events were
familiar, gives a more circumstantial account of Adams s remark, and the
subsequent explanation when his friend failed to appreciate the sentiment.
8 Bancroft, VII. 303. Hildreth, III. 68. Barry, H. 513.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 295
driven before the Americans like sheep. Lord Percy now
came in sight, with twelve hundred men, and two field-
pieces. They kept the militia at bay with their cannon, and
forming a square, enclosed the fugitives, who lay upon the
ground, with " their tongues hanging out of their mouths,
like those of dogs after a chase." 1 On resuming their
march, the British found an enemy at every defile and
height. The marksmen poured continuous volleys upon
the ranks, from every covert, changing their positions as the
columns moved on, and firing on each flank in front and from
behind. At West Cambridge the fight was most determined,
and the exhausted British would have been captured but for
the dilatoriness of Colonel Pickering, who neglected to inter
cept them in front with his fine Salem and Marblehead reg
iment. 2 Soon after sunset, almost on the run, the troops
reached Charlestown Common, where, sheltered by the guns
of the ships, further pursuit was prevented, and the crest
fallen fugitives regained their lines. The American loss
during the day was forty-nine killed, thirty-nine wounded,
and five missing. That of the British, in killed, wounded,
and missing, amounted to two hundred and seventy-three,
among whom were several officers. 3 The army had left on
its bloody route many a desolate hearth, but dearly had
they paid for the needless expedition, which resulted in
nothing but shame and defeat to themselves, while it had
practically demonstrated the resources of the Provincials.
The whole country of New England now sprang to arms
with a unanimity astonishing to Gage and his officers ; and
as the tidings flew through the continent, the Colonies, an
imated with one sentiment of liberty, stood up to oppose the
tyranny of England.
The events of the 19th of April brought the Provincial
Congress together in a week from the time of their adjourn
ment. Since the recent flight of the British, they were not
1 Bancroft, VII. 306. 2 Gordon, I. 484. Bancroft, VII. 309.
8 Bancroft. Hildreth, III. 69.
296 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
likely to be interrupted. Only a few of the members could
have received notifications. Richard Devens was chosen
Chairman, and John Murray Clerk. The first business was
respecting a letter from Josiah Quincy to Samuel Adams,
which had been delivered to Elbridge Gerry, with the desire
that it might be opened in Congress in Mr. Adams s absence.
After some debate, it was ordered that the members present
belonging to the Committee on the State of the Province
retire, open, and peruse the letter, and report what they
think proper. The Committee on their return desired that
the whole might be read to the Congress, which was done,
and the letter was sent to Doctor Warren, to be used at his
discretion. The next packet brought all that was mortal of
Josiah Quincy to his native shores. The Congress adjourned
to Watertown, where effective measures for the public de
fence were adopted. One of the resolutions passed on Sun
day, in the town school-house, was, that thirteen thousand
six hundred men be immediately raised in Massachusetts. 1
Adams and Hancock, after quitting Lexington on the
morning of the engagement, remained a day or two in
Woburn and Billerica ; and the time drawing near for their
departure for the Continental Congress, which was soon to
meet at Philadelphia, they proceeded on their way as far as
Worcester, where they arrived on the 24th. Here it would
seem they were to await the coming of John Adams, Cush-
ing, and Paine, and then the five were to travel together
with an escort. Finding none of them at Worcester, Han
cock wrote to the Committee of Safety, who were now at
Watertown with the Congress :
GENTLEMEN :
Mr. S. Adams and myself, just arrived here, find no intelligence
from you and no guard. We hear an express has just passed
through this place to you from New York, informing that Admin
istration is bent upon pushing matters ; and that four regiments are
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, pp. 147, 148.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 297
expected there. How are we to proceed ? Where are our breth
ren ? Surely we ought to be supported. I had rather be with you ;
and at present am fully determined to be with you before I proceed.
I beg, by the return of this express, to hear from you ; and pray
furnish us with depositions of the conduct of the troops, the cer
tainty of their firing first, and every circumstance relative to the
conduct of the troops from the 19th instant to this time, that we
may be able to give some account of matters as we proceed, espe
cially at Philadelphia. Also I beg you would order your secretary
to make out an account of your proceedings since what has taken
place ; what your plan is ; what prisoners we have, and what they
have of ours ; who of note were killed on both sides ; who com
mands our forces, &c.
Are our men in good spirits ? For God s sake, do not suffer the
spirit to subside, until they have perfected the reduction of our
enemies. Boston must be entered ; the troops must be sent away
or . Our friends are valuable, but our country must be saved.
I have an interest in that town. What can be the enjoyment of
that to me, if I am obliged to hold it at the will of General Gage
or any one else ? I doubt not your vigilance, your fortitude, and
resolution. Do let us know how you proceed. We must have the
Castle. The ships must be . Stop up the harbor against large
vessels coming. You know better what to do than I can point out.
Where is Mr. Gushing ? Are Mr. Paine and Mr. John Adams
to be with us ? What are we to depend upon ? We travel rather
as deserters, which I will not submit to. I will return and join you,
if I cannot detain this man, as I much want to hear from you.
How goes on the Congress ? Who is your president ? Are the
members hearty? Pray remember Mr. S. Adams and myself to
all friends. God be with you.
I am, gentlemen, your faithful and hearty countryman,
JOHN HANCOCK. 1
They continued their journey without awaiting the arri
val of the other delegates, and set out from Worcester on
the 27th. 2 Whether they were attended by the escort men-
1 To the Committee of Safety, Worcester, April 24, 1775 (Loring s Hun
dred Boston Orators, p. 92).
2 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 527, note.
298 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
tioned in Hancock s letter does not appear. They were at
Hartford on the 29th, where they held a secret meeting with
Governor Trumbull and the Council, and planned the sur
prise of Ticonderoga. 1 John Brown, the confidential mes
senger of Adams and Warren on Canadian affairs, had
returned from the North, and doubtless, in his interviews
with the patriots, had given information in addition to what
he had sent by letters. He was one of the leaders in the
expedition which was now concerted on the basis originally
proposed by the Green Mountain Boys, who were expected
to be ready with a force of a thousand men. During this
conference it was agreed to draw three hundred pounds
from the treasury to further the enterprise. It was designed
to surprise the forts, and, in case of success, troops would be
sent from Western Connecticut to repair and hold them. It
was probably on this subject that the New York Committee
of Safety received about this time a letter from the Albany
Committee of Correspondence, on reading which they voted:
" That as Messrs. Adams and Hancock are daily expected in
this city, the Committee of Correspondence and Intelligence
wait on them, and request a private conference on the sub
ject-matter of the above letter." 2
Gushing, John Adams, and Paine overtook their col
leagues before they reached New York, and the Massachu
setts and Connecticut delegations having joined them on the
way, they arrived together on the evening of Saturday, May
6th. The news of their approach had gone before them ;
and at Kingsbridge, some miles outside the town, they were
met by a great number of the principal gentlemen of the
place, in carriages and on horseback, and escorted in by
near a thousand men under arms. Crowds lined the roads,
showing that the occasion was considered one of unusual
importance. As the strangers passed through the streets,
their arrival was announced by the ringing of bells and
1 Bancroft, VII. 338. Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, IL 507.
2 New York Gazetteer, May 11, 1775.
1775.J LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 299
other demonstrations of joy ; and either as a mark of re
spect, or because there was danger of surprise and seizure,
double sentries were placed at the doors of their lodgings.
The private meeting with the Committee of Correspondence
probably took place at the assembling of the Committee of
Safety, on Monday. John Morin Scott reported the draft
of a letter in answer to the one from Albany upon which
Adams and Hancock were to be consulted, which was ap
proved and forwarded. They made but short stay in New
York. On Monday morning, the 8th, the members from
three Colonies, consisting of fourteen gentlemen, including,
besides those from Massachusetts, Roger Sherman, Silas
Dean, Eliphalet Dyer, Philip Livingston, James Duane, John
Alsop, Francis Lewis, William Floyd, and Simon Boerum,
set out for Philadelphia, attended by a great train to the
North River Ferry, where vessels were provided, and about
five hundred gentlemen and an escort of two hundred mili
tia under arms crossed the ferry with them. At the ferry,
the delegates were received by a number of gentlemen from
Newark, a troop of horse, and a company of grenadiers, who
attended them to Newark, where an entertainment was pro
vided and a number of patriotic toasts were drunk. After
dinner, they were escorted to Elizabethtown. There they
were met and conducted into the place by its principal gen
tlemen and the military. 1 These honors .were continued all
the way to Philadelphia, where preparations had been made
for their arrival. A spectator of the reception wrote in his
diary :
" Early in the morning a great number of persons rode out sev
eral miles, hearing that the Eastern delegates were approaching,
when, about eleven o clock, the cavalcade appeared (I being near the
upper end of Fore Street) ; first, two or three hundred gentlemen
on horseback, preceded, however, by the newly chosen city military
officers, two and two, with drawn swords, followed by John Han
cock and Samuel Adams in a phaeton and pair, the former looking
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, II. 517.
300 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
as if his journey and high living, or solicitude to support the dignity
of the first man in Massachusetts, had impaired his health. Next
came John Adams and Thomas Gushing in a single-horse chaise :
behind followed Robert Treat Paine, and after him the New York
delegation and some from the Province of Connecticut, etc., etc.
The rear was brought up by a hundred carriages, the streets
crowded with people of all ages, sexes, and ranks. The procession
marched with a slow, solemn pace. On its entrance into the city, all
the bells were set to ringing and chiming, and every mark of respect
that could be was expressed ; not much, I presume, to the secret
liking of their fellow-delegates from the other Colonies, who doubt
less had to digest the distinction as easily as they could." *
This public reception, it may be supposed, Mr. Adams
found it difficult to reconcile with his cherished democratic
principles. He utterly detested every kind of display-, espe
cially when shown to persons in public station, unless some
particular line of policy rendered it necessary. He consid
ered such vanities as degrading to the human character, and
would never suffer any attempt at homage to be used
towards himself, under any circumstances, and, for the
same reason, despised flattery of the great. But though
pomp and magnificence had no attractions for his mind, he
was not insensible to their effect upon others, and he did not
neglect them where they could be made serviceable to the
public cause. His aversion to parade is illustrated by an
anecdote, related of some occasion like the present entrance
of the delegates into Philadelphia, though it has been
located elsewhere and after the Declaration of Indepen
dence :
" The people were attempting to take the horses from the car
riage, in order to drag it themselves. Mr. Adams remonstrated
against it. His companion, pleased with the intended compliment,
was desirous of enjoying it, and endeavored to remove the objection
of Mr. Adams, to which he at last replied : * If you wish to be grati
fied with so humiliating a spectacle, I will get out and walk, for I
1 Curwen s Journal, May 10, 1775. Pennsylvania Gazette, May, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 301
will not countenance an act by which my fellow-citizens shall de
grade themselves into beasts/ This prevented its execution."
The journey had been long and tedious, and it may be
imagined that our travellers, on their arrival, were not im
proved in appearance. The outfit of clothing which a num
ber of the friends of Mr. Adams had sent to him the year
before was left at his house when he quitted Boston prior
to the battle of Lexington. From that time there had been
no opportunity of obtaining it, and his wardrobe was now
literally limited to the clothes which he was wearing. On
reaching Philadelphia a new outfit was of course indispen
sable. Mr. Adams debated for some time within himself
whether this expenditure should be drawn from his own
scanty funds or be made a public charge on Massachusetts,
for he was always scrupulously exact in these matters. The
sum, though trifling in fact, was considerable to him ; and,
besides, an important principle was involved. He decided
that, under the circumstances, such an expense should be
met from the public finances, and it is hardly necessary to
add, that at Water town the bill was promptly audited.
Congress met on the 10th, (it being the time to which the
former one had adjourned,) and elected Peyton Randolph
President and Charles Thomson Secretary. On the next
day, Mr. Duche* opened the proceedings with prayer, as in
the last Congress, after which the several delegations pre
sented their credentials.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
The Second Continental Congress. Adams secretly aims at an immediate
Declaration of Independence. The Times not yet ripe for it. Another
Petition to the King voted. Death of Josiah Quincy. His Public Ser
vices. His Tribute to the Greatness of Adams. Peyton Randolph va
cates the Chair of Congress. Hancock elected his Successor. Wash
ington chosen Commander-in-Chief, on the Nomination of John and
Samuel Adams. Disappointment of Hancock. General Gage in the
King s Name offers Pardon to all but ADAMS and HANCOCK. Adams s
Contempt for the Proclamation. Last Letter of Joseph Warren to Ad
ams. Battle of Bunker Hill. Death of Warren. Friendship of Adams
and Warren. Washington sets out for Boston. Introductory Letters
from Samuel and John Adams. General Lee at Cambridge. Pro
ceedings of Congress. They adjourn until September. Return of the
Massachusetts Delegates.
SAMUEL ADAMS came to this second Congress impressed
with the necessity of an immediate declaration of independ
ence. He considered, indeed, that the Concord fight had
virtually severed all connection between Britain and Amer
ica, and he thenceforth regarded every measure with some
thing of impatience that did not tend directly towards that
result. 1 In this he differed from most of his distinguished
friends in New England, except Hawley, Quincy, and one
or two others of that stamp. None of his colleagues in this
Congress were yet fully prepared for the extreme event.
Even John Adams, who so strongly advocated independence
in the summer of 1776, afterwards said : " There was not a
moment, during the Revolution, when I would not have
given everything I possessed for a restoration to the state of
things before the contest began, provided we could have had
a sufficient security for its continuance/ Samuel Adams,
on the other hand, knew no political creed but absolute, un-
1 Samuel Adams to James Warren, Dec. 31, 1776. See also Gordon, II. 295.
May, 1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 303
conditional independence. 1 "He hungered and thirsted
after it " as an object of priceless attainment, in comparison
to which all else on earth was of secondary importance.
The present Congress had assembled, occupied for the most
part with the lingering hope of conciliation. They had, as
a body, no thought of separation from the parent country,
entertaining the sole view of a redress of grievances and the
restoration of harmony. The question of independence was
never raised during the session ; but the discussions were
between the advocates of decided measures for the preven
tion of farther encroachments and the conservative element,
which included most of the members from the Middle and
Southern Colonies, who feared the New England influence,
still cherished an attachment for the royal government, and
were willing to resort once more to supplications for justice.
Against the wishes and exertions of most of the Northern
delegates, another petition to the King was voted. Samuel
Adams acquiesced in the decision, for he saw that the time
was not yet ripe for the great object he had in view.
" The Americans," says Bancroft, " had not designed to establish
an independent government ; of their leading statesmen, it was the
desire of Samuel Adams alone. They had all been educated in the
love and admiration of constitutional monarchy, and even John
Adams and Jefferson so sincerely shrunk back from the attempt at
creating another government in its stead, that to the last moment
they were most anxious to avert a separation, if it could be avoided
without a loss of their inherited liberties." 2
It was shortly after his arrival in Philadelphia that Mr.
Adams received intelligence of the death of Josiah Quincy,
who, finding his life fast ebbing away under the ravages of
consumption, had taken ship again for America, but died
within sight of his native shores, breathing as his latest wish,
that he might live long enough to have an interview with
1 Illustrations of this will be found in Bancroft, VI. 192, 253, 267, 385,
430, 524.
2 Bancroft, VIII. 161.
304 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
Samuel Adams and Joseph Warren. 1 He had heard in
England the bitter hostility against his countrymen, and
continued in his writings to admonish the Americans of
their danger. His ardent spirit was willing to proceed to
any extremes to obtain vengeance on the minions of tyr
anny ; and, reminding his friends that no nation had ever
achieved its deliverance from oppression by a bloodless con
test, he urged an immediate appeal to the sword. Mention
has already been made of the friendship existing between
Samuel Adams and Josiah Quincy. It was rather like that
of father and son ; for Samuel Adams was twenty-two years
the elder, and, in his public career, had been the guide and
preceptor of his young friend. Quincy looked up to him as
the great leader in America, and regarded him socially with
an affectionate reverence which ceased only with his death.
" Let our friend, Samuel Adams, be among the first to
whom you show my letters," 2 were his directions when
writing to his wife from England. Another of his letters to
the same person reveals his admiration for his friend, and,
at the same time, shows in what estimation the talents and
political wisdom of Adams were held in that country. The
letter has an assumed signature, owing to the danger to
which a correspondence with Boston was at that time ex
posed. He says :
" The character of your Mr. Samuel Adams runs very high here.
I find many who consider him the first politician in the world. I
have found more reason every day to convince me that he has been
right when others supposed him wrong." 3
Of the debates in Congress at this period no account
exists, and the agency of Adams in the various duties to
which he now applied himself can never be known. By ref
erence to the journals, which, however, contain only a bare
record of the resolutions and proceedings, an intelligible
1 Quincy s Life of Quincy, p. 345.
2 Josiah Quincy to his wife, Bristol, Jan. 7, 1775 (Id., p. 297).
8 Id., p. 258. The letter is dated London, Dec. 7, 1774.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 305
outline may be had of his connection with its progress. The
state papers emanating from this body consist of the peti
tion to the King, a letter to the Assembly of Jamaica, an
address to the people of Ireland, and an appeal to the inhab
itants of Canada. The last was reported by Jay, Samuel
Adams, and Duane. It was written by Jay, the chairman,
though the intimate connection of Adams with the measures
thus far taken relative to Canada would indicate that his
suggestions were followed in the subject-matter. The expe
dition which Adams and Hancock had assisted to concert
against Ticonderoga was now believed to be fairly in pro
gress, and it was doubtless that to which the attention of
another committee, appointed on the 15th of May, was
directed. It consisted of Washington, Lynch, and Samuel
Adams, and the New York delegation, who were to consider
what posts were necessary to be occupied in the Colony of
New York, and to report as speedily as possible. 1 Before
they had fully decided, John Brown, the secret agent whom
Adams and Warren had employed during the past winter,
arrived, as an express to Congress, with the news of the
capture of Ticonderoga by the New England troops. The
next day the report was made, and referred to a com
mittee of the whole. The journals are silent as to the
recommendations contained in this report, but they were
probably connected with the subsequent attempt to conquer
Canada, as, soon after, the Provincial Congress of New York
was directed to take, among other posts, one at or near
Lake George. Following the journals, we find Adams ap
pointed, on the 28th, upon the important service with Wash
ington, Mifflin, Deane, and Morris, " to consider on ways
and means to supply the Colonies with ammunition and
military stores " ; and, on the next, with Franklin, Lynch,
Lee, Willing, and Livingston, " to consider the best means
of establishing post for conveying letters and intelligence
1 Journal of Congress, May, 1775.
306 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
through the continent." 1 Franklin was chairman of this
last committee ; and none were so well qualified as he to
arrange a postal system, the details of which were familiar
after his long service as Deputy Postmaster of America,
from which office he had been removed two years before.
He had now lately returned from England, reluctantly con
vinced, from what he had learned of the ministerial policy,
that independence was inevitable. The Committee on Am
munition and Military Stores, after two days, reported their
plan, which was referred to a committee of the whole.
On the same day it was resolved that no expedition or in
cursion ought to be undertaken or made by any Colony or
body of Colonists against or into Canada. This was con
trary to the advice and earnest wish of Samuel Adams, and
probably of most of the New England delegates, but the jeal
ousy which was entertained of them by the wealthy mem
bers from the other Colonies, and the tenderness in this
respect necessarily exercised, prevented the ardent pressing
as yet of any measures of an extreme tendency. The Mas
sachusetts delegation were constantly open to the accusation
(industriously fanned by the Loyalist writers, and believed
by the more timid and conservative members) of ultra re
publican sentiments. Samuel Adams was particularly sus
pected, known as he was to be a man of no fortune, and
looked upon in England and America by many as a despe
rate and artful schemer, who had everything to gain and
nothing to lose in any political convulsion. Yet, to show
how ardently the entire Congress was determined to sustain
Massachusetts, despite the hesitancy on particular subjects,
1 The condition of the post prior to this date is shown by an extract from
Curwen s Journal, May 16, 1775. "Philadelphia is wholly American, strong
friends to Congressional measures ; at least no man is hardy enough to express
a doubt of the feasibility of their projects. Mr. Joseph Lee leads a recluse
life there. The inhabitants are displeased that the New-Englanders make it
their city of refuge. The new-established post (instead of the old eastern one,
which is stopped) admits no letters to pass but those franked ; the contents of
which must be known to one of the Committee, to be entitled to that benefit."
1775.J LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 307
when Peyton Randolph left the chair, to attend the Virginia
Legislature, of which he was a member, John Hancock was
unanimously elected to fill the vacancy. The two Adamses
were particularly instrumental in securing this election.
They saw the policy of placing at the head of Congress the
wealthiest man in New England, which would tend to dissi
pate the idea that only needy adventurers were engaged in
the Revolution, while, at the same time, the love of position
and popular applause, which was the ruling characteristic
of Hancock, would be gratified. The proscription of Adams
and Hancock, though not yet published, was known in
America as an intended measure ; and Harrison of Virginia,
as he conducted the Massachusetts delegate to the chair,
said, " We will show Britain how much we value her pro
scriptions." l
While Congress was vacillating between the energetic pol
icy of the North and the counsels of timid members, who
still hesitated to indorse the institution of a popular govern
ment in Massachusetts, that Colony was anxiously awaiting
their consent to such a course, without which the leaders
were unwilling to proceed ; and it must have remained in
a state bordering upon anarchy, though the military power
exercised by the Provincial- Congress at Watertown pre
served the form of government. The army of New England,
however, was suffering for want of a competent leader.
Ward, who was Coimnander-in-Chief, was manifestly unfitted
for the position, and yet the removal of a man whose blame
less character was universally admitted was a matter of no
little delicacy. Joseph Warren, whose extraordinary tal
ents had now brought him to the head of affairs in Mas
sachusetts, and who continued his correspondence with
Samuel Adams, wrote to his friend, explaining the condi
tion of the army, and referring to a recent resolve of the
Provincial Congress, as an invitation for the continent " to
take command of the army, by appointing a Generalissimo."
1 Bancroft, VII. 378.
808 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
The resolution invited the General Congress to " assume the
regulation and direction of the army collecting from the
different Colonies for the defence of the rights of America."
Gerry wrote to the Massachusetts delegation, urging assist
ance by ammunition and money, and pressing the appoin1>-
ment of a regular general, who should be an American, and
not Lee, whose counsels,- however, he thought might prove
serviceable. He concludes :
" I should heartily rejoice to see this way the beloved Colonel
Washington, and do not doubt the New England generals would
acquiesce in showing to our sister Colony, Virginia, the respect
which she has before experienced from the continent, in making
him Generalissimo. This is a matter in which Dr. Warren agrees
o
with me, and we had intended to write you jointly on the affair." l
When the appointment of a General-in-Chief came to be
discussed among the members in Philadelphia, Hancock was
a candidate, though his lack of military knowledge unfitted
him for a station to which, considering the immense issues
at stake, and the unprecedented and perplexing condition
of public affairs, the most consummate abilities and the
firmest character might have hesitated to aspire. Mainly
through the influence of John Adams, however, upon whom
it devolved to bring the subject before Congress, the election
of Washington was secured. The wishes of their distin
guished friends in Boston, as expressed in letters on this
subject, had probably influenced the minds of both the Ad
amses, though all must have seen that Washington combined
every requisite for the great responsibility attaching to the
position. A few days after the receipt of those letters, John
Adams, after an interview with his kinsman, introduced the
subject in Congress, and nominated Washington. The mo
tion was seconded by Samuel Adams, and the great Virgin
ian soon after became the leader of " the American army."
This choice was displeasing to Hancock, who had anticipated
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, II. 906.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 309
his own nomination by his colleague. John Adams saw
mortification and resentment in his countenance, both that
Washington s name was mentioned in preference to his own,
and that the motion was seconded by Samuel Adams. 1 A
passion for official distinction, however, could not long have
overruled his better judgment, when the consummate wis
dom and grand character of Washington displayed itself in
the gloomiest periods of the Revolution.
Additional forces under Howe, Burgoyne, and Clinton
had now reached Boston, which, with its garrison, was
closely besieged by a New England army of sixteen thou
sand men, of whom twenty-seven regiments were of Massa
chusetts. General Gage, thus strengthened, considered it a
proper time to carry into effect his long contemplated proc
lamation of martial law, in which occurred the celebrated
proscription of Adams and Hancock. This was issued on
the 12th of June, and circulated in the form of handbills. It
commences, " By his Excellency, Thomas Gage, Esq., Gov
ernor and Commander-in-Chief in and over his Majesty s
Province of Massachusetts Bay, and Vice-Adrniral of the
same " ; and proceeds to state that " the infuriated multi
tude, who have long suffered themselves to be conducted by
certain well-known incendiaries and traitors, have at length
proceeded to open rebellion," leaving it for " those who are
intrusted with the supreme rule, as well for the punishment
of the guilty as the protection of the well affected, to prove
they do not bear the sword in vain." After touching upon
the infringements, " too many to enumerate, on the most
sacred rights of the crown," and eloquently depicting the
lamentable condition of the country, which is attributed to
" the authors of the present unnatural revolt," the procla
mation proceeds :
" In this exigency of complicated calamities, I avail myself of the
last effort within the bounds of my duty, to spare the effusion of
blood, to offer, and I do hereby in his Majesty s name offer and
1 John Adams s Works, II. 415-417.
310 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
promise, his most gracious pardon to all persons who shall forth
with lay down their arms and return to the duties of peaceable
subjects : excepting only from the benefit of such pardon SAMUEL
ADAMS and JOHN HANCOCK, whose offences are of too flagitious
a nature to admit of any other consideration than that of condign
punishment." l
The Governor, by thus proscribing the two prominent
characters in the Revolutionary party, only added greater
lustre to their deeds. Placed without the bounds of royal
clemency, their names became at once the watchwords of
American liberty. The King could have conferred no more
illustrious title than by thus excepting them from the gen
eral pardon, giving them an enviable distinction, and invest
ing the names of Adams and Hancock with undying fame.
The proscription was read in England and America with
indignation or amazement at the folly of both King and
Governor. In Massachusetts it was ridiculed by the people,
who thoroughly despised the author of the proclamation, the
whole of which was versified in the Gazette. 2 The Tory
writers, meantime, lost no opportunity to malign the chief
men of the Revolution. This appears in their public ap
peals in the press, as well as in private correspondence.
1 Journals of the Provincial Congress, p. 331. Force s American Archives,
Fourth Series, II. 969.
3 A single verse of this will suffice to show its spirit and style :
" But then I must out of this plan lock
Both Samuel Adams and John Hancock,
For those vile traitors (like bedentures)
Must be tucked up at all adventures,
As any proffer of a pardon
Would only tend those rogues to harden."
Boston Gazette, June 24, 1775.
The proclamation was published by the patriot press, prefaced with the follow
ing notice : " The following is a copy of an infamous thing handed about here
last Tuesday evening, and now reprinted to satisfy the curiosity of the public.
As it is replete with consummate impudence, the most abominable lies, and
stuffed with daring expressions of tyranny, as well as rebellion against the
established constitutional authority, both of Great Britain and of the American
States, no one will hesitate in pronouncing it to be the genuine production of
that perfidious tyrant, Thomas Gage." New England Chronicle, June 15, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 311
The picture conveyed in the following extract was probably
considered as perfectly reliable by those who read it in
England.
"Mr. Washington is just such another character as my Lord
Essex, the Parliament s general in King Charles the First s time.
Putnam may very well be compared to Ireton. Hancock is one
of the greatest desperadoes living. Adams generally sleeps with
the memoirs of Cardinal Retz under his pillow. The slow and
lenient measures of the British government have been interpreted
by our rulers into fear." 1
Whig politicians, however, had better information. They
had learned how to estimate the principal Americans, and
were not to be misled by the falsehoods of the Loyalists,
whose hired pens stopped at no degree of defamation, partic
ularly as regarded Samuel Adams. Him they recognized
as the " restless conspirator," who could never be turned
aside, either by threats or bribes, from his purpose of Inde
pendence. All the letters of Adams during this Congress
reflect his desire to raise the important question, but, among
the various elements composing that assemblage, it was
equally impossible to effect such a consummation, and dan
gerous to urge it ; still, he saw that the tendency was
towards the great object of his wishes, although it was evi
dent the public mind was not prepared for the event. To
Mrs. Adams he wrote, 2 " I wish I could consistently inform
you of what is doing here. I can, however, tell you that
matters go on, though slower than we could wish, yet agree
able to my mind." Joseph Warren, as we have seen, had
already urged him to press upon Congress the necessity of
authorizing Massachusetts to adopt a form of government
of her own.
" The matter of taking up government," said he, in the last letter
he ever wrote to his friend, " I think cannot occasion much debate.
If the Southern Colonies have any apprehension of the Northern
1 Letter from a Virginian, Jan. 1776. 2 June 17, 1775.
312 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
Colonies, they surely must now be for an establishment of civil gov
ernment here ; for, as an army is now necessary, or is taking the
field, it is obvious to every one, if they are without control, a mili
tary government must certainly take place ; and I think I cannot
see a question with them to determine which is most to be feared,
a military or a civil government." *
The Provincial Congress of Massachusetts addressed the
General Congress on this subject a day or two after the
above letter was written, and on the 9th of June the peo
ple of that Colony were advised by the Continental Con
gress to establish a government. Samuel and John* Adams
were doubtless the chief movers in this ; and, in accord
ance with that recommendation, Counsellors and Repre
sentatives were elected a few weeks later. This result in
Congress must have been procured with difficulty, that body
having among its members a considerable element of timid
Whigs and those who still favored the course of "modera
tion." The most powerful of the opponents of all decisive
measures continued to be Galloway, whose influence was
unremittingly exerted against the policy of the New England
members. The journals say that " Congress came into the
resolution," but give no record of the dissentients. The
treachery of Galloway was already suspected. Despite the
oath of secrecy taken by every member, this man, if not
others, proved recreant, and not long after openly violated
his word of honor. A letter from London to Samuel Adams,
received about this time, says : " Mr. of New York, and
Mr. G y of Philadelphia, have certainly communicated to
administration, through an indirect channel, the secrets of
your Congress ; therefore, in my opinion, if any decisive
measures are intended, or indeed if they are to be delib
erated on, an oath of secrecy should be administered." 2
1 Joseph Warren to Samuel Adams, May 14, 1775.
2 Letter from London, April 10, 1775. A writer in New York, who signed
himself " The Intelligencer," transmitted, by letters addressed to Samuel and
John Adams, the occurrences in that Colony.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 313
This information was conveyed to Congress, and engaged
its attention.
While, in opposition to the sentiment of the North, the
proprietary interests in Congress were urging continued in
tercession with the King, events were fast tending to a crisis
in Massachusetts. On the very day when Washington was
chosen to command the American army, the Massachusetts
Committee of Safety decided to fortify Bunker Hill, and on
the 17th of June occurred the memorable battle which
proved to the Americans and the world that the Provincial
militia was an antagonist quite worthy to cope with the tried
veterans of Britain. The joy that must have glowed in the
heart of Adams, as he contemplated the grandeur of the
contest which had now fairly commenced, and its vast re
sults to his country, was tempered by the sad news of War
ren s death. We have already seen the intimate relations
existing between Adams and Warren. From 1768, they
had sustained each other through all the great movements
in Boston, always in consultation, and acting in such har
mony that the suggestions of one were often but the coun
terpart of the other s mind. Their social relations were of
the most pleasing kind. The bond of friendship and unre
served confidence was perfect between them, despite the
difference in age. A year after the death of Warren, when
his eulogy was pronounced at King s Chapel by one who
had long personally witnessed their intimacy, the orator feel
ingly alluded to this. " An Adams," he said, " can witness
with how much zeal he loved, where he had formed the sacred
connection of a friend. Their kindred souls were so closely
twined, that both felt one joy, both one affliction." 1 The
daughter of Samuel Adams has often spoken of this friend
ship, which she loved to recall, and which she illustrated by
many anecdotes. Warren was the closest friend that Sam
uel Adams ever had. No one among his younger associates
1 Oration by Perez Morton, delivered April 8, 1776, on the reinterment of
the remains of Joseph Warren.
314 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
in the cause, not even John Adams, ever enjoyed the confi
dence of Samuel Adams to such an extent as Warren, and
that vacancy in his heart was never fully supplied. In Jan
uary, 1777, he obtained in Congress the appointment of a
committee of four to consider what honors were due to the
memory of the departed patriot, and it was resolved to erect
a monument in Boston, as an acknowledgment of his dis
tinguished merit, and the devotion of his life to the liberties
of his country. His eldest son was also to be educated at
the national expense. Similar resolutions were, at the same
time, adopted in honor of General Mercer. It would be dif
ficult to select from the galaxy of Revolutionary characters
any one who combined within himself as did Warren all
the elements necessary for the attainment of high position.
He seemed proficient in every branch of the public service,
and it has been aptly said of him by Bancroft, that, " had he
lived, the future seemed burdened with his honors." 1 But
thirty-five years of age when he yielded up his life in de
fence of his country, he would have been in the prime
of his remarkable powers at the close of the Revolution ;
and having already distinguished himself as a writer and
in debate, by wisdom of counsel, prudence, and courage,
he must have become the popular idol, when, with the
return of peace, a grateful people prepared to honor their
faithful servants. When that time arrived, Samuel Adams
had descended far into the vale of age, having then ex
pended the energies of his mature manhood in a round
of continuous labor to which history scarcely affords a
parallel. In no letter of Samuel Adams can any allusion
be found to the death of Warren. His sorrow was prob
ably of that nature which could find no solace in writing
or commenting upon his loss.
Washington, having received his command, prepared for
his journey to Massachusetts. We find Samuel Adams one
of a committee to prepare proper answers to a series of
1 Bancroft, VII. 433.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 315
queries which the General had submitted to Congress
through Patrick Henry. This was the day before the news
of the Charlestown battle. Being now Commander-in-Chief
of the army, he was invested with a peculiar dignity of sta
tion as well as of character, and none more heartily than
Samuel Adams prepared to support him in his position.
The relationship between himself and Washington must
have been cordial and unreserved, and it devolved upon the
Massachusetts members to inform him more particularly of
the condition of that Province, and of the people he was
going among. On the 23d of June the Commander-in-Chief
left Philadelphia, accompanied by the Massachusetts delega
tion, who, with many others, escorted him beyond the town.
Samuel Adams probably furnished him with letters of intro
duction to the principal men of the Province. Writing to
Elbridge Gerry, Adams says :
" Our patriotic General Washington will deliver this letter to
you. The Massachusetts Delegates have jointly given to him a
list of the names of certain gentlemen in whom he may place the
greatest confidence. Among these, you are one. Major-General
Lee and Major Mifflin accompany the General I regret his
leaving this city ; but have the satisfaction of believing that he will
add great spirit to our army." l
A letter to James Warren from Samuel Adams also refers
to Washington, with the desire of impressing upon his Mas
sachusetts friends the capabilities and character of the new
commander, and of avoiding any jealousies that might arise
among those who had been superseded. This letter cannot
be found, but Warren s reply indicates its contents. He
says :
" I feel very, very happy in being able to give you assurances
that will relieve an anxiety that I discover in your letter. You
may rely on it, no suspicions, no uneasiness prevails at all with
regard to our old generals, and everybody seems to be perfectly sat-
1 Samuel Adams to Elbridge Gerry, June 22, 1775.
316 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
isfied with the appointment of the new ones. I mean Washington
and Lee. I have not heard a single objection to the last of them.
I dined yesterday with General Washington. He is an amiable
man, and perfectly answers to the high character you and my friend
Adams have given of him. I admire the activity, spirit, and oblig
ing behavior of Mifflin. Colonel Reed is a very sensible gentle
man. I know not what to say of your friend Lee. I believe he is
a soldier, and a very industrious, active one ; he came in just be
fore dinner, drank some punch, said he wanted no dinner, took no
notice of the company, mounted his horse, and went off again to the
lines. I admire the soldier, but think civility, or even politeness,
not incompatible with his character. But this inter nos. I shall
take care to speak highly of him on all occasions." l
The wife of James Warren, after Lee had dined with her
self and husband at Watertown, described the General as
" plain in his person, to a degree of ugliness ; careless, even
to impoliteness ; his garb, ordinary ; his voice, rough ; his
manners, rather morose ; yet sensible, learned, judicious,
and penetrating." 2 The character of Lee was not yet well
understood. His eccentricities were supposed to cover the
merits of a patriot soldier, and at a crisis when the Colonies
were anxious to obtain able military talent, his pompous,
censorious manner, and love of display, rather acted in his
favor. The two Adamses were his advocates, and, by their
influence especially, Congress was induced to place him sec
ond in command to Washington. Samuel Adams had been
of the committee appointed to confer with Lee, on the sub
ject " of the estate which he risked, by entering upon the
American cause," and upon their report, so valuable were
Lee s services counted, it was resolved to indemnify him for
any loss of property he might sustain. 3 His selfishness,
utterly at variance with the disinterested course of Wash
ington under the same circumstances, seems to have excited
1 James Warren to Samuel Adams, July 9, 1775.
2 Mrs. Mercy Warren to Samuel Adams (Lossing s Field-Book, 1855, II. 17).
3 Secret Journal of Congress, June 19, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 317
no comment at the time, but it might have served as an
indication of the base treachery lurking beneath.
