Yale University Library

I

39002009249393

The true origin and source of' the %
Medaenburg and Hatlonal
Declaration of independence.
Bev. Thomas Smyth.
ODl"uraMa, s,0.,1847.

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Bought with the income
of the
John T. Norton Fund
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THE

TRUE ORIGIN AND SOURCE

MECKLENBURG AND NATIONAL

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.

[extracted from' the southern PRESBVtJERIAN review, by REaUEST.]

BY REV. THOEAS SMYTH, D. D.

COLIUMBIA, S. C.
I.C-MORCitAN, PRINTER.
' , - 1847.

TO THE READER.
With the Introductory Remarks, the following argument was substan
tially deUvered by-the Author to his Congregation on Sabbath morning,
July 4th, 1847, and was, by many of them', requested for publication. As
however, it was written for the Review, it was given to it, and appears in
a separate form by .permission of the Editors,. The Author would only .
further state, that he was encouraged to presentthe argument to the public
by the favor with which a partial presentation of it was received' by the
Literary Club of Charleston, to whom he had submitted it.

THE TRUE ORIGIN AND SOURCE

OF THE

MECKLENBURG \ AND NATIONAL
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.

Among other remarkable coincidences which occur dU'
ring this year, one is that our national political year began
on Sj^nday, the fourth of March, and another is that the an
niversary of our National Declaration of Independence also
occurs on Sabbath.
" The year begins with Friday and ends with Friday. —
The fourth of July comes on Sunday. For the first time in
the ' recollection of the oldest inhabitant,' there will be no
full moon this year in the month of February. Our nation
al political year begins on Sunday, the fourth of March...T—
There will be no eclipse visible in the year-r- January will
have two full moons, and March a like number."
God has thus given this recurrence of the great Ameri
can Jubilee to the commemoration and improvement of the
pulpit, and made it the duty of his ministers to diverge
from their usual routine of subjects, and to choose one con
sonant to the occasion.
This I shall do, I will, therefore endeavor to found some
profitable aAd encouraging remarks upon that very decla
ration of independence, which, after various amendments
and full discussion, was adopted and signed on this memo
rable day. , '
"This," says the Edinburgh Review, in a passEtge which
should be remembered,, (1) "is that famous Declaration of
(1) For Oct. 1837, p. 88, Am. edv

6 The True Origin and Source tf
Independence, by which the freemen of the New World
approved themselves worthy of their ancestors in the Old,
— who had spoken, and written, and fought, and perished
for conscience and freedom's sake, — but whose descendants
in the Old had not always borne thfeir high lineage in mind.
We verily think that this ' Declaration' is the most import
ant event in the history of mankind, whether its conse
quences be regarded on one side of the Atlantic or on the
other ; and if tyrants are sometimes said to feel uneasy on
the thirtieth of January, how much more fitted to inspire
alarm are the recollections associated with the fourth of
July, in which nothing like remorse can mingle on the
people's part, and no consolation is afforded to their oppress
ors by the tendency of cruelty and injustice to mar the
work they stain !"
This declaration, however, — marvellous as have been its
consequences, — was not a cause but an effect — not the
source from which the fountain was supplied, but itself the
fountain whose secret springs had long been accumulating
under ground, and finding their way to one common cen
tre. The drops of feeling and the streams of opinion,
having converged to a centre, burst forth in this full,
clear, and perennial fountain, whose living waters still con
tinue to fertilize the earth.
Many people imagine that the Declaration of Independ
ence forms the date of our liberty. In our opinion, to use
the words of another, that Declaration was only the falling
of the fruit when it had become (perhaps a little prema
turely) ripe. No new light burst upon the people upon the
occasion. The separation from Great Britain involved no
change jn the political theories they had entertained. It
was placed upon clear and definite grounds. The general
and vague idea of liberty, that daiizling image with the face
of a goddess and the heart of a prostitute, entered not into
the question. The colonists had enjoyed the substance
from' the day they put their feet upon American ground.
And it was not the desire to change, but the desire to keep
and secure, which produced their Independence. They
made little or no change in their domestic aifairs, after that
object was gained. One of the States at, least retains the
same form of government, which she had when she was a

