0! Q ‘L W . .. M ' ’;";§b$b "'15" : : Va» .A.¢..u \ W_....,_._.,H.,.......~2 L .‘|~1! A6. ; *4‘ __ % 1 ‘A ‘ .$f ,1-‘Q3 12>} fix CELEBRATION OF‘ THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY ANHHflCAN'INDEPENDENUE, .AT LEICESTER; JULY 4'.1?::sI, 1876. %€uxcc$ter: PRINTED BY CHARLES HAMILTON, CENTRAL EXCHANEE. 1876. PROCEEDINGS. AT a public meeting of citizens, held at the Town House, May 25, 1876,11; was voted to celebrate the Centennial Fourth ofJu1y, and :3. committee was nominated, and accepted by the meeting, to make suitable a.1‘1'angemente for the occasion. At a. meeting for organization, this committee chose Messns. JOHN N. l\1n"1-mocx, Chairman, and DEXTER KNIGHT, Secretary, and divided the Board into various sub»-committees, to carry out the details of M the Celebration. Oficere of the Day were chosen as follows: President. REV. SAMUEL MAY. A Vice-P7*esz‘dents. J esnzen MURDOCK; L. D. TI-ZIURSTON. E. G. CARLTON. A- E. SMITH. Anoxzo WHITE. Uhaplam. Rev. LEWIS HOLMES. Chief Marshal. C.A.P'r. JOHN D. Coeswntn Toast Master. Jenn N. MURDOCK, Esq. The arrangements previously made were carried out euccess- fully. The day was beautifixl, and was greeted at sunrise in the traditional manner, by the ringing of bells and firing a national salute of thirteen guns. The people had been directed by 4-. PROCEEDINGS. public notice to assemble at the Town House at half-past nine A. M.; and at ten o’clock the hall, which had been carefully made ready and handsomely draped with the American and English flags no longer in enmity, was Well filled with the people of the town, and invited guests, chief among Whom was Hon. EMORY VV.A.s:t—1eUnn", a native of the town, and its faithful historian. 3 Pnncmally to the hour, Mn. MAY, as President of the Day, 83361:»--— FI§3LI,.O'W*CI'l'IZENS AND FRIENDS: By the great favor of God, We are living to see this day. The sun which looks down upon the One Hundredth Birthday of our nation looks also upon us. Thoughts of gratefnlr praise, as well as emotions of liveliest joy, must be uppermost in all our hearts to-day. We join with the multitudes throttghout our Wide-spread land in the public observance of the glad day which closes the first century of our national existence. The Lnxonscrnn Conner BAND in a spirited manner played “Hail! Columbia, happy land.” Prayer was ofiered by Rev. lV.’[n. HOLMES, of Grreenville, one of the earliest localities occupied in the settlement of Leicester. The prayer was an expression of fervent gratitude, and recognized the many providential blessings which our land enjoys. e l The Declamtion of Independence was read by DR. Monnoott. The band played “The Red, Wlhiite and Blue.” The Pnnsxnnnr then announced the Orator, Jonas‘ E. RUSSELL, ESQ. Mn. RUSSELL came forward, and in a peculiarly ‘animated manner, with a. ringing clearness of voice and distinctness of utterance, pronounced the following Oration, which kept the closest attention of the audience to the end. ORATION. FRIENDS AND FELLOW-CITIZENS, all hail! L131‘ us rejoice together and congratulate each other, that . here, on these hills sacred to Liberty, we are assembled from happy homes to greet the one hundredth anniversary of American Independence I It is our privilege that we are met thus for praise and gratulation. We have no protest to make; we have no lost rights to recover; no despotic throne rests upon us; no chain of slavery clanks in our ears; there is no sound of war in our borders. We enjoy a reign of Peace; the true nurse of National greatness, source and soul of social life, under whose benign sway toil’ has its reward, science enlarges, art refines, and swelling cornmerce opens wide its ports. Have we not then reason to rejoice and to be glad? But this is not merely a festal day. We are mindful that a century ago these hills nurtured a sturdy race which had just entered upon a civil war—-—-com1:nenced on principle, to be sustained by bitter sacrifice, on the ground of civil liberty. Fourth of July, 17 7 6, was no holiday with them ; on that day, their representatives in Congress assembled, declared that the Colonies “ are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states.” This declaration was defiance of the Royal Government, and to make it good, they put all in peril and took up arms. lTheir success, the liberty, 6 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. under law, which We enjoy, fully attests. Our rejoicing is therefore to commemorate the events in which our institutions were founded, to revive the memory of the toil and s11fi"ering endured by our fathers, to rekindle the flames of patriotic f'eeling in our hearts, and to comrnence a new Century of National Life with fresh resolves of high endeavor. The consideration of the part borne by the people of the Colonies in the events of the Revolution, cannot be com- xnenced at the year 1776. That, though the most rnarlred and memorable year in our history, did not Witness the beginning of the matter. During twelve years previous to 1776 there had been legislation in Parliament dangerous to the interest of the colonies, and subversive of their rights as British subjects. The England of a century ago was not a nation of shopkeepers, seeking wars only with weak races, for the advancement of trade. The English were then in the very bone and sinevv of their national life : a bold, coarse-grained, hard—hitting people, whose statesman- ship was ever on the alert for aggranclizetnent. There was no breeze stirring by land or sea in which they did not seek a part. W’i.th the Grerrnan States, owing to the nation- ality and alliances of the House of BI‘I1I1SWl(3l§, they were at peace, but with France and Spain War was almost con- tinuous. On every shore they had planted armed colonies, every sea was vvlntened by their ships of War, and in the distant East the prodigal treasures of vast empires, had been seized by the violent hands of British soldiers, Wl1OS8,CO11-- quests rivalled in extent and rapidity those of ancient conquerors upon the same fields. In 1763 Great Britain had just brought to successful con- clusion, vvars with France and Spain that added to her wide onarxon BY MR. RUSSELL. 7 possessions islands in the South Seas and in the West Indies; the great province of Canada had also been taken, and the cross. of St. George floated over all the land in America, from the extreme North to the Capes of Florida. But the expenses of conquest made financial embarrassment, and the ministry, with a View to the increase of revenue, proposed “Acts of Trade” inimical to the prosperity of the colonies. In 1764: “ the Sugar Act” was passed, and “the Stamp Act” proposed. These laws caused great ferment. In the next year the obnoxious “ stamp act” was passed, and a storm of anger and discontent swept over the colonies. Party spirit ran Very high in England. There were hot discussions in Parliament. Men out of power made pretext of the colo-« nial troubles to attack the ministry. Lord Ohatharn, out of ofiice, became an intense lover of Liberty and the British constitution. Edmund Burke, eager for place and fame, supported the cause of America with an eloquence that never was equalled in our language. All this reacted in the colonies. There was an intense stir, especially in the East and South. In New England, James Otis and others fanned the flame of disaffection; in Virginia there was not only eloquence, but also Wise philosophy and statesmanship. There was a great deal in the air. It is history and tradi- tion both, that the Anglo-Saxon race always fight about money exactions. Unscrupnlons robbers themselves of the world in