The excitement of war in Massachusetts left the delegates
in Philadelphia without the usual correspondence from their
friends. Only meagre details of the battle at Charlestown
had yet reached them, and these came rather by hap-hazard
conveyances than by the regular postal or courier system.
While in this state of uncertainty, and arduously engaged
in his Congressional duties, Adams writes to James War
ren :
"The Messrs. Heath of Maryland are just now arrived here
from Cambridge, which place they left on the 22d ultimo. They
have brought us but one letter, viz. from our good friend Colonel
Palmer. I am glad to hear that the number of killed and wounded
on the side of the enemy amounts to so many more than one thou
sand. I dare say you would not grudge them every hill near you
on the same terms. A gentleman of New York, a son of Mr. Philip
Livingston, one of the delegates from that place, writes to him that
the pilot who brought in the Nautile, ship of war, lately from Bos
ton, reports that he heard the officers on board frequently lament
the death of General Howe. If this be true, I rejoice in it ; for
that man deserved to die for his ingratitude.
" Indeed, my friend, your cause suffers here by our not receiving
more frequent and particular accounts from you. The delegates
from the other three Colonies have better intelligence of what is
doing near Boston than your own. We know nothing of the dis
position of the army, not even who commanded in the late impor
tant engagement. I know your hands are full of business, but may
not a committee be appointed to collect and send to us material
intelligence ? There is a regular post, but we hardly think it worth
while to send a servant to the office for letters.
" I have a thousand things to say to you, which I cannot write.
Did I not flatter myself we were doing essential service to the com
mon cause, I would not stay here a moment. Some matters are
agreed to, and others talked of, which I know you would be pleased
with ; but let me tell you, that were you here, your patience would
be tried. It is not in the power of man to create events ; our business
is to foresee as far as we are able, and prepare for, and improve
318 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July, 1775.
them. It is my opinion, that great ones will be produced in a short
time. Perhaps I may not be suffered to live to enjoy them, for I
find I have the honor of being publicly proscribed by an infamous
traitor. I cannot express to you my contempt for him and his proc
lamation. It is my fate to be always in a hurry. My love to the
circle." x
Congress, on the 12th of June, had appointed the 20th of
July as a day of public humiliation, fasting, and prayer,
throughout the Colonies. The Provincial Congress of Mas
sachusetts had named the 13th of the same month for a sim
ilar observance. On the 15th, James Warren wrote from
Watertown :
" The town is as still as perhaps it ever was on Sunday. This
fast has been observed as you could wish ; with that deference to
the authority that appointed it ; with that devotion that our circum
stances require. It is a grand solemnity. Three millions of peo
ple on their knees at once, supplicating the aid of Heaven, is a
striking circumstance, and a very singular one in America. May
the blessings of Heaven follow in answer to our prayers. It gives
me great satisfaction to hear your health is better. If Gage s proc
lamation has contributed to it, as I am told it has, I will, in one
instance, acknowledge my obligations to him." 2
Having adopted the petition to the King and several
addresses, and perfected, as far as was possible, their mili
tary and financial measures, the Continental Congress ad
journed on the 1st of August to the 5th of September
following. The funds for the use of the army in Massa
chusetts, amounting to five hundred thousand dollars, were
sent to General Washington, under the care of the Massa
chusetts delegation, of whom Samuel and John Adams and
Hancock arrived home on the llth of August. 3
1 Samuel Adams to James Warren, July 2, 1775.
2 James Warren to Samuel Adams, July 15, 1775.
8 Boston Gazette, August 14, 1775.
CHAPTEE XXXVIII.
" Territory of Massachusetts Bay." A novel Democratic Government. Ad
ams joins the Council at Watertown. His Son, Dr. Samuel Adams,
enters the Army as a Surgeon. Adams elected Secretary of State.
Is Chairman of the new Donation Committee. Returns to Philadelphia.
His Committee Services in Congress. He favors the Enlistment of Free
Negroes. Advises that each State should institute its own System of
Government preparatory to a General Confederation and Independence.
His Conference with the Transylvania Delegate. He urges the Building
of an American Navy. Advocates taking the Offensive and fitting out Pri
vateers, if the Petition to the King should be rejected. Treachery of Dr.
Church. Imprisonment of Mr. Lovell. Paine s "Common Sense."
Failure of the Expedition to Quebec. Adams Chief Adviser in the North
ern War. John Adams returns to Massachusetts.
t
THE third and last Massachusetts Provincial Congress was
dissolved on the 19th of July, and the newly elected Repre
sentatives and Councillors, forming the General Assembly
of the Province, now temporarily known as the " Territory
of Massachusetts Bay," met at Watertown on the same day.
Suffolk County had already elected for its Representatives
Adams, Hancock, Church, and Pitt ; but, soon after the
commencement of the session, Adams was chosen one of
eighteen Councillors. 1 This board was to act as one branch
1 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WATERTOWN, July 25, 1775.
GENTLEMEN :
I am directed by this House to acquaint you that they have elected you
members of the Honorable Council for this Colony the current year ; and as
you are sensible that matters of the greatest importance demand our special
attention, we hope you will take your seats at the Council Board as soon as
may be consistent with the duties of your present important department.
I am, honorable gentlemen,
Your most obedient, humble servant,
JAMES WARREN.
To the HONORABLE JOHN HANCOCK, JOHN ADAMS, THOMAS GUSHING, SAMUEL ADAMS,
ROBERT THKAT PAINE.
320 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
of the Legislature, and also as an executive power, there
being no Governor ; and for this purpose the Representatives
vested the board with all the authority formerly in the hands
of the Governor and Council. This novel but efficient gov
ernment was in full operation when the Continental dele
gates arrived from Philadelphia ; and Samuel Adams, after
passing a few days with his family at Cambridge, entered
upon the performance of his duties in the General Assembly.
Before leaving Cambridge, he had interviews at head-quar
ters with Washington and the principal officers, when he
learned the particulars of the battle at Charlestown and in
formed himself as to the requirements of the camp.
Here he made such arrangements as were possible for the
support of his family. It is likely that some portion of his
salary, as a delegate to Congress, was advanced for this pur
pose by a friend, as fragments of papers leading to such a
conclusion are preserved. His son, Dr. Adams, immediately
after the battle of Lexington, had engaged as a surgeon in
the hospital department, a position which was procured for
him by Dr. Warren, with whom he studied medicine. He
commenced his services by attending some of those who
were wounded at Lexington and Bunker Hill, and soon af
ter, joining a Connecticut regiment as assistant surgeon, was
present at the desperate fight at Harlem Plains in Septem
ber, 1776, where the gallant Colonel Knowlton was killed.
He was also at Danbury, Connecticut, when it was burned
by the British in 1777, and attended General Wooster until
the death of that brave officer, which happened shortly after
the battle near Danbury, where he was fatally wounded.
General Wooster, who had served in Canada under severe
trials and misfortunes, was bitterly attacked in Congress,
and as ardently supported by Samuel Adams, who knew his
worth and entire devotion to the cause. He was sixty-five
years of age when he gave up his life to his country ; but the
heroism of early manhood still burned within him, and fired
a heart whose courage death only could quench. Dr. Ad-
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 321
ams remained a few months at or near Danbury on business
relating to hospital affairs, and was thence ordered to a sim
ilar duty in New York. 1 Mrs. and Miss Adams continued
at the house of Francis Wells in Cambridge ; their family
residence in Boston being now occupied by British officers.
Samuel Adams reached Watertown on the 15th of August,
when, upon his entering the Assembly, a precept was issued
for the election of another Representative from Boston in his
place, and a committee of five waited upon him to the Board,
which was then in session. Immediately after joining that
body he was elected Secretary of State, 2 in which capacity
his signature appears on numerous state papers. The duties
of this office, as indicated by the documents preserved in the
public archives, embraced, besides an extensive amount of
general business, a record of the financial transactions of
the Province and the transcribing of resolves passed in pre
vious Provincial Congresses, which were to be received as
full evidence in courts of justice, when authenticated by the
Secretary. The position was responsible and arduous, and
its requirements, together with the attention necessarily de
voted as a Councillor to the multiplicity of affairs constantly
coming before the Assembly, must have been a close tax
upon the industry of the occupant ; but, as usual, he cheer
fully assumed the laboring oar, and never wearied in the
public service. Remembering his former efficiency as chair
man of the Donation Committee from the commencement
of the distresses caused by the Port Act, the Assembly now
made him chairman of a similar body, appointed by the
Board, for the relief of the sufferers, among whom the Com
mittee were authorized to distribute donations, according to
their best discretion. Adams continued to act in this capa
city for many months, exerting himself even in Philadelphia
to procure assistance, which from time to time he forwarded
to Boston, either in money or provisions. During the late
1 See Chap. LX. (1788), note on the commission of Dr. Samuel Adams.
2 Boston Gazette, Aug. 28, 1775.
VOL. II. 21
322 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug., Sept.
session of the Continental Congress, he had often found oc
casion to remind his friends, in his letters from Philadel
phia, of the necessity of their sending frequent and exact
information to the delegates in Congress, and, in the vexa
tious failure of such intelligence, he then recommended the
appointment of a committee in the Provincial Assembly for
that purpose. His " good friend Colonel Palmer" had been
apparently an exception to this neglect in correspondence.
In the present session at Watertown, it would seem that
Adams had taken care to provide for future information for
himself and colleagues. A resolve, originating in the Coun
cil, and passed by the House, appointed Sever, Foster, and
Palmer a standing committee to transmit from time to time
to the Continental delegates the transactions of the General
Court in Massachusetts, as well as all public events which,
in the opinion of the committee, it was necessary the dele
gation should be made acquainted with. 1
The Assembly continued in session until the 24th of
August, holding its meetings in the village church, and
despatching a wide range of business, embracing a system
of public credit and finance, the collecting and distributing
of ammunition and army stores, the organizing of a tempo
rary government, and the enlisting and equipping of troops.
As there was no Governor to adjourn the Legislature, the
House informed the Council, now the sole executive power,
of their desire for a recess ; and that body voted that the
Court should be adjourned to the 20th of September.
The Continental Congress was to meet on the 5th of Sep
tember, and Samuel Adams, surrendering the office of Pro
vincial Secretary into the hands of his deputy, Perez Morton,
took his departure with John Adams and Hancock early in
that month, arriving at Philadelphia on the 12th. Congress
had met on the 5th, pursuant to their adjournment ; but the
number present being too few for business, they adjourned
until the 13th. The day before the session commenced,
1 Journal of the Massachusetts Assembly, September, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 323
Adams wrote to Gerry, who was a member of the Massachu
setts General Assembly.
"I arrived in this city," he said, "on the 12th instant, having
rode full three hundred miles on horseback, an exercise which I
have not used for many years past. I think it has contributed to
the establishment of my health, for which I am obliged to my friend,
Mr. John Adams, who kindly offered me one of his horses the day
after we set off from Watertown.
" I write you this letter, principally to put you in mind of the
promise you made me, to give me intelligence of what is doing in our
Assembly and the camp. Believe me, sir, it is of great importance
that we should be informed of every circumstance of our affairs. The
eyes of friends and foes are attentively fixed on our Province ; and
if jealousy or envy can sully its reputation, you may depend upon
it they will not miss the opportunity. It behooves our friends, there
fore, to be very circumspect, and, in all their public conduct, to con
vince the world that they are influenced, not by partial or private
motives, but altogether with a view of promoting the public welfare.
" Some of our military gentlemen have, I fear, disgraced us ; it
is then important that every anecdote that concerns a man of real
merit among them, and such I know there are, be improved as far
as decency will admit of it to their advantage, and the honor of a
Colony, which, for its zeal in the great cause as well as its suffer
ings, deserves so much of America.
" Until I visited head-quarters at Cambridge, I never heard of
the valor of Prescott at Bunker Hill, nor the ingenuity of Knox
and Waters, in planning the celebrated works at Roxbury. We
were told here that there were none in our camp who understood the
business of an engineer, or anything more than the manual exercise
of the gun. This we had from great authority, and, for want of more
certain intelligence, were obliged at least to be silent. There are
many military geniuses at present unemployed and overlooked, who,
I hope, when the army is new modelled, will be sought after and
enlisted into the service of their country. They must be sought
after, for modest merit declines pushing itself into public view." 1
The proprietary interests and some of the Southerners in
1 Samuel Adams to Elbridge Gerry, Sept. 26, 1775.
324 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
Congress were growing still more suspicious of the supposed
ulterior designs of the New England members, particularly
of the two Adamses, who embodied most of the active power
of the Massachusetts delegation ; and it was doubtless this
feeling that underlay the disparaging remarks which Sam
uel Adams was thus anxious to be able to refute. Every
move towards independence was opposed with the whole
power of Dickinson, who, in addition to his former prejudice
against the Northern members, had taken a dislike to John
Adams, owing to a slighting remark contained in some let
ters which had been intercepted by the British, and pub
lished. 1 Dickinson s power was such among the timid and
wavering, that it was necessary for a while to preserve har
mony, by refraining from a strong opposition to his views,
which not even the battle of Bunker Hill and the consequent
events had inclined to any measures beyond those of concili
ation. Gadsden, the Lees, and a few others, defended the
New England members against these distrustful remarks,
and, with Henry, were already prepared for a separation.
One of the first subjects occupying the attention of Con
gress was the scarcity of ammunition, fuel, and general
stores for the army at Cambridge, and immediate measures
were adopted to supply them ; and, to the end of Septem
ber, the business was mainly auditing accounts and regu
lating and supporting the army. The only record of these
debates is in the Diary of John Adams, by which it appears
that Samuel Adams, on the 23d, moved " for the advance
ment of a sum from the treasury for Mifflin and Barrell." 2
General Washington had already appointed Thomas Mifflin
Quartermaster-General of the army ; and it was upon a let
ter just received from him, making a requisition for military
supplies, that the motion was based. Adams appreciated
1 The name of John Adams, up to this time, had been little known abroad ;
and in England some importance was attached to this quarrel, because it was sup
posed to be between Samuel Adams and Dickinson. Curwen s Journal, p. 39.
2 John Adams s Works, II. 445.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 325
the extreme embarrassment which Washington labored un
der, and desired the adoption of active and immediate means
of relief. His thoughts were constantly turned towards the
seat of war, and he saw the absolute necessity of drawing
upon all the resources of the country to preserve the fight
ing condition of the army. The interest in these details of
Congressional business has ceased with the lapse of time ;
but they illustrate some portion of the active agency of the
subject of these pages, especially where no other data have
been preserved. At the request of Lynch of South Carolina,
Adams read the letter which, apparently, had been directed
to him. A debate ensued, which terminated in the success
of Samuel Adams s motion ; and a committee was appointed
to purchase woollen goods to the amount of five thousand
pounds sterling, to be placed in the hands of the Quarter
master-General of the army. Samuel Adams also appears
in subsequent discussion of questions relating to public ex
penditures ; but it was only on great occasions that he made
speeches of considerable length, preferring to act on com
mittees and by correspondence, rather than by engaging in
debate.
The letters from Washington, representing to Congress
the deplorable state of his army, resulted in the appointment,
on the 30th of September, of a committee, consisting of
Franklin, Lynch, and Harrison, to repair to the camp to con
fer with the General and the principal officers as to the
most effectual method of supporting and regulating the
army. Samuel Adams was one of five to draft instructions
for this committee. 1 The result of this commission was a
successful scheme, proposed by Franklin, for the enlisting
and supplying of a new army of twenty-three thousand
men ; and new life was infused into military affairs.
Samuel Adams was also on a committee with Harrison,
Bullock, Hooper, and Chase, to take into consideration the
condition of South Carolina. In that Colony, the wealthy
1 Journal of Continental Congress, September, 1775.
326 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
planters were generally Loyalists, and opposed by their aris
tocratic birth to the patriot party, which embraced chiefly
tradesmen, laborers, and herdsmen, having little in common
either in interest or associations with the higher classes of
society. The government agents had already commenced
enlisting the several Indian tribes against the country peo
ple ; and the royal Governor was urging the Ministry to em
ploy force against a portion of the sea-coast. To defeat his
designs, the fort on James Island was taken without resist
ance, and was soon garrisoned with five hundred men. The
arsenal was seized, and the State put as nearly as possible
on a war footing. These proceedings having become known
to the British commander at Boston, a squadron was to be
despatched to the South Carolina coast, where it was sup
posed no very serious defence could be made. The com
mittee, who were to report "what in their opinion was
necessary to be done," were not long in advising a course
which must have suited the most determined. Gordon,
referring to their deliberations, says : " What this opinion
would be was easily foreseen, from Messrs. Chase and Sam
uel Adams being of the committee." 1 Chase, who has
been called " the Samuel Adams of Maryland," was in all
respects qualified to act with his New England friend in any
matter requiring resolute measures. The report, which was
brought in on the following day, recommended the raising
and supporting of an army at the Continental expense, for
the defence of South Carolina, and another to be raised in
Georgia for the defence of that Colony. A number of reg
ulations, relative to the creation of officers for these forces,
were submitted. The Council of Safety of South Carolina
were authorized to seize or destroy any ship or vessel of war,
if deemed necessary for the security of the Colony, and to
erect batteries and fortifications at or near Charleston.
The Convention of South Carolina was also recommended
to establish a form of government, if it was found necessary,
1 Gordon s American Eevolution, II. 151.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 327
and, with that view, to call a full and free representation of
the people. The last royal Assembly ever held in that Col
ony had been dissolved in September, when the Governor
took refuge on board a war vessel at anchor in the harbor.
The same advice, in relation to the establishment of a local
government, had already been given to New Hampshire,
when the wanton destruction of Falmouth was known.
Lord Dunmore s military operations against Virginia gave
rise to a committee of which Samuel Adams was a member,
with Lynch, Wilson, Ward, and Johnson, to consider what
provisions were necessary for the defence of that Colony. 1
While the subject was under consideration, the affairs at
Hampton Roads and Great Bridge took place; and hostili
ties having been commenced by the British, there no longer
remained any room for doubt, even among those who had
hesitated until then. On the 4th of December, the com
mittee, having had additional letters referred to them on
the subject, reported through Samuel Adams, their chair
man, a series of resolutions, which were adopted after some
debate. It was recommended to march troops, already
raised in Pennsylvania, into Virginia, for its protection in
those parts where hostilities had commenced. The utmost
resistance to Dunmore s arbitrary government was advised,
and, as the British Governor had proclaimed martial law,
thereby tearing up the foundation of civil authority and gov
ernment in Virginia, the Convention of that Colony was
recommended to call a free and full representation, and
establish such a form of government as, in their judgment,
would best produce the happiness of the people. 2 Adams
was anxious to extend the active denial of British authority
North and South, 3 and particularly in the New England Col-
1 Journal of Congress, November, 1775. Gordon makes special mention of
Samuel Adams s association with this committee, as if he had in mind some par
ticular information of his agency in the policy recommended. Gordon s Amer
ican Revolution, II. 151.
2 Journal of Congress.
3 Compare letter of Samuel Adams to Dr. Cooper, April 30, 1776.
328 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct.
onies, which he knew must give a strong bias and tone to
the rest. Before leaving Massachusetts to join this Congress,
lie had consulted with his colleagues as to the necessity of
establishing a local government in that Colony. Together
with John Adams and others, he ardently favored this pro
ject, and, from the time the letter from the Provincial Con
gress was received, he labored for its accomplishment.
While the subject was under consideration, he wrote to
James Warren, expressing the hope that the newly elect
ed Assembly of his native Province would proceed at once
to pass wholesome regulations and laws, and particularly to
guard the places of public trust from bad men, who would
assume to be patriots for the sake of obtaining them. He
says, in continuation :
" After every other consideration, virtue is the surest means of se
curing the state. Our brave ancestors laid an excellent foundation
for the establishment and perfecting of virtuous principles in the
country, when they erected a public seminary of learning even
before they had cut down the woods in Cambridge ; and they early
made laws for the support of common schools. A better founda
tion could no man lay. I hope you will improve the golden oppor
tunity which you now have of restoring the ancient purity of
manners in our country. Everything that we esteem valuable de
pends on it ; for freedom or slavery, says ah admired writer, will
prevail in a country according as the disposition and manners of the
inhabitants render them fit for the one or the other I am
of opinion that it will not be long before every Colony will see the
necessity of setting up governments within themselves, for reasons
that appear to me to be obvious." *
Among the papers of Adams are letters from correspond
ents in England, written in September of this year, giving
him full information of the intentions of government. One
of these is very long and ably expressed, and contains inter
nal evidence of having been written by some person well
versed in the secrets of administration. It has a fictitious
1 Samuel Adams to James Warren, Oct. 29, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 329
direction and signature, and no clew can be obtained by
which to ascertain the authorship. It commences : " My
very worthy friend, and surely in these degenerate times
I may call him worthy who has so much the true principles
of liberty in him, that he is determined to run all risks to
prevent the hideous visage of slavery from appearing in the
streets which have been so long dedicated to the constitu
tional principles of virtue and freedom." 1
In the month of July of the previous year, the Continen
tal Congress had adopted a series of resolutions reported by
a committee then appointed to devise means for putting the
militia of the several Colonies into a proper state for the
defence of America. It was resolved, after considerable
debate, that all officers above the rank of captain should be
appointed by the respective Provincial Assemblies or Conven
tions, and that wherever a militia had been formed under
regulations approved by the Convention or Assembly of such
Colony, it should be left to their discretion either to adopt
the resolutions of Congress in this respect or continue their
own. 2 In Massachusetts, a contention arose, during October,
between the Council and House of Representatives, as to
which of those bodies had the right to appoint military offi
cers ; and as they were unable to decide the dispute, a spe
cial messenger was despatched to Philadelphia by the Board,
with letters to each of their delegates, desiring to know
the opinions of Congress on the subject. Hancock and
dishing by a joint letter replied in favor of submitting the
question to Congress. Samuel and John Adams each ad
vised against such a course, and recommended the Council
to give up the point in dispute with the House. The letter
of the Board was from James Otis, the father of the cele
brated patriot. Samuel Adams replied :
"Having very maturely considered your letter of the llth of
November, written in the name and by order of the Honorable the
1 Anonymous letter to Samuel Adams, dated London, Sept. 27, 1775.
9 Journal of Congress, July 18, 1775.
330 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nor.
Council of Massachusetts Bay, and directed to the delegates of that
Colony, I beg leave to offer it as my opinion that the resolve of
Congress passed on the 9th of July last must be superseded by the
subsequent resolve of the 18th of July following, so far as they ap
pear to militate with each other. By the last of these resolves, the
Conventions or Assemblies of the several Colonies annually elective
are at their discretion either to adopt the measures therein pointed
out for the regulation of their militia, either in whole or in part, or
to continue their former regulations, as they, on consideration of all
circumstances, shall think fit. It therefore seems to me manifest,
that the Honorable Council are under no restraint from yielding to
the Honorable House a voice with them in the choice of the militia
officers in the Colony. I am prevailed upon to believe that this is
the sense of the Congress, because they have lately recommended it
to the Colony of New Hampshire, to set up and exercise govern
ment in such form as they shall judge to be most conducive to the
promotion of peace and good order among themselves, without lay
ing them under restrictions of any kind.
" As the Honorable Board have been pleased to direct us to give
our opinion, with or without consulting our brethren of the Con
gress, I hope I shall be justified, after having conferred with my
colleagues on the subject, in declining on my part to have the mat
ter laid before Congress, for reasons which were of weight in my
mind. And, indeed, I am of opinion that the Congress would not
choose to take any order of that kind, they having divers times of
late declined to determine on matters which concerned the internal
police of individuals of the United Colonies. It is my most ardent
wish that a cordial agreement between the two Houses may ever
exist, more especially in the establishment of the militia, upon
which the safety of the Colony so greatly depends." *
Seeing the diversity of opinion in Congress on the subject
of independence, and the uncertainty of arriving speedily at
the desired result, even while the whole country was in
arms, and the best blood of America had been shed, Adams
resolved that, should circumstances require it, he would
endeavor to secure a separate confederation of the New
1 Samuel Adams to James Otis, Nov. 23, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 331
England Colonies, as an example to the rest, and trust to
their gradual acquiescence, so determined and resolute
was this inflexible man to arrive, over all obstacles, at the
great goal of independence. As yet, however, this project
remained locked in the recesses of his own mind, and it was
not divulged until the commencement of the approaching
year. In case it should become necessary to put this plan in
execution, it was advisable to have the New England forces
remain under the control of their respective Legislatures,
until, at least, the question of a separation from Britain
should be finally decided in the affirmative. Writing to El-
bridge Gerry, on the subject of the Massachusetts militia,
Adams says :
" You tell me that a committee of both Houses is appointed to
bring in a militia bill. I am of your opinion, that this matter re
quires great attention, and I wish, with you, to see our militia
formed, not only into battalions, but also brigades. But should
we not be cautious in putting them under the direction of generals
of the continent, at least until such a legislative shall be estab
lished all over America as every Colony shall consent to ?
" The Continental army is very properly under the direction of
the Continental Congress. Possibly if ever such a legislative should
be formed, it may be proper that the whole military power in every
Colony should be under its absolute direction. Be that as it may,
will it not, till then, be prudent that the militia of each Colony
should be and remain under the sole direction of its own legisla
tive, which is, and ought to be, the sovereign and uncontrollable
power within its own limits or territory ? I hope our militia will
always be prepared to aid the forces of the continent in this right
eous opposition to tyranny. But this ought to be done upon an
application to the government of the Colony. Your militia is your
natural strength, which ought, under your own direction, to be em
ployed for your own safety and protection. It is the misfortune of
a Colony to become the seat of war. It is always dangerous to the
liberties of the people to have an army stationed among them over
which they have no control. There is at present a necessity for it ;
the Continental army is kept up within our Colony most evidently
332 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
for our immediate security. But it should be remembered, that
history affords abundant instances of established armies making
themselves the masters of those countries which they were designed
to protect. There may be no danger of this at present, but it should
be a caution not to trust the whole military strength of a Colony in
the hands of commanders independent of its established legislative.
" It is now in the power of our Assembly to establish many whole
some laws and regulations which could not be done under the for
mer administration of government. Corrupt men may be kept out
of places of public trust. The utmost circumspection, I hope, will
be used in the choice of men for public officers. It is to be expected
that some who are void of the least regard to the public will put on
the appearance and even speak boldly the language of patriots, with
the sole purpose of gaming the confidence of the public and secur
ing the loaves and fishes for themselves, or their sons, or other con
nections. Men who stand candidates for public posts should be
critically traced in their views and pretensions, and, though we
would despise mean and base suspicion, there is a degree of jealousy
which is absolutely necessary in this degenerate state of mankind,
and is indeed at all times to be considered as a public virtue. It is
in your power, also, to prevent a plurality of places incompatible
with each other being vested in the same person. This our patriots
have loudly and very justly complained of in time past, and it will
be an everlasting disgrace to them if they suffer the practice to con
tinue. Care, I am informed, is taking to prevent the evil with as
little inconvenience as possible ; but it is my opinion that the remedy
ought to be deep and thorough." l
Intelligence that Dr. Church had proved a traitor to the
cause of which he had been generally esteemed one of
the most ardent supporters had already reached Philadel
phia, where the culprit had lately been received in Congress,
on public business, from the General Court in Massachu
setts, and was intrusted with important commissions. In
volved in debt, and for some years past entertaining strong
doubts of the success of the opposition to Parliamentary
measures in the Colonies, he had at one time secretly
1 Samuel Adams to Elbridge Gerry, Oct. 29, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 333
employed his very able pen on the government side, and
as the prospect seemed to grow more gloomy, he had yielded
to the bribes held out to tempt his cupidity, and for several
months he had been in secret correspondence with the
enemy. His genial manners and consummate art long en
abled him to avoid detection. He enjoyed the unlimited
confidence of the patriot leaders, mingled with them both
at Philadelphia and in Massachusetts, and was thoroughly
versed in all their secrets. These he did not hesitate to
divulge to the enemy by letters written in cipher, and
sent by a variety of ingenious methods ; but a portion of his
correspondence having been intercepted and deciphered by
Elbridge Gerry, he was imprisoned, and disgraced forever
in the eyes of his country. He was examined before the
House of Representatives in his native Province, and, prob
ably, only the distinguished services rendered his country
in times past prevented his execution. His own letters
indicate his constant trepidation and fear of discovery, even
after all his precautions of secret agents and cipher-writing.
One of the letters in his possession when arrested, written
to him by a Loyalist in Boston, thus alludes to Samuel
Adams, John Hancock, and Dr. Warren :
"I have often told you what the dreams of your high-flaming
sons would come to. Do you forget my repeated cautions not to
make yourself too obnoxious to government? What says the
Psalm-singer and Johnny Dupe to fighting British troops now ? l
They are at Philadelphia, I suppose, plotting more mischief, where
I hear your high mightiness has been ambassador extraordinary.
Take care of your nob, Mr. Doctor ; remember your old friend, the
1 This allusion to Adams as the "Psalm-singer" has reference to his having
often assisted in the choir of the New South Church. Several of his contem
poraries speak of the pleasure he experienced in music, especially of a sacred
character. John Adams, in a letter to William Tudor (April 15, 1817), refers
to the " charming voice" of his kinsman, " when he chose to exercise it" ; and
Everett, in his Lexington Oration (April 19, 1835), speaks of music as having
been the only relaxation of the patriot. He was always deeply impressed with
the solemn and inspiring influences of fine church music.
334 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
orator ; he will preach no more sedition. Ally joins me in begging
you will come to Boston. You may depend upon it, government is
determined to crush this rebellion You see Hancock and
Adams are attainted already. " ]
Church was only saved from death at the hands of his
country, to have his existence blotted out on the lonely
ocean. Whether the vessel in which he was allowed to sail
for the West Indies became a prey to the enemy, or was
destroyed by pirates, or went down amid the roar of the
elements, is a secret which remains with the great deep.
During this session, Samuel Adams was appointed on a
committee with Deane and Duane, to report an answer to
letters received from the Provincial Congress of New York.
These letters related to the fortifications commanding the
passages to the Hudson, and probably asked for instructions
as to what course further to pursue. The resolution in
answer called for the immediate raising of troops for the
defence of the Hudson River, and to occupy with such forces
the fortifications then erecting on the Highlands. In what
ever committee of this nature Adams served, the report had
but one object, the instant organization of effective means
for fighting. He was impatient of delay, and longed to
reach the point from which, once gained, there could be
no retreat. His own fate, under any circumstances, was
sealed. Proscribed, and hopelessly beyond the possibility of
pardon, he placed his trust in an overruling Providence,
and, fearless of adverse results, urged with all prudent
eagerness the crossing of the Rubicon of American liberty.
The number of applications for official position in the
army at last made it requisite that a committee should be
appointed, consisting of one delegate from each Colony, to
receive them, and examine into the qualifications of the
candidates. Samuel Adams was chosen to represent Massa
chusetts, and thenceforth had a voice in the selection of
every military man who came forward for position. This
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, III. 1482.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 335
must have tasked to the utmost the discrimination and
judgment of the committee, 1 whose decision was probably
final with Congress. The scenes at the examination of
applicants would form a feature in Revolutionary history,
had they been preserved. To repeat the words of Sam
uel Adams, "there were many military geniuses unem
ployed, who, upon the remodelling of the army, were to
be sought after and invited into the service of their coun
try." " For," said he, " modest merit declines pushing
itself into public view." He was equally solicitous that
proper men should be appointed to office in his native
Province, under the new government. Writing to Gerry
on this subject, in answer to a letter written at Watertown,
he says :
" Whatever kind of men may be denominated enemies to their
country, certainly he is a very injudicious friend to it who gives his
suffrage for any man to fill a public place merely because he is rich ;
and yet you can tell me there are recent instances of this in our gov
ernment. I confess it mortifies me greatly. The giving such a pref
erence to riches is both dishonorable and dangerous to a government.
It is, indeed, equally dangerous to promote a man to a place of
public trust only because he wants bread ; but I think it is not so
dishonorable ; for men may be influenced to the latter from the feel
ings of humanity, but the other argues a base, degenerate, servile
temper of mind. I hope our country will never see the time when
either riches or the want of them will be the leading considerations
in the choice of public officers." 2
Another subject of importance, in which Samuel Adams
took a deep and abiding interest, was the commencement of
an American navy. Early in October, the Rhode Island
members had presented to Congress instructions from the
Assembly of that Colony, directing them to use their whole
influence for the building of a fleet at the Continental ex
pense, for the protection of the Colonies. 3 When this came
1 Their reports appear as those of the " Committee on Qualifications."
2 Samuel Adams to Elbridge Gerry, Jan. 2, 1776.
3 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, IV. 1838.
336 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov.
up for discussion, it was opposed by Zubley, Rutledge, Paine,
and others ; and the thought of building an American fleet
was denounced by Chase, as " the maddest thing in the
world." l The project, however, was defended by John and
Samuel Adams and the Rhode Island delegates. Towards
the close of November, a naval code, drafted by John Adams,
was adopted, and to him probably more than to any other
member is due the credit of having brought this important
matter to so fortunate a conclusion. Governor Ward wrote
home about this time that Dr. Franklin, Colonel Lee, the
two Adamses, and many others, would support the project
of an American fleet. 2 Though little remains by which to
associate Samuel Adams with the success of the project,
there are evidences that his potent influence was exerted in
its favor, while John Adams was its chief advocate in debate.
It appears, by the journals, that on the llth of December,
Samuel Adams was the representative of Massachusetts in a
committee consisting of one from each Colony, " to devise
ways and means for furnishing the Colonies with a naval
armament"; and soon after they reported a plan for the
fitting out of thirteen ships, carrying from twenty-four to
thirty-two guns, to be got ready in New Hampshire, Massa
chusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. 3 They recom
mended Congress to direct the most speedy and effectual
measures for importing the requisite canvas and gunpow
der, for which purpose a committee was appointed on the
following day. Samuel Adams was zealous in the prosecu
tion of a scheme which would tend to render the coming
nation as potent on the seas as his constant aim had been to
make her in military force.
Following the Diary of John Adams, kept during this
session of Congress, which occasionally notices the names
of the Massachusetts delegates, an idea may be obtained of
1 John Adams s Works, II. 463.
2 Life of S. Ward, in Sparks s American Biography, XIX. 316.
8 Journals of Congress, Dec. 11 and 13, 1775.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL At)AMS. 337
their manner of living. They probably occupied lodgings
together, the two Adamses as usual visiting their acquaint
ances in company, preserving their old friendship, arid con
sulting together upon most of their plans of public policy.
On the 18th of September, they called upon the Maryland
gentlemen at Mrs. Bedford s, where they met and enjoyed a-
social evening with Paca and Chase. On the 20th, the
writer makes note of a walk in company with Governor
Ward, Mr. Gadsden and son, and Samuel Adams, to a little
box in the country, belonging to Christopher Marshall, where,
with their host, they drank coffee, and spent the afternoon
in free conversation. There are also notices of visits at Mrs.
Yard s (their landlady s) from Dr. Bush, Gordon the histo
rian, who was then collecting materials for his work, Bullock
and Houston of Georgia, Langdon Hewes, and others. An
evening interview is also alluded to, and the policy of Sam
uel Adams indicated on the question as to when offensive
warfare should commence on the part of the Colonies. It
also shows that, as far back as September in this year, his
mind was conclusively made up regarding naval opera
tions, which appear to have been so hotly debated early in
October.
"In the evening," says John Adams, "Mr. Bullock and Mr.
Houston, two gentlemen from Georgia, came into our room, and
smoked and chatted the whole evening. Houston and Adams dis
puted the whole time in good humor. They are both dabs at dis
putation, I think. Houston, a lawyer by trade, is one of course,
and Adams is not a whit less addicted to it than the lawyers. The
question was, whether all America was not in a state of war, and
whether we ought to confine ourselves to act upon the defensive
only. He was for acting offensively next spring or this fall, if the
petition was rejected or neglected. If it was not answered, and
favorably answered, he would be for acting against Britain and
Britons as in open war against French and Frenchmen ; fit pri
vateers, and take their ships anywhere." l
1 John Adams s Works, II. 428.
VOL. ii. 22
338 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS [Dec.
