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ADDRESS

AT THE INAUGURATION OF THE

HATBQRQHGH MONUMENT,

COMMEMORATING THE

BATTLE OF THE CROOKED BI

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TllXIYEKED IN I.OLLKIl ACADEMY,

December 5, 1861.

B Y 11 E V J A GOB 13 V. L V 1 1, L E .

PUBLISHED EY ORDER OF THE MONUMENTAL ASSOCIATION.

DOY.LESTOWN, l'A
J. D. MENDENIIALL, PRINTER.
18 6 2.

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ADDRESS
DELIVERED AT THE INAUGURATION OP THE HATBOROUGH MONUMENT,

COMMEMORATING THE

BATTLE OF THE CROOKED BILLET,
BY REV. JACOB BBL VILLE.

A little more than a year ago, you were assembled to witness the inaugu
ration of the Hatboro' Monumental Association. To-day, you assembled to
witness the completion of the work, for which that association was organized.
And now, to me has been given the honor of announcing to you that that
work is done. It is well done; — in a manner worthy of this community,
worthy Of the association, and worthy of the events which that work is
designed to commemorate.
Another monument has been erected to departed worth. Another spot
has been consecrated to the memory of precious dust and priceless souls.
Another stone has been set up, to witness that good deeds cannot die.
Another tribute has been paid to that virtue which men in every age have
ranked next to the love of Grd, — the love of Country. Another record has '.
been written in enduring marble, to plead with silent eloquence, for the
perpetuation of that government for whose establishment our fathers bled,
and'to'cdinmand our children and our children's children, that they hand
down to their children that heritage our fathers gave us, and which, by the
grace of God, we intend to hand down unimpaired to them.
It. is not my province to-day, to search the field of history and portray
before you the events which your monument is designed to commemorate.
Those events have already been recorded by an #bler pen* than mine, and
a more eloquent tonguef than mine has rehearsed them in your ears ; aid

* History of Battle of Crooked Billet, by Colonel W. W. H. Davis.
¦(• Oration by Colonel J. W. Forney, July 4, 1860.

as the result of that record and rehearsal, those events are familiar to you
all as household words. As you have gathered together here to-day, the
battle of the Crooked Billet has been in imagination fought again. You
have seen that little band of undisciplined yet patriotic men, with Lacey at
their head, by the faithlessness of sentinels, and the treachery of their own
countrymen, surprised at morning dawn by more than thrice their number
of veteran troops. You have seen the enemy closing in upon them, from
right and left and rear and front— you have seen Downey, and Thompson,
and Pinyard fall — you have seen Lacey with more than half his force break
through the opposing foe, and make good his retreat; and, when your eye
has followed them for a moment to a place of security, you have returned to
look ou scenes of cruelty, over which even the charity of an enemy would
fain throw the mantle of oblivion. (
It is mine, to-day, rather to read to you again the lessons your fathers
wrote upon these fields with their blood ; — to gather, from the breezes that
play around this consecrated spot, the warnings and counsels that have been
floating in them ever since they were breathed upon them by the spirits that
departed here in the struggle for liberty. It is mine, to strike the key-note
of the monument, to interpret its history and its inscriptions, that it may at
once begin its holy mission, by awaking the impulses of patriotism in our
hearts. This monument is a tribute of gratitude, a witness that good deeds cannot
die. The Bard of Avon said, " the evil that men do, lives after them, the
good is oft interred with their bones." It is not true; — evil and good are
alike immortal. There are good deeds which so enwrap much that is evil,
that the eye of man never beholds it, and there are evil deeds which cover
a character with a dye of infamy so deep that an eternity of goodness could
not wash it out. The predominant good or evil, in au individual, a nation,
a generation, stamps its character for ever.
Good deeds live in the memory. Eighty-three years have passed since
the events occurred which we this day commemorate. Their memory is as
green to-day, as when those years began, and in view of subsequent events,
they have assumed a magnitude they did not then possess.
Good deeds not only live in memory — they are immortal in their influence
— they are like seeds which spring up, a leaf, a twig, a tree, which every
year spreads wider its branches and bears in richer luxuriance its fruits.
The outburst of patriotism to-day, throughout our land, is the ripe clusters
from the vine our fathers planted and watered with their blood. The
patriots, to whose memory your monument is reared, are doing more for
their country to-day than when they died. The blood they shed upon these
fields is more powerful to preserve our liberty, than it was to procure it. It
nerves our spirits to endurance in the nation's holy cause, and ministers a
withering rebuke to every cold heart and hesitating hand.
But I have said that evil is immortal, no less than good. And there are
evil deeds remembered here to-day. The men of the Eevolution were not
all patriots. Tho very service to which Lacey with his band was appointed,
testifies that there were traitors then. He was appointed to protect his
country from his countrymen, to prevent the citizens of America from sup-