The Declaration of Independence. 7
Province. To talk of the influence of the ambition of a
few leaders, seems absurd, when they could do nothing the
moment they ceased to appeal to principles, the soundness
of which the community acknowledged. The people, that
is, the great mass of responsible members of the State, had in
herited, they did not acquire, the extraordinary jealousy of
their rights, which is apparent through the century and a
half of their preceding history; and when they complained,
they could put their fingeron the spot that was hurt. They
asked a remedy. It was refused. They adopted the only
alternative which was left. They declared themselves in
dependent. No one man, therefore, can claim the glory of having
originated the Declaration of Independence. It was the
embodiment of the growing sentiment and feeling of the
American people, and reflects its lustre upon them rather
,than upon its immediate author. "Believe me," said Mr.
JeflersoU) writing to a friend in 1775 after the battle of
Lexington and Bunker Hill, — "there is not in the English
Empire a man who more cordially loves a union with
Great Britain than I do ; but, by the God that made me, I
will cease to exist before I yield to a connexion on such
terms as the British Parliament propose, and in this, I think
I speak the sentiments of America. We want neither in
ducement nor power to declare and assert a separation. It
is will alone that is wanting, and that is growing apace
under the fostering hand ^of our king." There . is not,
therefore, as Mr. Pickering observes, an idea in the Declar
ation of Independence, but what had been hackneyed in
Congress for two years before. The substance of it is con
tained in the declaration of rights and the violation of those
rights in the journals of Congress in 1774. Indeed, the
essence of it is contained in a pamphlet, voted and printed
by the town of Boston before the first Congress met. (2).
It is altogether a mistake, therefore, to attribute the Dec
laration of Independence, in its spirit, sentiment, or power,
to the magic of Mr. Jefferson's pen. (3.) "Mr. Jefferson,
says the N,. A. Review," had no literary pretensions what
ever. "He wrote through life very little. The little he
(2) Pickering's Review, 2d ed,, p. 131, 132, in N. A. Rev., 1826, p. 387.

8 The True Origin and Sourcp of
wrote consisted mostly of private letters, which never went
out to the people: in his few published writings, there is no
extraordinary force or charm of style. As mere literary
productions, they would have attracted no attention ; they
produced effect not as writings, but as acts. Who ever
thought of attributing the effect of the Declaration to the
merit of the sfyle ? Who that could enter into the spirit of
the paper, would dwell with any interest on the language?
It was a simple record of the great Act, by which thirteen
Colonies shook off the British yoke, and^sprang into being
as independent States. It was only as an Act that it drew
attention. The total absence of all pretension to literary
merit, was the only literary merit which it could possibly
possess, and this it has. The case is substantially the same
with all the rest of Mr. Jeffei'son's writings. There was no
magic in his pen. The witchcraft by which he acquired
influence lay, like that of the Marechale d'Ancre, in his
mental superiority. The source of his power, was the
energy with which he represented in his feelings and opin
ions and acts, tne /Spirit of the Age." (4).
The triumph of the American Declaration of Independ
ence, was owing not to any one man, but to that combi
nation of men fitted for the great enterprise, whom God 
for the ends He had in view, — had raised up and endowed
with great abilities for^the work. It was not by might, nor
(3) Iif his Memoirs, see wks., vol. 1, p. 10,, he himself adduces, as in
structions sent up to Congress from Virginia, a portion of the very word
ing of this paper, that was in May, 1776.
(4) Do., 1834, p. 243, when it is added, "It is .a common mistake to
suppose, that, extraordinary skill in some particular accompUshment
which depends in a great degree on study or accidental personal qualifi
cations, such as writing, public speaking, or even the technical art of war
will carry with it a great power over the minds of other men. This may
sometimes appear to be. the case, because skill of this kind is often com
bined with the moral energy of character which constitutes real o-reat-
ness. But even in this case, the talent is the mere instrument of the
mighty mind, which can work just as well with the talents of others as
its own. It was the same thing to Moses, whether he spoke himself or
employed his brother Aaron for a mouth-pjece. These talents are in the
natrire of beautiful arts : we admire their possessors as artists ¦ as men
we can only yield our homage to the superior mind: and the only test of
general superiority is the mental energy, which rpnders the language
writings and conduct of its possessor, a bolder, firmer, truer expression'
than any other to be met with, of the opinions and feelings that prevail at
the time in the community. In the talenU, by which individuals are