Such a decisive policy Samuel Adams was eventually to
advocate alone for a while among the delegates of his native
Province. There is evidence, however, that this determined
energy was not urged beyond the bounds of discretion, so
long as a reasonable hope remained of a favorable reception
of the late petition to the King. He had been opposed to
drafting or sending any such petition. He believed that the
cup of bitterness was full to overflowing, and that enough
had been seen of the temper of Administration to convince
an unprejudiced mind of the hopelessness of renewed peti
tioning ; but the majority prevailed, and it would have been
hazardous for the suspected " desperate " members from
Massachusetts to oppose it. This happy blending of saga
cious policy with inflexible fixedness of purpose was a dis
tinguishing characteristic of Samuel Adams, of whom the
historian has aptly said, " His vigorous, manly will resem
bled in its tenacity well-tempered steel, which may ply a
little, but will not break." 1 It is illustrated by an incident
occurring about this time. The Proprietors of the Transyl
vania purchase on the south side of the Ohio, having erected
their community into a Colony, met for the purposes of
legislation, and deputed James Hogg, Esq., to apply for
admission as a delegate to represent them in the Continen
tal Congress. The deputy arrived in Philadelphia late in
October, and, two months later, writing back to the Propri
etors an account of his embassy, he says :
"In a few days they introduced me to several of the Congress
gentlemen, among the first of whom were accidentally the famous
Samuel and John Adams ; and as I found their opinion friendly to
our new Colony, I showed them our map, explained to them the ad
vantage of our situation, &c., &c. They entered seriously into the
matter, and seemed to think favorably of the whole ; but the diffi
culty that occurred to us soon appeared to them. We have peti
tioned and addressed the King, said they, and have entreated him
to point out some mode of accommodation. There seems to be an
1 Bancroft, V. 194. John Adams s Works, II. 430.
1775.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 339
impropriety in embarrassing our reconciliation with anything new ;
and the taking under our protection a body of people who have
acted in defiance of the King s proclamations will be looked on as
a confirmation of that independent spirit with which we are daily
reproached. I showed them our memorial, to convince them that
we did not pretend to throw off our allegiance to the King, but in
tended to acknowledge his sovereignty whenever he should think us
worthy of his regard. They were pleased with our memorial, and
thought it very proper ; but another difficulty occurred. By look
ing at the map, they observed that we were within the Virginia
charter. I told them of the fixing their boundaries which had
passed at Richmond in March last, and that I had reason to believe
that the Virginians would not oppose us ; however, they advised
me to sound the Virginians, as they would not choose to do any
thing in it without their consent. All the delegates were at that
time so much engaged in the Congress from morning to night, that
it was some days before I got introduced to the Virginians." l
This interview is briefly referred to by John Adams in
his Diary :
" Last evening, Mr. Hewes of North Carolina introduced to my
namesake and me a Mr. Hogg from that Colony, one of the Pro
prietors of Transylvania, a late purchase from the Cherokees
upon the Ohio. He is an associate with Henderson (who was lately
one of the Associate Judges of North Carolina), who is President of
the Convention in Transylvania. These proprietors have no grant
from the Crown, nor from any Colony, are within the limits of
Virginia and North Carolina by their charters, which bound those
Colonies in the South Sea. They are charged with republican
notions and Utopian schemes."
It was during the month of December, that the brave Gen
eral Montgomery, between whom and Samuel Adams a mu
tual friendship had sprung up within a year, based upon the
qualities of each as statesman and soldier, had led the unfor
tunate attack upon Quebec, after having exhibited remarka
ble judgment and skill in the capture of St. Johns, Chambly,
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, IV. 544.
340 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
and Montreal. His death before Quebec was considered by
Adams as a great public calamity, and the failure of the
expedition of which he had been the chief adviser and advo
cate put a sad damper upon a scheme for the acquisition of
the Northeastern Provinces, on which he had set his heart
for more than a year. Long before the outbreak of hostili
ties, he had concerted plans with Dr. Warren for such a con
summation, and, as we have seen, had despatched a secret
agent into Canada for information on which to base future
operations, which, but for the death of Montgomery, would
ultimately have been carried out. The letters of Adams, on
this subject, occasionally reveal his chagrin at the failure,
and show how much his plans for the coming greatness of
his country had been founded on the conquest of Canada,
and the securing of the immense fishing and maritime inter
est of that region.
Early in December, John Adams left Philadelphia for Mas
sachusetts, and did not resume his position in Congress for
near two months. Gushing followed him about the middle
of January, leaving Samuel Adams the sole champion of
measures tending towards independence in the delegation
of his native Province. Gushing and Paine, both patriotic
public servants, were neither of them prepared for the ex
treme event for which Adams had so long labored. 1 Han-
cock, occupying the Presidential chair of Congress, affiliated
with aristocratic members from other Colonies rather than
with Ids democratic colleagues. Gushing and Paine were
equally opposed to any policy which might seem to aim at
independence. Though supported by a few, Adams met
with opposition from a large number among the Central and
Southern delegates.
On the 8th of January appeared Paine s celebrated pam
phlet, " Common Sense," which was at first ascribed by
many to the pens of both John and Samuel Adams. 2 With
the latter, not long after his arrival in America, Paine had
1 Bancroft, VIII. 242. 2 John Adams s Works, II. 507.
1775.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 341
cultivated an acquaintance, as also with Franklin, Ritten-
house, Clymer, and Rush, to whom he showed his production
previous to its publication. Samuel Adams saw instantly
the singular ability of the essay, and now esteemed the au
thor " as a warm friend to the liberty and lasting welfare of
the human race." Almost the dying words of the venerable
Adams, when, in the next century, he defended Christian
ity against the sophistry of Paine, were in testimony that
" Common Sense " and " The Crisis " " undoubtedly awak
ened the public mind, and led the people loudly to call for a
declaration of independence." 1
An instance of the sense of justice which always actuated
Samuel Adams, as well as his readiness to assist a friend in
distress, when compatible with the public service, occurred
early in this month. Among the firm adherents to the pa
triot cause in Boston, from the commencement, was James
Lovell, the celebrated schoolmaster, and son of the equally
famous and now aged John Lovell, master of the South
Grammar School, under whom Adams and many of his con
temporaries had prepared for college. In the previous sum
mer, the younger Lovell had been arrested and imprisoned
by the British in Boston, charged with being " a spy and giv
ing intelligence to the rebels." After suffering every indig
nity and deprivation, and in vain soliciting a trial for the
pretended crime, he succeeded in sending secretly two letters
to General Washington at Cambridge, representing his case.
He had been informed by the British officers that he might
be exchanged as a prisoner of war for Colonel Skene, late
Lieutenant-Governor of Crown Point and Ticonderoga, who
had been captured by Captain Herrick in the expedition
against Skenesborough. The generous, self-sacrificing spirit
of Lovell appears in his letter to Washington.
" This proposition," he writes, " appears to me extremely disgrace
ful to the party from which it comes, and a compliance with it
would be pregnant with dangerous consequences to my fellow-citi-
1 Samuel Adams to Thomas Paine, Nov. 30, 1802.
342 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
zens. But while my own spirit prompts me to reject it directly
with the keenest disdain, the importunity of my distressed wife, and
the advice of some whom I esteem, have checked me down to a
consent to give your Excellency this information. I have the fullest
confidence in your wisdom, and I shall be perfectly resigned to
your determination, whatever it may be. I must not, however, omit
to say that, should you condescend to stigmatize this proceeding of
my enemies by letter, the correction might work some change in
favor of myself, or at least of my family, which must, I think, perish
through want of fuel and provision in the approaching winter, if it
continues to be deprived of my assistance." 1
"Washington, struck with the magnanimity of the sufferer,
and aware of his abilities and value in the public counsels,
mentioned the subject in one of his letters to Congress. " I
am sensible," he continues, " of the impropriety of exchang
ing a soldier for a citizen ; but there is something so cruelly
distressing in regard to this gentleman, that I dare say you
will take it under your consideration." This letter, among
others, was referred to a committee of which Samuel Adams
was a member. 2 In one of his letters to James Warren, he
casually alludes to this subject :
" A few days ago, being one of a committee to consider General
Washington s letters to Congress, I proposed to the committee, and
they readily consented, to report the enclosed resolutions, which were
unanimously agreed to in Congress. The committee reported that
a certain sum should be paid to Mr. out of the military chest,
towards enabling him to remove himself and family from Boston." 3
The report, as published in the journals of Congress, is as
follows :
" The committee appointed to consider the letter of General
Washington, dated the 18th of December, and the enclosed papers,
brought in a report upon that part which relates to James Lovell,
who has long been, and still is, detained a close prisoner in Boston,
1 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, IV. 314, 315.
2 Journals of Congress, Dec. 30, 1775.
8 Samuel Adams to James Warren, Jan. 10, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 343
by order of General Howe, which, being taken into consideration,
was agreed to, and is as follows :
" That it appears to your committee that the said Mr. Lovell
hath for years past been an able advocate for the liberties of
America and mankind ; that by his letter to General Washington,
which is a part of said enclosed papers, he exhibits so striking an
instance of disinterested patriotism, as strongly recommends him to
the particular notice of this continent.
"Whereupon, Resolved, That Mr. James Lovell, an inhabitant
of Boston, now held a close prisoner there by order of General
Howe, has discovered under the severest trials the warmest attach
ment to public liberty, and an inflexible fidelity to his country ; that
by his late letter to General Washington he has given the strongest
evidence of disinterested public affection, in refusing to listen to
terms offered for his relief, till he could be informed by his country
men that they were compatible with their safety and honor.
" Resolved, That it is deeply to be regretted that a British gen
eral can be found degenerate enough, so ignominiously and cruelly
to treat a citizen who is so eminently virtuous.
" Resolved, That it be an instruction to General Washington to
make on offer of Governor Skene in exchange for the said Mr.
Lovell and his family.
" Resolved, That General Washington be desired to embrace the
first opportunity which may offer of giving some office to Mr. Lov
ell equal to his abilities, and which the public service may require.
"Ordered, That a copy of the foregoing resolutions be trans
mitted to the General as speedily as possible." *
These efforts, however, were unavailing. Washington
notified Howe of the intention of Congress, and proposed
to exchange Mr. Skene, but the British General declined
the offer, having, as he said in his reply, discovered a pro
hibited correspondence by Mr. Lovell, alluding probaMy
to his letters to Washington, which deprived him of the
liberty he had fully intended to give him. 2 The prisoner,
therefore, remained in the hands of the British, and when,
1 Journals of Congress, Jan. 5, 1776.
2 Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, IV. 975.
344 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
a few months later, they were compelled to evacuate Boston,
Lovell was taken with them to Halifax, where he was kept
for a long time in confinement. His father, who was as
determined a Loyalist as the son was a Patriot, accompanied
the British forces in their flight, and both were in Halifax at
the same time. James, after his release, returned to Bos
ton, and was elected a member of Congress. The father died
at Halifax in 1778. 1
At the outbreak of hostilities, free negroes had been
enlisted in the Provincial army, and were retained there,
although Edward Rutledge and a few others had attempted
in the fall of the last year to compel their discharge. A
committee, consisting of Franklin, Harrison, and Lynch, who
were at camp in October, had decided in a conference with
Washington to exclude them. 2 They had not the power to
do so, for Congress was virtually the supreme authority in
military as well as civil matters. Washington, dissatisfied
with this measure, and being desirous of retaining the aid of
these men, referred the subject to Congress, who, on the
15th of January, appointed a committee consisting of Wythe,
Samuel Adams, and Wilson, to pass upon its merits. On
the following day they reported " that the free negroes who
had served faithfully in the army at Cambridge might be
re-enlisted therein, but no others." 3 This decision was in
dorsed, and free negroes thenceforth, during the war, served
in the ranks in defence of American liberty.
The journals show that Samuel Adams was generally
placed upon committees appointed to consider the letters
of Washington, who was continually writing in relation to
the requirements of his army. Whenever these letters can
be definitely connected with the action of Congress through
committees including Adams among their number, the rec
ommendations are invariably a speedy indorsement of the
General s advice, and a cordial activity is displayed in
1 Sabine s American Loyalists, p. 429. 2 Bancroft, VIII. 233.
8 Journals of Congress, II. 24-27.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 345
carrying it into practice. He was engaged upon com
mittees relating to the war in the North. The report on
this subject, after the consideration of General Schuyler s
letter to Congress, recommends immediate and active meas
ures for the reinforcement of the army in Canada. Jeffer
son remembered Samuel Adams as the chief adviser and
director in the Northern war, and that recollection tallies
with the known policy of Adams, as exhibited hitherto in
his letters, and by his active measures for the prosecution
of hostilities in Canada. 1 The recent disaster at Quebec
produced an effect upon Adams similar to that caused by
political reverses in the earlier years of the struggle. De
feat of any kind only nerved him to greater exertions. It
had always been his fate to battle with difficulties ; but he
was one who could face the storm, and his cheerful disposi
tion generally enabled him to see the sunshine long before
it warmed the hearts of others. The letter referred to this
committee brought the intelligence of Montgomery s death,
and with it enclosures from General Wooster, Colonel
Arnold, and others. The committee, consisting, besides
Adams, of Lynch, Wythe, Sherman, and Ward, proposed
the sending of a portion of Washington s troops with all
possible speed into Canada, the raising of additional battal
ions for a similar destination, with bounties for recruits ;
while the several Committees of Safety were urged to hasten
the movement in each Colony. Washington was desired to
despatch a general officer to take command of the army in
Canada. Gunpowder was forwarded by the secret commit
tee, and from Connecticut blank commissions were issued
for officers, to be filled up with such names as the Colo
nial Conventions or Committees of Safety should judge
proper ; and the President of Congress was directed to
send an express to General Schuyler, informing him of
the measures Congress had taken for the defence of Can
ada, and desiring him to forward the same to General
1 Randolph s Life of Jefferson, I. 5. Letter to S. A. Wells, May 12, 1819.
346 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
Wooster, 1 who was now at Montreal, but afterwards took
command in Canada. But the arrival of strong reinforce
ments to the British army eventually forced the Americans
to give up their design of adding Canada to the United
Colonies, and, post after post being successively evacuated,
the Northern expedition was for the time abandoned.
The intended descent by the enemy upon the Southern
coast having been discovered by means of intercepted let
ters sent to Congress by Washington late in December,
Adams was chosen on a committee with Lynch, Hooper,
Wythe, and Deane, to consider what measures were neces
sary to be adopted. On New- Year s Day, they reported a
series of resolutions, recommending the Provincial Congress
of Georgia and North Carolina to send committees at once
to Charleston, there to confer with the Committee of Safety
of South Carolina " upon weighty and important matters,
relative to the defence and security of those Colonies " ;
and, in view of the meditated attack, the Southern Colonies
were exhorted to make a vigorous defence, for which pur
pose the several Committees of Safety in that part of the
continent were advised to consult upon a plan of operations. 2
The attack was made during the next month, and the bar
barities of the British troops, instead of subduing the spirit
of the people, only the more strongly confirmed the patriot
party in their determined opposition. In burning and lay
ing waste Norfolk, Dunmore, as Samuel Adams afterwards
said, " had done little more than exasperate the Virginians,
and convinced that brave Colony that they could be formi
dable to savages on the east as well as on the west side of
their dominion."
Again, with Wythe and Ward, we find Adams deputed to
take into consideration letters from Washington, Lord Ster
ling, and others. The communication from the Commander-
in-Chief related to the defeat of the American forces in Can-
1 Journals of Congress, Jan. 20, 1776.
2 Journals of Congress, Dec. 30, 1775, and Jan. 1, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 347
ada and the death of Montgomery ; and it seems that, in
applying to Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hamp
shire for troops to be sent with all speed to the northward,
Washington had acted simultaneously with the recommen
dation of the Congressional committee. His proceedings
were heartily indorsed by the committee now appointed,
and pronounced " prudent, consistent with his duty, and a
further manifestation of his commendable zeal for the good
of his country." 1 Adams also made one of a committee of
seven, including Lynch, Franklin, Rutledge, Harrison, Ward,
and Morris, to consider the propriety of establishing a Board
of War, and the powers with which the office should be in
vested. 2 Their report did not appear until later in the
session, when the office was established under a system of
regulations arranged by this committee ; and Samuel Adams,
in January of the following year, was added to the Board by
special election. The duties of this department were sim
ilar to those of the subsequent War Office at Washington,
and involved a heavy amount of labor and responsibility.
1 Jan. 25, 1776. 2 Jan. 24, 1776.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
The King rejects the Petition of Congress, and seeks to employ Mercenary
Troops against the Colonies. Indignation of Adams. His Public Writ
ings in favor of an immediate Declaration of Independence. Wilson and
a strong Party in Congress disavow Independence. Adams rallies the
bolder Members. The other Massachusetts Delegates side with Wilson,
who carries his Motion. Adams confers with Franklin on a separate
Confederacy of such States as are inclined to Independence. He will try
it with New England alone, if none of the others will join. Advises Ketalia-
tion for British Outrages. Advocates disarming the Tories. Supports
Washington s Plan of obtaining Enlistments for the War. The Quaker
Peace Convention. Adams replies to their Address. John Adams re
turns to Congress. The British driven from Boston. Vandalism of the
Soldiers in Adams s Homestead. Conduct of Hancock at Philadelphia.
He joins a Party against the Adamses and other New-Englanders. His
Anti-republican Tendencies. His Quarrel with Adams. Contemporary
Narratives of Hancock s Course in Congress.
THE petition of this Congress to the King had, meanwhile,
been presented to Lord Dartmouth in October, 1775, by
Richard Penn, to whom it had been intrusted. The minis
ter informed the bearer peremptorily that no answer would
be returned. The King refused to notice it, and in his
speech to Parliament declared that the Colonists were in a
state of actual rebellion, with the object of independence, to
defeat which the most vigorous and decisive measures were
necessary ; that he had increased his forces, and secured the
aid of German stipendiary troops. A portion of the Ministry
and many members of Parliament now admitted that the
primary views of government, as to imposing taxes upon the
Colonies, had been erroneous, and that designing persons
had deceived them respecting the original intentions and
sentiments of the people of America. Others, while they
denied the right of taxation, upon which alone the present
mountain of difficulty had grown, were now in favor of sub-
Jan., 1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 349
jugating the Colonies to prevent their becoming indepen
dent. Burke s bill, repealing the offensive acts and granting
an amnesty as to the past, was rejected by a great majority,
though supported by the utmost efforts of that inspired ora
tor and the entire strength of the opposition. The determi
nation of Britain was irrevocably to exert her own and all
the mercenary power she could hire to crush the Colonists
into submission.
When the news of these debates reached Philadelphia, Mr.
Adams, among a few others, was all the more convinced of
the utter impossibility of ever effecting any equitable arrange
ment. It was evident that no anti-ministerial proposition
could succeed. Lord North s " conciliatory bill," declaring
war against the Colonists, seizing and confiscating their
property wherever found, but making certain specious but
unsatisfactory provisions concerning peace and pardon to
repentant Colonies or individuals, became a law ; but no
approach was made towards conceding any of the just rights
claimed by the Americans. Samuel Adams availed himself
of these events as additional arguments in favor of " the
chief wish of his heart." From among his writings this
winter the following will illustrate his ideas of the approach
ing act of separation. It appeared on the 12th of February,
as " An Earnest Appeal to the People."
" I cannot recall an idea to my mind more amazingly absurd and
stupid, than the idea of Lord North s second attempt to gull the
Colonies into a belief of his inclination to hold out to them terms
of a safe and amicable reconciliation with Great Britain. No one
is ignorant that the Americans have offered everything that can
possibly be devised to bury the injurious and enslaving claim of
Administration in perpetual oblivion, and leave matters on the same
footing that they were before the pretence was held up. These
generous proposals, however often repeated, have as often been
rejected with an insolent contempt ; and yet the profound politician
tells his opponents, in the British House of Commons, that he is
heartily inclined to a reconciliation with the Colonies, and willing
350 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
to put them in the situation they so passionately desire ; that is
(says he to a courtier demanding explanation), in a state of absolute
dependence on the British Parliament in all cases whatsoever ; for,
says his Lordship, they were unquestionably thus dependent in
1763.
" Had his Lordship entirely forgot the success of his former
experiments, perhaps a trial of the same wretched trick over again
might have appeared less ridiculous, I may indeed say, less insult
ing to the lowest understanding. I would ask the most credulous
votary for making up the dispute, what possible grounds they per
ceive to found their expectations of a permanent reconciliation upon ?
Has anything lately turned up which has indicated a change of dis
position in the prince or his favorites ? Can a majority which has
been secured from one seven years to another by pure force of cor
ruption be depended on to remain firm to a slaughtering, plunder
ing, and desolating Court, and share the detestation of present and
future ages for mere nothing ? Has the Court resolved to cast Ber
nard, Hutchinson, and daughter of Richardson the murderer, crazy
John Malcolm, and Richardson the recent volunteer, out on the
community ? I tell you, nay.
" You have a fresh instance of the firmness of the Cabinet, in
adding another three thousand pound pensioner to the list, in a con
juncture when all mankind will confess there is need of saving.
These burdensome pensions must come from some part of the do
minions. If Great Britain and Ireland have conceived such a mor
tal hatred to America that they can hug her most inveterate enemies
in their bosom, and vote them such munificent rewards for drawing
her into so destructive a civil war, we cannot be safe in the power
of such enemies. If they abound in resources as largely as Mr.
Wedderburn and others boast they do, let them cease complaining
of their poverty, and contentedly discharge their own national debt,
rather than go on augmenting it by their efforts to saddle it with an
unlimited pension-list upon America.
" Does the nation bear the present unnatural quarrel with Amer
ica on other terms than a firm assurance of the Court, that millions
of leading men s dependents shall be provided for in America, for
whom places can by no means be found at home ? Is not the very
genius of the people of Great Britain and Ireland corrupted, inso
much that the views of young fellows of education, or any connec-
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 351
tion with men of note, are altogether set on public money ? Can
our peaceable men indulge a gleam of hope that this humor will
alter, or that youths bred in idleness and dissipation will become
industrious and disinterested patriots ? If not, then must they be
so weak as to conceit that ministers will become less fond of finger
ing the public money, and securing themselves in places of power
and profit by means of it, indeed, that they will become more
honest and saving of the national money than those the Constitution
has appointed as a check upon them.
" It is no wonder they tell of sending a formidable fleet and army
to bring over their terms of reconciliation, when they are in no one
article different from the terms they first aimed to impose. Had
the Ministry, or, more properly, the obstinate author of all our
troubles, had the remotest idea of favoring us with a government of
laws which had any respect to the security of our lives and proper
ties, he had long since granted with a good grace petitions made and
repeated with the most dutiful and persevering affection, which
asked for nothing more. Sed aut Ccesar aut nullus, seems the un
alterable determination of the man who soothed our already elated
expectations by an inaugural declaration, that he gloried in the
name of Briton, then a distinctive characteristic of the patrons of
universal liberty. If, therefore, the whole body of the governing
and influential part of the governed in Great Britain be unalterably
set upon extorting tribute from the Colonies ; and the better to
secure the collection of it, claims right to impose laws and executors
of those laws, dependent only on themselves for appointment, con
tinuance, and support, and all these extended at their sole pleasure,
it may readily be determined in what condition the absolutely pas
sive subjects of such an unnatural usurpation would quickly be. It
is evident they have concluded on two things, viz. to make a
bold push for our entire subjection, as their ends would be thereby
more readily answered ; but, that being found impracticable, we are
to be tried with negotiation, in which all the craft, duplicity, and
punic faith of Administration is to be expected. Pray God it may
be wisely and firmly guarded against ! The honorable and worthy
John Collins, Esq.; of Newport, Rhode Island, on the arrival of
Lord North s last conciliatory plan, observed, that, notwithstanding
the exposure of his large estate to whatever depredations the en
emy saw fit to make upon it, he was more concerned for the prob-
352 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
able success of their arts than their arms. Had the Americans in
general the wisdom and firmness of that gentleman, matters would
never have come to the present melancholy lengths we find them.
"However, in the great and general plan of Him who putteth
down and setteth up states, there is, doubtless, an indispensable
part, and, therefore, not to be complained of; but it had amazed me
to contemplate the numerous instances of disappointment our ene
mies have met with in every plot they have laid for our destruction.
How did Bernard and Hutchinson flatter themselves in the number
of friends they had in the Massachusetts, and thought that a very
trifling force from the other side of the water, added to their min
ions, dependents, and expectants, would crush a little turbulent
faction who disturbed their darling measures? Certainly, men
intoxicated with a love of absolute power found something in the
appearance of things to tole them on to an object so grateful to
their fondest wishes ; otherwise they would have been contented
to augment and confirm their power by such unperceived degrees,
that the happy days many tell us we have enjoyed under a contin
ually invading usurpation would not yet have been so sensibly
interrupted. No less has the so-often extolled Governor Tryon
been disappointed in his benevolent intentions respecting New
York. His band on Long Island, and on the east side of Hudson 9
River, with Sir John Johnson among his vassals, and the Indians,
gave him great hopes of having matters in a fine train, before the
invincible Armada arrived in the spring; instead of which, it 13
probable the active General Lee will so fortify that place, that all
the force they can spend against it will be insufficient to reduce it.
Dunmore, with all his wanton ravage, has done little more than
exasperate the Virginians, and convince that brave Colony that
they can be formidable to savages on the east as well as on the
west side of their dominion. Carleton s Canadians make no such
figure in the harangue of the pensioner as they did last year, and,
in case foreigners are to be procured to be poured in upon us, the
greatest opposers of our total separation from Britain acknowledge
they would then no longer defer a declaration of independency, and
application to other powers for their protection. To this the whole
scene appears rapidly advancing, in my view, as hastily as Infinite
Wisdom thinks proper to conduct it ; and if this be His most gra
cious design, He will work and none shall hinder.
" SINCERUS."
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 353
The responsibility of the American Revolution rested
upon George the Third rather than upon his advisers. He
outstripped all his ministers in the relentless policy of subju
gation, and was himself the originator of most of the meas
ures against the Colonies. Mr. Adams considered him the
" obdurate author of all their troubles." When the King s
speech reached America, Adams was not surprised at its
character, for he had opposed sending any petition from
this Congress, and all his conduct showed how little he an
ticipated any other result. He had years before expressed
himself, that no one man or set of men should exercise unre
strained dictation over the liberties of millions. As the
early teacher and " Father of Democracy," as he was termed
in the last century, he looked with the eye of an enthusiast
to the time when the great future of a pure democracy
should dawn upon the Western continent. " The tyrant ! "
said he, as he read the vindictive and inexorable ultimatum
of royalty, " his speech breathes the most malevolent spirit,
and determines my opinion of its author as a man of a
wicked heart. I have heard that he is his own minister ;
why, then, should we cast the odium of distressing mankind
upon his minions ? Guilt must lie at his door: divine ven
geance will fall on his head " ; and, says Bancroft, " with
the aid of Wythe of Virginia, the patriot set vigorously to
work to bring on a confederation and independence." 1
His chief antagonist at this time was Wilson of Pennsyl
vania, who strongly opposed the, to him, alarming growth
of independence. This member moved the appointment of
a committee to explain to their constituents and to the
world the principles and grounds of their opposition, and
their present intentions respecting independence." Against
the formidable force which was soon arrayed in support of
this policy Samuel Adams, who saw the danger, took the
lead, and rallied the bolder members to defeat the proposal.
A circumstantial narration of this preliminary contest for
1 Bancroft, VIIL 242.
VOL. II. 23
354 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
independence, could the events have been recorded and
preserved, would throw a flood of light upon the character
of the principal actors in this Congress. The doubts, fears,
and hesitancy of some, and the boldness and resolution of
others, would be apparent, where now we survey their
gradual advance as a whole, without being able to ex
amine the conflicting passions of individual parts. Samuel
Adams seldom spoke long upon any subject. What he said
was always to the point. His style, grave and impressive,
was so associated with his venerable appearance and per
sonal dignity of manner, that he was always heard with
attention and respect. Though he was not a declaimer, his
councils were ever ready on momentous occasions. But
in this instance he must have borne the brunt of debate,
as far as his own delegation was concerned, John Adams
being still absent, and Gushing and Paine siding with Wil
son. 1 Despite his utmost exertions, the motion prevailed.
Alluding to other debates through the fall, winter, and
spring, John Adams, in his Autobiography, recollects that in
his own efforts he received but little assistance from his
colleagues. " Three of them," he says, " were either in
clined to lean to Mr. Dickinson s system, or at least chose to
be silent, and the fourth spoke but rarely in Congress, and
never entered into any extensive arguments, though, when
he did speak, his sentiments were clear and pertinent, and
neatly expressed." 2 But though Samuel Adams was not a
fluent elocutionist, he could rise into earnest and forcible
speaking when the occasion required, as numerous contem
porary witnesses testify ; and the present was a crisis which
must have called into requisition all his powers. He seems
to have deeply felt the vexatious obstacles constantly placed
by timidity in the path towards independence. About this
time he wrote to James Warren, then Speaker of the Mas
sachusetts House :
" You ask me when you are to hear of our confederation. I an-
1 Bancroft, VIII. 242. * John Adams, Works, EL 506.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 355
swer, when some gentlemen, to use the expression of a Tory,
1 shall feel more bold. You know it was formerly a complaint in
our Colony, that there was a timid kind of men, who perpetually
hindered the progress of those who would fain run in the path of
virtue and glory. I feel, wherever I am, that mankind are alike
variously classed. I can discover the magnanimity of the lion, the
generosity of the horse, the fearfulness of the deer, and the cunning
of the fox, I had almost overlooked the fidelity of the dog.
But I forbear to indulge my rambling pen in this way, lest I should
be thought chargeable with a design to degrade the dignity of our
nature by comparing men with beasts. Let me just observe that I
have mentioned only the more excellent qualities that are to be
found among quadrupeds. Had I suggested an idea of the vanity
of the ape, the tameness of the ox, or the stupid servility of the ass,
I might have been liable to censure.
" Are you solicitous to hear of our confederation ? I will tell you.
It is not dead, but sleepeth. A gentleman of this city told me the
other day that he could not believe the people without doors would
follow the Congress passibus aequis, if such measures as some called
spirited were pursued. It put me in mind of a fable of the high-
mettled horse and the dull horse, my excellent colleague, Mr. J.
A., can repeat the fable to you ; and if the improvement had been
made in it which our very valuable Colonel M. proposed, you would
have seen that confederation completed long before this time. I do
not despair of it, since our enemies themselves are hastening it." *
Warren and John Adams, who were both at Watertown
when this letter arrived from Philadelphia, doubtless knew
to whom their friend alluded. To them he needed to make
no explanation ; and information of a similar nature had
before this produced its effects with the members of the Mas
sachusetts Assembly. The election of delegates to the Con
tinental Congress had already taken place, when Hancock,
the two Adamses, and Paine were re-elected ; but out of
one hundred and twenty-nine votes, Paine had but sixty-
nve, while Gushing received none. When the Assembly
heard of his " pusillanimous wavering," 2 they chose El-
1 Samuel Adams to James Warren, Jan. 7, 1776.
2 Bancroft, VIII. 243.
356 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
bridge Gerry in his place, and empowered the delegation,
" any one or more of them, with those from other American
Colonies, to concert, direct, and order such further measures
as should to them appear best calculated for the establish
ment of right and liberty to the American Colonies, upon a
basis permanent and secure against the power and arts of
the British Administration, and guarded against any future
encroachments of their enemies, with power to adjourn to
such times and places as should appear most conducive to
the public safety and advantage." The Assembly authorized
the payment of one hundred and thirty pounds to each of
the delegates, " to enable them to defray their expenses and
support the dignity of their office." Adams, like the others,
received the notification of his election as follows :
COUNCIL CHAMBER, January 19, 1776.
SIR,
Agreeable to the directions of the enclosed resolution, I am to
acquaint you that, by a joint ballot of both Houses of Assembly for
the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, you are elected one of the dele
gates to represent that Colony in the American Congress, until the
1st day of January, 1777; and the enclosed resolution you are to
make the general rule of your conduct.
By order of the General Court,
PEREZ MORTON, Deputy Secretary.
To SAMUEL ADAMS, Esq.
The temporary success of Wilson, in defeating the plan
of a confederation, was aided by the course of New Hamp
shire, where, in Portsmouth, the intention of separating from
the parent country was disavowed, and the continuance of
the new Constitution was only authorized " during the un
natural contest with Great Britain." They protested they
had never sought to throw off their dependence, and desired
to join in such a conciliation as the Continental Congress
should approve. Instructions were sent to the New Hamp
shire delegates in Congress to that effect. There was a
strong loyal sentiment among the influential Tory circles
in New Hampshire until 1776. One of the three loyal mil-
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 357
itary corps organized in New England, was the " Went-
worth Volunteers," named after Governor Wentworth.
Shortly after the contest in which Samuel Adams had bat
tled Wilson and his party, he wrote to John Adams, giving
an inkling of his important conference with Franklin, in
which, alarmed at the progress of the opposition, he had pro
posed a confederation of the New England Colonies, in case
the others continued to decline the proposition.
" I have seen certain instructions which were given by the cap
ital of the Colony of New Hampshire to its delegates in their Pro
vincial congregation, the spirit of which I am not altogether pleased
with. There is one part of them, at least, which I think discovers
a timidity which is unbecoming a people oppressed and insulted as
they are, and who, at their own request, have been advised and au
thorized by Congress to set up and exercise government in such
form as they should judge most conducive to their own happiness.
It is easy to understand what they mean when they speak of per
fecting a form of government stable and permanent? They indeed
explain themselves by saying * that they should prefer the govern
ment of Congress (their Provincial Convention) till quieter times.
The reason they assign for it, I fear, will be considered as showing
a readiness to condescend to the humors of their enemies, and their
publicly, expressly, and totally disavowing independence either on
the nation or the man who insolently and perseveringly demands
the surrender of their liberties with the bayonet pointed at their
breasts, may be considered to argue a servility and baseness of soul
for which language doth not afford an epithet. It is by indiscreet
resolutions and publications that the friends of America have too
often given occasion to their enemies to injure her cause. I hope,
however, that the town of Portsmouth doth not in this instance
speak the sense of that Colony. I wish, if it be not too late, that
you would write your sentiments of the subject to our worthy friend,
Mr. L , who, I suppose, is now in Portsmouth. If that Colony
should take a wrong step, I fear it would wholly defeat a design
which, I confess, I have much at heart.
" A motion was made in Congress the other day to the following
purpose : * That whereas we have been charged with aiming at in
dependency, a committee should be appointed to explain to the peo-
358 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
pie at large the principles and grounds of our opposition, &c., &c.
The motion alarmed me. I thought Congress had already been
explicit enough, and was apprehensive that we might get ourselves
upon dangerous ground. Some of us prevailed so far as to have the
matter postponed, but could not prevent the assigning a day to con
sider it. I may, perhaps, have been wrong in opposing this motion ;
and I ought the rather to suspect it, because the majority of your
Colony, as well as of the Congress, were of a different opinion.
" I had lately some free conversation with an eminent gentleman
whom you well know, and whom your Portia, in one of her letters,
admired for his expressive silence about a confederation ; x a matter
which our much valued friend, Colonel W , is very solicitous to
have completed. We agreed that it must soon be brought on, and
that if all the Colonies could not come into it, it had better be done
by those of them that inclined to it. I told him that I would en
deavor to unite the New England Colonies in confederating, if none
of the rest would join it. He approved of it, and said if I suc
ceeded, he would cast his lot among us. 2
" As this express did not set off yesterday according to my expec
tation, I have the opportunity of acquainting you that Congress has
just received a letter from General Washington, enclosing the copy
of an application of our General Assembly to him to order payment
to four companies stationed at Braintree, Weymouth, and Hingharn.
The General says they were never regimented, and he cannot com
ply with the request of the Assembly without the direction of Con
gress. A committee is appointed to consider the letter, of which I
am one. I fear there will be a difficulty, and therefore I shall en-
1 Dr. Franklin is here referred to. John Adams evidently showed this
letter to Dr. Gordon, who was then engaged in collecting materials for his
History.
2 This was no new idea with Samuel Adams. See Chap. XIX., where, in
the letter of instructions from the House to Franklin, then agent in London,
he says, after alluding to the efforts to detach the sister Colonies from Massa
chusetts : " But should all the other Colonies become weary of their liberties,
after the example of the Hebrews, this Province will never submit to the
authority of an absolute government." That the project now suggested to
Dr. Franklin could have been consummated may be inferred from the success
of the New England League, proposed by the Massachusetts Provincial Con
gress, while Samuel Adams was a member, shortly before the battle of Lex
ington. See Chap. XXXV.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 359
deavor to prevent a report on this part of the letter, unless I see a
prospect of justice being done to the Colony, till I can receive from
you authentic evidence of those companies having been actually
employed by the Continental officers, as I conceive they have been
in the service of the continent. I wish you would inform me
whether the two companies stationed at Chelsea and Maiden were
paid out of the continent s chest. I suppose they were ; and if so, I
cannot see reason for any hesitation about the payment of these. I
wish also to know how many men our Colony is at the expense of
maintaining for the defence of its sea-coasts. Pray let us have some
intelligence from you of the Colony which we represent. You are
sensible of the danger it has frequently been in, of suffering greatly
for want of regular information." l
His " much valued friend, Colonel W ," mentioned in
this letter, undoubtedly is Colonel Seth Warner, a brave
soldier and patriot. A part of the silent, but wide-reaching
policy of Samuel Adams, is indicated in the following extract
of a letter written in the fall of this year :
" T is reported Colonel Warner has said he was advised to peti
tion Congress to have the Hampshire grants set off in a new State
by Mr. Adams, one of the delegates. The people are much divid
ed, some for a new State, some for joining Hampshire, others Mas
sachusetts, many for remaining under New York. I endeavored to
dissuade them from persisting in such idle and delusive schemes." 2
Towards the close of the war this became an important
subject ; New York, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts
each putting forward claims to the Vermont Territory, then
known as the Hampshire grants. Massachusetts pressed its
claims only in opposition to those of the others, who, she
feared, would absorb these lands, and defeat the project of
an additional State. In 1780, the question was settled,
though not until the most alarming complications had
arisen, at one time threatening civil war.