plying fo England's hired army the strength which was to bo spent in
laying waste her cities, desolating her fields, and polluting her homes with
blood. And yet, I confess, fellow citizens, that I have always looked upon
many of the Tories of the Revolution with much of pity, and on many of
their deeds of service to the mother country with somewhat of extenuation.
Though they were traitors to their country, they were loyal to the government
under which they had been born — they resisted a government which was
then a new experiment. Still, they will be remembered and execrated as
traitors, while a single monument shall stand to tell of the struggles of the
Revolution. Who then shall pily the traitors of our day ? Who shall ex
tenuate their treason ? They need no monument to perpetuate their disgrace.
The men of America who look on with cold indifference upon the struggle in
which we are now engaged, who are not ready to lay their all upon their
country's altar in this her time of peril, are writing the history of their own
shame as with an iron pen — they are handing down to their children a
heritage of infamy. Their children's children will abjure their names.
Your monument is a tribute to patriotism, a virtue which, as I have already
said, has, in the esteem of the good of every age, ranked second only to the
love of God. Who are the men whose names are handed down to us in
sacred history encircled with a God-given glory ? Who were Moses and
Joshua, Deborah and Gideon, Samson and Samuel, David and Jehoshaphat
and Hezekiah and Josiah ? Who, but patriots, who loved their God and
loved their country. Their patriotism and their piety stand side by side
upon the sacred page. They served their country in serving God, and
they served God in serving their country. And almost every record of their
faith in God, is also a record of some brave and noble deed for the land they
loved. When they prayed, it was for grace and strength to serve their
country ; and then, gifted by Jehovah with i. self-sacrificing patriotism,
they counted nothing too dear to sacrifico upou the altar of their country
and their God.
The school boys here will well remember the story of Volumnia, the mother
of Caius Marcius Coriolanus. An exile from Rome, Caius Marcius had joined
the Volscians. He was appointed commander of their forces, and now
flushed with victory after victory he was at the head of a powerful army
almost at the gates of Rome. Deputation after deputation went forth from
the city. Senators, Pontiffs, Flamens, Augurs, all went forth to intercede
with Coriolanus to spare the city, but all in vain. The women, true to the
instincts of that piety which in every age has characterized their sex, were
gathered in the temple to pray. At length Volumnia rose up, and with her
Valeria, the wife of Coriolanus, and her children, and went forth to his camp
to intercede for R,ome. He saw them approaching, knew them, and resolved
to steel his heart against their entreaties too. But he loved his mother
better than his country, and as she drew near he rose to greet her with a,
kiss. Though she was his mother, she shrank from the pollution of a trait
or's kiss. "Art thou Caius Marcius," said she, "and am I thy mother, or
art thou the leader of the Volscians and am I thy foe ? Answer me this,
before thou kissest me," " Shall it be said that it is to me — to me alone — that
Rome owes her conqueror and oppressor? Had I nevei- been a mother, my