The Declaration of Independence. 9
by power, nor by wisdom, but by God's overruling provi
dence the conquest was achieved. " It was," again to quote
the language of the Edinburgh Review, "the peculiar
felicity of the Americans, and of the great cause of civil
liberty, of which they were the champions, that among their
leaders were to be found both men of the most ardent spirit,
and men of ithe most approved discretion; whilst all were
alike firm of purpose, and alike determined to let no differ
ences, nor any personal feelings whatever, keep them
apart in the pursuit of their common object. It would be
difficult to point out any serious error committed in the
whole of their difficult course ; and it would certainly be
impossible to find instances of the unreflecting violence,
and the sudden changes,, either among the people or their
chiefs, which, in other cases, have brought such discredit
upon the popular cause, and removed its triumph to so
great a distance."
That the origination of t.he sentiments contained in the
Declaration of Indepei^dence, is not to be attribiited to Jef
ferson, is further proved from the evident similarity between
it and the Declaration of Independence made at Mecklen
burg, in North Carolina, May 19th, 1775, and in the Second
Mecklenburg Declaratioh,.made on May 20th, 1775. (5) Of
these most interesting documents, a full account will be
found in this volume. ,
" The little village of Charlotte," says Mr. Foote, " the
seat of justice for Mecklenburg county, North Carolina, was
the theatre of one of the most memorable events in the po
litical annals of the United States. Situated in the fertile
champaign, between the Yadkin and Catawba rivers, far
above tide-water, some two or thrfee hundred miles from (he
ocean, and in advance of the mountains that run almost
parallel to the Atlantic coast, on the route of that emigra-/
tion which, before the revolution, passed on southwardly,
from Pennsylvania, through Virginia, to the unoccupied
region east of the Mountains, on what is now the upper
stage route from Georgia, through South parolina and
commonly supposed to acquire and extend their Influence, he was almost
wholly deficient: he had no military taste or skill; he never^ spoke in
public, and had no particular power in writing."
(,5) See Foote's Hist, of N. C, p. 37, 38 ; and see also Jones's Defence
of North Carolina.

10- The True Origin and Source of.
North, Carolina, to meet the railroad at Raleigh, — it was,
and is, the centre of an enterprising population. It re
ceived its name from Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg,
whose native province also gave name to the county; the
House of Hanover having been invited to the throne of
England. The traveler, in passing through, this fertile, retired, and
populous country, would now see nothing calculated to
suggest the fact that he was on the ground of the boldest
Declaration ever made in America; and that all around
him were localities rich in associations of valor and suffer
ing in the cause of National Independence, the sober recital
of which borders on romance. Every thing lool^s peaceful,
secliided, and prosperous, as though the track of hostile
armies had never dfefaced the soil. Were he told, this is
the spot where lovers of personal and national liberty will
come, in pilgrimage or imagination, to ponder events of the
deepest interest to all mankind, he must feel, in the beauty
and fertility of the surrounding region, that here was a
chosen habitation for good men to live, and act, and leave
to their posterity the inestimable privileges of political and
religious freedom, with abundance of all that may be de-
' sired to make life one continued thanksgiving.
There was no printing press in the upper country of
Carolina, and many a weary mile must be traversed to find
one. Newspapers, were few, and, no regular post travers
ing the country, were seldom seen. The people, anxious
for news, were accustomed to assemble to hear printed hand
bills from abroad, or written ones drawn up by persons ap
pointed for the purpose, particularly the Rev. Thos. Reese,
of Mecklenburg, North Carolina, whose bones lie in the
grave-yard of the Stone Church, Sonth Carolina. There had
been frequent assemblies in Charlotte, to hear the news and
join in the discussion of the exciting subjects of the day;
ahd finally, to give more efficiency to their discussions, it
was agreed upon, generally, that Thomas Polk, Colonel of
the Militia, long a surveyor in the province, frequently a
member of the Colonial Assembly, weirknown and well
acquainted in the surrounding counties, a man of great ex
cellence and merited popularity, should be empowered to
call a convention of the representatives of the people, when-