1 Samuel to John Adams, Philadelphia, Jan. 15 and 16, 1776.
2 John Taylor to Pierre Van Courtlandt, Albany, Nov. 3, 1776 (Force s
American Archives, Fifth Series, III. 503, 504).
360 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
Among the most potent elements of the opposition to
independence, and in favor of all measures tending towards
submission, were the Quakers, a sect which, with due re
spect for their religious principles, Mr. Adams regarded as
particularly detrimental to the liberties of America. Their
advice was steadily for conciliation, a doctrine in keep
ing with their peaceful character. On the 20th of Janu
ary, a convention of Quakers, representing New Jersey and
Pennsylvania, assembled at Philadelphia, and issued an
address, " To the People in General," in which they quoted
the ancient testimony and principles of their society, with
respect to kings and governments.
" The benefits, advantages, and favors," says this address, " we
have experienced by our dependence on, and connection with, the
kings and government under which we have enjoyed this happy
state, appear to demand from us the greatest circumspection, care,
and constant endeavors to guard against every attempt to alter or
subvert that dependence and connection."
The paper then proceeds at some length to argue against
interfering with established rulers, and enjoins " a continu
ance of mutual peaceable endeavors for effecting a recon
ciliation with England." To counteract the effect of these
sickly counsels, Samuel Adams, on the 3d of February,
published an address to " The People of Pennsylvania,"
taking the " Testimony of the Quakers " for his text, and
showing the absurdity of a further dependence upon Great
Britain in a moral as well as political point of view.
" When the little pamphlet, entitled Common Sense/ first
made its appearance in favor of that so often abjured idea of inde
pendence upon Great Britain, I was informed that no less than
three gentlemen of respectable abilites were engaged to answer it.
As yet, I have seen nothing which directly pretends to dispute a
single position of the author. The oblique essay in Humphrey s
paper, and solemn Testimony of the Quakers, however intended,
having offered nothing to the purpose, I shall take leave to exam-
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 361
ine this important question with all candor and attention, and sub
mit the result to my much interested country.
" Dependence of one man or state upon another is either absolute
or limited by some certain terms of agreement. The dependence of
these Colonies, which Great Britain calls constitutional, as declared
by acts of Parliament, is absolute. If the contrary of this be the
bugbear so many have been disclaiming against, I could wish my
countrymen would consider the consequence of so stupid a profession.
If a limited dependence is intended, I would be much obliged to any
one who will show me the Britannico-American Magna Charta,
wherein the terms of our limited dependence are precisely stated.
If no such thing can be found, and absolute dependence be accounted
inadmissible, the sound we are squabbling about has certainly no
determinate meaning. If we say we mean that kind of dependence
we acknowledged at and before the year 1763, I answer, vague and
uncertain laws, and more especially constitutions, are the very
instruments of slavery. The Magna Charta of England was very
explicit, considering the time it was formed, and yet much blood was
spilled in disputes concerning its meaning.
" Besides the danger of an indefinite dependence upon an unde
termined power, it might be worth while to consider what the char
acters are on whom we are so ready to acknowledge ourselves
dependent. The votaries for this idol tell us, upon the good people
of our mother country, whom they represent as the most just,
humane, and affectionate friends we can have in the world. Were
this true, it were some encouragement ; but who can pretend igno
rance, that these just and humane friends are as much under the
tyranny of men of a reverse character as we should be, could these
miscreants gain their ends ? I disclaim any more than a mutual
dependence on any man or number of men on earth ; but an indefi
nite dependence upon a combination of men who have, in the face
of the sun, broken through the most solemn covenants, debauched
the hereditary, and corrupted the elective guardians of the people s
rights ; who have, in fact, established an absolute tyranny in Great
Britain and Ireland, and openly declared themselves competent to
bind the Colonies in all cases whatsoever, I say, indefinite depen
dence on such a combination of usurping innovators is evidently as
dangerous to liberty, as fatal to civil and social happiness, as any
one step that could be proposed even by the destroyer of men.
362 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
The utmost that the honest party in Great Britain can do is to
warn us to avoid this dependence at all hazards. Does not even a
Duke of Grafton declare the ministerial measures illegal and dan
gerous ? And shall America, no way connected with this Adminis
tration, press our submission to such measures and reconciliation to
the authors of them? Would not such pigeon-hearted wretches
equally forward the recall of the Stuart family and establishment
of Popery throughout Christendom, did they consider the party in
favor of those loyal measures the strongest? Shame on the men
who can court exemption from present trouble and expense at the
price of their own posterity s liberty ! The honest party in Eng
land cannot wish for the reconciliation proposed. It is as unsafe to
them as to us, and they thoroughly apprehend it. What check
have they now upon the Crown, and what shadow of control can
they pretend, when the Crown can command fifteen or twenty
millions a year which they have nothing to say to ? A proper pro
portion of our commerce is all that can benefit any good man in
Britain or Ireland ; and God forbid we should be so cruel as to fur
nish bad men with the power to enslave both Britain and America.
Administration has now fairly dissevered the dangerous tie. Exe
crated will he be by the latest posterity who again joins the fatal
cord !
" But, say the puling, pusillanimous cowards, we shall be sub
ject to a long and bloody war, if we declare independence. On
the contrary, I affirm it the only step that can bring the contest to
a speedy and happy issue. By declaring independence we put our
selves on a footing for an equal negotiation. Now we are called a
pack of villanous rebels, who, like the St. Vincent s Indians, can
expect nothing more than a pardon for our lives, and the sovereign
favor respecting freedom, and property to be at the King s will.
Grant, Almighty God, that I may be numbered with the dead be
fore that sable day dawns on North America.
" All Europe knows the illegal and inhuman treatment we have
received from Britons. All Europe wishes the haughty Empress
of the Main reduced to a more humble deportment. After herself
has thrust her Colonies from her, the maritime powers cannot be
such idiots as to suffer her to reduce them to a more absolute obedi
ence of her dictates than they were heretofore obliged to yield.
Does not the most superficial politician know, that while we profess
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 363
ourselves the subjects of Great Britain, and yet hold arms against
her, they have a right to treat us as rebels, and that, according to
the laws of nature and nations, no other state has a right to interfere
in the dispute ? But, on the other hand, on our declaration of in
dependence, the maritime states, at least, will find it their interest
(which always secures the question of inclination) to protect a peo
ple who can be so advantageous to them. So that those short
sighted politicians, who conclude that this step will involve us in
slaughter and devastation, may plainly perceive that no measure in
our power will so naturally and effectually work our deliverance.
The motion of a finger of the Grand Monarch would produce as
gentle a temper in the omnipotent British minister as appeared in
the Manilla ransom and Falkland Island affairs. From without,
certainly, we have everything to hope, nothing to fear. From
within, some tell us that the Presbyterians, if freed from the re
straining power of Great Britain, would overrun the peaceable Qua
kers in this government. For my own part, I despise and detest
the bickerings of sectaries, and am apprehensive of no trouble from
that quarter, especially while no peculiar honors or emoluments are
annexed to either. I heartily wish too many of the Quakers did
not give cause of complaint, by endeavoring to counteract the meas
ures of their fellow-citizens for the common safety. If they profess
themselves only pilgrims here, let them walk through the men of
this world without interfering with their actions on either side. If
they would not pull down kings, let them not support tyrants ; for,
whether they understand it or not, there is, and ever has been, an
essential difference in the characters.
" Finally, with M. de Vattel, I account a state a moral person,
having an interest and will of its own ; and I think that state a
monster whose prime mover has an interest and will in direct oppo
sition to its prosperity and security. This position has been so
clearly demonstrated in the pamphlet first mentioned in this es
say, that I shall only add, if there are any arguments in favor of
returning to a state of dependence on Great Britain, that is, on the
present Administration of Great Britain, I could wish they were
timely offered, that they may be soberly considered before the cun
ning proposals of the Cabinet set all the timid, lazy, and irresolute
members of the community into a clamor for peace at any rate.
" CANDIDUS."
364 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
One of the results of the resolutions reported in October
by Deane, Samuel Adams, and Duane, recommending the im
mediate raising of troops in New York for the defence of the
Hudson, was a reply from the Provincial Convention of that
Colony, advising Congress to delay an appeal to arms in
New York, until better preparations could be made, and
recommending that the disaffected on Long Island should
be disarmed. This subject, together with sundry letters
from Lord Stirling, on a variety of pressing military matters
in New Jersey, was referred to Samuel Adams, William
Livingston, and John Jay, who soon recommended the bold
and sweeping measure of disarming the Tories in every
Colony, and authorizing the several Assemblies and Conven
tions to call to their aid the Continental troops, whenever
required for that purpose. 1 Adams, as chairman, undoubt
edly prepared the report, which has the style of neither
Livingston nor Jay. After making ample provisions for the
equipment of the New Jersey battalions, which might be
wanted for the defence of New York, it proceeds :
" Whereas it has been represented to this Congress, that divers
honest and well-meaning but uninformed people in these Colonies
have, by the art and address of ministerial agents, been deceived,
and drawn into erroneous opinions respecting the American cause,
and the probable issue of the present contest :
" Resolved, That it be recommended to the various Committees,
and other friends to American liberty in the said Colonies, to treat
all such persons with kindness and attention ; to consider them as
the inhabitants of a country determined to be free, and to view their
errors as proceeding rather from want of information than want of
virtue or public spirit ; to explain to them the origin, nature, and
extent of the present controversy ; to acquaint them with the fate
of the numerous petitions presented to his Majesty, as well by
Assemblies as Congresses, for reconciliation and redress of griev
ances; and that the last from this Congress, humbly requesting
the single favor of being heard, like all the others, has proved
unsuccessful ; to unfold to them the various arts of Administration
1 Bancroft, VIII. 276. Journals of Congress, Dec. 26, 1775.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 365
to ensnare and enslave us, and the manner in which we have been
cruelly driven to defend by arms those very rights, liberties, and
estates which we and our forefathers had so long enjoyed unmo
lested, in the reigns of his present Majesty s predecessors. And it
is hereby recommended to all Conventions and Assemblies in these
Colonies liberally to distribute among the people the proceedings
of this and the former Congress, the late speeches of the great
patriots in both Houses of Parliament relative to American griev
ances, and such other pamphlets and papers as tend to elucidate the
merits of the American cause ; the Congress being fully persuaded
that the more our right to the enjoyment of our ancient liberties
and privileges is examined, the more just and necessary our present
opposition to ministerial tyranny will appear.
"And, with respect to all such unworthy Americans as, regard
less of their duty to their Creator, their country, and their posterity,
have taken part with our oppressors, and, influenced by the hope or
possession of ignominious rewards, strive to recommend themselves
to the bounty of Administration by misrepresenting and traducing
the conduct and principles of the friends of American liberty, and
opposing every measure formed for its preservation and security :
" Resolved, That it be recommended to the different Assemblies,
Conventions, and Committees, or Councils of Safety in the United
Colonies, by the most speedy and effectual measures to frustrate the
mischievous machinations, and restrain the wicked practices of these
men ; and it is the opinion of this Congress that they ought to be
disarmed, and the more dangerous among them either kept in safe
custody or bound with sufficient securities to their good behavior.
" And, in order that the said Assemblies, Conventions, Committees,
or Councils of Safety may be enabled with greater ease and facility
to carry this resolution into execution :
" Resolved, That they be authorized to call to their aid whatever
Continental troops, stationed in or near their respective Colonies,
may be conveniently spared from their more immediate duty ; and
the commanding officers of such troops are hereby directed to
afford the said Assemblies, Conventions, Committees, or Councils
of Safety all such assistance in executing this resolution as they
may require, and which, consistent with the good of the service, may
be supplied.
" Resolved, That all detachments of Continental troops, which may
366 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
be ordered on the business in the foregoing resolution mentioned,
be, while so employed, under the direction and control of the As
semblies, Conventions, Committees, or Councils of Safety aforesaid.
" Resolved, That it be recommended to all the United Colonies to
aid each other (on request from their respective Assemblies, Con
ventions, Committees, or Councils of Safety, and County Commit
tees) on every emergency, and to cultivate, cherish, and increase
the present happy and necessary union by a continual interchange
of mutual good offices.
" And whereas the execrable barbarity with which this unhappy
war has been conducted on the part of our enemies, such as burning
our defenceless towns and villages, exposing their inhabitants, with
out regard to sex or age, to all the miseries which loss of property,
the rigor of the season, and inhuman devastation can inflict, excit
ing domestic insurrections and murders, bribing savages to desolate
our frontiers, and casting such of us as the fortune of war has put
in their power into gaols, there to languish in irons and in want, 1
compelling the inhabitants of Boston, in violation of the treaty, to
remain confined within the town, exposed to the insolence of the
soldiery, and other enormities at the mention of which decency and
humanity will ever blush, may justly provoke the inhabitants of
these Colonies to retaliate :
" Resolved, That it be recommended to them to continue mindful
that humanity ought to distinguish the brave, that cruelty should
find no admission among a free people, and to take care that no
page in the annals of America be stained by a recital of any action
which justice or Christianity may condemn, and to rest assured that
whatever retaliation may be necessary, or tend to their security, this
Congress will undertake the disagreeable task." 2
Having taken so large a part in the composition of the
state papers of the Massachusetts Assembly in its contests
with the royal governors for nine years, Samuel Adams nat
urally considered them as exceedingly important agents in
1 Referring doubtless to the cruel imprisonment at Boston of his friend
James Lovell, in whose behalf Mr. Adams had already prepared resolutions
which he introduced in Congress a day or two later. See Journals of Con
gress, Jan. 5, 1776.
2 Journals of Congress, Jan. 2, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 36T
explaining to the public the basis of the war and the jus
tice of the American cause. Most of the subsequent papers
of the Congresses, with their great principles of liberty,
were actually founded upon the arguments elaborated in
these preliminary writings, arguments which, in after gen
erations, seem to have quite disappeared before the more
conspicuous documents of the Continental Congresses, but
nevertheless helped to form the corner-stone of American
freedom. One of the resolutions submitted by the present
committee provided that copies of these petitions, memorials,
and remonstrances from all the Colonies be sent to Con
gress, with information as to what answers had been re
turned by the throne or either House of Parliament. The
events of the war rendered a compliance with this part of
the resolutions impracticable. The idea of retaliation, how
ever, which is embodied in these resolves, Mr. Adams stead
ily adhered to ; and when, in the following winter, it was
rumored that General Lee, who had been captured by the
British, was to be shot, Adams advocated a similar award to
be meted out to six of the Hessian officers then captives in
the hands of the Americans ; and in October, 1778, he moved
in Congress the most severe retaliation for the threatened
barbarities of the enemy. There was nothing cruel in his
nature ; but when war was to be conducted upon the basis
of wanton barbarity, he was for dealing in kind with antago
nists who turned even the common miseries of war into a
riot of demons and savages. The next day after the adop
tion of the present resolves, the Committee on the State of
New York followed the example by reporting in favor of
disarming every man in Queen s County who had voted
against sending deputies to the New York Congress ; and
the efficacy and necessity of this bold policy becoming more
extensively recognized, in a few weeks it was generally
adopted throughout the Colonies.
Congress during the month of February was engaged in
a multiplicity of business. Much must be left to inference
368 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
as regards the particular part taken by the subject of these
memoirs. The general tone of the proceedings indicates
the same hampered struggle of a small number of resolute
members towards independence, through a series of initia
tory measures, Samuel and John Adams, Gerry, Wythe,
Ward, Chase, Wolcott, Sherman, Richard Henry Lee, and
a few others forming a group of the chief actors against
the great mass of opponents from the Middle and Southern
Colonies, many of whom continued to entertain a jealous fear
of the alleged sinister designs of the New England delegates.
The most useful debaters were apparently John Adams,
Richard Henry Lee, and Wythe ; those whose personal influ
ence among the members was exerted most effectively were
Samuel Adams, Sherman, and Chase ; though each of these,
far from being silent in debate, occasionally spoke, but much
less frequently than some who, like those already mentioned,
were considered the mouthpieces of Congress. Where the
journals give little more than the names and objects of the
committees appointed, we can only occasionally distinguish
Samuel Adams ; but, in these instances, he always appears
associated with the most important proceedings. He as
sumed the place of Gushing on the Committee of Claims,
when that member and Langdon, the chairman, left Con
gress for home. 1 The duties of this committee continued
many months, and appear to have been constant and wide
reaching. He also took the place of Gushing as a member
of the Committee on the State of the Treasury. 2 Any con
nection with the reduction of the distracted financial affairs
of the continent to a system of order must have been
attended with no little difficulty. Of the labors of this
committee, however, no record exists, save that, about the
middle of the month, they reported a plan providing for a
standing committee of five, for superintending the treasury,
whose duties were specified. With that report, they also
recommended the emission of four millions of dollars on the
1 Journals of Congress, January 2, 1776. a Ibid., February 1, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 369
same security as the sums already raised. Adams also ap
pears on committees for the consideration of pressing mili
tary letters relating to the conduct of the war.
The convention of Quakers already alluded to had been
called more especially in view of the extraordinary effect of
Paine s " Common Sense," which was now in everybody s
hands, and was praised or attacked throughout America.
That the Quakers " abhorred " such writing was one of the
best proofs of its effectiveness. That body, in counselling
submission and continued dependence upon Great Britain,
had in their address spoken of changes in government " as
affecting every mind with the most awful considerations of
the dispensations of Divine Providence to mankind in gen
eral in former ages, and that as the sins and iniquities of
the people had in ancient times subjected them to grievous
sufferings, the same causes might still produce the like
effects." They then quote certain ancient testimony to
prove that
"The setting up and putting down kings and governments is
God s peculiar prerogative for causes best known to himself, and
that it is not our business to have any hand or contrivance therein ;
nor to be busybodies above our station, much less to plot and con
trive the ruin or overturn of any of them, but to pray for the King
and safety of our nation and good of all men ; that we may live a
peaceable and quiet life in all goodness and honesty, under the gov
ernment which God is pleased to set over us.
" May we, therefore, firmly unite in the abhorrence of all such
writings and measures as evidence a desire and design to break off
the happy connection we have hitherto enjoyed with the kingdom
of Great Britain, and our just and necessary subordination to the
King and those who are lawfully placed in authority under him."
Mr. Adams accepted this religious, providential view of
the question, and replied soon after, showing by historical
examples, that as the rise and fall of empires and rulers was
within the special prerogative of God, the present revolution
was none the less the result of omnipotent design, and that
VOL. ii. 24
370 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Jan.
in God s providence, the time for the establishment of an
independent commonwealth in the West had arrived. Men
were but the instruments in his hands for such purposes.
Divine will had evidently selected the present moment for
the separation of America from Great Britain. This essay,
like the Quakers address, was directed to the " People in
General."
" When the Prophet Samuel was sent to Bethlehem to anoint a
King out of the house of Jesse, and had the eldest son of his fkmily
brought before him, his lofty stature and goodly appearance made
the Prophet cry out, Surely the Lord s anointed is before him/
But he received this gentle reproof from his divine conductor :
Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stature,
because I have refused him. For the Lord seeth not as man seeth ;
for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh
on the heart.
" Were man to set about the destruction or dissolution of a great
empire, he would begin by making choice of one of the mightiest
powers upon earth to effect it. Then vast warlike preparations
would succeed ; nor would he enter upon the grand design until his
armies were so numerous, and his instruments of war so terrible
and destructive, that they might well be styled the Invincibles.
All would now begin to move, and the whole world tremble at his
approach ; but a few months would convince him that without God
he could do nothing. On the other hand, He who sets up and pulls
down, confines or extends empires at his pleasure, generally, if not
always, carries on his great work with instruments apparently unfit
for the great purpose, but which in his hands are always effectual.
By this means, the part he takes appears visible, and the glory of
success is given to whom it is due.
" It always gives me sensible delight when I see public calami
ties affect mankind with a sense of religion and earnest desire of
reformation ; and I most heartily concur in sentiment with the rep
resentatives of a certain people, * that our minds ought to be affected
with the most awful considerations of the dispensations of Divine
Providence to mankind in general, in former ages, that we know
how to conduct ourselves in like circumstances, and avoid as much
as possible the appearance of resisting the Divine Will, as publicly
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 371
declared in his providential proceedings, lest we should be found to
fight against God.
" The Assyrian, one of the first and greatest empires recorded in
antiquity, rose to such an height as nearly to command the then
inhabited world ; the consequence was, that her rulers became cor
rupted and arbitrary, and, forgetting the Divine de igns in appoint
ing them, they forsook the paths of justice and equity, and looked
upon their people as made for their pleasure. This brought down
the Divine vengeance upon her, which was executed by the Medes
and Persians, two nations at that time of small consideration. On
the ruins of the Assyrian arose the Persian Empire, which grew
to equal, if not superior height and iniquity. It, too, was destroyed
by the Macedonians, a people of no political signification a few
years before they were called by Divine Providence to effect this
great work. The next great empire we read of was the Roman,
which, having arrived at the height of luxury and pride and arbi
trariness, fell by the hands of savages who to this day have scarcely
any historical existence. The Turks and the Saracens, of all the
people at that day the least in the opinions of mankind, divided the
Eastern and Western Empire between them. Thus most if not all
of the great empires in the world have successively been over
thrown by nations which, in their time, were of no political conse
quence. And there are few, if any, examples of one great empire
being overthrown by another. The contest between Rome and
Carthage was that of two great cities aiming at universal dominion,
neither having at that time arisen into empire. Thus deals the
Divine Providence, always taking steps which appear strange
and wonderful, that the whole may bear the evident marks of his
hands.
" To apply this to our present circumstances and receive instruc
tions thereby, let us take a view of the present state of Great Brit
ain and the conduct of Divine Providence towards this country, and
it will enable us to discover the designs of Providence, and what
measures we ought to pursue, that we might effectually co-operate
with the Divine intentions.
" It must be allowed by every one who has the least knowledge
of the English nation, that there is no degree of vice, folly, or cor
ruption now wanting to fill up any measure of iniquity necessary
for the downfall of a state. From the King on the throne to the
372 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
meanest freeman in the nation, all is corrupt. The Crown, far
from regarding its duty in the political world, only uses the public
money to bribe the public officer. The legislator grants the money
of the people with a degree of cheerfulness proportioned to the
prospect he has of handling it through fingers of corruption. The
freeman sells the importance he possesses in the state for the good
of himself and his neighbors for a bellyful of porter, and gives his
vote to the man who, by the largess he offers, shows he is the most
unfit person in the nation to be possessed of the trust. Thus men
guilty of the worst of vices possess the places of power and trust,
which ought to be filled by none but those of the greatest integrity
and virtue. And the consequence is, that the nation is ruled with
a rod of iron, and there is no part of the empire free from oppression.
Her princes are corrupt, her nobles degenerate, and the representa
tives of the people are bought and sold. The government moves on
the springs of iniquity, and the measure of their conduct is directed
by their power of execution, and not by justice or equity ; so that
it is perhaps impossible in all history to produce a more complete
state of corruption in government. Omnia sunt venalia Romce, is
nothing to this, for bribery is descended to the lowest dregs of the
nation, and nothing is free from the touch of its pollution. The
omnipotence of the Almighty is arrogated by men who rule with
the tyranny of the Devil. This is Great Britain s true but melan
choly condition. The eye of partial affection may cast a veil over
it ; but ingenuity and candor will acknowledge the facts. Tell me,
then, ye devotees of religion, the intentions of God to a nation like
this, and point out the advantages of being reconciled to such a gov
ernment.
" Suffice this for the present on the part of the state of Great
Britain. Now let us return to the conduct of Providence towards
these Colonies.
" Shortly before the present contest began, the Divine counsel
and wisdom permitted Great Britain and France to carry on a long
and bloody war in this country, whereby the whole was reduced un
der the power of Great Britain, many of us were trained to arms,
and all familiarized to a war at our doors, and taught to view with
out dread or dismay the banners of hostility waving in the air.
" Through the course of this war we gave such incontestil)Je
proofs of our loyalty and affection as drew from Great Britain the
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 373
most unequivocal acknowledgments of the same, and having per
formed more than could be reasonably expected of us, she returned
large sums which she then thought we had expended beyond our
just proportion. In this situation of affairs, we had reason to ex
pect that we should meet with nothing but the warmest return of
gratitude for our services. JJut they who wasted that time and
treasure in folly and dissipation which ought to have been expended
in acts of gratitude and praise for the unmerited favors of Heaven
in the success of the war, would scarcely remember what they owed
to their fellow-subjects. Accordingly our limbs were scarcely rested
from the toils we endured in her service, until we were called upon
to exert ourselves against her oppressions. And for more than
twelve years we have labored by prayers, entreaties, non-importa
tions, and every other peaceable mode of opposition, to prevent her
enslaving us ; but all to no purpose. Our petitions from Assem
blies and Congresses, from towns and Provinces, and from separate
and united bodies of men, were all of no avail. The King despised
and rejected them. The Parliament treated them with contempt,
and the people, disregarding the justice of them, moved not in our
behalf. Thus, after affectionately assisting Great Britain through
a very bloody, dangerous, and expensive war, and after a twelve
years unsuccessful endeavor to remain reconciled to her on princi
ples of right, equity, liberty, and consanguinity, we are at last re
duced to the necessity of becoming independent, and entering into
a war with her to preserve our privileges.
" The American quit-rents can do little as yet, but in a few years
they alone would provide the King with a fund sufficient to raise
and support an army necessary to enslave us, let us then be united
to Britain on what principles we please. We are at present such a
numerous, sober, hardy, and industrious people as in all ages have
been the ablest to contend, and most successful in opposing tyr
anny and oppression. How long we may remain so is only known
to the Deity. All parties, even the Ministry itself, agree that we
must one day become independent; and to become independent
without a struggle for it is absurd to imagine. We have now gone
through the first year of the war which may forever put a period
to the contention. When we seriously consider the foregoing chain
of events and our present happy union, it is impossible to imagine
a cooj unction more favorable to the independence of this country.
374 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb.
Less than Divine wisdom could scarcely have fixed on a fitter occa
sion ; and I may defy any person to point out one link of the fore
going chain which can well be wanted at the time an independency
is to take place. Any one who considers these things attentively,
and recollects how many opportunities she has had of setting every
thing right at no greater expense than hearkening to our prayers
and repealing a few obnoxious acts, must believe that the designs
of Providence in this affair are not trivial. God, it is generally
acknowledged, sends no extraordinary messenger on an ordinary
errand. We may, therefore, safely believe that all this is not for the
breaking up of a junto or gratifying the ambition of a prince. No,
brethren, it cannot be so. You will say it is a judgment of God
upon us for our sins. Be it so. It is, like all his other judgments,
sent upon a people which has not yet been incorrigible. It is a
judgment in mercy, which will leave us infinitely better than it
found us, if we remain not invincibly attached to a people with
whom we receive little besides the contagion of vice and folly, not
to say slavery and oppression.
" The peace, happiness, and prosperity we once enjoyed in con
nection with her is as small a proof of any obligation we are under
to seek a reconciliation, as an old friendship and correspondence
would be that we ought to seek a cell in Bedlam with an ancient
acquaintance. Her own madness and folly have driven us from her,
and God has mercifully secured our retreat. It would be rendering
ourselves unworthy of his future protection to throw ourselves back
upon her. She is not now what she was in those happy days of
former connection, nor can we remain the happy people we then
were, if we seek a reconciliation. Circumstances are materially
altered.
"It need not be asked, Are we able to support the measures
which will secure independency? The answer is plain and easy.
Though all the world may think we are not, yet God, it appears,
thinks otherwise. I say God thinks otherwise, because every part
of his providential proceedings justifies the thought. We may then
know what part we ought to take. God does the work, but not
without instruments, and they who are employed are denominated
his servants ; no king nor kingdom was ever destroyed by a miracle
which effectually excluded the agency of second causes. Even
Herod himself was devoured by vermin. We may affect humility
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 375
in refusing to be made the instruments of Divine vengeance, but
the good servant will execute the will of his master. Samuel will
slay Agag ; Moses, Aaron, and Hur will pray in the mountain, and
Joshua will defeat the Canaanites.
"A RELIGIOUS POLITICIAN."
Through the whole of this month a deeply interesting
topic was under discussion, upon which, owing to the great
issues involved, Congress for eight weeks was unable to
come to a decision. It was proposed to open the ports of the
Colonies to free trade ; and as this was very properly consid
ered one of the preliminary steps towards independence,
the conservative members were unremitting in their efforts
to prevent it. About the middle of January this question
had been raised, when Harrison, Morris, Lynch, Samuel
Adams, and Sherman were made a committee to consider
under what regulations and restrictions the trade of the
United Colonies ought to be carried on after the 1st of
March next. The liberties of a continent and the various
commercial interests of a vast line of coast were involved in
the decision. Their report was not ready until the 5th of
February, when it was read and referred to the 8th, then to
be considered in committee of the whole. No action was
taken on that day, the subject being evidently postponed
through the efforts of the proprietary interests and those
who were opposed to anything like bold measures, and feared
the determined policy of the committee and their friends. It
was again referred to the 14th, despite the efforts of the com
mittee, who by that time had hearty co-operators in John
Adams and Elbridge Gerry, now just arrived from Mas
sachusetts. It was debated for several days, particularly
on the 16th, when Wythe was its chief champion. The
measure did not succeed, however, until early in April.
While this question was pending, an equally important one
was brought forward by Samuel Adams. Washington, see
ing the danger of making short enlistments and raising a
new army for each campaign, had earnestly urged upon
376 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Feb., March,
Congress an increase of bounty, and that the soldiers should
be enlisted for the war. The time of enlistment had hith
erto been limited, under the hope of a speedy reconcilia
tion. Adams had long been convinced of the fallacy of
such anticipations, and, desiring to see an army based upon
thorough military principles, raised the question with the
hope of rendering the service more efficient, and of meeting
the desires of Washington. But he was opposed by a large
number, and even Sherman and John Adams were not with
him. After what appears to have been a lengthy debate,
the subject was dropped, and the application of the General
passed unheeded. 1 As Samuel Adams was proverbially
opposed to standing armies, and excessively jealous of mili
tary power, both before and after the Revolution, these
efforts evince his willingness to surrender to present neces
sities opinions of long standing. He was a member, at this
time, of some minor committees for the exportation of na
val stores, the parole of prisoners, and other subjects only
important now as indicating the frequency and nature of his
employment in Congress.
As the spring advanced, the opposition to royal authority
grew stronger in the Colonies where the feeling against in
dependence had been most conspicuous ; and Samuel Ad
ams s measure for the disarming of disaffected persons was
now made more specific in its application by the following
resolution :
" Resolved, That it be recommended to the several Assemblies,
Conventions, and Committees, or Councils of Safety of the United
Colonies immediately to cause all persons to be disarmed within
their respective Colonies who are notoriously disaffected to the
cause of America, or who have not associated, and shall refuse to as
sociate, to defend by arms these United Colonies against the hostile
attempts of the British fleets and armies ; and to apply the arms
taken from such persons in each respective Colony, in the first place,
to the arming the Continental troops raised in said Colony ; in the
1 Bancroft, VHI. 316.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 377
next, to the arming such troops as are raised by the Colony for its
own defence, and the residue to be applied to the arming the asso-
ciators ; that the arms when taken be appraised by indifferent per
sons, and such as are applied to the arming the Continental troops
be paid for by the Congress, and the residue by the respective As
semblies, Conventions, or Councils, or Committees of Safety." l
The critical condition of affairs imperatively called for the
passage of this resolution, and it was, perhaps, as effective a
measure as Congress was prepared to adopt. John Adams,
indeed, and several others, dreading confusion among so
many rulers, urged Congress to make the resolution more
general and "to advise the people to assume all the powers
of government. 2 Yet the Loyalists apparently considered
that this resolution assumed them in an offensive manner ;
and it was in reality another step towards independence ;
for these " powers of government " once assumed, there
was the less likelihood of the people ever receding from
the position thus boldly taken ; and it is probable that
Samuel Adams, in urging the measure, took all these points
into consideration. Rather than risk reactionary move
ments, it was better perhaps to push hesitating communities
into positions which of their own free will they might not
have assumed. The task of advocating such a plan in Con
gress was no less delicate than its execution. In New York,
difficulties had already arisen from the resolution of Con
gress to disarm the Tories in Queen s County, 3 objections
being made to the introduction of troops without the consent
of the Colony. General Lee, in carrying out the inten
tions of Congress and the orders of Washington, had over
stepped his authority by attempting to expel the Tories from
New York, and his hasty, overbearing conduct had given
offence. Beyond the temporary troubles caused by this act,
the procedure of Congress was productive of the happiest
1 Journals of Congress, March 14, 1776.
2 John Adams s Works, III. 34.
3 Journals of Congress, Jan. 3, 1776.
378 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
results where dangerous Loyalist majorities existed. It was
time, when the enemy was burning towns and ravaging the
sea-coast, to counteract by other means than those of mere
persuasion and argument the open warfare now fully in
progress. With the outbreak of hostilities, Samuel Adams
had been in favor of resorting with all prudent speed to the
ultima ratio, for which he had been prepared years before
most of his fellow-members had regarded a separation from
Great Britain as at all probable. He still continued to urge
independence in the public press, in articles which, if col
lected, would make a volume of logical, convincing argu
ments. They cannot, consistently with the plan of the
present work, be here introduced, but the few already
quoted serve as examples. On the 6th of March, as " Can-
didus," after denouncing the continued perfidy of Great
Britain to the Colonies, and proving the inconsistency and
folly of further dependence, he again assails the irresolute
policy of the moderate party in America.
" It remaining, therefore, that the American States are neither the
Provinces, Colonies, nor children of Great Britain, any more than
of Holland, Ireland, or Germany, and that from their very settle
ment Britain meant rather to milk than suckle them, the pretended
right to control their manufactures and commerce, to sell them
lands at a heavy purchase, and subject to an enslaving quit-rent
which were in great part gained by their own blood and treasure,
is founded in presumption of superior force rather than solid reason.
Luxury (and the search of ways and means to support it) is arrived
to such a pitch in Britain, that the junto who have usurped a tyran
nic power want Provinces to drain off wealth as their patterns, the
debauched Romans, had. Many are found so base as to be willing
their countrymen should become tributary to such vultures, if they
might have a small pittance for gathering the tax ; yea, even on
condition it were demanded at the point of the bayonet. Here is
the true foundation of the claim of Great Britain, and here is the
undeniable cause of the support this claim finds in America ! What,
then, are the honest, industrious, and independent freemen of Amer
ica to do in this case ? My guide I have so long followed tells us,
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 379
Declare independence immediately ! Issue a manifesto, containing
a full view of our rights, our grievances, and the unwearied applica
tions we have made for their redress. Apply to the state of whose
readiness and power to assist us we have undoubted assurance. A
neglect to improve the openings given us for that purpose may in
spire those statesmen with resentment, and incite them to accept
overtures from our enemies, and then we may indeed become prov
inces ! If we can withstand the tyrant of Britain without allies, we
can incontestably better withstand him with an ally that has ever
commanded a very complacent behavior from him. This ally can
wish for nothing more than such a share of our commerce as shall
be convenient to both parties ; and as that must be rather a gain
than a loss to us, we must be stupid beyond conception to delay the
measure.
" Circumstances have strangely co-operated to open scenes no hu
man foresight could have viewed in their full latitude. And what
is there now wanting to complete the triumph of the friends of hu
man nature, but a little fortitude, patience, and perseverance ? All
Europe must allow that, while America was in the greatest good
humor with her old mother, a scheme was laid to keep up a large
standing army in her capital towns, and to tax her at pleasure for
the support of it. They see that, from time to time, the most frau
dulent and violent measures have been taken to support their en
tirely unprecedented claim, till at last, drained of their national
troops, they have applied for assistance to other nations. By the
law of nations we were discharged from our allegiance the moment
the army was posted among us, or a single farthing taken from
us in like manner ; either of these being fundamental subversions
of the Constitution. It remains, then, entirely with ourselves to
hare ample justice done to us. We have nothing to do but to de
clare off, and appeal to the droit des gens. A very respectable
power has given us as unequivocal proofs as can be wished of her
disposition to right us.
" I will venture to affirm that our ambitious master at length be
gins to fear, in good earnest, that the string drawn too tight will
break, and leave all his Colonies to make new bargains for them
selves. Obstinate and mulish as he is, he cannot longer persuade
380 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
himself that two such potent communities as France and North
America will neglect such an opportunity to pay themselves the
prodigious sums he has damaged them in the two past years."
Boston had lately been evacuated by the British troops.