country had still been free." No wonder that Caius Marcius quailed before
the bursting patriotism of that noble mother's heart. No wonder that he
cried, "Oh, my mother, thou hast saved thy country, but lost thy son." No
wonder that he went back to the Volscians and died the victim of his double
treason. Her's was a genuine patriotism that looked on every earthly tie as
nothing when compared with that which bound her to her country, that
overshadowed even the instincts of a mother's love. This is the patriotism
that has commanded Ihe reverence of true men in every age. This makes
us bow before the hero of Fort Sumpter. He sacrificed the ties of family
to serve his country. Tbis invests with a peculiar interest the services of
Fairfax, in the capture of those arch-rebels from the deck of the Trent. He
is a Virginian, bound to the enemies of his country by the ties of blood, but
bound to that country by stronger ties, by all the Doble impulses of his
patriotic heart. This is true patriotism ; it rises above all considerations of
interest ; it tramples on the dictates of ambition ; it turns a deaf ear to the
voice of friends and kindred. It counts no labor a toil, no endurance *
suffering, no loss a sacrifice, if the country be but thereby served. It knows
no limit, but the law of God ; and there it always finds a refuge, for God is
the patriot's God.
But wherefore should a man love his country ? I might tell you that it
is the residence and the guardian of all his dearest interests ; that it is the
proteclion which government affords which preserves not only our liberties,
but our homes and our altars ; that without it the domestic circle would soon
lose its charm, and the temples of religion would be razed to the ground ;
that rapine and violence would soon make a hell of earth. But true patri
otism rests upon a foundation deeper far than any considerations of interest
or advantage. I am weary of that mathematical philosophy which would
calculate love to country and love to God by the'pennyweight ; it would sell
God and the country for a very few pieces of silver. True patriotism has
its foundation in the God-like nature which the Creator first gave to man.
Why does every true man love his country? Why does the eye, not blinded
by disease, love beauty ? Because it is its nature. Why does the ear that
is not deaf, delight in melody? Because God made it so. Even so the man
that is a man, in whom sin has not utterly obliterated every element of his
moral nature, loves his country, because God made him so. It is the
necessary requirement ofthe primary instincts of his soul.
The men to whom this monument is reared, were patriots. They did not
achieve, it is true, what the world calls great deeds, deeds which at once
would write their names upon the roll of fame. But they did the greatest
deed man can do for his country, they died in its defence. They stood in
their lot, between their country and her foes. They fought until they fell
the victims of treachery and violence, all that the bravest and the best could
do. It is sometimes said that circumstances make great men. Il is true,
but they must have the material and the time. The Revolution would never
have made a Washington, if it had not had a Washington to make him of.
Nor yet would the world have ever known the Washington it does, had not
God granted a long life for the development of his greatness. They say, the
world has seca but one Washington. But one was spared, 'tis true, but

many an embryo Washington may have yielded up his life ou the fields of
the Revolution. There may have been a Washington in patriotism, in
courage, in every element of greatness, among that little band, to whose
memory you have erected your monument to-day. Many a Washington may
be doing duty in the ranks to-day — -some may already have gone to their
long home in the struggle in which we are now engaged, whose names will
never be known to fame. Let your monuments ever be reared, not so much
to great deeds as to brave and loyal hearts, that, in the holy atmosphere
that surrounds them, your children may breathe the inspiration of true
patriotism, and before tiem swear eternal fidelity to their country, if not
eternal hatred to its foes.
But I have said, the monument is a plea for the P^epublic. I confess I
blush with shame to utter words like these — a plea for such a government
as ours? When I preach the gospel there is one service which always
mantles my cheek with shame— to plead with man to love his God — with
such poor worms as we to love a being such as the great and good Jehovah.
Even so, with reverence I say it, I blush to plead with the citizens of
America, with men who know what it cost to establish this government,
who have experienced its beneficence and know something of its value, to
plead with such to preserve and not destroy it.
In the original draught of Washington's Farewell Address, now in the
possession of James Lenox, of New York, is this paragraph, which does
not appear in the printed copies :
" Besides the more serious causes already hinted as threatening the
existence of our Union, there is one less dangerous, but sufficiently
dangerous to make it prudent to be upon our guard against it. I allude
to the petulance of party differences of opinion. It is not uncommon to
hear the irritations which these excite, vent themselves in declarations that
the different parts of the United States are ill-affected to each other, in
menaces that the Union will be dissolved by this or that measure. Intima
tions like these are as indiscreet as they are intemperate. Though
frequently made with levity and without any really evil intention, they
have a tendency to produce the consequence which they indicate. They
teach the minds of men to consider the Union as precarious ; as an object
to which they ought not to attach their hopes and fo) tunes, and thus chill
the sentiment in its favor. By alarming the pride o f those to whom they
are addressed, they set ingenuity at work to depreciate the value of the
thing, and to discover reasons of indifference towards it. This is not wise.
It will be much wiser to habitunte ourselves to reverence the Union as the
palladium of our national happiness ; to accommodate constantly our words
and actions to that idea, and to discountenance whatever may suggest a
suspicion that it can in any event be abandoned."
Opposite this paragraph on the margin these words are written in Wash
ington's own hand — "Not important enough." He would not insult the
true men of his day by warning them further than he had already done,
against a thought entertained only by the lowest demagogues. He little
thought that in our day a mighty host would be gathered on the soil of his
own Virginia, some bearing his owu honored name, to destroy that govern-