general, they have always made their civil W':':LI‘S on questions of taxation. The colonists were very English, and followed the family traditions. There was hard fiip~-~drinking , in New England taverns, with politics hot as the hissing flip-iron; there was rioting and bad temper; much smug-i gling and other evasions of the law, and quarrelling with the king’s officers; there were liberty caps and liberty trees, 8 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. and a great deal of talk that meant no action, and it all Went on, as human affairs do, to a greater end than they thought. In all this the yeornanry of Leicester, Paxton and H Spencer bore part. They were jealous for liberty; they in- structed Captain Brown, who was their representative in the General Court, in a long letter, signed by Daniel Hen- shaw, Thomas Denny and Jonathan Newhall, for the part of Leicester. This letter is a strong, Well-written document, professing full loyalty to King George, but great discontent in regard to the taxes, and jealousy in respect to their rights as British subjects. It is in every Way creditable to the public sentiment of the town, and to the quality of the citizens who composed it. The difiiculties between the Government and the Colonies Went on, the breach continually growing wider, the next recorded action of Leicester being resolutions of similar tenor to their letter of instruction, adopted by the town meeting in September, 17 68. They sent Capt. Brown to the memorable convention held in Faneuil Hall in the same year. In England, the Government was inexorable; in the Colonies, patriotic resolves were followed by retaliatory acts. In May, 1770, we find the citizens of Leicester drilling as soldiers. In 17 7 1, they bought powder, ball and fiints. In 1773, the destructionof tea in Boston Harbor, and other disturbances, had the hearty sympathy of the town. In 1774:, growing bolder, and justly exasperated by acts of despotism that were madness on the part of the ministry when directed against British subjects, Leicester joined in the movement to use no goods imported from England, Ireland, or the West Indies. We stand now upon the edge of the most importantevents in American history. The service. osarron BY MR. RUSSELL. C 9 next year was to bring on War between the turbulent Colonies and the greatest power upon either land or sea. But the struggle, heavy as the odds seemed, Was not hopeless, as events proved. Great as the comparative power and Wealth of England Was, distance neutralized much of that advantage. America contained three millions of people. They were a hardy race, uncorrupted by Wealth, not enervated by luxury. Labor and hardship were their familiars and they were a martial people, bred to the early use of arms. Upon the coast was a stalwart class of sailors, that vexed every sea with their fisheries, and pursued their mighty game from the storrny coast of Labrador to the heats of tropic seas. In all the towns of New England there were veterans who had stood in the trenches at Louis~ burgh, or sealed the heights of Abraham with Wolfe, or who had joined the British cheer when the Moro Castle was storrned, and the Meteor flag of England was raised over the captured Havana. The brother of Washington had held the king’s COl'I1I1’1lSSl0I'1 and fought at Carthagena, under Admiral Vernon, from whom their estate was named. Wasliington himself was a Colonel in the king’s colonial However’, there was a fearful drawback in the fact that War meant rebellion,‘an ugly word, which success alone can change into the honorable sound of revolution. There was a great deal of the habit of loyalty in their hearts, and the king’s name is a towerof strength. They had a con:nnon. heritage in the glories of England, and kindred ties of blood and tongue. They would liave to meet troops before whose prowess the World quailed—-——-regirnents upon Whose banners were blazoned victories Won in every qua1*ter of the globe, over men of every race. The British soldiers were sturdy . 2 . 10 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. island xnastifis, fighti.ng and swearing with equal valor, whether on the plains of Flanders, or the sands of India; their ofiicers stout, hot aristocrats, red of face and portly of front, full of beef and pluck. Their army marched in all the pomp and circumstance of War. History, fame, pride, and the stirring memories of a thousand years, were on the side of England. But no matter for that: when men stand up to fight, brown homespun is as good as scarlet and lace, if it bnt have as good stnif under it. In 1774, the towns had come to the conclusion that they must have a grapple with the kin,<;:;"s troops. Leicester held gig/‘ween town meetings in that year. It is wonderful What a power there was in the New England town meetings. They bred orators and statesrnen; they overmatched the king and his ministers; they gathered up and gave form and shape to men’s opinions. ‘ The Leicester meetings are not recorded, except in special acts and resolves; but they show a constant advance of opinion, a great vigor of resolution, and above all, a devo- tion to “ the most dear name of Liberty,” indicating the fervor that a year later flamed up in the Colonial heart. ln all their meetings there is no appearance of the Con» tinental idea; they are not Americans; they are aggrieved Englishmen; they appeal to the record of their share in England’s glories, and avow their loyalty to the king. It was in the clash of arms, and from the blood of Inartyrs, that the spirit of independence was to spring. The Leicester meetings did not end in resolves. They raised money for the common defence; bought powder and ball, and hired a competent drill ofiicer, a veteran of the French Wars, to train their two companies of miilitia; Matters had so far pro- grassed that all the towns in the heart of the Ooxninons ORATION BY Ma. RUSSELL. 11 Wealth were sleeping on their arms, conscious that stirring events were at hand. They had not long to wait. In the afternoon of Wednesday, April 19th, 1775, a horse- inan, riding hard, spurred up Leicester hill, pulled up at the hlacksmith’s shop, Where the Captain of one of the companies was at his anvil, and announced that the War had begun ! Then on he Wentto alarm the Western towns. Who this man Was, who sent him and gave the message he voiced, we know not. Much that was done in that day has but scant record. The hour they Waited, for had come! The , king’s troops were on the march I The grass at Lexington and Concord was flecked with blood! The liberty trees bloomed at last with the crimson flowers of battle! Messengers hastily summoned the men from their distant farms and by four o’clock all were on the common. Before sunset the two companies had marched. Just at dark the Spencer company passed; later on came the company from Brookfield. From every side the men of the staunchOld Colony were marching to Boston. The roads echoed to the drum»-beat, and the women in the lighted houses listened to the tramp of columns, and the wry-necked fifes, piping the notes of “The girl I left behind me.” Momentous as the time seemed it was greater than they knew. They were pressing into the furnace blast of war to win a few denied rights from the gobstinate king, but in the turmoil that ensued, the divine right of kings was to he overthrown, a new nation was to be born, and Liberty was to find her chosen home ll On they marched, that chill spring night, a hundred years ago. The quiet stars looked down on them, the watchdogs at distant farm-houses barked, and the frogs peeped in the misty lowlands; toil