Samuel Adams, in his letters to his friends in Massachusetts,
warns them against the possibility of the return of the
enemy in the summer, and urges a defence of the whole
New England sea-coast. It was with anxious interest that
he learned the particulars of the event and the condition
of his family. During the tedious months that the siege of
Boston had continued, his residence in Purchase Street was
occupied by royal officers, who had wantonly mutilated the
interior, destroyed the outhouses, and, with spiteful hatred
of the proprietor, had cut into the window-panes obscene
and blasphemous writings, some of them ridiculing his
religious habits. Caricatures were displayed upon the walls,
and the garden was completely ruined. On entering the
house after the departure of its late occupants, a firebrand
was found on the floor, perhaps fallen there from the fire
place accidentally, as no intention is known to have been
entertained by the enemy of burning the town. The family
returned, with the design of occupying the house, soon
after the departure of the British, but they found the prem
ises uninhabitable. Many windows were broken out, doors
unhinged and burned for fuel, and every species of wanton
destruction was visible. Mr. Adams was never pecuniarily
able thereafter to repair the ravages of these Vandals, and
the family went to live in Dedbam, where they resided
until 1778.
It was in this month that Samuel Adams had the misfor
tune to lose his esteemed friend Governor Ward, now a
member of the Rhode Island delegation, who died at Phila
delphia on the 26th. America in that death lost an able
advocate and one of the most earnest supporters of a vigor
ous policy. He was particularly intimate with Samuel Ad
ams and Richard Henry Lee ; and this trio were obnoxious
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 381
to a party headed by Hancock, and counting among their
number Harrison, Duane, and Dickinson, who, it would
seem by John Adams s brief reminiscence, were adversaries
of these gentlemen ; and the narrator himself did not escape
" their jealousy and malignity." Hopkins and Walcott of
Rhode Island, and Samuel Adams were appointed a com
mittee to superintend the funeral, which was attended by
Congress, the Committee of Safety of Pennsylvania, and
other public bodies of Philadelphia, who were invited by the
committee.
John Adams, recalling in after years this animosity be
tween Hancock and his party and the Adamses, Ward, and
Lee, stated that his kinsman had become very bitter against
Hancock, and spoke of him with great asperity in private
circles, but gives no explanation of the cause. Hancock,
like several others of the distinguished characters of the
Revolution, had been brought forward by Samuel Adams,
whose mission seems to have been, not only to hasten Amer
ican independence, but to push into prominence the in
struments to aid in the great work. Gordon, describing
Hancock s first step in public life, says in his History, for
which he gathered the materials during the Revolution, and
while moving among the multitudes who enacted it :
" When the choice of members for Boston to represent the town
in the next General Court was approaching [in the spring of 176G],
Mr. John Rowe, a merchant who had been active on the side of lib
erty in matters of trade, was thought of by some influential persons.
Mr. Samuel Adams artfully nominated a different one, by asking,
with his eyes looking to Mr. Hancock s house, Is there not
another John that may do better? The hint took. Mr. John
Hancock s uncle was dead, and had left him a very considerable
fortune. Mr. Samuel Adams judged that the fortune would give
credit and support to the cause of liberty, that popularity would
please the possessor, and that he might be easily secured by pru
dent management, and might make a conspicuous figure in the band
of patriots." l
1 Gordon, I. 207.
382 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
The same inference is drawn from the reminiscence of
John Adams, in which he narrates the outlines of a conver
sation between himself and Samuel Adams on the day of this
election, when the latter pointed with peculiar meaning to
the house whose owner had been enlisted with his fortune
in the public cause. 1 Hancock proved a very untrustworthy
recruit, and we have already seen the difficulties which Ad
ams experienced in contending with his wayward but dan
gerous opposition. The contemporary evidence of this has
already been given in the years prior to the Revolution, and
the facts were perfectly well known to many who survived
that event into the present century. The private, confiden
tial correspondence of Hutchinson with the Ministry places
the point beyond dispute. The historian Allen, who person
ally knew most of the prominent New England statesmen of
the Revolution, and whose father himself was a contemporary
worker with them in the public councils of Rhode- Island,
says of the relative positions of Adams and Hancock and
the placing of the latter in the Presidential chair of Con
gress:
"Mr. Hancock was certainly not the man upon whom the un
biassed voice of Congress would have fallen. He had been early
enlisted in the cause of the people by the superior discernment
of Mr. Samuel Adams, who foresaw that his large fortune would
add respectability to the little band of patriots. His manners
were agreeable and his address prepossessing; but he had neither
talents nor solidity sufficient to direct any affair of importance.
Under the wing of Mr. Adams, he had acquired considerable pop
ularity, the love of which, more than attachment to the great prin
ciples of opposition to the ministerial measures, had secured him
against an acquiescence in the artful propositions of Governor
Hutchinson, with whom he continued to be too intimate until the
departure of that officer for England." 2
Elevated by the agency of the Adamses to the Presiden-
1 John Adams s Works, X. 260.
2 Allen s American Revolution, I. 253.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS.
tial chair, Hancock now enjoyed the opportunity of display
and of courting popularity, which had always been his dis
tinguishing trait. His patriotism was not doubted, for he
had already signified his willingness for the destruction of
his native town, where he was the most considerable propri
etor, if the public welfare demanded the act : but beyond
the duties of President, involving much correspondence,
which was mainly performed by a secretary, Hancock was
not the promoter of any of the successive steps which led to
independence. He was capable of noble sentiments, and
his profuse generosity was only limited by his means. Pe
cuniarily, no man in the Revolution sacrificed so much.
His courteous address and elegant equipage, added to the
ostentation which wealth enabled him to exercise, made his
influence very powerful. Proscribed with Samuel Adams,
his name conveyed an idea of importance, which attached
more to his social and political position than to the exertion
of any statesmanlike abilities. Gordon, who personally wit
nessed his manner of living, says of him :
" When Mr. Hancock was first elected, in consequence of Mr.
Peyton Randolph s being under a necessity of returning to Vir
ginia, it was expected that, as soon as the latter repaired again to
Congress, the former would resign. Of this lie was reminded by
one of his Massachusetts brethren when Mr. Randolph got back ;
but the charms of Presidency made him deaf to the private advice
of his colleagues, and no one could, with propriety, move for his
removal that the other might be restored. In the early stage of his
Presidency he acted upon republican principles, but afterwards he
inclined to the aristocracy of the New York delegates, connected
himself with them, and became their favorite. He at length fell in
so fully with their plans that a Rhode Island delegate lectured him
upon it, and told him that he had forgotten the errand on which he
was sent to Congress, and advised him to return to his constituents.
This versatility in political sentiments, though it chagrined, did not
surprise his Massachusetts brethren ; for they remembered that, at
a certain period, he was upon the point of joining the Tory Club at
Boston (as it was called), whereby he alarmed the Liberty party
384 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
most amazingly, and obliged them to exert all their influence to
prevent so dangerous and mortifying an event." 1
The present coldness had probably commenced soon after
the reassembling of Congress in September of the past year.
It was not long before the fact became noised abroad, and
was industriously circulated with exaggerations by the To
ries, one of whom gravely published " intelligence of great
credibility," which had lately arrived in Massachusetts from
Philadelphia, that Adams had made a motion in Congress
for the expulsion of Hancock for holding principles incom
patible with independency. 2 Still another Loyalist writer
says :
" An irreconcilable difference has certainly taken place between
those eminent worthies, John Hancock and Samuel Adams, Esquires.
Fortune, in one of her highest frolics, elevated those malignant stars
to the zenith of power. The baleful influence of their conjunction
in the western political hemisphere has produced direful effects ;
but when the lunacy of the former is separated from the villanies
of the latter, the deluge of destruction, that was certainly, though
slowly, rolling after them, will rapidly come on and overwhelm
them and their infatuated votaries in prodigious ruin." 3
Gordon s statement does not differ materially from that of
other contemporary writers, and it is not surprising that
Samuel Adams should at last have found the conduct of his
colleague beyond his patience to bear, especially at a time
when it jeopardized alarmingly the inestimable prize now
almost in their grasp. A flash of this mortification is
seen in the confidential letter to James Warren, already
given ; and it is probably to Samuel Adams that Gordon
refers as the colleague who expostulated with Hancock on
some occasion when his course excited more attention and
was of more hurtful influence than usual. Perhaps Gov
ernor Ward was the Rhode Island delegate mentioned by
1 Gordon, III. 20, 21.
2 " Caesar," in the Middlesex Gazette, Dec. 26.
8 New Jersey Gazette, Jan. 14, 1776 (Moore s Diary of the Revolution, IE. 7).
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 385
the historian, for John Adams speaks of him as one of those
who were particularly disliked by Hancock. Gordon s ac
count agrees with that of the celebrated " Laco," in 1789.
Though he wrote at a period of remarkable political agita
tion in Massachusetts, and entertained a settled animosity
to Hancock, there is evidence of truth in those bold and
able essays, which made them all the more obnoxious to the
party against which they were levelled. " Laco " is now
admitted to have been Stephen Higginson, a gentleman of
high social and political reputation, and for some time a
colleague of Elbridge Gerry in Congress. He had been in
timately acquainted with the career of Hancock from his
first entrance into public life, and he freely discusses his
political course, particularly in the present memorable Con
gress.
" Let us now see what part he acted as a member of Congress,
and how far he contributed to effect our national independence.
"Mr. Hancock was happy in having for his colleagues men
fiamous for their ability, their virtues, and their patriotism, men
who were capable of extensive views and actions, and who were
resolved for political purposes to support him and make him con
spicuous. They accordingly obtained his appointment to the chair
of Congress. But, being elevated to the highest point through
tHeir agency, he thought them no longer necessary to this impor
tance, and from the vanity and caprice inherent in his nature, he
attached himself to the Tories who were then in Congress. These
men had perceived his love of flattery; they plied him closely and
grossly, and they detached him from his colleagues, and led him to
take a part in direct opposition to them and to the feelings and
interests of his constituents. In all questions for decisive measures
against Britain he hung back, and very much contributed to obstruct
the declaration of independence. The glare of Southern manners
and the parade of courtly living engaged his affections, and he ever
appeared to contemn the manly simplicity and firmness of the dele
gates from New England. Thus was a member of Massachusetts
duped by the insidious Tories ; he was urged by them who, by
assiduous attentions, led his vanity to give up the best interests of
VOL. ii. 25
386 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [March,
America, and to hazard even our independence itself, to increase his
own popularity, or rather to gain new admirers.
" When the important hour arrived that was to give birth to our
country as a nation ; when the pulse of his colleagues, as well as a
majority of Congress and of the people at large, beat high for inde
pendence, and it was found the important question could no longer
be put off, Mr. Hancock then gave a vote in favor of the measure,
and put his official signature to that memorable act of Congress, the
Declaration of Independence." *
" Laco " was actuated, it is true, by political hostility
to Hancock, but he manifestly wrote from an acquaintance
with facts known to many persons of that day, and in bold
opposition to a fond party feeling which was disposed to
cover up Hancock s failings. He challenges contradiction.
" I shall not," says be, " on the one band fear to animadvert
freely, nor on the other lose sigbt of decency and candor " ;
and in the series of essays which, in that political campaign,
were never successfully answered, save in a general way,
" Laco " pursued his inquiries, and fairly showed that Amer
ican independence was due to no line of policy or original
idea of John Hancock. Almost as much is said, indeed, by
John Adams in his Autobiography, where he describes the
opposition of Hancock to the New England policy, and his
affiliation with gentlemen of the opposite party. This has
already been alluded to, but, in the same connection, the
writer again says, touching the enmity shown to Richard
Henry Lee :
"Mr. Samuel Adams and myself were very intimate with Mr.
Lee, and he agreed perfectly with us in the great system of our
policy, and by his means we kept a majority of the delegates of
Virginia with us. But Harrison, Pendleton, and some others
showed their jealousy of this intimacy plainly enough at times.
Harrison consequently courted Mr. Hancock and some other of our
colleagues, but we had now a majority, and gave ourselves no
trouble about their little intrigues." 2
1 Boston Independent Chronicle, Feb. 21, 1789.
2 John Adams s Works, III. 32, 35.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 387
These remarks, which confirm the accounts of Gordon
and " Laco," have special reference to the favor shown by
the persons mentioned to the crafty and dangerous scheme
of Lord Drummond, who desired to obtain delay, and conse
quently to insure the defeat of the threatened independence
by an unauthorized suggestion to Congress to send a depu
tation to England for " liberal terms founded in equity and
candor." John Adams also, in the following year, makes
particular mention of the guard of light horse accompanying
Hancock in his movements, who excited the enmity of the
innkeepers along their route by refusing to pay for their
entertainment. 1 Whatever may have been the motives of
Hancock in this display, so entirely at variance with the
character and institutions of his native Province, there can
be no doubt that the statements of Gordon and " Laco,"
supported as they were by the additional contemporary
evidence of John Adams, are perfectly reliable. Posterity,
therefore, will scarcely wonder at differences between two
such characters. But while, as will be hereafter shown,
Samuel Adams observed a dignified silence respecting a
subject the discussion of which could only injure the public
interests, Hancock, with studied malignity, frequently as
persed his colleague, and did not scruple to misrepresent
him on important questions. The vacillations of Hancock
had already jeopardized the cause, and his vanity and peev
ishness had once before produced an alienation between
himself and Adams, of nearly two years duration, at a time
peculiarly critical to America, when her sons were settling
the original principles which should guide their future
action. These episodes of hostility might occur at any time
in dealing with a person of Hancock s irritable disposition.
Adams, who thoroughly knew himself, never alluded to
them, unless when approached on the subject by others.
1 John Adams s Works, II. 441.
CHAPTER XL.
Opinions of Adams on the War, His Extensive Correspondence. Impa
tience at the continued Delay of Independence. His Letters in Favor of
a Declaration. Scorns the Idea of Royal Peace Commissioners. Advo
cates a Formal Eenunciation of British Authority by each Colony. The
Medical Committee.
THE military operations in Virginia and the Carolinas,
where the descent of Clinton and the defeat of the Loyalists
at Moore s Creek Bridge had invested the Southern war
with rising importance, engaged the attention of Congress
early in March. Samuel Adams was appointed on a com
mittee with Johnson, Jay, Sergeant, and Sherman, 1 to " take
into consideration the state of the Colonies in the Southern
Department." General Lee was in Philadelphia while the
Committee were deliberating upon this subject, and soon
after the appointment he was directed by Congress to repair
immediately to the Southern Department and take command
of the forces there. On the 25th, the committee laid before
Congress the condition of the Continental army in Virginia
and South Carolina. They represented the probability of
an early attack upon the Southern Colonies in the spring,
and the laborious and expensive duties which had thus far
devolved upon that section. On their motion, Congress
authorized the raising of two additional battalions by the
Committee of Safety of South Carolina at the expense of the
continent. The Colonial battalions of Virginia were placed
on the same footing, and additional muster-masters were
appointed. 2 During the next week after this report was
submitted, and while its suggestions were actively carried
out, Samuel Adams wrote to one of his correspondents in
Boston :
1 Journals of Congress, March 9, 1776. a Id., March 25, 1776.
March, 1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 389
" Notwithstanding shame and confusion attended the measures of
the British Court the last summer and fall, yet, by the latest
accounts received from our friends in that country, it appears that
they are determined to persevere. They then reckoned (in Decem
ber) upon having twenty thousand troops in America the next
campaign. Their estimate was thus : six thousand in Boston, seven
thousand to go from Ireland, three thousand Highlanders raising
under General Fraser, and the rest to be recruits. Of the seven
thousand from Ireland, we are told that three thousand were to sail
for Virginia and North Carolina, and were expected to be on the
coast in March or the beginning of April. It is probable, then, that
the Ministry have not quitted the plan which they had agreed upon
above a twelvemonth ago, which was to take possession of New
York, make themselves masters of Hudson River and the lakes,
thereby securing Canada and the Indians, cut off communication
between the Colonies northward and southward of Hudson s River,
and thus to subdue the former in hopes of instigating the negroes to
make the others an easy prey. Our success, a great part of which
they had not then heard of, it is to be hoped has rendered this plan
impracticable ; yet it is probable that the main body of these troops
is designed to carry it into execution, while the reserve are to make
a diversion in the Southern Colonies. These Colonies, I think, are
sufficiently provided for. Our safety very much depends upon our
vigilance and success in New York and Canada. Our enemies did
not neglect Hudson s River the last year. We know that one of
their transports arrived at New York ; but Gage, seized with a
panic, ordered that and the other transports destined for that place
to Boston. I have ever thought it to be their favorite plan, not
only because it appeared to me to be dictated by sound policy, but
because, from good intelligence which I received from England,
they revived it after it had been broken in upon by Gage, and sent
Tryon to New York to remove every obstacle in the way of landing
the troops there, and to co-operate with Carlton in the execution
of it.
" The King s troops have now abandoned Boston, on which I
sincerely congratulate you. We have not yet heard what course
they have steered. I judge, for Halifax. They may return if they
hear that you are off your guard ; or probably they may go up the St.
Lawrence River as early as the season will admit of it. Does it not
890 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
behoove New England to secure herself from future invasions while
the attention of Congress is turned to New York and Canada ?
We seem to have the game in our own hands. If we do not play it
well, misfortune will be the effect of our negligence and folly." l
General Lee, on assuming command of the Southern
Department, with his characteristic anxiety in matters of
personal profit, soon managed to make himself the subject
of correspondence between the members; and, during the
summer, J. Rutledge wrote to Samuel Adams and Hopkins
in relation to the bill for the indemnification of the General,
which had already passed Congress. 2 Rutledge urged them
to make Lee more certain that he would be cared for pecu
niarily, and doubtless both Adams and Hopkins endeavored
to secure the services of an officer then considered indis
pensable to the cause.
Nearly all the letters and general business relating to the
war in the North were referred to committees of which Ad
ams was a member. It is to be deplored that the secretary
has given only a brief mention of the circumstances attend
ing the appointment of many committees. Samuel Adams
was always accounted a marvel of industry, especially on
committees in public bodies. He worked incessantly, often
denying himself necessary rest, and taking, as usual, the
lead in the preparation of reports, the writing of letters, and
general affairs where intense labor was required.
The writings of Adams in the press, urging a declaration
of independence and a confederation of the Colonies, or
rather " States," as he had now accustomed himself to speak
of them, and an alliance with France, strongly as they
advocate these points, are not more eloquently worded than
his letters to his confidential friends. Correspondence and
public essays alike tend to one point, a persistent contest
with the weak, dilatory opponents of every act which might
stand in the way of reconciliation. Hundreds of his letters,
1 Samuel Adams to Samuel Cooper, April 3, 1776.
8 Moore s Treason of General Lee, p. 33.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 391
which had been preserved even after the commencement of
the present century, were lost or submitted to improper
hands and never returned. Large quantities he himself
put out of existence, with a generous consideration for the
safety of others. John Adams says, many years after the
death of his kinsman :
" The letters he wrote and received, where are they ? I have
seen him at Mrs. Yard s, in Philadelphia, when he was about to
leave Congress, cut up with his scissors whole bundles of letters in
atoms that could never be reunited, and throw them out of the win
dow to be scattered by the winds. This was in summer, when he
had no fire. As we were on terms of perfect intimacy, I have joked
him, perhaps rudely, upon his anxious caution. His answer was,
Whatever becomes of me, my friends shall never suffer by my
negligence. " l
He cared nothing for the credit of having originated im
portant measures, and regarded with indifference the pres
ervation of any memorials with which in the future to
emblazon his name. Such men, though not insensible to
an honorable fame, possess the true test of greatness, which
can calmly await the award of succeeding generations, on
whose fiat they may rely when the questions of their own
days have, like themselves, become subjects for history. But
the benefactor of his race may be insensible to fame, while
pursuing his grand aim, and yet not feel an unworthy disre
gard for the opinion of posterity, for whose happiness he has
labored. It is, however, that very forgetfulness of self which
enables the reformer or leader to concentrate his efforts upon
one object. The greatest works of genius have been those on
which their authors wrought from an innate love or reverence
for the subject, rather than for the reputation to be gained ;
and posterity perpetuates longest those achievements which
spring, not from a desire to secure its attention, but to
carry out a great and worthy purpose. They are not the
1 John Adams to William Tudor, June 5, 1817.
892 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
surest of being remembered by the rest of the world who
think the most of themselves. The papers of many cel
ebrated men contain letters which prudence or a regard
for the reputation of the writer renders it expedient to
suppress ; but among all those written by Samuel Adams,
which have been gathered from every source, there is not
one which cannot be held up to the full light of day, and
its motives laid open to scrutiny. The reason is obvious.
He never committed to paper what his sense of justice and
propriety did not indorse. His opinions on all the great
subjects which occurred in his lifetime will be found con
sistently and boldly expressed. Some of his letters to his
friends, written in 1776, a few months previous to the Dec
laration of Independence, have been recovered, and, now
arranged in their proper places, will serve to illustrate the
tenor of the whole, and the character of the patriot who
could ill brook the vexatious policy which delayed the consum
mation of the grand object of his life. The royal commis
sioners to be appointed by the Ministry to restore peace were
regarded by many as certain to heal the bleeding wounds
of America ; but the British statesmen who claimed unlim
ited power over the Colonies failed to comprehend the vital
point of justice in the demands of the people for equal gov
ernment ; and the hope of peace through such envoys was
founded upon no sound principles. Samuel Adams was
among those who saw through the flimsy veil, and he open
ly denounced the scheme and its inevitable results. He
thought it an additional reason for urging an immediate
separation from Britain, for it confirmed him all the more in
his opinion of the relentless determination of the Crown and
Ministry to subjugate the Colonies. Several of his friends
in Massachusetts, occupying less conspicuous positions, were
equally desirous of independence, and with such he appears
most frequently to have corresponded. Joseph Hawley,
jealous for his country s redemption, wrote to Adams from
Watertown, urging " an immediate, explicit, and the firm-
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS.
est confederation and proclamation of independence," and
James Warren was no less solicitous. He writes to his
" dear friend," the Rev. Dr. Cooper :
" The British Court solicited the assistance of Russia ; but we are
informed they failed of it through the interposition of France, by
means of Sweden. The ostensible reason on the part of Russia
was, that there was no cartel settled between Great Britain and
America ; the want of which will make every power reluctant at
lending them troops. France is attentive to this struggle, and
wishes for a separation of the two countries. I am in no doubt
that she would, with cheerfulness, openly lend her aid to promote it,
if America would declare herself free and independent ; for I think
it easy to see what great, though different effects, it would have in
both those nations. Britain would have it no longer in her power
to oppress.
" Is not America already independent ? Why, then, not declare
it ? Upon whom was she ever supposed to be dependent but upon
that nation whose barbarous usage of her, and that in multiplied
instances and for a long time, has rendered it absurd ever to put
confidence in it, and with which she is at this time in open war?
Can nations at war be said to be dependent either upon the other?
I ask you again, why not declare for independence ? Because, say
some, it will forever shut the door of reconciliation. Upon what
terms will Britain be reconciled to America? If we may take
the confiscating act of Parliament, or the King s proclamation for
our rule to judge by, she will be reconciled upon our abjectly sub
mitting to tyranny, and asking and receiving pardon for submitting
to it. Will this redound to the honor or safety of America ? Sure
ly, no. By such a reconciliation, she would not only be in the most
shameful manner acknowledging the tyranny, but most wickedly,
as far as would be in her power, prevent her posterity from ever
hereafter resisting it." l
It is evident from this letter that Adams had accustomed
himself to regard the Colonies as a separate nation, at war
with Great Britain. The patriot divine to whom he wrote
fully acquiesced in these sentiments, as did thousands in
1 Samuel Adams to Samuel Cooper, April 3, 1776.
394 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
New England, who anxiously awaited the movements of
Congress.
"The people here," replied Dr. Cooper, "almost universally
agree with you in your political sentiments. They say that names
do not alter things : that the moment we determined to defend our
selves against the most injurious violence of Britain, we declared for
independence ; i. e. like any free people attacked, we would either
be totally subdued or be at liberty to make our own terms." l
Replying to this letter, Mr. Adams says :
" The idea of independence spreads far and wide among the Colo
nies. Many of the leading men see the absurdity of supposing that
allegiance is due to a sovereign who has already thrown us out of
his protection. South Carolina has lately assumed a new govern
ment. The convention of North Carolina has unanimously agreed
to do the same, and appointed a committee to prepare and lay
before them a proper form. They have also revoked certain in
structions which tied the hands of their delegates here. Virginia,
whose Convention is to meet on the 3d of next month, will follow
the lead. The body of the people of Maryland are firm. Some of
the principal members of their Convention, I am inclined to believe,
are timid or lukewarm ; but an occurrence has lately fallen out in
that Colony, which will probably give an agreeable turn to their
affairs. Of this I will inform you at a future time, when I may be
more particularly instructed concerning it. 2 The lower counties in
Delaware are a small people, but well affected in the common
cause.
" In this popular and wealthy Colony political parties run high.
The newspapers are full of the matter, but I think I may assure
you that Common Sense prevails among the people. A law has
lately passed in the Assembly here for increasing the number of
Representatives, and to-morrow they are to come to a choice in this
1 Dr. Cooper to Samuel Adams, Waltham, April 18, 1776. .
2 This may have related to the treason of Dr. Zubley, one of the Georgia
delegates, whose secret correspondence with the Governor of that Province was
announced to Congress by Mr. Chase, which is supposed to have induced
Maryland to rescind its restrictions upon its delegates, leaving them to exer
cise their own judgment on the question of independence.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 395
city and divers of the counties. By this means, it is said, the repre
sentation of the Colony will be more equal. I am told that a very-
popular gentleman, who is a candidate for one of the back counties,
has been in danger of losing his election, because it was reported
among the electors that he had declared his mind in this city against
independence. I know the political creed of that gentleman. It is,
so far as relates to a right of the British Parliament to make laws
binding the Colonies in any case whatever, exactly correspondent
with your own. I mention this anecdote to give you an idea of
the jealousy of the people and their attention to this point. The
Jerseys are agitating the great question. It is with them rather a
matter of prudence, whether to determine till some others have done
it before them. A gentleman of that Colony tells me that at least
one half of them have New England blood running in their veins.
Be this as it may, their sentiments and manners are, I believe, sim
ilar to those of New England. I forbear to say anything of New
York, for I confess I am not able to form any opinion of them. I
lately received a letter from a friend in that Colony, informing me
that they would soon come to the expediency of taking up govern
ment ; but to me, it is uncertain what they will do. I think they
are at least as unenlightened in the nature and importance of our
political disputes as any one of the United Colonies. I have not
mentioned our little sister Georgia, but I believe she is as warmly
engaged in the cause as any of us, and will do as much as can be
reasonably expected of her.
" I was very solicitous last fall to have government set up by the
people in every Colony. It appeared to me necessary for many
reasons. When this is done, and I am inclined to think it will be
soon, the Colonies will feel their independence, the way will be
prepared for a confederation, and one government may be prepared
with the consent of the whole, a distinct state composed of all the
Colonies, with a common Legislature for great and general pur
poses. This I was in hopes would have been the work of the last
winter. I am disappointed, but I bear it tolerably well. I am dis
posed to believe that everything is ordered for the best ; and if I do
not find myself chargeable with neglect, I am not greatly chagrined
when things do not go exactly according to my mind. Indeed, I
have the happiness of believing that what I most earnestly wish for
will in due time be effected. We cannot make events : our busi-
396 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
ness is wisely to improve them. There has been much to do to
confirm doubting friends and to fortify the timid. It requires time
to bring honest men to think and determine alike, even in unimpor
tant matters. Mankind are governed more by their feelings than
by reason. Events which excite those feelings will produce won
derful events. The Boston Port Bill suddenly wrought an union
of the Colonies which could not be brought about by the industry
of years in reasoning on the necessity of it for the common safety.
Since the memorable 19th of June, one event has brought another
on, till Boston sees her deliverance from the more than savage
troops, upon which the execrable tyrant so much relied for the com
pletion of his horrid conspiracies, and America has furnished herself
with more than seventy battalions for her defence. The burning
of Norfolk and the hostilities committed in North Carolina have
kindled the resentment of our Southern brethren, who once thought
their Eastern friends hot-headed and rash. Now, indeed, the tone
is altered, and it is said the coolness and moderation of the one
is necessary to allay the heat of the other. There is a reason
that would induce one even to wish for the speedy arrival of the
British troops that are expected at the Southward. I think our
friends are well prepared for them, and one battle would do more
towards a declaration of independence than a long chain of con
clusive arguments in a Provincial Convention or the Continental
Congress." l
Another letter written in this month, in answer to that
received from Joseph Hawley urging on to independence, is
a remarkable specimen of the sententious and peculiarly
direct way which Adams generally adopted when impress
ing his own ideas upon others. The difficulties constantly
thrown in the way of independence, the combinations against
the more resolute of the New England members by some of
their own delegates, as well as by others from the Middle
States, and the persistent arguments in favor of conciliation
with a power bent upon the destruction of liberty, demanded
all the patience of Samuel Adams to meet and dispel. Even
by some of the chief members of Congress, the idea of inde-
1 Samuel Adams to Samuel Cooper, April 30, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 397
pendence was continually put aside, and the illusory hope
of redress fondly indulged. While Samuel Adams, with the
faith of prophecy, had been cherishing the idea, and magni
fying its importance as the Revolution advanced, John
Adams and Jefferson, up to the last moment, turned away
from the attempt, except as a final resort to preserve their
liberties. Franklin, when he parted with Burke on his last
day in London, looked forward to independence as a lament
able event which gave him the greatest concern. Washing
ton, during the first Congress, denied that it was the wish
or interest of the Colonies, " separately or collectively, to
set up for independence" ; and up to the time of his appoint
ment as Commander-in-Chief he was desirous of the resto
ration of peace on an honorable basis. After the battle of
Lexington, Joseph Warren desired reconciliation founded
upon the maintenence of Colonial rights. " This," said he,
" I most heartily wish, as I feel a warm affection for the
parent state." l These are only a few of the instances
among the principal men of the times. Samuel Adams
alone saw the promised land, and he was ready to cross the
border long in advance of his fellow-members. His argu
ments, as expressed in his letters, were probably the outline
of those used in his conversations. His force of character
and consummate tact in studying human nature, gave him
a power of persuasion which some of his friends in the
Provincial and Continental Congress have mentioned as an
important agent in leading to the Declaration.
" I am perfectly satisfied," he says to Hawley, " with the reasons
you offer to show the necessity of a public and explicit declaration
of independence. I cannot conceive what good reason can be as
signed against it. Will it widen the breach? This would be a
strange question after we have raised armies and fought battles with
British troops ; set up an American navy ; permitted the inhabitants
of these Colonies to fit out armed vessels to capture the ships, &c.,
1 Sparks s Washington, I. 121. Bancroft, VH. 263, 301, 341, 376; VIII.
161.
398 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April,
belonging to any of the inhabitants of Great Britain, declaring
them the enemies of the United Colonies ; and torn into shivers their
acts of trade, by allowing commerce subject to regulations to be
made by ourselves with the people of all countries, except such as
are subject to the British King. It cannot surely, after all this,
be imagined that we consider ourselves, or mean to be considered
by others, in any other state than that of independence. But moder
ate Whigs are disgusted with our mentioning the word ! Sensible
Tories are better politicians. They knew that no foreign power
can consistently yield comfort to rebels, or enter into any kind of
treaty with these Colonies, till they declare themselves free and
independent. They are in hopes, by our protracting this decisive
step, we shall grow weary of the war, and that, for want of foreign
connections and assistance, we shall be driven to the necessity of
acknowledging the tyrant, and submitting to the tyranny. These
are the hopes and expectations of the Tories, while moderate gen
tlemen are flattering themselves with the prospect of reconciliation,
when the commissioners that are talked of shall arrive. A mere
amusement, indeed ! What terms of reconciliation are we to
expect from them that will be acceptable to the people of America ?
Will the King of Great Britain empower his commissioners even to
promise the repeal of all or any of his obnoxious and oppressive
acts ? Can he do it ? or if he could, has he ever yet discovered a
disposition which evinced the least degree of that princely virtue,
clemency ? "
Again, to James Warren he gives an idea of his every-day
arguments in favor of independence, and reveals his impa
tience of the continual opposition.
" I have not yet congratulated you on the unexpected and happy
change of our affairs, in the removal of the royal army from Bos
ton. Our worthy friend, Major H , in his letter to me, de
clines giving me joy on this occasion ; he thinks it best to put off
the ceremony till the Congress shall proclaim independency. In my
opinion, however, it becomes us to rejoice, and religiously to ac
knowledge the greatness of the Supreme Being who in this instance
hath signally appeared for us. Our countrymen are too wise to suf-
1 Samuel Adams to Joseph Hawley, April 15, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 399
fer this favorable event to put them off their guard. They will for
tify the harbor of Boston, still defend the sea-coast, and keep the
military spirit universally alive.
" I perfectly agree with the Major in his opinion of the necessity
of proclaiming independency. The salvation of this country de
pends upon its being done speedily. I am anxious to have it done.
We are told that commissioners are coming out to offer us such
terms of reconciliation as we may with safety accept of. Why,
then, should we shut the door? This is all amusement. I am
disgusted exceedingly when I hear it mentioned. Experience
should teach us to pay no regard to it. We know that it has been
the constant practice of the King and his junto, ever since the
struggle began, to endeavor to make us believe their designs were
pacific, while they have been meditating the most destructive plans ;
and they insult our understandings in endeavoring thus to impose
on us, even while they are putting those plans into execution. Can
the King repeal or dispense with acts of Parliament ? Would he
repeal the detestable acts which we have complained of, if it was in
his power ? Did he ever show a disposition to do acts of justice
and redress the grievances of his subjects ? Why, then, do gentle
men expect it ? They do not scruple to own he is a tyrant ! Are
they willing to be his slaves, and dependent upon a nation so lost to
all sense of liberty and virtue, as to enable and encourage him to
act the tyrant ? This has been done by the British nation against
the remonstrance of common honesty and common sense. They
are now doing it, and will continue to do it, until we break the
bonds of connection, and publicly avow independence. It is folly
for us to suffer ourselves any longer to be amused. Reconciliation
upon reasonable terms is no part of their plan. The only alterna
tive is independence or slavery. Their designs still are, as they
ever have been, to subjugate us ; our unalterable resolution should
be to be free. They have attempted to subdue us, but, God be
praised! in vain. Their arts may be more dangerous than their
arms. Let us, then, renounce all treaty with them upon any score
but that of total separation, and, under God, trust our cause to our
B words. One of our moderate, prudent Whigs would be startled at
what I now write-. I do not correspond with such kind of men.
You know I never over much-admired them. Their moderation
has brought us to this pass ; and if they were to be regarded, they
400 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [April, May,
would continue the conflict a century. There are such moderate
men here, but their principles are daily growing out of fashion.
The child Independence is now struggling for birth. I trust that
in a short time it will be brought forth, and, in spite of Pharaoh,
all America will hail the dignified stranger." l
These letters were written during the sitting of the Penn
sylvania Legislature, where the contest between the two
extreme parties continued, and Dickinson and his friends
were still enabled to check the popular movement. The
delegates for that Province in Congress had been again in
structed to reject any proposition which might lead to a
separation, 2 and the progress towards independence was
steadily opposed. But, on the same day that the Pennsyl
vania Assembly gave these instructions, the Continental
Congress itself succeeded in carrying the most important
point of the session. This was the report of the committee,
consisting of Harrison, Morris, Lynch, Samuel Adams, and
Sherman, on the regulations and restrictions of trade. By
the Autobiography of John Adams, it appears that this sub
ject, in which, after his return from Massachusetts, he took
an active part with the New England delegates, was post
poned from day to day by the efforts of the moderate party,
who feared the effects of the passage of the report in com
mittee of the whole. 3 The debates had extended through a
portion of March and April, when, on the 6th of this month,
the measure was triumphantly carried by which the thir
teen Colonies abolished British custom-houses, prohibited the
importation of slaves, and opened their ports to the com
merce of the world, excepting those under the dominion of
the King of Great Britain. 4 As a preliminary act of inde
pendence, this measure must have been cordially advocated
by Samuel Adams. It was in relation to this act that he
wrote to Hawley how the " United Colonies had torn into
1 Samuel Adams to James Warren, April 16, 1776.
2 Bancroft, VIII. 325. 8 John Adams s Works, HI. 29-39.
4 Journals of Congress, April 6, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 401
shivers the British acts of trade " ; and, if we may judge by
the fervor of his writings, his voice was not silent during the
debates on a subject so near to his heart.
On the 10th of May, Congress, after a discussion extend
ing through two days, passed the proposition drawn up by
John Adams, recommending the respective Assemblies and
Conventions of the United Colonies, where no government
sufficient to the exigencies of their affairs had been estab
lished, to adopt such government as should, in the opinion
of the representatives of the people, best conduce to the
happiness and safety of their constituents in particular and
America in general. John Adams soon after reported a
preamble to the resolution, which provided for the total
suppression of every kind of authority under the Crown, and
establishment of the powers of government under the author
ity of the people of the Colonies, for the defence of their lives,
liberties, and properties. 1 In the debate which ensued,
Samuel Adams appears as one of the supporters of the reso
lution. His letters, already quoted, show that he had been
personally urging this measure since the autumn of 1775 ;
but as usual, he was before his time. John Adams, who
has left on record the headings of the remarks of different
members in the present debate, writes for his kinsman : " Our
petitions have not been heard, yet answered with fleets and
armies, and are to be answered with myrmidons from abroad.