merit to the establishment of which he consecrated his life. He little
thought that, within sight of his own grave, a youthful warrior, burning
with the fire of his own patriotic spirit, would be ruthlessly murdered for
Hinging to the breeze his country's flag. He little thought that ere the men
of his day were in their graves, the work of his life would be the mockery
of madmen, the playllitig of fools. And yet though to-day there still
stands befare you one who was born in the midst of the perils of the Revo
lution, wedded in youth to the daughter of him who led the little band to
whose memory you have erected your monument,* already six hundred
thousand men are under arms at the call of this government to protect it
from the assaults of those who have lived in peace under its protection and
have grown many and mighty uuder its fostering care. And wherefore this
deadly assault on this most beneficent government? — this government
which has cherished all its citizens of every section and of every class, as
no other government ever did on earth ? — this government under which
science aid (he arts, literature and religion alike have flourished, which,
in the ordinary and natural working of its plans, bestows i*n every citizen
alike honors and rewards which pale Ihe light of the titles and honors
which kings dispense to a favored few ? — this government against which
even the mad malice of rebellion dare not utter aught of evil but misgiv
ings for the future ? Alas ! my fellow citizens, the prediction which \\ ash-
ington dared not lo breathe is fulfilled. A multitude, of those who have
inherited the fruits of his self-sacrificing life have sunk to a depth of
infamy, his noble nature could not sound. " The petulance of party
differences of opinion," has done its work. The ballot-box, in the legiti
mate exercise of its constitutional functions, has dethroned one party and
enthroned another. And under what plea does this iniquitous rebellion
marshal its hosts ? Because of fears, well-founded fears, that the powers
of this Government, under its present administration, will not be prostituted
to the extension and perpetuation of slavery, an institution, which has ever
been regarded by the civilized aud Christian world as a dark blot upon the
record of our fame ; an institution of which Washington himself thus wrote
in language worthy of himself and worthy of his struggles in the cause of
human freedom : — "I never mean, unless some particular circumstances
compel nie to il, to possess another slave by purchase, it being among my
first wishes to see some plan adopted by which slavery, in this country,
may be abolished by law." "I wish from my soul that the Legislature of
this State (Virginia) could see the policy of a gradual abolition of
slavery." To perpetuate and extend this institution, to nationalize it and
make " owned" labor the great characteristic of the Government is the
great aim of those who, to accomplish these humilialing ends, have banded
to destroy a government whose tendencies have ever been to universal
freedom. We wage no war on slavery. Its constitutional rights were
secured by tho solemn oath of one who never broke his oalh. It wages
war ou us and on our Government to obtain guarantees for the future
which were never given by any Constitution under Heaven — security for
* Jjr. Darlington, of West Chester, who married the daughter «f General Lacey, was present
fU the erection ot tne moDument.