and death were before them, but behind 12 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. the veil of the dread future were glorious names of Bunker Hill, Saratoga, Monmouth, and final «Yorktown. To us, the gallant yeomen of 1775, glowing with youth and aspiration, are but dim figures in quaint apparel. They did their Work. Time has mustered out all that the sword spared. Their roll has been called for the last time; with their three-cornered hats, cross-belts, braided queues, and leather breeches, they have marched on into the land of shadows, and become part only of story and of song. In June Bunker Hill was fought and the homespun jackets saw, what few enemies had ever seen, the scarlet backs of British grenadiers. In this fight the men of Leicester took good part. The records of Leicester for the remainder of the year 1775 are scanty; the men were in the new army under Washington, and town Ineet— ings were not so frequent as they had been; but the idea of separation from Great Britain had come up and had so penetrated the minds of the people that in May, 17 7 6, it was unanimously voted in town meeting: —-—~ “ That in case the Honorable the Continental Congress should declare these Colonies independent of Great Britain they would support said Congress in effecting such a measure at the risk of their lives and fortunes.” This resolve, so early made, shows that the town was in correspondence with the leading patriot minds and fully abreast with the most advanced opinion. ' The several Colonies were now in a peculiar position. By the rupture with the government they found themselves not only called upon to conduct a great War, but to frame new governments for themselves and their posterity. It was fortunate that the real foundations of popular govern-r T ment were already laid in the Colonies- The Way was ORATION BY MR. RUSSELL. 13 prepared for temperate and rational republics. They had no hereditary aristocracy; no privileged class. All authority had been derived from the king. Wlien by their own act they threw off allegiance to the Crown, the right of government reverted to its origin, and the people remained the only source of legitimate power. Their circumstances and habits of thought led them at once to a pure democracy. The spirit that appears in the Leicester town meeting of May, must have pervaded the Colonies and urged Congress to bolder action, for in June, Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, offered the resolution dissolving all political connection with Great Britain, which was seconded by John Adams. This resolution, with the Declaration of Independence, was pro- claimed to the world the succeeding 4th of July-—one hundred years ago to-day. From this act American Inde- pendence dates as from a birthday. Its effect was instant, not only here but in Europe. We are so accustomed to the tones of liberty that we do not take in the significance that the burning words of the Declaration had to those who were sitting in the cold shadow of tyranny. The hearts of the colonists were filled with unutterable thoughts, and their hands, raised against lawful authority and anointed rule, needed the assurance that comes in protest and charter. At this faltering moment the genius of Thomas Jefferson plucked from those gloomy foreheads their brooding, thoughts, and with the nervous force of English speech he set forth the inalienable rights of man; their violation by the king; declared the compact between the people and the crown dissolved, and the origi- nal right of sovereignty resumed. It is a detestable fashion of our day to separate the passionate and declamatory text of Jefferson from the material facts, and to subject it to 14 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. the hypercriticism of schoolrnen. And a son of Massachu-- setts, scholar, orator and senator,*" in-3 his zeal for party, and eager suhservience to slavery, once spoke of the Declaration as consisting of “glittering generalities”; a matter not worth mentioning if the sneering phrase had not been caught up and become the flippant remark of the shallow and the degenerate. The Declaration accomplished its purpose. It gave voice to a people’s Wrongs; it changed colonial murmurs into national rights and nerved dejected, Sllrlllkllilg’, cowering Rebellion into vigorous, compact Revolution, Whose com—- plaints were statesrnanship, and whose acts were legitimate War. It hrouglit the king and Inixiistry face to face with the sovereignty of the people,--«it struck away rewards ofi'ered for men’s heads, the ‘prisons and the gibbets erected for treason. The mere words of Jeflerson are nothing but the grace of rhetoric, but they are to be “taken with the “glitter” of the sword of Washington, and the gleaming rifles of a roused and animated people. The Declaration still lives, full of its original vigor, and covered with all its “glitter.” Millions of Americian citizens have heard it read to--day, with qniclscer heart-throb, all over this vast continent ; from Where the clear streams leap to the untempered Waters of the North Atlantic, to the turbid tide of mighty rivers, dark-rolling to the Southern Gulf. Stout old King George moulders under the tessellated floor of a Royal Chapel, and the dust of Thomas Jefferson long ago mingled with the soil of Virginia, but Wherever hunian hearts beat responsive to liberty, in whatever age or clime, the name of Jefferson will be a patriot watchword, and the Declaration of Inde- pendence an nnanswerable argument. V * Hon. ‘Rufus Choate. ORATION BY MR. RUSSELL. 15 The action of Congress was fully approved by the people of Leicester. They stood by the Declaration without reserve. Their town meetings were unanimous. They con- tributed all their able-bodied men to the army, and paid taxes not only in money, but in beef’, corn, blankets, shoes, shirts and other military supplies. The drafts for men and means were very onerous. “We, in our present methods of luxurious living, can have little idea of the privations and toils of that time. There was no accumulated wealth; there was no Wide-reaching commerce; there were none but household manufactures. The Massachusetts towns were (except on the coast) entirely agricultural communities, wrixigixig by hard work, from a cold soil, all that they obtained. The women had to labor incessantly ; it was their lot to spin flax and Wool, and to weave all the fabrics that clothed the household and the army. In many cases they orked the farms with the old men and younger boys, and I do not believe that they shirked their part of the duty, nor could American independence have been achieved without their hearty co-«operation. They exemplified the saying that “they also serve who onlystand and wait.” What weary watches were theirs in all that long seven years of gloomy war! .What privations as well as toils. What burden of widowhood, what bereavement of sons, brothers and loverst That is the unwritten history of warw-a suffering uncheered by glory or triumph, unnoticed and unknown in this world. From 17 7 6 until the closeof the War the records of Leicester are meagre. A large proportion of the men were from time to time in the army. Some never returned, others came back with honorable Wounds. The stories they told, and the traditions of battles lingered after them, but form no part of authentic history. The personal narrative 16 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. of Solomon Parsons, preserved in the history of Leicester, gives a vivid picture of one of the important scenes in the War. Parsons was a soldier in the 15th Regiment of the , . Massachusetts line. This was one of the best regiments in - V the army, and saw hard service. They were at Burgoyne’s surrender, and thence, transferred to Washington’s army, found tliemselves at the battle of Monmouth. The Conti— nentals, "under Washington, with Lee, Lafayette, Green and Wayne, here engaged the main British zirmy under Clinton. It was a day of terrible heat, in June, 17 7 8. When within eight rods of the Red-coats, firing ball and buck shot, Parsons’ thigh was broken, and he tell where the advancing enemy, passing over him, stabbed him with their bayonets and robbed him. The hotly-contested battle passed on. At length he saw the British General Clinton with his staff approaching. A young aid rode up to Where he lay, and kindly asked him about his Wounds, and to what detachment ‘ he belonged. Said Parsons:----“ to the Marquis Lafay- ette’s; they asked me What division I belonged to, I told them Grreen’s division, Grlover’s brigade, Bigelow’s regiment and Martin’s company; they asked me What town I belonged to, I told them Leicester, in the County of Worcester, in Massachusetts Bay, and I was not ashamed of’ it.” That was-a good example of Leicester in 17 7 8, and a vivid picture of the War. The hot field of Monmouth under a burning sun»--—-the patient, constant Washington in command-—--the romance and chivalry of the Old World rep» resented in theryoung and ardent Lafayette----the ragged Continentals, under the impetuous Wayne, pounding at the steady line of British scarlet--—the battle-cloud of smoke and dust rolling on, and into the open space where Parsons lay ----the brilliant staff of Clinton, riding up to observe the cannon BY MR. RUSSELL. 17 field! Parsons was picked up by Leicester men, and lived many years to shoulder his crutch and tell eager childhood of \Vaslr1ingtoI1, and the Monmouth fight: to»-day the sweet grasses of Elliott Hill grow over his grave, and he will lie forever in the soil for which he fought so well and of which he was not ashamed. V Tradition and story fade out fast in the flying years, and We learn very little about the life of the common people in the long past by reading what is called history; itiis very embarrassing to the student to find how little was recorded except the acts of government and the doings of the great; The Muse of History is a stately lady accustomed to palaces and courts, much encumbered with ceremony and with more regard for dignity and style than she has for truth. She ever moves to slow music, in grand pageants and processions. In the last century there was a character- istic dance called a minuet: the lugubrious music to which its measures moved has since been utilized for psalm tunes and fitted to the colicky verses of Sternhold and Hopkins; but the stiff brocades, heavy hoops, and towers of powdered , hair, could move only to stately measure, in slow dignity. The artificial society of Europe, typified by the minuet, bred the modern historic muse that has recorded our early affairs. Dignity cannot busy itself with the poor record of work- day life, and therefore we have but little information, except of the doings of legislative bodies, the graver actions of municipalities, and the records of armies. The everyday life of the people is almost a blank to us, except as it can be gathered from letters; of these there were few, as there was no postal establishment and letters were only sent by couriers or private hands, and communication even, between neighboring towns was inf'requent; It must not 3 \ . 18 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. be forgotten that at the time of the Revolution there were no newspapers to preserve current gossip and to reflect public opinion. The inner life of the people Innst be gathered from such scraps of description as We get from town records, sermons, addresses, letters, diaries and accounts. We know that the people of the colonies strug- gled through the War, in some Way, snfi'eri1ig all things, but with no thought of shrinking. Human nature is pretty much the same in every age, and there were diseffectecl people who were openly or secretly on the side of England. There were rascally contracto1‘s, who plundered the rs.gged, half-starved army; ambitious oiiiicexs, who plotted to super- sede Washington; and the Oolonists found,.what has been Well proved in this generation, that the noisy profession of patriotism is often the refuge of scoundrels and the cover of thieves. But the right was on the side of the people and it was the ere. of Liberty. The stars in their courses fought for thern. The ancient enemies of England banded together. France, Spain and Holland declared war; India was in a ferment against her authority, and at last, England relaxed her grasp and America was free! The close of the War found an exhausted people, over- Whelrned with debt and confronted with all the problems of a new Government. There was confusion and dispute for some yeras; and in Massachusetts, serious rebellion, in which some Leicester people sympathized. Growing commerce, snccessfnl fisheries and the establishment of manufacturing restored the content that always comes with prosperity. At the close of the war Leicester people relied exclusively upon agriculture; but it was not long before the spirit of manufacturing was felt in the region, and card-xnaliing by hand was the frequent occupation of the farm-house fire» onarrovn BY MR. RUSSELL. 19 side. The ingeniousii and intricate C3S(.I'Cl-t‘l’1El,(3l1l1’18, so familiar to us and so wondezrfiil to st1’a11ge1*s, was irwented here; and card xnaking has since been the most remunerative occupa- tion of our people. The manufacture of woollen cloths was commenced early in the century by Mr. Samuel Watson, and continued vigorously by Englisli families that immi~ grated about 1820. The sound of looms has been familiar to all our streams for half a century. It was my intention when I comrnenced Writing this address to give a full account of the p1'ogfress of manufactures in Leicester since the year 1800, but I do not find the in.f'ormation accessi ble, and my time has been too limited to gather it by questioning the older people and comparing their state- ments. In the matter of education Leicester has ranked very lrigli. The liberal endowment of the Academy in 1783 was of vast benefit to all the people of this region; it has furnished education to thousands Who are now scattered all over the country, and who look back with grateful feelings to the liglit which our fathers set upon this hill. The town has been fortunate in its social life and in the character of its citizens; many names are Worthy of men- tion and there is an unusually full account of the families in the Town History; early in the century 001. Thomas Denny, enterprising and successful himself, not only led the Way but helped his rieighbors abundantly with counsel and capital. To him much of the early prosperity of the town is due. The antiquities, local history. and anecdotes of the region, have been remarkably preserved by the labors of the late Joseph Addison Denny; and the more serious and important history has been carefully Writ- 20 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. ten, by a distinguished mid loving son of” Leicester, Ex.