The gentleman from New York, Mr. Duane, has not objected
to the preamble ; but this, that he has not a right to vote
for it. We cannot go upon stronger reasons than that the
King has thrown us out of his protection. Why should we
support a government under his authority ? " 2 It was to
John Adams that this proposition and preamble and the
passage of both was due, and the measure was justly consid
ered a large stride toward the object now hoped for or
feared by the several parties in Congress.
1 Journals of Congress, May 10-14, 1776.
2 John Adams s Works, II. 490.
VOL. ii. 26
402 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [May,
A number of letters from military commanders were
referred, during the month of May, to committees of which
Samuel Adams was a member; and the recommendations,
as shown by the proceedings of Congress, involved some of
the most important movements of the war. In all these the
committees show a confident reliance upon the wisdom and
prudence of Washington, and great readiness to second his
advice. Jefferson, Wythe, Samuel Adams, and Rutledge
were about this time appointed to prepare " an animated
address, to impress the minds of the people with the neces
sity of now stepping forward to save their country, their
freedom, and prosperity." 1 Whatever was submitted by
this committee undoubtedly came from the pen of Jef
ferson, its chairman, who was so soon to present to the
world a document unrivalled in beauty of execution and
grandeur of sentiment. On the 8th of May a letter of the
5th, from General Washington, with accompanying papers,
was laid before Congress, and referred to Samuel Adams,
Wythe, Rodney, Richard Henry Lee, and Whipple. 2 Previ
ous to this time, some correspondence had passed between
Washington and Samuel Adams, in relation to the construc
tion of a military road from the Connecticut River to Mon
treal. Adams had recommended such a road, to which he
attached much Importance, in reference to future attacks
upon Canada ; and at the same time he reminded the Gen
eral of the defenceless condition of Boston, should the Brit
ish fleet think proper to return in the spring. 8 Washington
replied favorably to the plan, and wrote to Congress on the
subject, advocating the road as proposed by Colonel Jacob
Bailey, to whom he had advanced funds to commence the
work. The letter represented to Congress the deficiency
of arms throughout all the regiments in the North and East ;
1 Secret Journals of Congress, May 28, 1776.
2 Journals of Congress, May 8, 1776.
8 Samuel Adams to Washington, March 22, 1776. Washington to Adams,
May 15, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 403
and the committee, in their report, recommended the adop
tion of all Washington s suggestions.
In the previous month, a number of letters from Wash
ington and Schuyler on military matters of urgent impor
tance 1 were submitted to a committee consisting of Wythe,
Harrison, and Samuel Adams, 2 who soon after reported fully
on the subjects intrusted to them. 3 One of the resolutions
directed the Board of War to order sixty tons of cannon
powder and thirty-four tons of musket powder, to be imme
diately sent to General Schuyler for the use of the Northern
army, and the military operations of the General were cor
dially indorsed. The Massachusetts delegation, in a letter
to the President of the Council of that Province, signed by
every member, had already proposed plans for removing
some of the difficulties of which Washington had been com
plaining to Congress. 4
Samuel Adams was also a member of the Medical Com
mittee of Congress, as appears by a letter written to him in
June, by Dr. John Morgan, Director-General of the Ameri
can hospitals. The writer advocates, at great length and in
a circumstantial manner, a number of reforms and regula
tions, and in such a way as to disclose the leading influence
of Mr. Adams in the committee. The journals show occa
sionally the outlines of the proceedings of this body, which
was evidently much harassed for the means of supplying
the various camps with medicines. Letters from all quarters
were constantly arriving on this subject, and that of Dr.
Morgan gave the most discouraging accounts of disease and
death in the Northern army. " There is not," he says, " an
article of medicine in Canada in the hands of any surgeon
on that expedition." 6 Supplies, however, soon arrived, and
Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, V. 767 - 790.
Journals of Congress, April 15, 1776.
Force s American Archives, Fourth Series, V. 1684.
Ibid., col. 774.
Dr. John Morgan to the Hon. Samuel Adams, Esq., member of the Medi
cal Committee of Congress, June 25, 1776.
404 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June, 1776.
the committee is afterwards found dispensing what was re
quired among the several armies. Dr. Samuel Adams, hav
ing served some months in Massachusetts, had lately been
regularly appointed to one of the Northern regiments. His
skill and alacrity in the discharge of his duties, added to
an amiable disposition, were spoken of in the highest terms
by those who remembered him ; and these qualities won
for him many friends during the war. He was stationed
afterwards on the Hudson, where he had a long and sad
experience, not only in his attendance upon the sick and
wounded, but by his own hardships and privations, which
hastened his death in the prime of life. The letter of Dr.
Morgan to Mr. Adams, together with a memorial to Con
gress, setting forth the condition of the several hospitals, the
lack of medicines, and the necessity of immediate action by
Congress on the subject, was referred to a committee whose
names are not given. Congress, at their recommendation,
adopted a carefully prepared general order for the conduct
of the hospitals, the pay of the surgeons, whose number
was increased, the disbursements, and all matters pertain
ing to that department. But, as much dissatisfaction was ex
pressed at Dr. Morgan s management of the hospital affairs,
his conduct was examined by the Medical Committee, when,
upon their report in the following winter, he was discharged
from further service. He subsequently solicited an inquiry
into his conduct, when he was honorably acquitted by a
committee of Congress.
CHAPTER XLI.
Richard Henry Lee introduces Resolutions declaring the Colonies FEEE AND
INDEPENDENT STATES. Momentous Debates. Eloquence of John Ad
ams. Who were the other Speakers ? Samuel Adams as an Orator.
Contemporary Testimony of William Sullivan, Dr. Thacher, Elbridge
Gerry, Governor Hutchinson, John Adams, Judge Sullivan, Thomas Jef
ferson, and Others. Probability of his having taken the Floor in this
Debate. The Question postponed for Three Weeks. A Member from
each Colony appointed to draft ARTICLES OP CONFEDERATION. Samuel
Adams represents Massachusetts on the Committee. John Adams on the
Committee to prepare a Declaration of Independence. The Two should
have changed Places.
THE letters of Samuel Adams to his friends in Massachu
setts, stating that independence was gaining ground far and
wide in the Colonies, were every day verified. He saw that
early dawn was fast changing into the blaze of day. In
Pennsylvania, the moderate members of the Assembly, led
by Dickinson, whose influence had been all powerful, were
gradually giving way before the popular voice. Virginia
had, in May, instructed its delegates in Congress to propose
declaring independence. Under the influence of Chase,
u the Samuel Adams of Maryland," that Province was ready
to concur with the other Colonies, and everywhere the
strongest opposition was gradually sinking before the persist
ent efforts of the leading minds of the patriots. On the 5th
of June, Richard Henry Lee offered his celebrated resolu
tions, declaring the Colonies free and independent states,
dissolving all political connection between them and Great
Britain, recommending the forming of foreign alliances and a
plan of confederation. 1 On the 8th, Congress entered into
1 It might be imagined that the two friends had concerted that these mo
mentous resolutions should originate with the important and central Colony
of Virginia. Lee and Samuel Adams thought and acted together, and were,
in fact, almost inseparable in everything relating to public measures. The
406 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
the consideration of this resolve ; and thereupon ensued
the debate which, more than any other thus far, assisted to
brush aside the lingering prejudices against a separation.
The principal speakers on the side of the opposition were
Robert Livingston, Wilson, Dickinson, and Edward Rut-
ledge. 1 Of this most interesting discussion, not only the ar
guments, but, with a few exceptions, even the names of the
speakers are not known. John Adams defended the proposed
measure with the fervor of true eloquence. 2 But who were
the others ? Were Franklin, Samuel Adams, Sherman, Rich
ard Henry Lee, McKean, Wythe, and Gerry dumb, when
the greatest question ever submitted to men was pending ?
It must be that some, if not all of these, accustomed to
public debate, and thoroughly imbued with the subject,
encountered the adroit and earnest assailants of the reso
lutions. Not only these, but others must have been heard.
There was wanting the burning and impetuous eloquence
of one who was greater in oratory than them all ; but
Patrick Henry was lending his powerful aid to carry the
Virginia resolutions for independence and confederation.
With a genuine admiration of the spirit of New England,
he wrote to John Adams from Williamsburg, where the
Virginia Convention were about establishing a State gov
ernment :
"Our session will be very long, during which I cannot count
upon one coadjutor of talents equal to the task. Would to God
you and your Sam Adams were here ! It shall be my incessant
study so to form our portrait of government, that a kindred with
terms of the resolutions, too, are singularly in conformity with the words of
Samuel Adams (see Chap. XXXIX.), where he urges Congress to " declare off"
at once, and assume the position of an independent nation. " Declare inde
pendence immediately," he continues. " Issue a manifesto containing a full
view of our rights, our grievances, and the unwearied applications we have
made for their redress. Apply to the state of whose readiness and power to
assist us we have undoubted assurance," France. " Candidus," Philadelphia,
March, 1776.
1 Bancroft, VIII. 390. 2 Bancroft, VIII. 391.
177G.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 407
New England may be discerned in it ; and if all your excellences
cannot be preserved, yet I hope to retain so much, of the likeness,
that posterity shall pronounce us descended from the same stock.
I shall think perfection is obtained if we have your approbation. I
am forced to conclude, but first let me beg to be presented to my
ever esteemed S. Adams." 1
The debate on Lee s resolutions was a grappling of the
keenest intellects in America, each a character in himself
and distinguished in the political arena. The contest, which
continued from ten in the forenoon until seven in the even
ing, could not have been maintained exclusively by three
or four persons in an assemblage of more than fifty, where
each felt the vast issues at stake, home, family, property,
country, and life, and both parties called up their utmost
energies. Bancroft says, " the power of all New England,
Virginia, and Georgia was put forth " in support of the reso
lution, and " the debate was the most copious and the most
animated ever held on the subject." 2 This is all that is
now known. As far as the subject of these pages is par
ticularly concerned, he certainly must now have thrown his
weight into the scale of independence. How grand must
have been his reflections, as he saw the direct question at
last raised ; with what anxiety did he observe the steady
approaches towards the goal of his hopes. The desires of
a lifetime were concentrated in that debute, which, only ter
minating with nightfall on Saturday, was resumed on Mon
day, the 10th, when again the entire day was consumed in
the discussion. The child Independence was indeed strug
gling for birth, and, in spite of Pharaoh, all America would
soon hail the distinguished stranger.
In addressing a public assemblage, Samuel Adams never
essayed to inflame the passions of his hearers or work them
into a flush of enthusiasm. A degree of deliberation, which
marked his conversation on public affairs, and is a prevail-
1 Patrick Henry to J. Adams, May 20, 1776 (J. Adams s Works, IV. 202).
2 Bancroft, VIII. 391.
408 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
ing trait in his writings, characterized his speeches. To
highly wrought periods and burning declamation he never
aspired. He aimed at lucidity and condensation in thought
and phraseology. He could, however, throw all his vigor
of character into his subject, and, when the occasion re
quired, scathing sarcasm, such as sometimes appears in
his essays, was not wanting. Governor Hutchinson fre
quently alludes to the speeches of Samuel Adams between
the year of the Stamp Act and that of the first Congress.
We find him addressing a public meeting in Boston in
1769, and concluding his remarks with the startling excla
mation, " Independent we are, and independent we will be! "
--- intending, as addressed to his hearers, to apply to Parlia
ment, though Hutchinson asserts that, long before that early
period, Adams had advocated in his private conversations a
total independence of the Colonies. 1 His address to the
trembling Governor in 1770, the evening after the Boston
Massacre, " pressing the matter with great vehemence," 2 as
Hutchinson himself wrote, was an instance of the impressive
language of Adams when a great crisis required the exercise
of his power. John Adams, recalling that scene after a lapse
of forty-seven years, says :
" Thucydides, Livy, or Sallust would make a speech for him, or
perhaps the Italian Botta, if he had known anything of this transac
tion, one of the most important of the Revolution, but I am
wholly incapable of it ; and, if I had vanity enough to think myself
capable of it, should not dare to attempt it. In his common ap
pearance, he was a plain, simple, decent citizen of middling stature,
dress, and manners. He had an exquisite ear for music, and a
charming voice when he pleased to exert it. Yet his ordinary
speeches in town meetings, in the House of Representatives, and in
Congress, exhibited nothing extraordinary ; but upon great occa
sions, when his deeper feelings were excited, he erected himself, or
rather nature seemed to erect him, without the smallest symptom of
affectation, into an upright dignity of figure and gesture, and gave a
Hutchinson, III. 133, 264. 2 /& 2 76.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 409
harmony to his voice which made a strong impression on spectators
and auditors, the more lasting for the purity, correctness, and ner
vous elegance of his style." l
Every other contemporary witness, who has left anything
on record of his style of public address, says as much. It
was only on extraordinary occasions that his speeches were
remarkable, and then he fixed the deepest attention of his
audience. This " upright dignity of figure and gesture " is
remembered by another contemporary, who personally knew
Samuel Adams, and who alludes to his having been an
" energetic speaker." This writer thus describes him :
" He was of common size, of muscular form, light blue eyes, light
complexion, and erect in person. He wore a tie wig, cocked hat,
and red cloak. His manner was very serious. At the close of his
life, and probably from early times, he had a tremulous motion of
the head, which probably added to the solemnity of his eloquence,
as this was in some measure associated with his voice." 2
A characteristic of Samuel Adams s speaking, already
mentioned, was his fondness of occasionally illustrating his
subject by some pertinent anecdote. One who had often
heard him in public addresses has said that he did this in
his more familiar harangues in Faneuil Hall before the
Revolution, but in Congress his manner was more studied.
There he clothed the wisest conceptions in sound, unpre
tending language, using that peculiar unravelling power
which often goes further to convince the doubting and to
explain away the clouds of sophistry than the most exalted
flights of rhetoric or the most elegant diction. He generally
spoke neatly and concisely, but never rapidly. His utter
ance was distinct and emphatic, his voice not loud, but clear
and very pleasing in tone. Some of the other instances of
his public speaking are given by the royal Governors Ber
nard and Hutchinson, in their secret letters to the Ministry,
1 John Adams s Works, X. 250.
2 Sullivan s Familiar Letters, p. 142.
410 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
where Adams is denounced for inflaming the people after
the surrender of the Castle to the royal troops in 1770 ;
haranguing the judges in the same year, when they had
determined to put off the trial of Captain Preston, who com
manded at the Massacre ; in the Massachusetts Convention
of 1768 ; and at the town meeting, 1 where the Tories at
tempted to annihilate the Committee of Correspondence.
Bancroft points out the speeches of Samuel Adams at the
Old South in the great mass meetings preceding the Tea
Party. 2 The crown writers in Boston, too, in their attacks
upon Adams, often refer to the dangerous influence of his
public harangues. One speaks of his " mouthing it for
patriotism, and talking the people out of their understand
ings." Another says of him, " The first of these chiefs is
Adams, a sachem of vast elocution ; but, being extremely
poor, retails out syllables, sentences, and eulogiums to draw
in the multitude ; and it can be attested that what proceeds
from the mouth of Adams is sufficient to fill the mouths of
millions in America." 3 Even the lampooning effusions of
the " Hartford wits " may be taken as indications that Sam
uel Adams was no silent listener in public debates during
the Revolution. In the " Echo " appears a poem, written
in 1791, referring to the conduct of part of a recent Boston
town meeting, when his weak voice was drowned in the
uproar occasioned by his attempting to speak against the
toleration of the drama in Boston :
" Is his voice weak ? that dreadful voice we re told
Once made King George the Third, through fear, turn cold,
Europa s kingdoms to their centre shake,
When mighty Samuel bawled at Freedom s stake.* "
It is not improbable that the plain reasoning of Adams
contributed to carrying contested points, though not with
the eminent legal skill of John Adams, who, better versed
1 June 27 and 28, 1774. 2 Bancroft, VI. 478 -485; VII. 68, 69.
8 Dr. Thomas Bolton s Oration, Boston, March 15, 1775.
" * Otherwise called a liberty pole."
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 411
in law, was by far the most efficient debater on the floor of
Congress. Jefferson, writing nearly half a century after
wards, in relation to Samuel Adams, says :
" On the four particular articles of inquiry in your letter, respect
ing your grandfather, the venerable Samuel Adams, neither memory
nor memorandums enable me to give any information. I can say
that he was truly a great man, wise in council, fertile in resources,
immovable in his purposes, and had, I think, a greater share than
any other member in advising and directing our measures in the
Northern war. As a speaker he could not be compared with his
living colleague and namesake, whose deep conceptions, nervous
style, and undaunted firmness made him truly our bulwark in de
bate. But Mr. Samuel Adams, although not of fluent elocution,
was so rigorously logical, so clear in his views, abundant in good
sense, and master always of his subject, that he commanded the
most profound attention whenever he rose in an assembly by which
the froth of declamation was heard with the most sovereign con
tempt." l
One who wrote in Boston much earlier in the century,
immediately after the death of Samuel Adams, and when the
decease of the patriot revived memories among his few sur
viving fellow-actors in the drama of the Revolution, thus
speaks of his addresses in public bodies :
" In the Assemblies where the foundation of the American Revo
lution was formed, where principles and systems of government on
which the felicity and security of mankind depend were drawn into
discussion, his manly eloquence was never resisted with success;
his opponents were obliged to yield in silence, only hoping for a
change by the means of an army more favorable to their views.
His rhetoric was not a torrent of figurative language, but an im
pressive, sedate strain of reasoning, which could never fail to
awaken the interested or convince the unprejudiced hearer." 2
At the death of Samuel Adams, in 1803, the Rev. Thomas
1 Jefferson to Samuel Adams Wells, May 12, 1819.
2 James Sullivan s Biographic Sketch of Samuel Adams (Independent Chron
icle, Oct. 10, 1803).
412 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
Thacher, a frequent visitor at the bouse, and a sincere ad
mirer of his character, published a Discourse, in the prepar
ation of which he consulted such of the contemporary labors
of the patriarch as were within his reach. Most of the audi
ence had seen Adams, numbers of them had known him,
and few were there who had not been taught to regard him
as the " Father of the Revolution." Having sketched the
services of the late Governor in the earlier years of the
struggle, he turns to his Congressional career:
" The great qualities of his mind were more fully displayed in
proportion as the field for their exertion was extended. And the
records of that period will announce that the energy of his lan
guage was not inferior to the depth of his mind. It was an
eloquence admirably adapted to the age in which he flourished, and
exactly calculated to attain the object of his pursuit. It may well
be described in the language of the poet,
Thoughts which breathe, and words which burn ;
an eloquence not consisting of theatrical gesture or the pomp of
words; not that kind which hath been described as more con
cerned for the cadence of a period than the fall of a common
wealth ; but that which was a true picture of a heart glowing with
the sublime enthusiasm and ardor of patriotism ; an eloquence to
which, as before his fellow-citizens had listened with applause and
rapture, so afterwards senates heard with reverence and conviction,
an eloquence little inferior to the best models in antiquity for
simplicity, majesty, and persuasion." 1
These records made by men of the highest position in
society, and at a time when thousands of the contempora
ries of Samuel Adams were living, who had seen him in his
prime, not only indicate the general impression relative to
his abilities, but are positive proofs that he took part in
debates on great questions. "I have often heard," says
William Sullivan, in a manuscript letter, " some who were
coagents with Mr. Adams in the preparatory measures of
1 Thacher s Discourse, Dedham, Oct. 16, 1803.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 413
the Revolution, speak of his boldness, decision, and moving
eloquence with great admiration." Family tradition has
brought down the impression that Samuel Adams advocated
the Declaration on the floor of Congress. The man who
could send forth in his letters and essays, early in this year,
his solemn assertion that the only alternative was " inde
pendence or slavery " ; that all treaty with Britain, " upon
any other score than that of total separation," should be re
nounced ; urging his countrymen " under God to trust their
cause to their swords"; that the salvation of the country
depended " upon a speedy proclamation of independence " ;
that he was " disgusted when terms of reconciliation "
were entertained ; longing for " one battle " in the South
which might hurry on the Declaration and open negotiations
for an alliance with France ; and regarding with impatience
and scorn the timid, procrastinating members of Congress,
whom it was the part of prudence to conciliate and convince
by slow and insensible approaches, 1 this man was no quiet
spectator of the debate upon an issue which all admit he
had been first to raise and which for years had made a part
of his very existence. Independence was the subject ; and
the spirit which we have already exhibited in his letters and
public writings during this eventful year must now have
found some vent in language.
Elbridge Gerry, in a conversation with the daughter of
Samuel Adams (Mrs. Hannah Wells), a few years after the
death of his venerable friend, said emphatically that his re
membrance of his aid, during the discussions preceding the
Declaration of Independence, was perfectly clear, and that
the success of the measure was largely due to the " timely
remarks " of Samuel Adams ; that in one speech he occupied
an unusually long time, and that two or three wavering
members were finally convinced by the force of his reason
ing both in and out of Congress. Being questioned subse
quently, he was unable to recollect the substance of that
1 Letters of Samuel Adams in the winter and spring of 1776.
414 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
particular address, but observed that it struck him as being
the ablest effort he had ever heard from Adams. Time had
erased from the memory of the old statesman all but the
bare fact of the speech ; but it is easy to infer that an effort
which could thus remain engraved as a distinct occurrence
on the mind of the narrator must have been powerful in its
effects upon the listeners. Where now the most common
place words of every speaker in public assemblies are given
to the world by phonography and steam, how poignant is the
regret that even the names of some who sustained Amer
ican independence by intellectual combat on the floors of
Congress should be shrouded in doubt, while " the large
utterance " of others has passed hopelessly into oblivion.
The author of the Life of Jefferson says upon this subject,
referring particularly to the concluding debate during the
first two days of July : " If we presume what is hardly pre
sumable, that John Adams took the floor half a dozen times
during those days in a set speech, still there was room for
many others on the same side. Who were they ? We are
not aware that even tradition pretends to answer this ques
tion ; but conjecture can be at no loss at a part of them."
He then quotes Jefferson s remarks, already given, as to the
logical clearness and abundant good sense of Samuel Adams,
whenever he rose in Congress, and adds : " It is impossible to
doubt that the rigorous logic of the stern Palinurus to the
Revolution, the man who was usually content to guide,
and let others wear the ostensible trappings of command
and receive the laurels of victory, was heard in the mo
mentous debate on the 1st and 2d of July, and in all proba
bility in defence of the high and vigorous tone of the Dec
laration." 1 Whatever part Samuel Adams took in the
discussion, his reasoning, like that of others of greater pre
tensions to oratory, was not so highly wrought as that which
John Adams, the " main pillar in debate," 2 employed in the
final argument. The contemporary evidences of this are as
1 Randall s Life of Jefferson, I. 182. 2 Jefferson to Dr. Waterhouse.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 415
clear as are those of the preponderating influence of the
elder Adams in forwarding the great event to that point
where eloquent phrases were only essential as finishing
touches. The debates on the 10th of June proceeded from
the motion of Edward Rutledge for a postponement of the
question for three weeks. To insure unanimity, and to
give the delegates from the central Colonies, who still hesi
tated, an opportunity to consult their constituents, this
delay was agreed to ; l and on the llth, Jefferson, John
Adams, Franklin, Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston were
appointed to prepare the Declaration.
The resolutions offered on the 5th by Richard Henry Lee
had provided for the preparation of " a plan of confederation
to be transmitted to the respective Colonies for their consid
eration and approbation." The question of independence
was not to come again before Congress until the first day of
July, and, meantime, that of a confederation of the Colonies
took precedence. How anxious Samuel Adams had been to
bring about such a compact we have seen in his letters.
During the last winter he laments the timidity which re
tarded his cherished hope of confederation, for the promotion
of which, even in 1775, he had been solicitous to have the
several Colonies adopt local forms of government which
would prepare the way, he thought, for " one government
with the consent of the whole, a distinct state composed
of all the Colonies, with a common legislature for great and
general purposes." " This I was in hopes," he says, " would
have been the work of the last winter " ; and, in his disap
pointment, he reflected with some satisfaction that he did
not find himself chargeable with neglect. 2 The time had
arrived at last for the fruition of all his efforts ; and a com
mittee, consisting of one member from each Colony, having
been agreed upon to digest the form of a confederation, 3
Samuel Adams was made the representative of Massachu-
1 Bancroft, VIII. 392. 2 Letters of Samuel Adams in April, 1776.
8 Journals of Congress, June 12, 1776.
416 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
setts in the important work of binding the continent by a
general agreement of union. The result, indeed, was to be
only a more solid and compact structure framed upon his
own original idea of intercolonial union for the common de
fence, so repeatedly elaborated in his essays since 1768, and
urged with more directness in 1773, when he proposed the
formation of an " American Commonwealth," an " inde
pendent state," with " an ambassador to reside at the Brit
ish Court to act for the United Colonies " ; l but at that time
he could not permit his speculations to go beyond mere
suggestions, which he knew would in time culminate in his
dearest aspirations. The two Adamses were now at the post
of honor in Congress ; the elder to aid in the first charter
of general government, and the other on the committee for
the preparation of a Declaration of Independence. Bancroft
remarks upon this circumstance : " It could have been wished
that the two could have changed places, though probably
the result would at that time have been the same ; no man
had done so much to bring about independence as the elder
Adams ; but his skill in constructing governments, not his
knowledge of the principles of freedom, was less remarkable
than that of his younger kinsman." 2
During the three weeks which intervened before the time
set for the consideration of independence, the popular voice
was growing more determined and unanimous for a separa
tion. At least two thirds of the inhabitants of Massachusetts
were demanding it ; and other Colonies, animated by the ex
ample of Virginia, were instructing their delegates to the
same effect. The lingering hope of reconciliation prevented
others from arriving so speedily at a definite conclusion. In
that interval, Samuel Adams was at times engaged in his
duties with the Committee on Confederation, where, though
Dickinson drafted the document, it is fair to presume that the
1 "Z.," in the Boston Gazette, Oct. 11, 1773; and "Observation," in the
Gazette, Sept. 27, 1773.
2 Bancroft, VIII. 392.
177G.J LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 417
entire committee carefully deliberated over its provisions be
fore submitting it to Congress in the following month. That
considerable portions were prepared by Samuel Adams and
Richard Henry Lee has been related by one of the commit
tee, though Lee was not a member. A curious estimate of
the overruling power of Samuel Adams in Congress ap
peared this year in a London correspondence :
" When the Congress had declared for independence, a new mode
of government was consequently the first thing to be considered, and
Adams had himself prepared almost a complete code of laws ; but
many were rejected, though with great caution, and an explanation
of each particular impropriety, from a dread of too much offending
that great man, who, to make use of an expression in a letter re
ceived some time since in America, was so clever a fellow and so
dangerous a v n, that it was no man s interest to quarrel with
him. " 1
Samuel Adams was always strongly attached to this form
of government ; and after the war he was desirous that its
defects should be remedied, in preference to the adoption of a
new plan. Opposed as Dickinson was to independence, it is
hardly possible that such men as Samuel Adams, Hopkins,
Sherman, and McKean could have coincided with him in his
original draft, which was not submitted to Congress until the
12th of July. Another important service, upon which Adams
was engaged during the month of June, related to the estab
lishing of expresses between the Continental posts. Like
the Committee on Confederation, this committee consisted
of one member from each Colony, Samuel Adams represent
ing Massachusetts. Whatever express system grew out of
this body was probably due to Franklin, who was a member.
1 Upcott, V. 43 (quoted in Moore s Diary of the Kevolution, I. 447).
VOL. n. 27
CHAPTER XLII.
The Three Weeks Interval. Efforts meantime to obtain Unanimity for Inde
pendence. Adams as a Political Tactician and Caucus Manager. Con
temporary Testimony of Jefferson, Gordon, James Warren, Hutchinson,
Gerry, John Adams, Galloway, Rivington, Clymer, Kent, Thacher, Church,
Quincy, and Others. Opinions in England of Samuel Adams. Lee s
Eesolutions come up again for Discussion. Debate on Independence re
newed. Adoption of the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. The Re
sult due not so much to Oratory in Congress as to other Influences. The
" Colossus of the Revolution." Adams regrets that Independence had not
been declared in the Previous Year. He points to the Exertions required
to produce finally the Great Result. His Influence in forming the Consti
tution of Pennsylvania. Oration published in England in his Name.
He is not its Author.
A GENERAL assent had been given to the postponement of
the question of independence, that the wishes of the constit
uents of various members might be consulted. It was a
timely and prudent concession to the conservative element.
The intervening three weeks were improved by the Inde
pendent party to win over reluctant members and break
down the barriers to unanimity. No reference to the ques
tion appears in the journals of Congress, but a silent agency
was at work, headed by Samuel Adams, which, more than
his own convincing logic or the eloquence of more fluent
speakers on that floor, prepared the way for the coming
event. " Adams s conspiracy," l as the Tories sometimes
denominated the advancing Revolution, was on the eve of
triumphant culmination. His extraordinary tact in arrang
ing the details of political movements, and the art of bend
ing others quietly to his will, has been shown in this work
1 " Caesar," in the Middlesex Gazette, Dec. 26, 1776. In Force s American
Archives, Fourth Series, I. 1177, 1194, the patriots are spoken of by Loyal
ists as " Adams s crew," and the expression is also used by Lord North.
June, 1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 419
as extending from the earliest dawning of the Revolution.
He was, in the fullest sense of the term, " a fisher of men."
As a caucus manager and adviser and a controlling party
tactician, he had no rival. He was essentially the power be
hind the throne greater than the throne, " born and tem
pered a wedge of steel," as John Adams said of him, " to
split the knot of lignum-vitce which tied North America to
Great Britain." No man, not excepting even Franklin, who
in this respect somewhat resembled him, wielded in Con
gress an influence so potent; and as he, more than any
other member, had brought the Revolution to its present
point with the steady design of independence, so now, with
redoubled effort, he ci ncentrated his energies upon the
crowning achievement. It was this talent of attracting
every element of strength to himself, and shaping it to his
own purposes, which made him so formidable to the Tories,
who foresaw defeat whenever he entered the lists. It was
this which prompted Governor Hutchinson to caution Han
cock and Gushing" against his arts and insidiousness " ; and
to denounce him to the Ministry as the instar omnium,
the all in all of sedition, " the Grand Incendiary," " who
directed Boston and the Massachusetts Legislature just as
he pleased," 1 and to represent him, in an interview with
George the Third, as the first who asserted the indepen
dency of the Colonies ; which, through the letters and per
sonal representations of friends and foes, had given him
in England the reputation of being " the Cromwell of New
England," " the Father of America," " the Man of the
Revolution" and " the First Politician in the world." 2
John Adams, estimating his great abilities, had already
pointed him out as a " masterly statesman," and deliber
ately pronounced him " the most elegant writer, the most
sagacious politician and celebrated patriot perhaps of any
1 See, ante, Hutchinson s letters between 1771 and 1773.
8 See, ante, the letters of Josiah Quincy, Rivington, and Stephen Sayre.
420 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
who had figured in the last ten years." 1 George Clymer
had written of him : " I cannot sufficiently respect him for
his integrity and abilities. All good Americans should erect
a statue to him in their hearts." " I always considered
him," said Jefferson, " more than any other member, the
fountain of our important measures." This man, whose
colossal shadow thus looms up by the light of contemporary
evidence, a noble type of patriotism, without one selfish
thought to sully or one ignoble idea to taint its influence,
" died and made no sign " in any diary, at least, or autobi
ography. We see the grand results, while of the agency
which was ever active in creating them only the mighty
shadow of a name comes down to us. The midnight con
versations and plans ; the daily scenes in committees ; the
counter combinations, and the means of defeating them ; the
innumerable incidents and anecdotes of particular charac
ters have been suffered to pass away unrecorded.
Adams seems to have lost sight of any credit due to him
self in his generous devotion to the public welfare, and his
honest desire to put forward any and all of his fellow-laborers
who were worthy of political preferment. His name has
become insensibly a synonyme of lion-hearted courage and
wide-reaching power ; though, in some of the instances of
this, those who make the comparison in later years speak
rather from a general indefinite impression, so difficult has
it been to exhume from the neglect of years other than the
shattered pieces of the statue, long buried in the dust of the
past. The writer has before him allusions to five celebrated
patriots, mostly from distinguished and scholarly pens, in
each of which the character described is called " the Sam
uel Adams " of some one of the Colonies. Omitting those
written in the present century, and turning to the remark
as used by sharers in the events of the Revolution, we find
1 Indorsement (dated April 29, 1774), by John Adams, on the back of the
will of Joseph Adams of Braintree, the ancestor of Samuel Adams.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 421
Josiah Quincy, while visiting Cornelius Harnett, recording
in his diary that his host was " the Samuel Adams of North
Carolina" ; and John Adams, describing prominent charac
ters in Philadelphia, saying, " This Charles Thomson is the
Sam Adams of Philadelphia, the life of the cause of liberty,
they say." In fact, nearly every one of the Colonies outside
of New England has found in history or biography its
" Sam Adams." Among all the friends and co-laborers of
Adams, no one was better qualified to speak of his public
services than James Warren, whose spotless integrity and
strong natural powers placed him high in the patriot ranks.
During the war of the Revolution, Warren says that he was
" the man who had the greatest hand in the greatest Revolu
tion in the world." This was in the fourth year after the
Declaration of Independence, and was said in a familiar let
ter to Samuel Adams, at a time when there seemed to be a
disposition among a certain party in Boston to forget how
much the country owed to its principal leader in times of
public peril. Had Warren been consulted, or had he enter
tained an idea that the deeds of his great -friend would be
lost to posterity, he might have supplied a copious fund of
data relative to the life of Samuel Adams.
" He combined," says William Tudor, who for many years knew
him personally, " in a remarkable manner all the animosities and all
the firmness that could qualify a man to be the assertor of the
rights of the people. Had he lived in any country or any epoch
where abuses of power were to be resisted, he would have been one
of the reformers. He would have suffered excommunication rather
than have bowed to Papal infallibility, or paid tribute to St. Peter ;
he would have gone to the stake rather than submit to the prelatic
ordinances of Laud ; he would have mounted the scaffold sooner
than pay a shilling of illegal ship-money ; he would have fled to a
desert rather than endure the profligate tyranny of a Stuart ; he
was proscribed, and would sooner have been condemned as a traitor
than assent to an illegal tax, if it had been only a sixpenny stamp
or an insignificant duty on tea ; and there appeared to be no species
of corruption by which this inflexibility could have been destroyed.
422 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
" The motives by which he was actuated were not a sudden ebul
lition of temper, nor a transient impulse of resentment, but they
were deliberate, methodical, and unyielding. There was no pause,
no hesitation, no despondency ; every day and every hour was
employed in some contribution towards the main design ; if not in
action, in writing ; if not with the pen, in conversation ; if not in
talking, in meditation. The means he advised were persuasion,
petition, remonstrance, resolutions, and, when all failed, defiance and
extermination sooner than submission." *
As the three weeks in June pass by, and the memorable
day approached, how must Adams have buckled to the task
for which he gathered his resources, with the determination
and singleness of purpose peculiar to himself. He, whose
" superior application" had before "managed the factions in
Congress and in New England," whom the watchful Gallo
way described as " eating, drinking, and sleeping little, and
thinking much," must now, when all but the final act had
been accomplished, have toiled like a giant in the comple
tion of his grand design.
Samuel Adams followed an undeviating line in the pur
suit of American independence. Through storm and sun
shine, evil and good repute, he had kept this result steadily
in view, and seems to have yielded all else in life to that
controlling idea. The writings of a lifetime are devoted to
the one aim of human liberty. All his letters, essays,
pamphlets, and state papers, everything that emanated from
his pen centred upon that individual object of his existence.