the perpetuity of its tyranny. This must be granted or the Republic shall
fall — so rebellion has decreed. And was it for this God opened in this
weslern world a refuge for the oppressed of every land? — was it for this
that Liberty raised hero her standard, and fought and won the battles of
Ihe Revolution, that here might be established » nursery of slavery ? — that
Religion might sanctify the tyrant's chains and baptize them as a holy
thing ? — that we and oar children might throw back into our fathers' teeth
their own declaration, that "all men were created free and equal"? — and
have we grown so great that we can afford to take from under us our very
foundations? -On the contrary, this land belongs to Liberty. The spirit of
Liberty first settled it, the spirit of Liberty rescued it through seas of blood
from the rule of kings. If the Republic fall, I will not say that Liberty
must fall. No ! Liberty is of God, and it will live to wave its banner over
every tyrant's grave ; but if this Republic fall, then exiled Liberty ouce
more must seek another home, perhaps on Africa's long neglected soil.
But it must not fall. The monument you have erected to-day is
another plea for its perpetuily. It points you back to the' wild woods,
and humble, scattered dwellings, by which this spot was surrounded in
revolutionary times, and then as it surveys the cultivated fields, the cheerful
homes and smiling villages, which now surround it, it tells of the beneficence
of that government which under God has been the author of this prosperity
not only here but in every portion of this mighty land.
The history which il hands down reminds us that this free government
was bought with blood, and fires us all with devotion to resolve, — it shall
never be sold for less.
But you need no monument to plead with you. I see, before me, men of
every party, Republicans, and Democrats alike ; — adherents of him who
passed from earth, with patriotic warnings and counsels on his dying lips,
amid the first bursting of the storm, and those who once were adherents of
him who, now a despicable traitor, dishonors one of .Kentucky's noblest
names. You know no party now, but the party of your country. You are
Americans all — animated by one spirit, the spirit thus breathed by our own
poet : " Our Country calls, away, away,
To where the blood-stream blot3 the green,
Striko to defend the mildest sway
That time in all her course has seen ;
Sec, from a thousand coverts, see
Spring the armed foes that haunt her track ;
They aim to strike her down, and we
Must beat the banded traitors back.
Few, few were they whose swords, of old,
Won the fair land in which we dwelt,
But we are many, we who hold
The firm resolve to guard it well.
Strike for this broad and happy land
Blow after blow, till men shall see
That might and right go hand iu hand,
And glorious must their triumph be."
The decree has gone forth— "the Union shall be preserved." A solemn
oath has been breathed before the great Jehovah, and His blessing sought
in faith and obedience upon it. They tell us that our foes have asked God's
blessing for, and that they pray with faith, but it is a faith not honored by

obedience. They trust in vain Jehovah's promise, who defy His law. But
we have sought. His blessing in the maintenance of right. Fathers, sons,
husbands, brothers, are already in the field, ready to win the patriot's
reward, victory or an honored grave. And we are left, all ready to obey,
whenever our country calls. If we are true to ourselves, our cause, and
our God, we cannot fail. God never laid such broad and deep foundations,
as He has laid in this fair land, merely to amuse the universe with their
destruction. Surely God has not given man the cup of liberty, that, just as
he begins to drink, He may dish it in derision from his lips. God is no trifler,
nor yet is He the advocate of wrong. He is not the patron of falsehood and
robbery and treason and rebellion. If our cause fail it will not be because
it is not just, nor because it has not the Divine blessing. It will be because
we are recreant to our trust, because we lack the virtue for the service to
which God has called us. Their's was a noble service who purchased the
liberty we have for eighty-five years enjoyed. What tributes of gratitude
and praise have since gone up to heaven for their mighty deeds. On what
scenes of gladness, the fruits of their brave deeds, have their departed
spirits looked down and smiled. Our's is a nobler service still. Their's was
the ship upon the stocks — our's is the ship at sea, laden with a precious
freight. They guarded the littlo seed — we the tree laden with blossoms,
just ready to produce abundant fruit. We bear into the strife the interests
of thirty millions of people in our own land, the interests of the down-trod
den and oppressed of every land, the interests of posterity, the interests
of liberty, of education, of religion throughout the world. Our's is a
solemn work. Let us perform it in a solemn, God-fearing spirit. If we
are faithful, what glorious rewards await us. What blessings will descend
upon posterity, what thanksgivings will ascend to God for our service when
we are in our graves. If we are faithless, we shall entail a curse upon the
world and our memory shall be accursed. If we are faithless, then let the
world never know that we have lived. Let the monuments which tell of the
great deeds of our fathers be destroyed. Let Bunker Hill and Lexington
and Concord and Trenton and Saratoga and Yorktown be forever forgotten.
Let the monument we have reared to-day be l-azed to its foundation. Let
it not stand a monument to our shame, to tell to coming generations that
we were too weak to keep what our fathers entrusted to our hands Let
oblivion engulph us all. Let not our memory be preserved, like that of
Israel of old, as a warning of the fate of those who forsake God and perish.