- Grovernor Emory Vlleshbtirn. And now, Fellow}-citizens, we stand at the opening of the second century of our Nation’s life! How eliangecl the scene from that time of danger, sufi’ering and uncertainty a. hundred years ago! We have liberty; our fathers had it to win. We have power; they were strong only in resolve. We, have wealth; they were rich but in faith. Prosperity is in all our land ; they throve in the midst of hard adversity. We lizwe especial cause for tliaiilafiilness that. we begin our second century free from the curse of lmmen slavery, and that under equal laws no than can be oppressed “because he is poor, or beemise the is ignorant, or because he is black” ; but let us not forget that still, as in the ea,rlier days, the price of liberty is eternal vigilance-—--tliet cen- tralized power of which our fathers were so jealous, that greed of wealth and public eorruptioxi may destroy our institutions While we sleep. If We are true to the teachings of the past, We l18[V8i en illimiteble l1e1*itage. The great ~ oceensythat Wash our either shore do not restrict, but invite, Wider enterprise. The grain of the VVest, the cotton of the South, the gold of California, the silver of Nevada, “ the cattle on 21, thousand hills,” are ours. “ For us Idume’s spicy forestsblow, And seeds of gold in 0phir’s mountains glow.” Still have we expensive power, in vast unsettled 1*eg;ions, ofibring homes to landless millions, and revealing to the eye of prophecy new empires and elusters of Stetes,’a.s the telescope of the niglit-vve.tel‘1e1‘, turned upon the misty nebulae, resolves it into starry worlds, and new constellations shake their flaming hair. REMARKS or REV. SAMUEL MAY. 21 At the close of the Oration the large Choir orga1iizeclfo1't;he occasion and under the lead oi‘aMn,. Tnozuas S. LI\'EF{i\I{i)RIi:§ a descendant of early settlers of the town, sang VVl1ittle1"s Centen- nial Hyrnn, to the music o1‘ig’inal1y composed for it by John K. Paine. The PRESIDENT then put the assembly under the charge of Chief Marshal Coesxvnnn, who formed a procession, that, led by the Band,n:1arched to Sargentfs Grove. Wheri all Were assembled at t_he Grove the e:s;e.rcises were commenced by the Band playing the music of “America.” Invocation, by the REV. A. H. COOLIDGE. An abundant collation Was then served to not less than six hundred people. Arnple time having been taken for this refreshrnent, and While the juvenile part of the company were engagccl in various amuse- ments and sports t}11'ot1gho11t the Grove, the Pnnsinnnrcalled the assembly to order, and announced that the several spealrers who had been invited would now address such as niiglit give their attention. REMARKS OF REV. SAMUEL MAY. Standing at the clivicling line between two centuries, recalling all the perils through which our country has come, Iementihering the foes which rose up against her, Without and Within, comparing the strait- s cued condition of the Thirteen States a century ago with the magnificent area which is now included in our boundary, and the vast resources developed in these one hundred years, our first thoiight must needs be of devout thanksgiviiigg and We say with reverence and awe as well as joy,--~“A little one has become a thousand and asniall one a strong. nation; the Lord has hastened it in his time.” Our orator, to-day, has carried us back, by his vivid touch, into the stern, anxious times of the Revolution; has ‘shown us our town in its days of ‘ spare living and high thinking," and our country in its cradle-—-~ nay, in the very throes of its protracted sltruggle into existence; its population not over three millions, Wealth, in any modern sense, nowhere existing. The dwellings of the people, and especially of the rural population, were small, poorly finished, scantily furnished,-—-—tl1cir fare of the plainest, even when Sl1ffiClt3I1l3,*-*”th€lI' clothing homespun and rude. Those of our people to-day who account themselves poor, have better houses and more comforts than did the most of those Who were then -thought well--to-do. But how they rose to the great ernergencyl how" cheerfully they assumed large burdens, and girded themselves to sacrifice their all,-eyes, and their lives also, rather than crouch in tame subjection. Leicester furnished 254 men to the States troops between V1775 and 1781, not including the 72 men who marched at the time of the Lexing~ 22 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. ton and Concord fight, nor those who enlisted for the War in the Conti- nental army; and she paid not less than $18,000 in money, over and above her share of the annnetl tax levied by the State for War purposes; «---to say nothing of other contributions. The number of men furnished by Leicester was greater than her whole male population over the age of sixteen! Showing that many men Went again and again, as the calls were renewed. And What W£1.S the entire American army at that time? In his history of the United States, Bancroft says that on the 1st July, 1776, 3. letter from General Weslxington Wes read‘ in the Continental Congress, in Winch he “returned the Whole number of his men present and fit for duty, including the one regiment of artillery, at 7754. The state of the arms of this small and inconsiderable body was still more inauspicious; of near 1400 the firelocks were had; more than 800 had none at all; 3827--more than half the Whole number of infe.ntry--—-had no bsyonets. Of the militia, who hed been called for, only about a. thousand had joined the comp; and With this force the Greneral was to defend er.ten~i sive lines against an army, near at hand, of 30,000 veterans.” -—B<:mcrofl, viii. 450. It was at such a. moment, and in such circumstances that the Congress of 1776,----men of a. truly inspired foresight and courage»---—a<:lopted, signed, and promulgated their Declaration of Independence! It Was in truth :5; bold act, but it was not :3, reckless one. It had been long and Well considered. They knew the value of the liberty and manhood for which they contended, and were ready to pay a. high price for them. To belong to a country founded by such men is of itself high distinction. But I must not pause, even upon such a. theme. A century’s Work closes to-day. As from our mount of observation We sweep its field and horizon, We may note the grand stages of our ne.tion’s progress. We perceive three such stages, two of which are already past, and in the third We ourselves are actors. Each one of them is essential to the netioitfs life, each indicates profgress, and that the Nations practical motto still is, Go up lfigher. First, we began with resisting at foreign tyranny, s. bondage imposed from without. It was a. seven years’ Work. Let its story be read and read agaizi in all our hon:1es., It Was 3, xnighty educator. Witness its effect on one small interior town like Leicester. How truly great were those old town meetings! How ssgecions the counsels, how eloquent the resolutions, how Wise their instructions to their representatives! One at this day wonders at the Words and deeds of those men Whom, from plain, herd-Working =-ferniers and craftsmen, the emergency made statesmen, soldiers, and not seldom heroes.‘ 111 N83 the ’V’Wll.l'.