Even the occasional writings on religious topics bear as well
upon civil freedom ; and all the reports of his conversations
and speeches are upon political subjects. This treading one
pathway for nearly half a century would lead us to suspect
a distaste for the lighter fields of literature, did not the well-
worn books which remained in his library, and his evident ac
quaintance with English authors, show that he could appre
ciate graces of style as well as grandeur of sentiment. He
1 Tudor s Life of Otis, pp. 276, 277. 1823.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 423
keenly enjoyed life, in which his wants were few and easily
supplied, and his heart was full of cheerful sympathy for his
fellow-men. Nor can this adherence to one object be con
strued into narrowness. In all else but his opposition to
tyranny, no man was more liberal ; and even his inherent
hatred of popery and an ecclesiastical establishment was
tinged with an enlightened and Christian tolerance for those
or any other forms of worship. He professed himself no
bigot, and respected the sentiment of adoration, under what
ever form or by whatever sect it might be felt. The concen
tration of his faculties upon one idea was the main-spring
of his extraordinary power. All history illustrates that in
art, discovery, literature, and invention, in every branch of
science, and the common pursuits of business, the difrusion
of human capacity over a varied field of effort oftenest ends
in defeat, when their direction upon a single great purpose
leads to its accomplishment. We have already referred to
the contemporary accounts of his style, when addressing
public assemblages. His personal ascendency among his
fellow-members as a committee man, and in touching the
secret springs which produced results to the eyes of the
world, was a strength of quite another kind. In this respect,
if we are to credit many contemporary witnesses, he had no
equal in America. He has left nothing by which to show
the working of this system ; though one of his letters just
after the signing of the Declaration modestly hints at " the
time and patience it had taken to remove old prejudices, to
instruct the unenlightened, and to fortify the timid." What
has flashed from beneath the veil of secrecy leads to but
one conclusion as to his ever active power. It appears from
Jefferson s Recollections, that Adams introduced into this
Congress the powerful preliminary engine of caucusing, the
same with which he had for so many years led the way to
most of his important achievements in Massachusetts. The
Ex-President wrote in 1825 :
" If there was any Palinurus to the Revolution, Samuel Adams
424 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
was the man. Indeed, in the Eastern States, for a year or two after
it began, he was truly the Man of the Revolution. He was con
stantly holding caucuses of distinguished men (among whom was
R. H. Lee), at which the generality of the measures pursued were
previously determined on, and at which the parts were assigned to the
different actors who afterwards appeared in them. John Adams
had very little part in these caucuses ; but as one of the actors in
the measures decided on in them, he was a Colossus." T
The management of these caucuses by Adams may be
inferred from his mode of proceeding in the Boston com
mittee a few years earlier, where he had been always the
controlling mind, and from these in Philadelphia it is not
difficult to trace many of the proceedings of Congress which
remain unexplained in the journal. It is probably due to
such preliminary meetings, that the opposition to indepen
dence was gradually diminished during this month. The
most valuable assistant of Adams, in caucus and other pre
paratory work, was Elbridge Gerry, who made his appear
ance on the political stage of Massachusetts at a time when
Adams was perfecting his great invention of Committees of
Correspondence. From that time forward, the abilities and
zeal of Gerry were efficient aids in the events which pushed
the Colonies on towards independence ; and he appears as
an indefatigable worker, both in the Boston committees and
the Provincial Congresses. Called now to supersede Cush-
ing in the General Congress, he assumed to Adams his
former relative position, and fell naturally into the scheme
which his perfect harmony with the policy of the other ena
bled him to appreciate and promote. Gerry was one of the
few who, in after years, remembered the " Father of the
Revolution," and cheered him with his correspondence.
Samuel Adams and Gerry never failed each other, and their
affectionate regard extended into the next century, Gerry
visiting his ancient friend until within a few months of his
death. Writing home, now, he said :
1 Randall s Life of Jefferson, I. 182,
1776.] LIFE .OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 425
u Since my first arrival in this city, the New England delegates
have been in a continual war with the advocates of the proprietary
interests in Congress and this Colony. These are they who are
most in the way of the measures proposed ; but I think the contest
is pretty nearly at an end, and am persuaded that the people of this
and the middle Colonies have a clearer view of their interests, and
will use their endeavors to eradicate the ministerial influence of
Governors, Proprietors, and Jacobites, and that they now more
confide in the politics of the New England Colonies than they ever
did in those of their hitherto unequalled governments." 1
Jefferson felt towards Samuel Adams a disinterested
friendship, and, from the day they first met, never ceased
to venerate him. Adams was now in his fifty-fourth year,
an age which carried dignity with itself, while the distin
guished part he had acted since the commencement of the
Revolution attached prestige to his name and great impor
tance to his counsels. A life of temperance and frugality
had preserved his powers of intellect and capacity for endur
ance, so that he may be considered as having been but little
past the prime of his manhood in the year of the Declaration
of Independence. He was nearly the oldest member, as
Jefferson was one of the youngest in this Congress. " Al
though," says Jefferson, " my high reverence for Samuel
Adams was returned by habitual notices from him, which
highly nattered me, yet the disparity of age prevented inti
mate and confidential communications." 2 Such, however,
need not have been the case, if we may judge by the fond
ness of Adams for the society of young men of promise,
already illustrated by his intimacy in former years with
Joseph Warren, Hancock, Quincy, and many other rising
politicians of his native Province.
His enemies, the Tories, have left monuments to his
memory relating to this memorable year, which, though
founded in a far different spirit from those reared by Jeffer-
1 Elbridge Gerry to James Warren, June 25, 1776.
2 Jefferson to Dr. "Waterhouse.
426 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
son, none the less show the wide path trodden by the man
whom they especially hated and feared.
After the destruction of Rivington s press in New York,
the Loyalist printer returned to England, and published a
pamphlet to show that the intention of the present Congress
was to assert American independence and maintain it with
the sword.
" That I may thoroughly explain this matter," he continues, " it
is necessary the public should be made acquainted with a very con
spicuous character, no less a man than Mr. SAMUEL ADAMS, the
would-be Cromwell of America. As to his colleague, JOHN HAN
COCK, that gentleman is, in the language of Hudibras,
A very good and useful tool
Which knaves do work with, called a fool/
But he is too contemptible for animadversion. He may move our
pity, not our indignation. Mr. Adams, on the other hand, is one of
those demagogues who well know how to quarter themselves on a
man of fortune, and, having no property of his own, has for some
time found it mighty convenient to appropriate the fortune of Mr.
Hancock to public uses, I mean the very laudable purpose of
carrying on a trade in politics.
" I need not inform my countrymen of the advantages of such a
kind of commerce to individuals. The late worthy Mayor is a
notable instance. Mr. Adams finding, therefore, how very profita
ble a business of this kind might be made without the necessity of a
capital of his own, it is no wonder he should eagerly embrace the
opportunity of dealing in political wares with the demagogues of
Britain.
" In justice to that gentleman s talents and virtues, it must be
confessed that he is an adept in the business, and is as equal to the
task of forwarding a rebellion as most men. He is therefore far
from being unworthy the notice of British patriots. His politics
are of a nature admirably adapted to impose on a credulous multi
tude.
" Mr. Adams s character may be defined in a few words. He is
a hypocrite in religion, a republican in politics, of sufficient cunning
to form a consummate knave, possessed of as much learning as is
necessary to disguise the truth with sophistry, and so complete a
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 427
moralist that it is one of his favorite axioms, The end will justify
the means. When to such accomplished talents and principles we
add an empty pocket, an unbounded ambition, and a violent disaf
fection to Great Britain, we shall be able to form some idea of Mr.
Samuel Adams. A man so gifted cannot be idle. Such a man is
too useful an instrument in the hands of that arch fiend who is ever
planning some mischief against weak mortals to escape his notice.
His Satanic Majesty is too great a patron of rebellion himself to let
slip the opportunity of whispering bloody mischief to so useful and
devout a disciple." l
When this pamphlet appeared in London, the news of the
Declaration of Independence had not yet reached England.
Rivington, who had been one of the ablest Tory writers for
the press, reflected the unanimous opinion of that party in
America in placing Samuel Adams at the head of the Revo
lution. A contemporary authority, already quoted, respect
ing his public speaking when aroused on great occasions,
is equally explicit as to his weight in the counsels of Con
gress, and in this fully corroborates the testimony of Jefier-
son and of the Loyalist writer.
Thacher says, in his Funeral Discourse :
"The power of language was, however, by no means his only
qualification for the important post his country had assigned him.
He had a penetration which no artifice nor sophistry could deceive ;
a decision which no difficulty or embarrassment could discourage ;
and a fortitude which no danger, however formidable, could appall.
To these might be added a happy address to the heart and under
standing of those who were his colleagues ; so that he could combine
men of opposite interest in supporting and establishing any favorite
point ; by which accomplishments he became one of the most effec
tive and efficient members of the General Congress. And though
in this, as well as in the former situations which he filled, he was
joined by an illustrious band of patriots who deserve the eternal
gratitude of their country, yet among many of the choice spirits he
appeared (to borrow the language of the Roman poet) as the
moon among the lesser lights of heaven. "
1 " Independency the Object of the Congress in America ; or an Appeal to
Facts." London, 1776.
428 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [June,
No person who did not witness the life of Samuel Adams
has ever been so eminently qualified to delineate his charac
ter as Mr. Bancroft, into whose hands fell all that remained
of his papers, and who, from his own collections by conver
sations with those who were the contemporaries of Adams,
and an intelligent study of all the memorials concerning
him, has formed an unbiassed, comprehensive idea of the
man. Continuing a sketch, some portion of which has
before been quoted, he says :
" No blandishments of flattery could lull his vigilance, no sophis
try deceive his penetration. Difficulties could not discourage his
decision, nor danger appall his fortitude. He had also an affable
and persuasive address, which could reconcile conflicting interests,
and promote harmony in action. He never, from jealousy, checked
the advancement of others; and, in accomplishing great deeds, he
took to himself no praise. Seeking fame as little as fortune, and
office less than either, he aimed steadily at the good of his country
and the best interests of mankind. Of despondency he knew noth
ing ; trials only nerved him for severer struggles ; his sublime and
unfaltering hope had a cast of solemnity, and was .as much a part
of his nature as if his confidence sprang from an insight into Divine
decrees, and was as firm as a sincere Calvinist s assurance of his
election. For himself and for others, he held that all sorrows and
all losses were to be encountered, rather than that liberty should
perish." 1
It was remarked by Elbridge Gerry, soon after the death
of Adams, that he labored day and night to produce inde
pendence during the sitting of this Congress. Without the
more particular evidences already given, this brief remark
would have but little importance, especially as coming from
a colleague and one who himself shared in these labors.
Mr. Austin, the biographer of Gerry, probably reflected the
oft-spoken opinions of his father-in-law, when he wrote of
Samuel Adams :
" Another eminent citizen has been called the Colossus of the
Revolution ; but the distinction, if merited by any one man, could,
1 Bancroft, VI. 196.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 429
with singular propriety, be challenged by this inflexible republican.
The most perfect disinterestedness marked his political conduct.
Other men were desirous of the reputation acquired by bold or
great acts, and of being distinguished for their zeal, their industry,
or address. It was sufficient for him to do what was merito
rious, regardless of the reputation derived from it. Whatever of
fame was to be acquired, he left others, if they might, to obtain ;
whatever labor or danger was to be incurred, he was ready to un
dertake himself. Devoted heart and soul to the great cause in
which his country was engaged, he was willing indeed to encourage
any one in the same pursuits, but disposed to honor those only who
engaged in them from the same noble motives and the same integ
rity of heart. Many of the wisest measures of civil polity to which
the times gave occasion, originating with him, added to the laurels
of his associates ; and many of those imperishable memorials which
may serve as models for the future statesmen of the country are
the unclaimed productions of his pen, while the honors of authorship
have graced his more ambitious coadjutors.
" Cool, dispassionate, and collected, the firmness of Mr. Adams s
mind was a check on the too adventurous rashness of the enterpris
ing, and a support to the drooping courage of the doubtful, while it
directed the execution of the proper measures with certainty, vigor,
and success. Revolutions, it has been supposed, generate the char
acter they require. Mr. Adams was made for the times in which he
lived. The self-devotion, the assiduity, the disinterestedness of his
conduct, ennobled the cause he supported ; and as these qualities
rendered him less anxious to acquire reputation than to deserve it,
posterity is bound to be the more just to his fame. He was not
permitted to witness the grandeur and glory of his country, without
feeling that patriotism and public services are not always remem
bered in the days of prosperity and success. But distance is pla
cing his character in a light for unqualified admiration." 1
The historian, Grahame, grasps the character of Adams
in a short, vigorous sketch, the more noteworthy from its
being the opinion of a foreigner. He says :
" Samuel Adams was one of the most perfect models of disinter-
1 Austin s Life of Gerry, I. 357 - 359.
430 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
ested patriotism, and of republican genius and character, in all its
severity and simplicity, that any age or country has ever produced.
A sincere and devout Puritan in religion, grave in his manners,
austerely pure in his morals, simple, frugal, and unambitious in his
tastes, habits, and desires; zealously and incorruptibly devoted to
the defence of American liberty and the improvement of American
character ; endowed with a strong manly understanding, an unrelax-
ing earnestness arid inflexible firmness of will and purpose, a capaci
ty of patient and intense application, which no labor could exhaust,
and a calm and determined courage which no danger could daunt
and no disaster depress, he rendered his virtues more efficacious
by the instrumentality of great powers of reasoning and eloquence,
and altogether supported a part, and exhibited a character, of which
every description even the most frigid that has been preserved
wears the air of a panegyric." l
We have already alluded to the opinion of Samuel Adams
expressed in England. There, from the King down to the
humblest politician who- discussed American affairs, he was
considered as the arch magician whose active spirit had
pushed the Colonists to the point of independence. From
among the many instances, one found in a London journal
of those times will suffice as the English estimate of his
character :
" John Adams is the creature and kinsman of Samuel Adams, the
Cromwell of New England, to whose intriguing arts the Declaration
of Independence is in a great measure to be attributed, the history
of which will not be uninteresting.
" When the Northern delegates broached their political tenets in
Congress, they were interrogated by some of the Southern ones,
whether they did or did not aim at independence, to which mark
their violent principles seemed to tend. Samuel Adams, with as
grave a face as hypocrisy ever wore, affirmed that they did not ; but
in the evening of the same day, in a circle of confidential friends
(as he took them to be), confessed that the independence of the
Colonies had been the great object of his life ; that whenever he
1 Grahame s Colonial History of the United States, II. 417.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 431
had met with a youth of parts, he had endeavored to instil such
notions into his mind, and had neglected no opportunity, either in
public or in private, of preparing the way for that event which now,
thank God, was at hand.
" He watched the favorable moment when, by pleading the neces
sity of a foreign alliance, and urging the impracticability of obtain
ing it without a declaration of independence, he finally succeeded
in the accomplishment of his wishes." l
Another Tory, writing from Boston early in this year,
assails Adams and Hancock in this wise :
" This man, whom but a day before hardly any man would have
trusted with a shilling, and whose honesty they were jealous of, now
became the confidant of the people. With his oily tongue he duped
a man whose brains were shallow and pockets deep, and ushered
him to the public as a patriot too. He filled his head with impor
tance, and emptied his pockets, and as a reward kicked him up the
ladder where he now presides over the * Twelve United Provinces/
and where they both are at present plunging you, my countrymen,
into the depths of distress." 2
There is a grea,t unanimity in the contemporary accounts
of the unrivalled influence of Samuel^ Adams in accom
plishing the measure of independence, whether they proceed
from enemies or friends ; and, when grouped and carefully
considered, they present his name to posterity as the mas
ter architect of that memorable work. In the debate on
the 1st and 2d of July, when the question came up for
final decision, the way had been to a great extent pre
pared, in caucus and by other means, through the efforts
of Adams and his colaborers ; and though in these debates
John Adams was the most conspicuous, all such argu
ments were of secondary importance, compared to the in
tense application which had already produced its effects.
American independence was carried in that Congress, not
1 "Decius," in the London Morning Post, 1779 (quoted in Moore s Diary
of the Revolution, II. 144). A portion of this statement agrees with that of
John Adams. See his Works, X. 364.
8 "Z. Z.," Boston, Jan. 11, 1776.
432 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
so much by oratory as by the clear sagacity of intellect
working upon intellect, and the studied approaches of delib
erately conceived plans. The opposition had been reduced
by this time sufficiently to render the adoption of the Dec
laration certain. The people were in reality in advance of
their delegates in the desire for independence, and nothing
could now have prevented its accomplishment. Under any
circumstances, dissenting members would have been speedily
replaced, as was actually the case in some instances. The
undecided were powerless to stay the event ; and had there
been no eloquent speakers in Congress, the result must have
been the same. 1 When the question was submitted on the
1st of July in committee of the whole, John Adams, in a
speech of which the ability was long afterwards the theme
of unqualified praise, urged the justice and necessity of a
separation. Dickinson led in the opposition, and argued for
delay until communication could be had with France, a con
federation established, and the relative extent of the several
States fixed upon. Bancroft says that others spoke,
1 The agency of Samuel Adams in bringing reluctant members to vote for
the Declaration was well understood at the time, though the proceedings, for
obvious reasons, were not made public. Galloway says, in his statement
before Parliament : " Their debates lasted near a fortnight, and when the ques
tion was put, six Colonies divided against six. The delegates of Pennsyl
vania being also divided, the question remained undecided. However, one of
the members of that Colony, who had warmly opposed it, being wrought upon
by Mr. Adams s art, changed his opinion, and, upon the question the next
day, it was carried in the affirmative by a single vote only."
This was as near as any person not a delegate and a violent Loyalist could be
expected to come to the proceedings of Congress, which were preserved in such
profound secrecy by the members, that it was not until more than forty years
afterwards that Jefferson placed on record from his own notes the actual posi
tion of the several delegates. But even the flying rumors which got abroad in
Philadelphia, though time has proved them to have been erroneous in some
particulars, serve partially to lift the curtain, and afford a glimpse of the influ
ences at work. Galloway undoubtedly based his account upon the current
talk in political circles, and upon the general admission at that day that Sam
uel Adams, by his superior address and knowledge of men, or, as the Tories
called it, his " art/ was the great tactician of Congress and the chief promoter
of independence.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 433
" among them probably Paca, McKean, and Edward Rut-
ledge." It seems scarcely possible that the floor was not
taken by one or more from several of the Colonies ; and that
Samuel Adams should have added his unvarnished logic in
favor of the measure has already been shown as more than
likely. No instructions having been received from New
York, its delegates, though personally in favor of the Dec
laration, declined to vote. Pennsylvania and Delaware were
divided, and South Carolina being opposed, only nine Colo
nies sustained the Declaration. At the request of Edward
Rutledge, the determination was postponed another day,
when Delaware was secured by the arrival of Rodney from
Wilmington. Dickinson and Morris having absented them
selves, the vote of Pennsylvania was obtained, and that of
South Carolina, for the sake of unanimity, was thrown in
favor of independence ; New York, for want of instructions,
was still unable to vote ; l but there being now no dissent
ing Colony, the great charter of liberty was resolved upon ;
and America, through its representatives, pledged its life,
fortune, and sacred honor for the support of the Declaration
renouncing all allegiance to the British Crown.
" Thus," says Gordon, " has an event been produced, which was
not had in contemplation by any of the Colonies or even by any
delegate, scarce by Mr. Samuel Adams, as what was so soon to
happen, when Congress first met in 1774. When the Lexington en
gagement had taken place, he and some of his colleagues judged that
the contest must then issue in independence or slavery, and there
fore labored to establish the first that the last might be prevented.
But, had a serious proposal of separating from the crown of Great
Britain been early introduced into Congress, the dissolution of that
body would have followed through the general aversion of the peo
ple at large and of particular Colonies to such separation." 2
The Declaration was approved and signed by all the mem
bers present, excepting Mr. Dickinson. 3 If the habitual
1 Bancroft, VIII. 349. 2 Gordon s American Kevolution, II. 295, 296.
3 Jefferson to Samuel Adams Wells, May 12, 1819.
VOL. ii. 28
434 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
caution of Mr. Adams permitted him to communicate to his
friends in Massachusetts any particulars of the transactions
of Congress, the letters have not been preserved. As he
could not be depressed or disheartened by any reverses, so
the greatest successes rarely elated him. He could look
back through years of anxious toil, and, as he surveyed the
vast result, his mind turned to the future and the terrible
struggle impending. His own hopeful spirit foresaw suc
cess, for he had faith in the virtue of his countrymen ; but
he fully comprehended that the contest had only commenced.
Some of his letters betray a feeling of impatience that the act
had not been sooner consummated. To Hawley he writes,
a few days after the signing :
" The Congress has at last declared the Colonies free and inde
pendent States. Upon this I congratulate you, for I know your
heart has long been set upon it. Much I am afraid has been lost
by delaying to take this decisive step. We might have been justi
fied in the sight of God and man in doing this months ago. If we
had done it then, in my opinion, Canada would at this time have
been one of the United Colonies, but much is to be endured for the
hardness of men s hearts. We shall now see the way clear to form
a confederation, contract alliances, and send ambassadors to foreign
powers, and do other acts becoming the character we have as
sumed." 1
Another letter alludes to the slow process of preparing
the minds of some members for independence.
" It has been difficult for a number of persons sent from all parts
of so extensive a territory, and representing Colonies (or, as I must
now call them, States} which, in many respects, have had different
interests and views, to unite in measures materially to affect them
all. Hence our determinations have been necessarily slow. We
have, however, gone on from step to step, till at length we are ar
rived at perfection, as you have heard, in a Declaration of Inde
pendence. Was there ever a revolution brought about, especially
so important a one as this, without great internal tumults and vio-
1 Samuel Adams to Joseph Ilawley, July 9, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 435
lent convulsions ? The delegates of every Colony have given their
voices in favor of the great question, and the people, I am told, rec
ognize the Revolution as if it were a decree promulgated from
Heaven ! I have thought that if this decisive measure had been
taken six months sooner, it would have given vigor to our Northern
army and a different issue to our military exertions in Canada.
But probably I was mistaken. The Colonies were not then ripe
for so momentous a change. It was necessary that they should be
united, and it required time and patience to remove old prejudices,
to instruct the unenlightened, and to fortify the timid. Perhaps,
if our friends had considered how much was to be previously done,
they would not have been, as you tell me * some of them were, im
patient under our delay.
" New governments are now erecting in the several American
States under the authority of the people. Monarchy seems to be
generally exploded ; and it is not a little surprising to me that the
aristocratic spirit, which appeared to have taken deep root in some
of them, now gives place to democracy." l
To Richard Henry Lee, who was then absent in Virginia,
but shortly after returned and added his name to the Decla
ration, he writes :
" I hardly know how to write, without saying something about
our Canadian affairs ; and this is a subject so thoroughly mortifying
to me, that I could wish to forget all that has passed in that coun
try. Let me, however, just mention to you that Schuyler and
Gates are to command the troops, the former while they are
without, the latter while they are within, the bounds of Canada.
Admitting these gentlemen to have the accomplishments of a Marl-
borough or an Eugene, I cannot conceive that such a disposition of
them will be attended with any good effects, unless harmony sub
sists between them. Alas ! I fear this is not the case. Already
disputes have arisen, which they have referred to Congress ; and
although they affect to treat each other with a politeness becoming
their rank, in my mind, altercations between commanders who have
pretensions so nearly equal (I mean in point of command) forbode
a repetition of misfortune. I sincerely wish my apprehensions may
prove to be groundless.
1 Samuel Adams to Benjamin Kent, July 27, 1776.
436 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
" General Howe, as you have already heard, Is arrived at New
York. He has brought with him from eight to ten thousand troops.
Lord Howe arrived last week, and the whole fleet is hourly ex
pected. The enemy landed in Staten Island. Nothing has been
done, saving that last Friday about three in the afternoon, a forty
and twenty gun ship, with several tenders, taking the advantage of
a fair and fresh gale and flowing tide, passed by our forts as far as
King s Bridge. General Mifflin, who commanded there, in a letter
of the 5th instant, informed us that he had twenty-one cannon
planted, and hoped in a week to be formidable. Reinforcements
have arrived from New England, and our army are in high spirits.
I am exceedingly pleased with the calm and determined spirit
which our Commander-in- Chief has discovered in all his letters to
Congress. May Heaven guide and prosper him. The militia of
the Jerseys, Maryland, and Pennsylvania are all in motion. Gen
eral Mercer commands the flying camp in the Jerseys. We have
just now appointed a committee to bring in a plan for the reinforce
ment, to complete the numbers of twenty thousand men to be posted
in that Colony.
" Our Declaration of Independence has given vigor to the spirits
of the people. Had this decisive measure been taken nine months
ago, it is my opinion that Canada would now have been in our
hands. But what does it avail to find fault with what is passed ?
Let us do better for the future. We were more fortunate than we
expected in having twelve of the thirteen Colonies in favor of the
all-important question. The delegates from New Jersey were not
empowered to give their voice on either side. Their Convention
has since acceded to the Declaration, and published it even before
they received it from Congress. So mighty a change in so short a
time ! New Jersey has finished her form of government, a copy of
which I enclose. They have sent five new delegates, among whom
are Dr. Witherspoon and Judge Stockton. All of them appear
attached to the American cause. A convention is now meeting in
this city to form a constitution for this Colony. They are empow
ered by their constituents to appoint a new Committee of Safety to
act for the present, and to choose new delegates for Congress. I
am told there will be a change of men, and if so, I hope for the
better.
" A plan of confederation has been brought into Congress, which
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 437
I hope will be speedily digested and made ready to be laid before
the several States for their approbation. A committee has now
under consideration a plan of foreign alliance. It is high time for
us to have ambassadors at foreign courts. I fear we have already
suffered too much by a delay. You know on whom our thoughts
were turned when you were with us.
" I am greatly obliged to you for favoring me with the form of
government agreed upon by your countrymen. I have not yet had
time to peruse it, but I dare say it will be a feast to our little circle.
The device on your great seal pleases me much.
" Pray hasten your journey hither. Your country most press-
ingly solicits, or, will you allow me to say, demands your assistance
here." 1
It is difficult to overestimate the harassing nature of the
daily routine of business performed by the principal commit
tees during this eventful summer. " I write in great haste "
is the conclusion of many of the letters of Samuel Adams,
and those of his kinsmen indicate the exhausting nature of
the work performed. Information of his failing health hav
ing reached Warren, that true friend and patriot wrote to
Samuel Adams to revisit his native Province. He had then
been nearly a year engaged in the most arduous toil, with
out asking or desiring a recall, so anxious was he to be at
his post until the question of independence was decided.
" I am sorry to hear," says Warren, " your health is declining,
though I can t wonder at it. Such long and intense application in a
place so unhealthy must be too much for a firmer constitution than
yours. I am sensible of the importance of your being in Congress
at this time, and I know the reluctance you have at leaving your
duty there ; but your health must be attended to. We shall want
you again. You must therefore take a ride, relax your mind, and
breathe some of our Northern air." 2
In reply to a letter of Adams, relating to the Declaration
of Independence, Benjamin Kent writes :
1 S. Adams to R. H. Lee, July 15, 1776.
2 James Warren to Samuel Adams, Aug. 4, 1776.
438 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [July,
" It gives me great satisfaction to observe the progress you have
made in politics, founded in wisdom, prudence, and virtue. I please
myself in my confidence, that for this very end God has raised you
up I hope you will come, for we never stood in greater
need of a main conductor ; and as you have accomplished the grand
affair of the union, I believe you are reserved for the special benefit
of that State to which you are most nearly connected Now
you are acting for so many millions, born and unborn, strain every
nerve God has given you, and at the least you will, in your own
State, have the unspeakable blessing of the most noble self-approba
tion, and you shall govern ten cities in the next." l
The letters of Mr. Adams in July refer to the convention
which met in Philadelphia on the 15th of that month, for
the formation of a State Constitution for Pennsylvania under
the new order of affairs. The Declaration of Rights was
reported .on the 25th, and, having been recommitted, a new
draft was prepared, which, on the 29th, after considerable
debate, was ordered to be printed. Gordon, who was an
eyewitness of the scenes in Philadelphia, says :
" Great numbers in Pennsylvania are not satisfied with their
Constitution, apprehending that it possesses too great a proportion
of democracy, and that the State is not sufficiently guarded against
the evils which may result from the prevalency of a democratic
party, or the dangerous influence of demagogues. Mr. Samuel
Adams has been thought or known to have concerned himself so
unduly in the business, as to have provoked some to drop distant
hints of an assassination." 2
Mr. Adams left Philadelphia on the 12th of August for
Massachusetts, and the Constitution had not then issued
from the hands of the committee. The Declaration of
Rights, however, had been a fortnight under constant dis
cussion. That a design against the life of Samuel Adams
was meditated would further appear from a letter written a
few years later, which speaks of some such proposition hav-
1 Benjamin Kent to S. Adams, Aug. 15, 1776.
2 Gordon s American Revolution, II. 369.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 439
ing been made apparently during the time in which the
Declaration of Rights was pending. He certainly had
worked in caucus and by other means to stem the opposition
to the Declaration of Independence ; and it is not improbable
that his influence was exerted to infuse his favorite demo
cratic theories into the institutions of Pennsylvania. There
are portions of both the instruments which could be attrib
uted to him, but no evidence of his handiwork exists beyond
the hint above given.
There appeared in London this year a printed oration, 1
purporting to have been delivered by Samuel Adams on the
1st of August at Philadelphia. Written in the style of Ad
ams, with but one or two exceptions, it was evidently pre
pared by some person familiar with his writings. Even his
frequent italicizing of words, intended to convey pointed
meanings, is not neglected. It must have had an extended
circulation, several copies being now preserved in various
libraries. Its spuriousness was not suspected in England,
where its effect had been the principal object of the author ;
but whoever was the writer, it is difficult to see what was
the immediate point to be gained by the deception. Samuel
Adams was generally recognized in England as the princi
pal man of the Revolution. From the statements of many
who had returned from the Colonies, British politicians were
more familiar with his principles and objects than with
those of any other American, excepting Franklin, who had
long resided in London, and the publication of such argu-
1 " AN ORATION delivered at, the State House in Philadelphia to a very nu
merous AUDIENCE on Thursday, the 1st of August, 1776, by SAMUEL ADAMS :
member of the * * * * ******** the General Congress of the ******
****** of AMERICA.
Per damma, per caedes, ab ipso
Ducit opes animumque ferro. HOR.
0, save my country, Heaven ! shall be my last. POPE.
PHILADELPHIA, printed, LONDON, reprinted for E. Johnson, No. 4 Ludgate
Hill. MDCCLXXVI."
A French translation of this oration was published at Paris, and a German
translation in 1778, perhaps at Bern. The original will be given in full as an
Appendix to Volume III.
440 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug., 1776.
ments as these would be likely to have great weight as com
ing from the leader in American politics. The only con
temporary notice was apparently written in London, after a
perusal of the oration ; and the writer expresses the general
opinion of the subtlety of Samuel Adams as beyond that of
all others in Congress. 1
1 The evidences against the authenticity of the pamphlet are numerous and
palpable. 1. Congress was in session on the 1st of August, when the oration
purports to have been delivered. It is hardly possible that on such an occa
sion, that body would not have adjourned ; and the title-page bears the words,
"delivered at the State House." 2. Contemporary records make no mention
of any public celebration on the 1st of August; nor could the signing of the
engrossed copy of the Declaration of Independence on the following day have
had any association with the speech. None of the American reminiscences of
those times refer to it, either in diaries, letters, or newspapers, and it is not
likely that so interesting an occurrence would have escaped mention. 3. This
professes to be a reprint of the original Philadelphia pamphlet. No such
American edition has ever been seen, but at least four copies are known of the
London issue. 4. Though the oration is dated nearly a month after the Dec
laration of Independence, it is silent as to that event, which the unceasing
efforts of Adams had particularly pushed to consummation, showing that the
author (evidently in London) was ignorant of the Declaration. 5. The title-
page gives no name to the new-born nation, substituting stars for what clearly
was unknown and only surmised. Before the 1st of August the Declaration
was generally indorsed throughout the Colonies ; and if there had before been
any necessity, either for prudential or other reasons, of concealing the national
appellation, it certainly now no longer remained ; an American pamphlet
printed in Philadelphia, a month after the Declaration, would unquestionably
have had the full title. 6. The oration repeatedly alludes to the " present
Constitution " as then in force, as being already " composed, established, and
approved." No constitution existed at this date. The only approach to such
an instrument were the Articles of Confederation ; and Samuel Adams being
one of the committee which had reported them in the previous month, none
better than he knew that they had not been approved. Congress, on that
very day, resolved upon the consideration of them, and the debate continued
far into August, when they were laid aside, and not taken up until the next
spring. But finally the work, though intended as an imitation of his peculiar
style, contains certain indecent passages which it would be absurd to suppose
for a moment that Samuel Adams could ever have written.
CHAPTER XLIII.
Adams returns Home on a Visit to his Family. Interview with Washington
on the Way. Arrives at Boston. His Family at Dedham. Tempo
rarily resumes his Office of Secretary of State. His Views as to the Com
missioners sent to treat with America. Returns to Congress. The
Campaign in New Jersey. Disasters to the Patriot Arms. Adams
cheerful and undismayed in the general Gloom. Philadelphia threatened.
Congress adjourns to Baltimore. Adams opposes the Removal.
Is Chairman of the Committee on the State of the Northern Army.
Writes to Massachusetts, urging Enlistments to reinforce Schuyler. Is
on the Committee with Lee and Wilson to consider the State of Washing
ton s Army. They report Extraordinary Measures for reinforcing and
sustaining the Army, and invest Washington with Dictatorial Powers.
Adams on the Committee to obtain Foreign Aid. His Letters to Arthur
Lee, James Warren, and John Adams on Foreign Alliances.
THE repeated solicitations of his friends induced Mr.
Adams in this month to make a short visit homeward. A
year s absence, during which the most distressing and excit
ing events had occurred in Massachusetts, made him the
more anxious to ascertain the condition of his family. On
Monday, the 12th, in company with the Judge-Advocate-
General, William Tudor, he left Philadelphia, and occupied
seventeen days on the journey. On Tuesday he wrote back
to John Adams from Princeton :
" Before this reaches you, you will have heard of the arrival of
near a hundred more of the enemy s ships. There are too many
soldiers now in Philadelphia waiting for arms. Is it not of the
utmost importance that they should march even without arms, es
pecially as they may be furnished with the arms of those who may
be sick at New York ? Would it not be doing great service to the
cause at this time if you would speak to some of the Committee of
Safety of Pennsylvania relative to this matter ? I write in haste.
The bearer will inform you of the state of things." *
1 Samuel to John Adams, August 13, 1776.
442 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Aug.
Reaching New York on the morning of the 14th, and
after a visit to General Washington, he again wrote to John
Adams.
" I found the General and his family in health and spirits ; indeed,
every officer and soldier appears to be determined. I have not had
opportunity to view the works here, but I am told they are strong,
and will be well defended whenever an attack is made, which is
expected daily. I see now, more than ever I did, the importance
of Congress attending immediately to enlistments for the next cam
paign. It would be a pity to lose your old soldiers. I am of opin
ion that a more generous bounty should be given, twenty dollars
and one hundred acres of land for three years at least. But enough
of this. The state of our Northern army mends apace ; the number
of invalids decreases ; harmony prevails. They carry on all kinds
of business within themselves ; smiths, armorers, carpenters, turn
ers, carriage-makers, rope-makers, &c., &c. they are well provided
with. There were at Ticonderoga, August 12th, two thousand six
hundred and sixty-eight rank and file fit for duty ; at Crown Point
and Skenesborough, seven hundred and fifty ; in hospital, eleven
hundred and ten. Dr. Whittemore has returned from his discov
eries. He left St. Johns July 30th. There were two thousand or
two thousand five hundred at that place and Chamblea ; stores
coming on from Montreal ; counted thirty batteaux ; no vessels
built or building. This account may, I think, be depended upon.
In my opinion we are happy to have General Gates there. The
man who has the superintendence of Indian affairs, the nominal
commander of the army, is the real contractor and Quarter-Master-
General, &c., &c., and has too many employments to attend to the
reform of such an army. Besides, the army can confide in the valor
and military skill and accomplishments of Gates. Sat verbum sapi-
enti. Pray write me, and let me know how the Confederation goes
on. Major Meigs, a brave officer and a prisoner, taken at Que
bec, is at this time, as I suppose, at Philadelphia. He wishes to be
exchanged. Such an officer would be very useful here ; I wish you
would give him your assistance. I propose to start to-morrow for
the Eastward." J
The Major Meigs here referred to had submitted his peti-
1 Samuel to John Adams, August 16, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 443
tion to Congress on the previous day, and on the 17th it
was ordered that he be exchanged for Major French. Mr.
Adams reached Boston on the 29th. 1 We can imagine his
meeting with his patriotic friends, whom he had left a year
before legislating at Watertown. The whole Province was
in arms, centring at the camp in Cambridge, where Wash
ington, anxious and wary, had endeavored to organize and
equip his nondescript army of New England farmers. Now
the enemy had been driven from the country, Boston was
not again to be polluted with their detested occupancy, and
the long-suffering people were once more in the enjoyment
of comparative peace. He found his family residing at
Dedham, where he remained but a few days. His journey
North resulted in little or no relaxation, much as he needed
it. As early as the 4th of September he resumed his duties
as Secretary of State, and his signature is found attached to
the commissions of the captains of privateers which appear
to have been fitted out, not only at Boston, but along the
coast from Harwich, Beverly, Salem, and other seaports.
About the time of his arrival at Boston, the battle at
Brooklyn Heights occurred, and Lord Howe, who had re
ceived discretionary powers to treat for peace, counting
upon the favorable issue of the late engagement and the
capture of Generals Stirling and Sullivan, communicated
to Congress his willingness to confer with whomsoever they
might appoint. Franklin, John Adams, and Rutledge were
chosen by ballot, on the 6th of September, and on the 8th
John Adams wrote :
"To-morrow morning Dr. Franklin, Mr. Rutledge, and your
humble servant set off to see that rare curiosity, Lord Howe. Do
not imagine from this that a panic has spread to Philadelphia. By
no means. This is only refinement in policy. It has a deep, pro
found reach, no doubt. So deep that you cannot see the bottom of
it, I dare say. I am sure I cannot. Do not, however, be concerned.