APPENDIX.

Thursday, the 5th of December, 1801, was 'the day fixed upon for inaugu
rating the "Crooked Billet" -Monti thent, at Hatboroilgh, Montgomery county,
in commemoration of those who fell at the Battle of the Crooked Billet, May
1st, 1778, and who were cruelly mafesacred by the British troops and Tories,
led on by the Tories of the Revolution, residing in the vicinity. The day
was most auspicious, calm and beautiful, the. sun rendering it mild by his
Warm rays. The inaugural ceremonies Were conducted at the base of the
monument, in the forenoon, and as soon as the column was capped, and the
torn being raised to its position, Rev. Dr. Steele was called upon and
addressed the Throne of Grace in a solemn prayer. Several patriotic and
eloquent addresses were made by gentlemen, Who were present by invitation
ofthe Managers. The venerable and highly esteem d Dr. Wm. Daelington,
celebrated for his scientific, historical, and literary attaiuMenls, and who is
how in his eightieth year, but whose intellect is as vigorous, active, and
bright as in his younger days, was present, and his lively conversation lent
a charm and gave additional interest to the occasion. He was accompanied
by two young ladies, direct descendants of General Lacey. The monument
i= beautiful, large and imposing, and stands upon a high bank overlooking
the road. It consisls of a plinth, five feet square and one foot thick, and a
double base, all of Montgomery county marble; upon this rests a die,
enriched with a projecting moulding, on which is the Latin motto, "Defensores
Libertaiis ppr Insidias Abrupti ;" on the square below is engraved Ihe inscrip
tion ; above this is another die, bearing Ihe coat of arms ofthe " Old Keystone
Slate," in alto relievo; this is exquisitely beautiful and an admirably exe
cuted piece of workmanship — the horses are well proportioned and seem
instinct with life, the head of the eagle has a beautiful curve, and all the
parts are well worked out ; rising from this second die is a well proportioned
shaft or obelisk, nine feet high, on which is sculptured full sized cross-
swords and a shield, in bold relief; upon the obelisk is a neat capitol, and
the whole is surmounted with an urn, from which issues a flame. It stands
some twenty-four feet high and is of the finest Italian marble from the base
Up. The monument will be surrounded by a wall aud an iron railing.

10
INSCRIPTION ON THE MONUMENT.

Defensores Eibertatis per Insidias Abrupt!.
[The Defenders of Liberty slain by surprise.]
ON THE WEST FRONT.
CROOKED BILLET BATTLE, MAY 1, 1778.
GENERAL JOHN LACEY,
commanding the American patriots who were here engaged in conflict
FOR INDEPENDENCE. SOUTH SIDE.
The Patriots of 1776
ACHIEVED OUR INDEPENDENCE.
Their Successors
ESTABLISHED IT IN 1812.
We are now struggling
FOR ITS PERPETUATION IM 1861.
"The Union must and shall be Preserved."
EAST SIDE.
A GEATEFUL TK1BCTE
by the
HATBOROUGIl MONUMENT ASSOCIATION,
CHARTERED AND ERECTED
A. D. 1861.
NOKTII SIDE.
IX MEMORY OF PATRIOTIC
JOHN D 0 W N E V ,
And others who were cruelly slain on this ground, in the struggle for
AMERICAN LIBERTY.