‘ ended, Great Britain acknowledging American inde- pendence. Then followed the several attempts to establish a. form of government, and the country started on its rnarch of self-development. In 1812, end for a. term of three years, occurred the second War with England, in which a. notable efficiency in novel warfare, on the part of REMARKS or REV. SAMUEL MAY. 28 the young nation, was fully demonstrated. This, however, was no very serious strain upon the country’s resources, and when peace returned, early in 18l5——--very Well I remember the time---tlie industrial occupa- tions of the people Were at once resurned, and all went forW::n.rd with accelerated pace. But the strcmz. came later. It was in 1830, when at young men of Mztssacliusetts birth, who had pondered Themes Jefi‘erson’s words, “I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that His justice cannot sleep forever,” and John Wesley’s Words, “American Slavery is the sum of all vllloiniesf’ and still more the Words of Christ, “Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it not to me ;” and who heard the voice of God in his own soul say- ing, “ Speak my Word to this oppressive land, Whether they will hear or Wliether they will forbeer,”-~»erreigned the nation for its long; and «guilty complicity With sle.vel1o1ders, branded Slz:1.very as s sin of deepest dye, and celled upon the pegple to repent of the sin, and put it away at once and forever. “ I am in earnest ;” he said, “ I will not equivocete; I will not excuse; I "Will not retreat a single inch; and I will be heard.” 1 Then began the second great stage in the Netion’s life; the second great test of its fitness to survive. It had thrown off :3. foreign tyranny; could it cease from its own? It had broken and cast off‘ the chains Which had been prepared for itself; would it break the cheinswinfinitelyi more gelling, as Jefferson himself declared--—Which itself was keeping firruly bound on the limbs of millions of humble, useful laborers on its own soil? What a. contest it Was! For thirty years it went on, by argument, appeal, remonstrsnce, rebuke---Weapons “mode mighty by the living God”——-line upon line, precept upon precept, educating‘ the lancl and a. Whole generation anew in the self-evident truths of humanity, Chris» tianity, and the Declamtion of Independence. When £:‘tl‘gll11'1€3]’.1t and reason failed the friends of slevery,flthey resorted to violence and not seldom to murder. It become manifest at last that they preferred slavery before their country, which they would destroy sooner than abandon their sleveholcling. They lifted their hand against their country, and then her true sous rose in their miglit, and in the recent terrible four years’ War uprooted slavery from the soil, and prohibited it forever. Thus the second onw'erd and upWo.rd step in the na.tion’s progress was taken. It was dexnoiistmted that the country could not only throw ofi‘ :31. foreign bondage, but could do the more diflicnlt Work of ceasing from its own wx~ox1g~doin§,', however seemingly‘ gainful, however great the cost of estztblisliiiig justice and freedom. at The tlzird g:rea.t stage in the na.tion’s progress is not yet attained; and it depends largely upon us of this ggexierntion whether it shall be gained or lost. Even now the question Waits decision, and the scales vibrate. It is for us now here to help the land We love to take this third and 24 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. crowning step, by which she shall place herself uninistahtably in the foreniost rank, and become the herald of all goocl to all lands. What is this third and essential step? This,--~—that, having twice gotten the victory over outward foes, one abroad, the other at home, we may now get a victory over ourselves. Can We---can this our land-——-- meet and overcome the force of appetite, and rise superior to the seductions of pleasure, falsely so called, when it asks us to surrender manhood, honor, self?-respect? Can we discern the hollowness of the bargain in which we give up everything and get nothing?—-——the shame and infamy of the service which strips us of our freedom and makes us slaves? This is the living question of the hour. The enemy is nigh; the snare is spread. The heedless are quickly entrapped and disabled ere they are aware. But a glorious victory awaits the vigilant; a \~"lC- tory to be crowned with peace, prosperity, and consciousness of life Well nsed,——--with present and eternal satisfactions. p‘ A little more than a year ago, at the celebration, in Boston, of the 100th anniversary of the Battle of’ Bunker Hill, I had the pleasure of being in the company of two gentlemen, representatives of foreign countries to our own. We had passed together through four or five miles of people, from every part of Massachusetts and New England, lining each side of the procession, covering sidewalks, steps and plat- forms, filling every window and doorway, and mounted even upon roofs, old, middle-agecl and young, children of the schools in holiday attire’, beautiful in youth and roses,----when one of these gentlemen, a man of Spanish birth, broke a somewhat long silence by saying in a ‘very emphatic manner, “No other country can show such a sight! Your State can build no monument, on Bunker Hill or elsewhere, which can tell What a siglit of this people tells to everyspectator. These crowds of people, so orderly, all so plainly understanding the occasion, and interested in it, and looking so happy,——no soldiery to Watch and rrestrazin them, scarcely a policeman needed-—--these are your true inouument.” I was inuch impressed by his Warmth, and felt that his ‘words were not without reason; While none know so ‘Well as We, Who are among and of this people, how much remains to be done to Weed out existing evils, and to build better still. Yes! the intelligence and integrity of the people, their character and ability of self-«control, these are, in truth, the best monument. Monuments of stone and brass, the most solid memorial buildings, will crumble and fall. But the olzarocter and deeds of an intelligent and upright people are imperishahle. They live in history, to instruct and animate coming ages, and they live through Godis eternity, to add to the unspealizable glories of His Kin,,~ dom. Let us do our part this day, this year, in the new century upon , which we are just entering, to build up this fairest of temples, to 1:uan’s honor and to God’s praise. “Good omens cheer us.” Let us accept‘ them. More and more our people recognize principle as above party, honesty and integrity as more than all besides. Let every good Work of true education go on; REMARKS 0:5‘ REV. SAMUEL MAY. 25 it let us render to every man, eye and to every wotnan, that which is equal and just, until ell our oliildreto everywliere are tz111gl*1t tlieee hl§_."h leseoine of eliamoterg and A111e1‘ice, like the Roman rmxiron, one say of them, “ These are my j.eWele;” and she, herself, a. nation Wo1*ki11g 1*i,g*l1teoue« mess, shell fulfil the grand prophecy made of her more than e ceutiiry ago-—~ . ‘“ Westward the course of empire takes its way; The four first acts already past. The fifth shall close the drama with the day; TIME’S NOBLEST OFFSPRING IS THE LAST.” At the close of him. l\Ls.Y’s Address he called upon the Toast- Maeter, Me. JOIIN N. lV.[UJ:moo:i«:, who read the first Sentiment, as follows :.—~--» I. Our C'omm;/: We her some and her deoghtexe, Whether native or adopted, on this Centennial Day of her Independence rise up and call her blessed, and pledge to her anew and forever our service and our love.-—-—God bless our land! The children of the public: sehools joined in singing, “My Country, ’tis of thee.” II. The memory of ?~evoZutio~ne7*y Leicester and he?‘ devoted sons and daugfzteie : 1 “ What conetitutese State ? Not high-raised ba,tt1em,ent or labored mound, Thick Well or moeted gate; Not starred and Spangled courts, Where 1oW~—browed heeenees Wafte perfume to pride. No; Men, hi,gh-minded men, . Men who their duties lmow, But know their rights, end, knowing, dare maintaina- Prevent the long-aimed blow, And crush the tyrant While they rend the chain.” The Band played the “ Star Spangled Bannetrf’ III. The Jllzfwvxuzie-M'ee. of Leicester, of 1775 : Who, in faithful compliance with the promise of their name, marched from here on the afternoon of the battle of Lexington, and eft‘erWerds participated in the battle of Bunker Hill :~«-—We cherish their iiemee; We honor their memories; We ere instructed by the story of their zeal and devotion. Never shell they be forgotten, and their glorious ex.