When you see the whole, as you will erelong, you will not find it
1 Force s American Archives, Fifth Scries, I. 1226.
444 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
very bad. I will write you the particulars as soon as I shall be at
liberty to do it." l
The conference produced no satisfactory result. The
committee assured Lord Howe that the associated Colonies
could not accede to any peace or alliance but as free and
independent States, and America was convinced the more
plainly that the subjugation was the fixed policy of Britain.
John Adams, as he had promised, wrote to his friend a de
tailed account of this affair. But before the first letter
reached Boston Samuel Adams received a rumor of the
intended meeting, for the issue of which he became pain
fully anxious.
" I should have written to you from this place before," he says,
"but I have not had leisure. My time is divided between Bos
ton and Watertown; and though we are not engaged in matters
of such magnitude as now employ your mind, there are a thousand
things which call the attention of every man who is concerned for
his country.
" Our Assembly have appointed a committee to prepare a form
of government ; they have not yet reported. I believe they will
agree in two legislative branches. Their great difficulty seems to
be, to determine upon a free and adequate representation. They
are at present an unwieldy body. I will inform you more of this
when I shall have the materials.
" The defence of this town, you know, has lain much upon our
minds. Fortifications are erected upon several of the islands, which
I am told require at least eight thousand men. You shall have a
particular account when I am at leisure. By my manner of writing,
you may conclude that I am now in haste. I have received no let
ter from Philadelphia or New York since I was favored with yours,
nor can I find that any other person has. It might be of advantage
to the common cause for us to know what is doing at both those
important places. We have a report that a committee is appointed
(as the expression is) to meet the Howes, and that you are one.
This, without flattery, gave me pleasure. I am indeed at a loss to
conceive how such a movement could be made consistently with the
1 John to Samuel Adams, Sept. 8, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 445
honor of Congress ; but I have such an opinion of the wisdom of
that body, that I must not doubt the rectitude of the measure. I
hope they will be vigilant and firm ; for I am told that Lord Howe
is, though not a great man, an artful courtier. May God give us
wisdom, fortitude, and perseverance, and every other virtue neces
sary for us to maintain that independence which we have asserted !
It would be ridiculous, indeed, if we were to return to a state of
slavery in a few weeks, after we had thrown off the yoke and as
serted our independence. The body of the people, I am persuaded,
would resent it. But why do I write in this style ? I rely upon
the Congress and the committee. I wish, however, to know a little
about this matter, for I confess I cannot account for it in my own
mind. I will write to you soon. In the mean time adieu.
" What has been the issue of the debates upon a weighty subject
when I left you, and another matter ( you know what I mean) of
great importance ? It is high time they were finished. Pay my
due regards to the President, Messrs. Paine, Gerry, Colonel Lee,
and other friends." 1
The conference had been decided upon after he left
Philadelphia, and it may easily be conceived that he was
exceedingly solicitous as to the result. His first intimation
of such a plan had apparently been the rumor which reached
him in Boston. In the mean time he received letters from
John Adams, one of which has already been quoted. In
reply, he says :
" I am much obliged to you for your two letters of the 8th and
14th of this month, which I received together by the last post. The
caution given in the first of these letters was well designed. Had
it come to me as early as you had reason to expect it would, I
should have been relieved of a full fortnight s anxiety of mind.
I was, indeed, greatly concerned for the event of the proposed
conference with Lord Howe. It is no compliment, when I tell you
that I fully confided in the understanding and the integrity of the
gentlemen appointed by Congress ; but being totally ignorant of the
motives which induced such a measure, I was fearful lest we might
1 Samuel to John Adams, Boston, Sept. 16, 1776.
446 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Sept.
be brought into a situation of great delicacy and embarrassment.
I perceive that his Lordship would not converse with you as mem
bers of Congress, or a committee of that body, from whence I con
cluded that the conference did not take its rise on his part. As I
am unacquainted with its origination and the powers of the com
mittee, I must contemplate the whole affair as a refinement in policy
beyond my reach, and content myself with remaining in the dark
till I have the pleasure of seeing you, when I trust the mystery will
be fully explained to me. Indeed, I am not so solicitous to know
the motives from whence this conference sprang, or the manner in
which it was brought up, as I am pleased with its conclusion. The
sentiments and language of the committee, as they are related to
me, were becoming the character they bore. They managed with
great dexterity. They maintained the dignity of Congress ; and, in
my opinion, the independence of America stands now on a better
footing than it did before. It affords me abundant satisfaction that
the minister of the British King, commissioned to require, and fond
ly nourishing the hopes of receiving the submission of America, was
explicitly and authoritatively assured that neither the committee,
nor that Congress which sent them, had authority to treat in any
other capacity than as independent States. We must therefore fight
it out, and trust in God for success. I dare assure myself that the
most effectual care has before this time been taken for the con
tinuance and support of our armies, not only for the remainder of
the present, but for a future year. The people will cheerfully sup
port their independence to the utmost. Their spirits will rise upon
the knowing the result of the late conference. It has, you may
depend upon it, been a matter of great expectation. Would it not
be attended with a good effect if an account of it was published by
an authority of Congress ? It would, I should think, at least put it
out of the power of disaffected men (and there are some of this
character even here) to amuse their honest neighbors with vain
hopes of a reconciliation.
" I wish that Congress would give the earliest notice to this State
of what may be further expected to be done here for the support of
the army. The season is advancing, or, rather, passing fast.
" I intended when I gat down to have written you a long epistle,
but I am interrupted. I have a thousand avocations which require
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 447
my attention. Many of them are too trifling to merit your notice.
Adieu, my friend. I hope to see you soon." l
To Elbridge Gerry he had already written, touching upon
some of the same points :
" I wrote to our very valuable friend, Mr. J. A., by the last post,
and then acknowledged the receipt of the only letter I have received
from Philadelphia since I left that city. I presume your time must
be employed in matters of much greater importance than writing to
me, otherwise I am confident you would not have omitted doing me
so great a kindness. Let me, however, just tell you that it might
have been of some service to the common cause to have given me
intelligence of the state of things in your great circle. I should
have been glad to have known what situation the two capital affairs
were in, which were on the carpet when I left you. You know
what I refer to, and therefore I do not mention them, lest this letter
should be intercepted, which is not impossible. Is it not of the
utmost consequence that they should be completed with all possible
despatch ? I hope indeed that they are already finished. If I had
had one of them (you understand which I mean), I might have had
the opportunity, being here, to have explained it to the members
of our General Assembly, and facilitated the measure in this State.
" From the various accounts which, for want of regular informa
tion I have spent much time and pains to collect, I flatter myself
our army is upon more advantageous ground than when they were
in the city of New York; in this I may be mistaken, for I am
myself no judge of such matters, especially unassisted as I am by
letters either from gentlemen of the army or any other upon whose
opinion I could rely. Be it as it may, I will not suffer myself to
doubt but the most effectual measures have been before this time
taken for the support of the army both there and at the Northward
the ensuing year.
" The General Assembly have ordered a part of the militia to
march to the assistance of New York. I am told that the men turn
out with great alacrity. The order passed the last week. Several
regiments are already completed, particularly one in the county of
Suffolk, and ready to march. Lincoln commands the whole, which
1 Samuel to John Adams, Boston, Sept. 30, 1776.
448 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Oct., Nov.
I am informed will amount to five thousand ; but let it be remem
bered they are only temporary forces.
"The two frigates built in Newburyport still remain there, to
the great mortification of every man. Had they been at sea, they
would in all probability have more than cleared the expense of
building them. To say no more, it is a misfortune. I wish the
gentleman who had the care of those ships had been explicitly left
more at discretion with regard to some contingencies which could
not before be seen by our friend in Philadelphia. You know he is apt
to be cautious even to a fault. But I suppose you have an account
by an express sent off by the Assembly a few days ago, of the cause
of the detention of the frigates in port. I hope when he returns,
Mr. will be furnished with every piece of paper which he may
judge necessary to remove all doubts respecting the prudence or
safety of his conduct.
" I have been, and am still, puzzled and perplexed with a news
paper report of a proposed treaty with Lord and General Howes.
Is it so, indeed ? From which party did the motion come ? From
the enemy, I presume. And in what style did they address the
Congress ? As the free and independent States of America, no
doubt, otherwise I assure myself they would not listen to the first
proposal. The people shudder at the idea of a treaty at this junc
ture. They are anxiously inquisitive to know for what purpose it
can be intended. They readily acquiesce in the wisdom and forti
tude of Congress, and pray God to increase it. I heartily join with
them in this prayer, for I confess it is my opinion that more, much
more, is to be apprehended from the arts of our enemies than their
arms. Want of leisure prevents my writing more." l
In October, Mr. Adams, leaving the duties of Secretary of
State to his deputy, John Avery, returned to Congress, and
resumed his position in the Massachusetts delegation, and,
on his arrival, John Adams in turn took his departure for
Massachusetts. Before leaving home he had busied himself
on the committee for the relief of the poor of Boston, which
occupation, it seems, had been continued from the time of
the Port Act, but was interrupted during the siege of Bos-
1 Samuel Adams to Elbridge Gerry, Boston, Sept. 23, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 449
ton. Immediately on reaching Philadelphia, he forwarded
upwards of six hundred pounds collected in Pennsylvania
and New Jersey, which was duly acknowledged by the com
mittee. 1 Turning to the journals of Congress, we find him
again engaging in the principal measures for the prosecution
of the war, among others, as chairman of a committee
with Wythe, R. H. Lee, Wilson, and Ross, " to prepare an
effectual plan for suppressing the internal enemies of Amer
ica and preventing a communication of intelligence to our
other enemies." A report was brought in, and made the
special order for November 8th, but the journal contains no
further mention of it. 2 He was also chairman of a com
mittee, with Clymer, Wythe, and Harrison, to take into con
sideration the condition of the Northern army. 3 Their
recommendations, submitted on the next and succeeding
days, were adopted. The report provided for vigorous oper
ations in the North, the casting of cannon at Salisbury
foundery, and their transportation to Ticonderoga with all
possible expedition ; the provisioning of five thousand men
for eight months, to be sent to Albany and thence to Fort
Anne, and the like quantity for general service, to be sta
tioned at Albany ; the forwarding of medicines ; the care of
the sick ; and the punishment of delinquent surgeons. This
active policy was based upon the report of the committee
who had been appointed to examine into the condition of the
Northern army, and the measures now adopted harmonize
perfectly with the suggestions already made by Samuel Ad-
1 Force s American Archives, Fifth Series, II. 1316. On the 26th he wrote
to the Kev. Dr. Samuel Mather : " On the evening of the 24th instant I ar
rived in good health in this city. I give you this information in compliance
with my word, and flattering myself that I shall very soon be favored with a
letter from you. I will promise to give you hereafter as much intelligence as
the secrecy to which I am in .honor bound will allow An interesting.
affair, about which a circle of friends whom I had the pleasure of meeting at
Dr. Chauncy s [were speaking], is finished, I think, agreeably to their
wishes."
2 Journals of Congress, Oct. 31, 1776.
8 Id., Nov. 27, 1776.
VOL. ii. 29
450 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Nov., Dec.
ams in his correspondence. One of his letters written for
this committee is extant. Their report had directed a
proper examination of Mr. Livingston s founderies at Salis
bury. The person selected was Lieutenant-Colonel Stu
art, to whom Adams wrote :
" Congress having authorized and directed us, their committee, to
appoint a suitable person to apply to Mr. Livingston, owner of a
furnace in the State of New York, and to Governor Trumbull, who
has the furnace in the State of Connecticut, also to the Council of
the State of Massachusetts Bay, to procure such cannon and ord
nance stores as General Schuyler has represented to be immediately
necessary for the use of the army in the Northern Department, we
have thought of no one in whom we can more cheerfully confide for
the performance of this important business than yourself. And
therefore we request you to undertake it, as Major-General Gates
has assured us that it is not inconsistent with the general service, or
the duty of that station which you hold under his immediate com
mand.
" You have a list of the ordnance and stores that are wanted, and
you will be pleased to make your first application to Mr. Livingston
for such of the cannon and stores as he can furnish. You will then
apply to Governor Trumbull to be furnished by him with the re
mainder, to be sent to General Schuyler as early as possible this
winter. If you cannot be supplied with the whole of the stores in
New York or Connecticut, we advise you to apply to the Council
of the Massachusetts Bay to make up the complement ; to whom
we have written, as well as to Governor Trumbull, requesting them
to afford you all the advice and assistance you Shall need in the
prosecution of this business.
" We doubt not but you will provide these necessaries with all
possible despatch and at reasonable rates ; and see that they are in
a way of being forwarded to General Schuyler, to whom you will
give notice, and to us, of the success you may meet with in your
several applications.
"We would mention, for your information, that Congress has
contracted for cannon to be cast in this State at the rate of thirty-
six pounds ten shillings per ton; and the highest price that has
been given in Pennsylvania is forty pounds. We expect, however,
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 451
you will purchase them on the best terms you can. The proof of
the cannon must be according to the practice in Woolwich." *
Meantime disasters were overtaking the patriot arms in
New York and New Jersey, and casting a gloomy cloud over
the cause. Successive defeats had obliged Washington to re
treat through the Jerseys by Raritan, Princeton, Brunswick,
and Trenton, where he transported his remaining stores
and baggage across the Delaware. Despondency seized
upon thousands ; while, in New Jersey, the proclamation of
the Howes, offering pardon to all rebels who should lay
down their arms, was eagerly accepted by great numbers,
who saw no hope of success, and looked for protection at
least from their invaders. But the most shocking abuses,
such as might have been expected from a depraved and
hireling soldiery, were perpetrated upon the unresisting
inhabitants. Philadelphia was now only separated by the
Delaware River from the advance of Cornwallis, who await
ed the means of transportation to continue thither his
victorious march. Aware of the importance of protecting
the city, Washington despatched General Putnam to its
defence ; fortifications were commenced and preparations
made to beat back the expected enemy. In the midst of
every discouragement, the army constantly dwindling,
and with slight hope of considerable enlistments, the public
credit exhausted, and the bills of Congress almost worthless,
a succession of defeats to dampen the public confidence in
their ability to cope with the British arms, and a growing
disaffection to the cause under the late proclamation,
Congress at this appalling juncture exerted its utmost
resources to keep alive the spirit of patriotism. On the
9th of December Dr. Witherspoon, Richard Henry Lee, and
Samuel Adams were appointed a committee to prepare an
1 Samuel Adams, Richard Henry Lee, William "Whipple, Benjamin Harri
son, Thomas Hayward, Jr., to Lieutenant-Colonel Stuart, Baltimore, Dec. 31,
1776. Whipple and Hayward were added to the Committee on the Affairs of
the Northern Army, Dec. 24 ; and R. H. Lee, on the 9th.
452 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
address to the people of America, which, on the following
day, was adopted and published; a thorough organization
of the army under the plan recommended by Washington
was commenced ; preparations were hastened for the de
fence of Philadelphia ; troops were ordered ^ forward to re
inforce Washington, and a frigate was stationed on the
Delaware to prevent its passage by the enemy ; fast sailing
vessles were sent to cruise off the Capes, to notify inward
bound craft to seek safer ports ; all the arms, ammunition,
and clothing in Philadelphia were placed at the disposal of
General Putnam, who was also authorized to employ all
private armed vessels for the public defence. During these
warlike movements, the greatest commotion prevailed in
Philadelphia, the Tories anticipating with pleasure the
arrival of the British, and their opponents as zealously pre
paring for battle. An adjournment of Congress to Balti
more was thought of by many, but as yet the subject had
not been introduced. How little these disasters served to
depress the mind of Samuel Adams may be seen in his let
ters to his family and friends. While the retreating army
was pressing towards the Delaware, he remained firm and
undismayed. He considered these only temporary reverses,
and saw light in the resources of his " dear New England "
and the courage of his " countrymen " in Massachusetts.
" It affords me," he writes, " singular pleasure to be informed that
our General Assembly is now sitting in Boston. I have been of
opinion that the public business could be done with more despatch
there than elsewhere. You have appointed a committee of war,
with very extensive powers, and appropriated to their disposition
two hundred thousand pounds to purchase everything necessary to
carry on the war with vigor the next year. I heartily rejoice to
hear this. I hope the committee are men of business, and will
make a good use of the powers and moneys they are intrusted with.
Let me tell you, that every nerve must be strained to resist the
British tyrant, who, in despair of availing himself of his own troops
which lately he so much prided himself in, is now summoning the
powers of earth and hell to subjugate America. The lamp of lib-
1776.] LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. 453
erty burns there and there only. He sees it, and is impatient even
to madness to extinguish it. It is our duty, at all hazards, to pre
vent it.
" But I am sensible I need not write you in this style. You and
the rest of my countrymen have done, and I have no doubt will con
tinue to do, your duty in defence of a cause so interesting to man
kind. It is with inexpressible pleasure that I reflect that the
mercenary forces of the tyrant have for two years in vain attempted
to penetrate the Eastern Colonies; there our enemies themselves,
and those who hate us, acknowledge that the rights of man have
been defended with bravery. And did not South Carolina nobly
withstand the efforts of tyranny ? She did. Virginia, too, and
North Carolina, have in their turn acted with a spirit becoming the
character of Americans. But what will be said of Pennsylvania
and the Jerseys ? Have they not disgraced themselves by standing
idle spectators while the enemy overran a great part of their coun
try? They have seen our army unfortunately separated by the
river, retreating to Newark, to Elizabethtown, Woodbridge, Bruns
wick, and Princeton. The enemy s army were, by the last account,
within sixty miles of this city. If they were as near Boston, would
not our countrymen cut them all to pieces or take them prisoners ?
But by the unaccountable stupor which seems to have pervaded
these States, the enemy have gained a triumph which they did
not themselves expect. A triumph, indeed ! "Without a victory !
Without one laurel to boast of! For Bunker s Hill they fought and
bled. They sacrificed their bravest officers, and we wished them
twenty such victories. But the people of the Jerseys have suffered
them to run through their country without the risk of even a pri
vate soldier ! They expended their ammunition at trees and bushes
as they marched ! But I hear the sound of the drum. The people
of Pennsylvania say of themselves, that they are slow in determin
ing, but vigorous in executing. I hope that we shall find both parts
of this prediction to be just. They say, We are now determined,
arid promise to bring General Howe to a hearty repentance for ven
turing so near them. I have the pleasure to tell you that, within a
few days past, they have made a spirited appearance. In spite of
Quakers, Proprietarians, timid Whigs, Tories, petit-maitres, and trim
mers, there is a sufficient number of them in arms resolved to de
fend their country. Many of them are now on the march. Heaven
454 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. Pec.
grant they may be the honorable instruments to retrieve the rep
utation of their countrymen and reduce Britain to a contemptible
figure at the end of this campaign.
"I am glad to hear our harbor looks so brilliant. I hope it is
fortified against every attempt of the enemy next spring.
" In your letters, you ask me two important questions. I dare
not repeat them. With regard to the last, you will understand me
when I tell you, let not your mind be troubled about it." l
Several letters to his wife at this time display his cheerful
disposition in the midst of general discouragement.
" I am still in good health and spirits, although the enemy is with
in forty miles of this city. I do not regret the part I have taken in
a cause so just. I must confess it chagrins me to find it so ill sup
ported by the people of Pennsylvania and the Jerseys. They seem
to me to be determined to give it up. But I must say that my dear
New England will maintain it at the expense of everything dear to
them in this life. They know how to prize their liberties. May
Heaven bless them ! "
" If this city should be surrendered, I should by no means despair
of our cause. It is a righteous cause, and I am fully persuaded
righteous Heaven will succeed it. Congress will adjourn to Balti
more, in Maryland, about one hundred and twenty miles from this
place, when necessity requires it, and not before. It is agreed to
appoint a day of prayer, and a committee will bring in a resolve for
that purpose this day. I wish we were a more religious people."
"You tell me you were greatly alarmed to hear that General
Howe s army was on the march to Philadelphia. I have long
known you to be possessed of much fortitude of mind. But you are
a woman, and one must expect you will now and then discover
timidity natural to your sex. I thank you, my dear, most cordially
for the warmth of affection which you express on this occasion, for
your anxiety for my safety, and your prayers to God for my protec
tion. The man who is conscientiously doing his duty will ever be
protected by that righteous and all-powerful Being, and when he
has finished his work will receive an ample reward. I am not
more convinced of anything than that it is my duty to oppose, to
the utmost of my abilities, the designs of those who would enslave
1 S. Adams to J. Warren, Philadelphia, Dec. 4, 1776.
1776.J LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 455
my country; and, with God s assistance, I am resolved to oppose
them till their designs are defeated, and I am called to quit the stage
of life." J
Congress having accomplished all in their power for the
defence of Philadelphia, Generals Mifflin and Putnam were
summoned to a conference ; and, upon their recommenda
tion, it was resolved on the 12th to adjourn to meet at Bal
timore. The preamble to this resolution particularized " the
strong arguments by which the Generals urged the necessity
of Congress retiring," and the liability to interruption ; but
Samuel Adams opposed the removal, which a remark in a
letter of the previous day shows to have been unexpected by
him, and perhaps suddenly introduced. He was unable to
perceive the necessity of a removal at this time ; and the
event showed that the enemy, contrary to the general ex
pectation, contented themselves with occupying New Jersey,
and made no attempt to cross the Delaware. Writing from
Baltimore on this subject, he says :
" The truth is, the enemy were within seventeen miles of us, and
it was apprehended that the people of Pennsylvania, influenced by
fear, folly, or treachery, would have given up the capital to appease
the anger of the two brothers, and atone for their crime in suffering
it to remain so long the seat of rebellion. We are now informed
that they have at length bestirred themselves, and that hundreds
are daily flocking to General Washington s camp ; so that it is
hoped that, if our army pursued as expeditiously as they have re
treated, they will take them all prisoners before they can reach the
border of Hudson s River." 2
Addressing Mrs. Adams, he wrote to the same effect :
" The day before yesterday I arrived in this place, which is one
hundred miles from Philadelphia. The Congress had resolved to
adjourn here when it should become absolutely necessary, and not
before. This sudden removal may perhaps be wondered at by
1 Letters of Samuel Adams to his wife, Dec. 9 and 11, 1776, and January
29, 1777.
2 S. Adams to J. Warren, Baltimore, Dec. 25, 1776.
456 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
some of my friends ; but it is not without the advice of Generals
Putnam and Mifflin, who were at Philadelphia to take measures for
its preservation from the enemy. For my own part, I had been
used to alarms in my own country, and did not see the necessity of
removing so soon ; but I suppose I misjudged, because it was other
wise ruled. It must be confessed that deliberative bodies should
not sit in places of confusion. This was heightened by an unac
countable backwardness in the people of the Jerseys and Pennsyl
vania to defend their country and crush their enemies when, I am
satisfied, it was in their power to do it.
"If Heaven punishes communities for their vices, how sore must
be the punishment of that community who think the rights of human
nature not worth struggling for, and patiently submit to tyranny.
I will rely upon it that New England will never incur the curse of
Heaven for neglecting to defend her liberties. I pray God to in
crease their virtue, and make them happy in the full and quiet pos
session of those liberties they have so highly prized." x
Congress commenced its session at Baltimore on the 20th,
when we find Samuel Adams appointed with Lee, Wilson,
and Harrison to report upon a variety of military and finan
cial correspondence, embracing letters from Generals Wash
ington, Sullivan, and Wooster, and Robert Morris. Those
from Washington referred, among other matters, to addi
tional enlistments, a subject in which Adams had most
heartily engaged, and for the furtherance of which he had
advocated the payment of a bounty of twenty dollars to each
soldier, and one hundred acres of land to those who enlisted
for the war. This was a part of the plan adopted by the
special committee of Congress, which had matured a system
for the most part in accordance with the views of Washing
ton. It was the increased pay of the officers and the boun
ties to the soldiers which, together with their great respect
for the Commander-in-Chief, induced many of the old sol
diers to remain long enough to enable Washington to strike
the enemy on Christmas night at Trenton. The General
1 Samuel Adams to his wife, Baltimore, Dec. 19, 1776.
1776.]
LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS.
457
had also requested that Knox, who was now at the head of
the artillery, should be made a. brigadier. Lee, Wilson, and
Adams were therefore appointed a Committee on the State
of the Army, and, upon their recommendation for the ap
pointment of a brigadier-general of artillery, Colonel Henry
Knox was elected by ballot.
The Committee on the State of the Northern Army, with
Samuel Adams as its chairman, continued its sittings at
Baltimore, and was the medium through which business of
great moment was transacted. Letters from the Committee
of Safety of Pennsylvania, and from military and financial
officers, were referred to them. One from General Schuy-
ler produced a resolution from this committee, probably
prepared by Adams, directing the President to address the
Assemblies of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connec
ticut on the critical state of Ticonderoga and other posts in
that quarter, and the extreme danger of Carleton s possessing
himself of that fortress, as soon as Lake Champlain should
be so frozen over as to be capable of bearing horses ; stating
that the troops occupying those posts would not remain after
the close of the year, and, in the most pressing terms, urging
the hastening of troops from those States in given propor
tions. He wrote in relation to this to James Warren :
" We have this day received a letter from General Schuyler, which
has occasioned the passing a resolution forwarded to you, I suppose,
by this opportunity. The General says he is informed that the
levies are making very tardily. I hope that he has been misin
formed. It is certainly of the greatest importance that New Eng
land, in a particular manner, should be very active in preparation
to meet the enemy early in the spring. The British tyrant will
not quit his darling plan of subduing that country. The intent of
the enemy seems to be to attack it on all sides. Howe s troops
have penetrated this way, far beyond his expectations. I flatter
myself they will be driven back to New York, and winter there.
Carleton will, unless prevented by an immediate exertion of New
England, most certainly possess himself of Ticonderoga as soon as
Lake Champlain shall be frozen hard enough to transport his army.
458 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
Carleton, it is said, has gone to Rhode Island with eight or ten
thousand men to make winter quarters there. The infamous be
havior of the people of the Jerseys and Pennsylvania will give fresh
spirits to the British Court, and afford them further pretence to
apply to every court in Europe where they can have any prospect
of success. Russia has already been applied to. Their whole force
will be poured into New England ; for they take it for granted that,
having once subdued those stubborn States, the rest will give up
without a struggle. They will take occasion from what has hap
pened in Jersey to inculcate this opinion. How necessary it is,
then, for our countrymen to strain every nerve to defeat their de
sign. The time is short. Let this be the only subject of our
thoughts and conversations. Our affairs in France wear a prom
ising aspect. Let us do our duty, and defend the fair inheritance
which our fathers have left us, our pious forefathers, who re
garded posterity, and fought and bled that they might transmit to
us the blessings of liberty." *
We have seen Samuel Adams, from the time of the ap
pointment of Washington as Commander-in-Chief, heartily
sustaining him in every measure, both as a member of com
mittees indorsing his acts and in his endeavors to further
the designs of the General, communicated by letter to Con
gress. He had a just appreciation of Washington s wisdom
and virtue, as his letters already quoted abundantly testify.
He now gave proof of his confidence in that great man by
consenting to confer upon him, for a limited time, dicta
torial powers, a measure which, on his part at least,
evinced a readiness to sacrifice long-cherished sentiments
to the immediate public exigencies. The Committee on the
State of the Army, consisting of Richard Henry Lee, Wil
son, and Samuel Adams, had evidently been appointed after
the discussion of the recent disasters. Important letters
had been that day considered in committee of the whole,
which were finally submitted to these three members, who
were to report on the following morning. 2 It was they who
1 Adams to Warren, Baltimore, Dec. 25, 1776.
8 Journals of Congress, Dec. 26, 1776.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 459
recommended to Congress the resolution strengthening the
hands of Washington, investing him with " full, ample, and
complete powers " to raise and equip an army, establish their
pay, apply to any of the States for such aid of the militia as
he should judge necessary, form magazines of provisions in
such places as he should think proper; to displace and
appoint officers ; to take whatever he might want for the
use of the army, if the inhabitants would not sell it ; and to
arrest and confine persons refusing to take the Continental
currency, or otherwise showing disaffection to the American
cause. The " perfect reliance in the ability and upright
ness " of Washington, as expressed in the preamble, was not
misplaced. He used these extensive powers with a cautious
circumspection as well as vigorous activity which must have
relieved the doubts of the most anxious. Jealousy of dele
gated power, under however mild a form, at all times insep
arable from a proper vigilance for the common liberties, was
now a virtue doubly necessary when freedom was maintain
ing a death grapple with tyranny, and democracy was
receiving its baptism in blood. A people entering upon a
new political existence could not too warily guard against
the dangerous effect of measures which had so often been
fatal to popular government. Of all men in America, Sam
uel Adams should have been the most careful of risking the
public liberties in the hands of the military, however virtu
ous might be the persons to whom the trust was confided.
Eight years before, the quartering of the King s troops
upon a loyal and inoffensive town had prompted him to
warn his countrymen of this danger. Then he had writ
ten : " History, both ancient and modern, affords many
instances of the overthrow of states and kingdoms by the
power of soldiers who were raised and maintained at first
under the plausible pretence of defending those very lib
erties which they afterwards destroyed. Even where there
is a necessity for a military power within the land, which,
by the way, rarely happens, a wise and prudent people will
460 LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
always have a jealous eye over it ; for the maxims and rules
of the army are essentially different from the genius of a
free people and the laws of a free government." 1 The
warning was as applicable now as then ; but it was another
maxim with him, that " the public safety should take prece
dence of all other considerations." It only remained to
inform the several States of the reasons which had induced
Congress to thus enlarge the powers of Washington ; and the
same committee reported a circular to that effect, from the
pen of Lee.
A first consequence of the Declaration of Independence was
naturally the negotiation of alliances. While that event was
still pending, Samuel Adams, in his impatience of delay,
had looked beyond the intervening obstacles to the probabil
ities of receiving aid through the natural jealousy of Eng
land among the European powers. His letters repeatedly
touched upon this subject ; and as early as April of the last
year, when the two Adamses were on their way to join the
second Congress, it seems to have been a memorable topic
of conversation, and preliminary arrangements were appar
ently made as to the embassies. A plan of treaties had
been under discussion from a short time after the Declara
tion ; and Franklin, Arthur Lee, and Silas Deane were
before that time selected as Commissioners to France. In
July, Samuel Adams had written : " It is high time for us to
have ambassadors at foreign courts. I fear we have already
suffered too much by a delay. You know on whom our
thoughts were turned when you were with me." This un
doubtedly referred to Franklin, John Adams, and Arthur
Lee. John Adams and Jefferson, who were nominated,
having declined, the choice finally fell upon Franklin, Ar
thur Lee, who was still in London, and Silas Deane. The
latter had already been sent as secret agent to France to
sound its disposition and to negotiate for assistance. The
form of a treaty had been prepared by Franklin and John
1 Essays of " Vindex," December, 1768.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS. 461
Adams during the past summer. The late disastrous cam
paign seems now to have hastened the consideration of
further alliances ; and a few days after the assembling of
Congress at Baltimore, Gerry, Witherspoon, Kichard Henry
Lee, Clarke, and Samuel Adams were appointed a commit
tee " to prepare and report a plan for obtaining foreign
assistance." 1 Their plan, which was reported on the 28th,
was debated two days in committee of the whole, when it
was resolved to despatch additional commissioners to the
courts of Vienna, Spain, Prussia, and the Grand Duke of
Tuscany. It was recommended to obtain the assistance of
European powers ; to prevent foreign troops from engaging
against America ; to urge the assistance of France in attack
ing any part of the dominions of Great Britain in Europe,
and the East and West Indies ; to confine American West
India trade to the vessels of France and the United States ;
to exclude the British from any share in the cod fishery of
America, by reducing the islands of Cape Breton and New
foundland, and promising that, if ships of war were fur
nished to reduce Nova Scotia when required by the United
States, the fishery should be enjoyed exclusively by France
and the United States, and the territory, in the event of its
capture, be equally divided between the two nations. Frank
lin, who had sailed for Europe, was also offered the embassy
to Spain, and a draft of his commission was forwarded as
reported by a committee of which Samuel Adams was a
member ; but as he declined the position, Arthur Lee was
substituted. Ralph Izard was appointed to Italy, and Wil
liam Lee to Vienna and Berlin. 2
The nomination of Lee to the French and Spanish embas
sies was doubtless due to the influence of Samuel Adams
and Richard Henry Lee. Adams, as we have seen, held the
abilities of Arthur Lee in the highest estimation ; and he now
believed, as he had always done, that the services of his friend
1 Secret Journals of Congress, Foreign Affairs, Dec. 24, 1776.
* Ibid., Jan. 2, May 1, 1777. Sparks s Life of Franklin, pp. 416, 425.
462 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec.
in any public capacity must prove of signal benefit to Amer
ica. Previously, he had solicited John Adams to accept the
mission to France. Indeed, his fondness for his kinsman,
with a long-established admiration of his remarkable talents,
had shown itself from the very commencement of the Revo
lution, and he was always ready to further the interests and
ambition of John Adams and all others who were worthy,
and was content to remain out of sight himself. Shortly
after the arrangement of plans for diplomatic relations, in
which his judgment and industry was largely exerted, he
wrote to his absent friend :
" I have every day for a month past been anxiously expecting
the pleasure of seeing you here, but now suspect you do not intend
to give us your assistance in person. I shall therefore do all that
lies in my power to engage your epistolary aid. You will by every
opportunity receive my letters, and, I dare say, you will be so civil
as to answer at least some of them.
" I have given our friend Warren, in one of my letters to him, the
best reason I could for the sudden removal of Congress to this place.
Possibly he may have communicated it to you. I confess, it was
not agreeable to my mind, but I have since altered my opinion,
because we have done more important business in three weeks than
we had done, and, I believe, should have done, at Philadelphia in
six months. As you are a member of Congress, you have a right
to know all that has been done ; but I dare not commit it to paper
at a time when the safe carriage of letters has become so precarious.
One thing I am very solicitous to inform you, because I know it will
give you great satisfaction. If you recollect our conversation at New
Haven, I fancy you will understand me when I tell you that to one
place we have added four, and increased the number of persons from
three to six. I hate this dark, mysterious manner of writing, but
necessity requires it. 1
1 This riddle is explained by the late diplomatic appointments. The one
place was France, for which the embassy had been several months arranged.
The four additional were Vienna, Spain, Prussia, and Tuscany. The three per
sons were Franklin, Dr. Lee, and Deane, the Commissioners to France, whose
number was officially increased to six by the appointment of Izard to Italy,
William Lee to Vienna, and Franklin to Spain, a position afterwards con
ferred upon Dr. Lee.
1776.] LIFE OF SAMUEL ADAMS.
"You have heard of the captivity of General Lee. Congress
have directed General Washington to offer six Hessian field-officers
in exchange for him. It is suspected that the enemy choose to con
sider him as a deserter, bring him to trial in a court-martial, and
take his life. Assurances are ordered to be given to General Howe
that five of these officers, together with Lieutenant-Colonel Camp
bell, will be detained, and all of them receive the same measure that
shall be meted out to him. This resolution will most certainly be
executed.
" We have this day passed a recommendation to the Council of
Massachusetts Bay of a very important nature. It will be sent by
this express to the Council, to whom I refer you for a perusal of it.
" Our affairs in France and Spain wear a promising aspect, and
we have taken measures to put them on a respectable footing in
other parts of Europe ; and I flatter myself too much if we do not
succeed." l
The anticipations of the writer from these diplomatic
commissions were not realized. Before Lee received his
appointment, he had, at the request of Franklin and Deane,
already left Paris for Madrid, but his mission failed. He
was stopped at Burgos by an agent of the Spanish govern
ment, and finally turned away from Spain without reaching
the capital. Izard never proceeded on his journey farther
than Paris, and William Lee was equally unfortunate.
With the commission to Arthur Lee, which seems to have
gone forward at once after his appointment, Samuel Adams
renewed his correspondence across the Atlantic.
" It has been altogether from a regard to your safety that I have
restrained myself from continuing on my part that correspondence
which you was obliging enough to indulge for several years. I
know very well that your avowal of, and warm attachment to, the
cause of justice and truth have rendered you exceedingly obnoxious
to the malice of the British King and his ministers, and that a let
ter written by a zealous assertor of that cause, addressed to you,
while you was in their power, would have brought upon you the
resentment of that most cruel and vindictive court. I cannot omit
1 Samuel to John Adams, Baltimore, Jan. 9, 1777.
464 LIFE OP SAMUEL ADAMS. [Dec., 1776.
this opportunity of writing to you after so long a silence, to assure
you that I am most heartily engaged, according to my small ability,
in supporting the rights of America and of mankind. In my last
letter to you, near two years ago, I ventured to give you my opinion,
that, if the British troops then in Boston should attempt to march
out in a hostile manner, it would most surely effect a total and
perpetual separation of the two countries. This they did in a very
short time ; and the gr 