Dr. William Dablington, of West Chester, a son-in-law of General Lacey,
being present and called upon, addressed the audience briefly, thanking
the people of the neighborhood for the patriotism they had shown by the
erection of a beautiful monument, and said it was chiefly owing to the energy
ofthe gallant Colonel of the 104lh Ringgold Regiment,* Pennsylvania Volun
teers, aud his friends, that this enterprise, which we had been called upon
to-day to consummate, had been commenced.
General JonN Davis replied that he could not permit it to go forth, that
his family were the only ones prominent in this movement, that whore all
had acted so nobly all should share the praise — that to the ladies of Hat-
borough and vicinity they were principally indebted; it was to them, who had
labored so assiduously and earnestly in this good work, that the managers
were enabled to complete the enterprise.
* Cui. "W. "W. II. Davis, who was the prime mover in tho enterprise U raise this monumont.

11
The Rev. Mr. Toland, of Chestnut Hill, was present and added Ids test i -
mony in favor of what had been done by the patriotic sons of patriotic sires,
lo perpetuate the memory ofthe gallant brave who had given up their lives
on that sacred spot. He was glad to see before him the veterans ofthe war
of 1812; Dr. Darlington, aMi.jor, and Gen. John Davis, » Captain of that
war; they were connecting links that bind the past with Ihe present, that
unite Ihe patriotism of 1812 and 1861, the defenders of Liberty nn-ainst
foreign aggression, and the protectors of that liberty against a wicked and
causeless rebellion. The olden scenes of 1776 wero being enacted over
again by those brave spirits who have obeyed their country's call and
are now at the seat, of war. Those who had professed lo be our brethren
were now in open rebellion against us, and attempting to overthrow the
Constitution and Ihe Government.
Rev. Mr. Hand was also glad to add his testimony to what had already
been said. He congratulated the community upon what had been accom
plished. This was a fitting and beautiful testimonial lo the brave men, who
in the dark days of the Revolution had risked their all, and some had even
given up their lives upon that field to secure our liberties. The events of
this day were encouraging to those who were now in the service of their
country. They had gone forth upon a sense of dutv to crush this spirit of
rebellion, and a grateful people would reward them. Those who fell upon
this spot little thought they would have their names handed down lo pos
terity and their deeds live in imperisable marble; over eighty years have
passed away and they are not forgotten.

It may not, perhaps, be out. of placo, here, to add the following summary
of General Lacey's personal history:
John Lacey, Jr., son of John and Jane Lacey, was born in Bucks county,
Pennsylvania, on the 4th Jay of February, 17o0. His great grandfalhcr,
William Lacey, was among the earliest settlers under William Penn, and
emigrated from the Isle of Wight, England. His family were plain Quakers ;
and the suhjeet of these notes was educated among the straightest of the
sect. But when the clouds were gathering, which portended I lie storm of
the Revolution, young Lacey promptly took position in the ranks of the
patriots, and was chosen "Standard Bearer" in the Second Battalion of the
Bucks County Militia. Before he reached Ihe age of 21 year?, he received
from the Continental Congress a commission as
"Captain in the 4th Battalion of Pennsylvania Troops, in Ihe Army of
the United Colonies, raised for the defense of American Liberty, and for
repelling every hostile invasion thereof. Signed by order of Congress.
" John Hancock, President.
" Attest, Chas. Thomson, Secretary.
"Philadelphia, January 5th, 1776."
This -1th Battalion (or Regiment) was commanded by Colonel Anthony
Wayne, of Chester county. Captain Lacey's company, in the ensuing spring,
was marched, with the Regiment, to the Canada frontier, where he remained
on duly with it until the close of tho campaign ; when, in consequence of a
misunderstanding with Ihe Colonel, he resigned his commission. So far,
however, was the Captain from leaving the service, he was soon appointed