-exnple shell ever animate the citizens of Leicester to e. bre.ve end manly discharge of every public and private duty. The Choir here eang with admirable expression “ The Flag without a Stein.” 4 26 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. IV". The T‘V07ra»er2. of Leicester one Ittcnrlrerl :1/oars ago : Ilitelligent, bezmtiful a.1:xd gonorotts. With slender rnezms, but with wa.1'n1 s.m:l bravo hearts, they put their hancls to the distnfi‘, anti to every household ixulnstry, mid furnished their brotho1‘s, sons and husbands with olotlflng and food, may and with nmmttnition too; zmcl proved tl]111'e§;e which enimatecl the men of that day, and the extent of the seorifieee which they were willing to uiidergo, that they zzmd their ohildre1:1 might be free and in.clepe11de1:1t. Even then, they would only approximate the oontmet which o1a.rks the comiition of the Leicester of that day, when compared with the town as they now saw it. Its only business at that time Wes ogriou1tm'e, carried on upon a. rugged and unproductive soil. The sum total of its ‘Wealth did not e:s:oe‘e<:l $150,000, for less tlien that of many of its individual citizens at the present clay. Its population hardly reached a. tlxousond, with but little interczourse or C01”.lI.‘1€§Ct‘lOI1 with other parts of the (L‘or1i1111o1iWe:x1tl1. Yet it would not be diifioolt to $hOW that, of all’ the towns of which it was then composed, not one sustained at ]Tl€}il.i?"i€l’.' burden or made greater sacrifices in the cause tha.1:1 that in which they were now getliered. One reaeoii for their early share in the movements of the revolution,‘ and the spirit with which they entered into them, was the intima,te I‘¢31‘¢M3lOl'1Sl'1lp'\’V’11lC11 existed between some of the femiliee in. the town flililtil those of the leaders in the enterprise in Boston. The town in thztt way, were kept advised of the progress of events as they oc:c::urre<:l, end were ready to stand by the men to Whom the people looked for counsel and guidance. There were but two hundrecl and twelve men above the age of sixteen in the town. Ancl yet, when the elertn of the Lexington figlit reached them, about noon on the liltlx April, 1775, it company of minute-men, ge.the1'ed from every quzirter of the town, were l*(3f.1€ly’l1‘1 four hours to take up their morcli for Lexingtoxi, and zuxotller entire company was but a. few hours in their veer. It wt-its a levy in hizteeeolilisetts of her sons, from sixteen to sixty, at the first cell of the country to arms. Nor was it e suclden or lmety outbreak of public epirit on the port of the town; it was the intelligent will of it tliinking people. During the following six years 28 0 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. they responded to twenty-eight drafts for troops, for loxlgexi or shorter pe1'iode of service, by ec>1:1t1‘il;)uti11g3; 12:34; men, of whom tlllrty or more did Service for three yeevre in the Continental amny. The pecuniary sacrifices during these yeaars were even more signal and rema.rka.ble tlleu the contributions in men, He could give the names of more than one of the more fore—l1l1nded farmers who were obliged to sell the enimztls from their stalls to meet the levies made upon them to fll1“‘lZllSh eolcliers for the service encl olothiong; and food for the er11:xy. Alld this was in addition to what the families of their own eoldiere supplied to them in the Way of eomf‘orts e13cl11ecesea1*ies in camp and on the march. The aggregate amount of these levies borne by the people of this town could only be eppt'o:«:imate<:l. But he llftd made it 3, subject of i1:1V*estig:e~ tion, and was setiefiecl that the money paid in lbouoties to soldiers alone exceeded $11,000, zmd tllet beyond this the some expended for clotllltttg and supplies of provisio1*1s would form, with that of the boorltles, en agg1'e§gate of more tllen $18,000. Nor could they, as they oorxtempletecl that sum, estoilllete the bmrden it Was, in fact, upon the then resom‘oes of the town, till they lllild been told that it was larger, in propoxrtiou the,1:1 e levy of $200,000 would be if oxmlde to-«day upon the present valuation of the town. This, it slloold be remembered, xvee in eddition to the orclinary texee annually asseesed for support of the sol1ools, llighveztye and other ex- penses of the town, which were at no time eospelucled. They neve1', for a molllent, forgot that liberty without intelligence 3.Il”101lg the people could never be S€(’:l1l'e, and when it was proposed in town meeting to suspend their sehools, as lled been done in some of the Il€i§3,‘lllJOl‘lllg towne, the meesL11*e was at once rejected, smcl was not ageixl renewed. Nor should it be forgotten, that all this was well lllgll e free-will ofl‘e1‘iI1g on the part of the town, instead of being yielded to the requirements of 3 strong governnuent. From October, 1774, to July, 1775, Mzls.:;ee.le1ueetts had, in fact, no legitimate governnnent beyond the :x:eeo1"nx11ende.tio1‘1s of her Provincial Coogreeeee. And even when the forms of government were restored, it had to clepencl mainly for its efficiency upon the voluntary action of the people. Allifl yet so 13 atiexltly end pemielelltly did the people of Leicester adhere to the purpoee for which she entered into the War, that she found herself at lest reduced, by her sacrifices, from the twenty-second, as she stood at the C€)ll‘lIl’10llC.€:lI10llt of the War, to the thirty-third town in the county in point of valuation. But she was true to the last, anal when in May, 1776, the question was brought before the town, if she would sustain Con§;2;re.~se in 21. deoleretioll of ixlclepenclenoe, the people unanimously pledged to it their lives and their fortunes, whatever Inight be the ooet. 0 0 Time would not admit of his clwelling longer upon the cleteile of what the people of Leicester did in helping to will the iodepeodebee for which they had declared. He had elreedy" eeicl enough to awaken in the hearts of every one Who heard him it generous pride in the hiSl301‘_Y of the men who dwelt here e11 hundred years ago. Will it be asked REMARKS or REV. MR. COOLIDGE. 29 What have been the fruits of all these sufferings and sacrifices ‘P They were around them. on every side, in the growth and prosperity of the town, as Well as in the marvellous growth and expansion of the then thirteen feeble colonies into a «mighty nation stretching across the continent. Instead of half a score of cheap unpainted dwellings scattered for half a mile along the side of the highway, the eye now rested upon a beautiful and populous village, the homes of comfort and luxury, and the seat of thriving inclnstry, , And though agriculture had sought a more congenial soil in the new fields of the west, and given place to the genius of the practical arts, they saw around them a population three times as large and showing a Wealth more than ten times as great as was found here at the period of the revolution. Might they not hope that this march of progress in the past was to be an earnest 01 What may be xyitnessed here when another hundred years had made up its record? As for tlieniselves, no more ‘lofty ambition could inspire them than to hope that When, at the close of another century, the children of Leicester shall come together in joy and gladness, they had done this day, to call up the memories of the past, they may look back upon the men of this opening century with as much of