| Citation |
NHG-P.777.008
15 Mar 1777:21,22 (43)
[Essay of the desirability of liberty]
If we prove not incorrigible under his corrective
dispensation, we may reasonably expect, that he is about to
do great things for his New England-Israel, & "make us a
peculiar people, zealous of his service and glory;" and then
will The lustre of our father's actions,
Thro' the dark cloud of ills that compass us;
Break out and burn with more triumphant brightness,
Our sufferings shine, and spread a glory round us: For--
Greatly oppress'd, we fight the cause
Of virtue, honor, liberty, America:
Our sword ne'er fell but on the guilty head;
Oppression, tyranny, and power usurp'd,
Draw all the vengeance of our arms upon 'em."
As the issue of this unhappy controversy is with infinite
wisdom, and impartial justice, to whom, as our rightful
umpire, we have refer'd our cause, let us not fully the
glory thereof, by copying after our vile oppressions, in
indulging a too unmanly and indignant rage; but let humanity
continue, always to mark the line of our conduct,
remembering that (tho' their actions characterize them
devils) still they are but man: At the same time, soberly
reflecting on those tremendous words, "Vengeance is mine, &
I will repay, saith the Lord."--
To you, who are led to reflect on the cruel fate of a kind
parent, a tender husband, or, an only son, fallen by the
hands of these "vindictive assassins," I must confess it
must be almost (if not quite) impossible: Especially you,
who have this circumstance, to im[ ] the reflection,
that--
--Scarce a tear
Embalm'd their urnes, triumphant vice beheld
With smiles their [ ] and oppression rais'd
Her scourge to inflict, where the bleeding heart
Would dwell in [ ] moisture to the pitying eye,
But [ ] to dwell too long on these strange scenes--
. . . [10 lines, signed] Philopolites--concluded.
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