12
by Ihe Pennsylvania Legislature, one of the sub-Lieutenants of Bucks county*
with the rank nf Lieutenarft Colonel; and was actively employed in organiz
ing the Militia ofthe county.
In the autumn of 1777, When the British had got possession of Philadelphia,
they sent, a strong foraging party to the west side of the Schuylkill, when*
Ihe Americans were posted, near the Gulf Mills. Lieutenant. Colonel Lacey
\vas there in command of a regiment, when a severe engagement took place.
A portion ofthe Militia acquitted themselves with credit. General Potter,
who was in command, speaking of the affair, said: — " My people behaved
Well; especially those regimenrs commanded by tho Colonels Chambers,
Murray, and Lacey. His Excellency ( Washington) returned us thanks in
General Orders."
On the 7th of January, 1778. the Council met at Lancaster, and ordered
that Colonel Lieey take the command of Ihe Militia of this State, which may
be stationed between Ihe Schuylkill and Delaware, unlil further orders.
Two days afterffard. President Wharton wrote as follows:
" Lancaster. Jartuftry 9, 1778.
Silt, — You nri this day appointed lo be a Brigadier Gerietttlof this State;
and the Secretary Will, by Colonel Hart, forward to y.»u st commission,
empowering you to act .as such.
"To Brigadier General Lacey, at Camp."
At this date, the juvenile Brigadier — appointed to relieve General Poller
— was hot, nnite 2.1 years of age! His duty was, to cut off supplies, and
prevent Jill illicit ihlt'rcourse between the disaffect d country people and the
enemy in the city. The British officers denounced vengeance on the troops
thus employed, and swore they would speedily have the young General in
their possession, dead or alive. General Lacey had a most arduous and
ungracious duly to perform, among his Tory neighbors, and old acquaint
ances, — 3ome of whom rtevei1 forgave him ; but he acquitted himself vigor
ously — with a fluctuating force, continually varying from some 40 or 50, to
about 500 men, — unlil the unfortunate surprise of his camp, at the Crooked
Billet, on the morhing of the 1st of May, 1778. In the beginning of June,
following, General Lacey was relieved of his anxious charge, by the return
of General Potter to the command of the district; and iu a few days there
after the Brilish itrmy Vacated Philadelphia.
General Lacey, nevertheless, continued to serve as a Brigadier of Militia,
until near the close of t lie Revolutionary contest; and his Brigade was
repeatedly called out, by threatening events. While in this command (viz :
in January, ]781), he married Miss Anastasia, daughter of Colonel Thom\s
Reynolds, of New Jersey, — a gentleman descended. from an Irish family,
ih Dublin ; and soon afterward he engaged eictens'vely in iron works, on
the Rattcocns creek, at the village known as the New Mills, (now Pemberton.)
in the bounty of Burlington. In this pursuit, — -and occasionally in public
life, as a Magistrate and Legislator. — General LaCey continued until his
tleCease, Oh the l7ilt of February. 1814, aged 59 years.
General IiaCey, at his death, left four Children, -^thrCe daughters and one
Son :—
ITis eldest dm£iiti?r was married to AVilliam L. Smith, of BUrliritftrtn bounty. N.J.
llis second daughter " '• " Dl'. William Darl'miton. of yVest Chester Pa.
His youngest daughter " " Jonathan Ihuigb. of Burlington county, N. J.
His son, Thouris K. Lacey — tho only survivor — resides at Mount Holly. Burlington Co., N.J,
His descendants are not numerous; but they have been privileged to see
the rise of a great and magnificent Republic, — as well as to witness tho
outbreak of the most, wanton and wicked rebellion that the World ever saw.
They have mostly inherited the loyal spirit of their ancestor,— and some of
Shorn are now engaged as officers in the great Volunteer army, devoted to the
defence of the Government, which their grand-sire aided to establish.
e.«to itepetlw !

YALE UNIVERSITY

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