generous pride, as they themselves recalled to-day the actors and events of 1776. VIII. The Christian Mimfstry of New E72;/lavzcl. Of‘ the Gospel they preached, the Declaration of Independence was the logical application and the inevitable result. ' Ritv. A. H. CooI..n>on, of the First Congregational Church, responded to this sentiment as follows: REMARKS OF REV. MR. COOLIDGE. The Declaration of Independence was not the result of a sudden impulse. American freedom was not the product of a day. Its roots extended into the past. The earlier battles of the Revolution were fought in other centuries, and on the bloody fields of another continent. The causes of that liberty in which We rejoice to~day were in the germ religious. The people had listened to the preaching and embraced the principles of a gospel which recognizes each individual as a free, responsible being, endowed with the rights of personal judgment, and conscience responsible to God alone. Such a gospel nurtured the free manly spirit of independence, and predestined the history of America. Accordingly. when the crisis came, it found the pastors as Well as the people ready. , Reference was made to the leadership and the services of the ministry in the Revolution, and to the honorable record of Rev; Benjamin Conklin, of Leicester. No scene in our history is more afiecting or more thrilling than that which took place on our Common, on the after- noon of the day on Wliich the battle of Lexington was forfglit, when as the minute-inen were about to march they reverently uncovered their 80 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. heads, and in the hush of that momentous and sacred moment the pa.- triotic pastor of the church raxised his hands toward Heaven, nncl com- mended those men, Whose feet were to tread the verge of the valley of the shadow of death, to the guidance and protection of God. With a. ‘similar blessing the Ininute-men of Worcester marched from the com- mon of that provincial town, and the scene was duplicated in hundreds of New England villages. i We forget, however, the speaker said, in conclusion, in the congratu- lations and thankfnlness of this hour, the ‘various distinctions of office, of circumstances, of denomination, and of race; and remember only that we are all shavers in the g;lo1'y of this grand history, and in the blessings of a. free and Christian nation. \ Let us be true to these great principles, and the record of the next century sliall be more h1‘i,gl1t and honorable than that of the past, and the World shall feel the thrill and the inspiration of a. mighty n::Ltion’s benign influence. “The hour of triumph comes apace, The fated, promised hour, When earth, upon 9. rausomed race, Her hounteous gifts shall shower. Ring, Liberty, thy glorious bell! Bid high thy sacred banner swell! Let trump on trump the triumph tell, Of Heaven’s redeeming power.” IX. May the virtues of the Fathers be transmitted to their Children. Responded to by REV. Lewrs Honiuns, pastor of the Baptist Church, Green.vi.1le, a native of Plymouth, the landing place of the Pilgrinis. Mr. Holmes spoke with much feeling of his long and happy residence in Leicester, of his ng1'eeahle associations with the people, and stated that he was about to return to his native town of Plymouth, and tlmt he should ever cherish the fondest recollections of Leicester and its inhabitants. The REV. S. R. BAILEY was called upon to respond to the sentiment :------‘‘Z 716 C’/zetrclt and the State : one and irisepainble in object and aim. The State to protect the interests of the Church ; and the Church to ever seek the promotion of purity in the State.” REMAR.I{S OE‘ REV. MR. BAII..E‘if‘. Referexiee was made to £1. preceding sentiment, in which was ex-- pressed the hope that we should in the future aim even for 3. higher standard than our fathers had succeeded in rezichinn‘. To do this, Mr. B. said, would necessiitate that We keep constantly in View the motto here presented. For holiness, purity, had been especially committed to the care of the Church by its ‘great founder. It Was, and is, and must REMARKS OF REV. MR. BAILEY. « be, “the pillar and ground of the truth,” both in its theoretical and practical aspects. But in orderthat it may be perfectly free and inde- pendent in this its great and important work, it must not be subjected to the direction of those Who will not discern its true work and its proper relation to the World. For this reason our fathers, who clearly perceived the evil that a cor- poreal unity of Church and State had Wrought in the past, severed the connection which had until then universally prevailed, making the Church and the State altogether independent of each other, and giving to each its own appropriate sphere of action. This principle we, their children, adopt and recognize as the only true and Well grounded one, that the State must not coerce the Church in any of its own proper _ modes of action, and the Church must attempt no usurpation of authority in its connection with the State. The object of the establishment of the Church was the promotion of purity of morals among men; and the just aim of righteous govern- ment in the civil arm is the protection of the upright by the punish- ment of evil~doers. Therefore the Church in its own proper sphere is entitled to the protection of the civil arm, While it must ever recognize as a legitimate and highly important department of its Work the inculca-A tion of loyalty, on the part of all, to that government, authoritatively established, under which it may be found. a . In view, therefore, of the evils which a corporeal union of the State with the Church has never failed to foster, and this principle of inde- pendence having been established at so much expense of suffering, blood and treasure, We deprecate any attempt to ever seek such a union in our land. We open our arms and Welcome to our embrace our fellow’- men from every land beneath the skies, but Woe be to him who shall endeavor to fasten upon us the efiiete system which has bound the Old World in the iron chains of despotism for forty centuries! Calvinist and Arrninian, Romanist and “Heathen Chinee,” all have the fullest liberty of thought and opinion upon our shores, but may the bitter, biting, withering curse of the Almighty rest upon any and all who _ shall at any time, or under any circumstances, attempt to exalt any sect or any sentiment to a. legal jurisdiction in our land. Should this ever be the case, should sectarian influence enter our national councils, and rule the government of the land, then our beautiful flag shall forever cease to be the symbol of a true and pure independence. Then no more shall it “ Wave O’er the land of the free, and the home of the brave.” For, as we have seen in the past of national history, a true freedom can then no longer exist; and instead of a genuine bravery, only a servile and cowardly submission to self—constituted despotism must prevail. May that hour never come in our history. May the heaven of our flag ever be as blue, its stars as clear and bright, and its syinbolismmas 32 CENTENNIAL AT LEICESTER. pure and spotless as in the past; so shall our land forever be the. abi.ding: place of liberty and purity and peace. X. The mnmy incfZustrz7es of Leicester, both in the past and present : They show a people fertile in invention and skilful in application; not easily disconragecl in adverse times, and using liberally and honorably the prosperity vonchsafed to them. May patience, sagacity, and a Wise econorny soon bring back: the days of active and remunerative business. Responded to by Rev. D. H. Mo.N