'¦ The Declaration of tndepeudence. 11
ever it should appear advisable. It was also agreed that
these representatives should be chosen from the Militia
districts, by the people themselves : and when assembled for
council and debate, their decisions should be binding on the
inhabitants of Mecklenburg."
Alluding to the deep feeling of discontent produced in the
public mind by the arbitrary attempt of Governor Martin to
prevent the assembling of a Provisional Congress for the
Province of T^orth Carolina, at Newbern, the author re
marks :
"In, this state of the public mind, Col. Polk issued his
notice for the Committee men. to assemble in Charlotte, on
the 19th May, 1775. On the appointed day, between
twenty and thirty representatives of the people met in the
Court House, in the centre of the town at the crossing of
the great streets, and surrounded by an immense concourse,
few of whom could enter the house, proceeded to organize
for business, by choosing Abraham Alexander, a former
member of the Legislature, a magistrate, and ruling elder
in the l^ugar Creek Congregation, in whose bounds they
were assembled, as their Chairman; and John McKnitt
Alexander, and Dr. Ephraim Brevard, men of business
habits and great popularity, their clerks. Papers were read
before the convention and the people; the handbill, brought
by express, containing the news of the battle of Lexington,
Massachusetts, on that day one month, the 19th of April,
came to hand that day, and was read to the assembly.
The R§v. Hezekiah James Balch, pastor of Poplar Tent,
Dr. Ephraim Brevard, and William Kennon, Esq., ad
dressed the Convention and the people at large. Under
the excitement produced by the wanton bloodshed at Lex
ington, and the addresses of these gentlemen, the assembly
cried out, as with one voice, 'Let us be independent ! Let
us declare our independence, and. defend it with our lives
and fortunes !' The spea:kers said, his Majesty's proclama
tion had declared them out of the protection of the British
Crown, and they ought, therefore, to declare themselves out
of his protection, and independent of all his control."
A committee, consisting of Dr. Ephraim Brevard, Mr.
Kennon, and Rev. Mr. Balch, were appointed to prepare
resolutions suitable to the occasion. Some drawn up by

12 The True Origin ana Source of
Dr. Brevard, and read to his friends at a political meeting
in dueen's Museum some days before, were read to the
Convention, and then committed to these gentlemen for
revision. /
The excitement continued to increase through the night
-and the succeeding morning. At noon, May 20th, the Con
vention re-assembled with an undiminished concourse of
citizens, amongst whom might be seen many wives aud
mothers, anxiously awaiting the event. The resolutions
previously drawn up by Dr. Brevard, and now amended by
the Committee, together with the by-laws and regulations,
were taken up ; John McKnitt Alexander read the by-laws,
and- Dr. Brevard the resolutions. All was stillness. The
Chairman of the Convention put the question: — 'Are you
all agreed?' The response was a universal 'ay.'
After the business of the Convention was all arranged, it
was moved and seconded that the proceedings should be
read at the Court House dpor in hearing of the multitude.
Proclamation was made, and from the Court House steps
Colonel Thomas Polk read, to a listening and approving
auditory, the following resolution, viz :
THE MECKLENBURGH DECLARATION.
" Resolved, That whosoever directly or indirectly abet
ted, or in any way, form, or manner, countenanced the un
chartered and dangerous invasion of our rights, as claimed
by Great Britain, is an enemy to this country, to America,
and to the inherent and unalienable rights of man.
Resolved 2d. That we, the citizens of Mecklenburg
county, do hereby dissolve the political bonds which have
connected us with the mother country, and hereby absolve
ourselves from all allegiance to the British croAvn, and ab
jure all political connection, contract, or association with
that nation, who have wantonly trampled on our rights and
liberties, and inhumanly shed the blood of American pa
triots at Lexington.
, Resolved 3d. That we do hereby declare ourselves a free
and independent people ; are, and of right ought to be a
sovereign and self-governing association, under the control
of' no power, other than that of our God, and the General

The Declaratioii of Independence. 13
Government of the Congress; — to the maintainance of
which independence, we solenanly pledge to each other our
mutual cooperation, our lives, our fortunes, and our most
sacred honor.
Resolved ith. That as we acknowledge the existence
and control of no law, nor legal office, civil or military,
within this country ; we do hereby ordain and adopt, as a
rule of life, all, each, and every of our former laws; wherein,
nevertheless, the crown of Great Britain never can be con
sidered as holding rights, privileges, immunities, or author
ity therein. ^ , '
Resolved 5th. That it is further decreed that all, each,
and every military officer in this county, is hereby retained
in his former command arid authority, he acting comform-
ably tb these regulations. And that every member present
of this delegation, shall henceforth be a civil officer, viz :
a Justice of the Peace, in the character of a committee man,
to issue process, hear and determine all matters of contro
versy, according to said adopted laws; and to preserve
peace, union and harmony in said county; and to use every
exertion to spread the love of country and fire of freedom
throughout America, until a general organized government
be established in this province."
A voice froiii the crowd called out for ' three cheers,' and
the. whole company shouted three times, and threw their
hats in the air. The resolutions were read again and again
during the day to different companies desirous of retairiing
in their memories sentiments so congenial to then feelings,
There are still living some whose parents were ur that as
sembly, and heard and read the resolutions; and from
whose lips they heard the circumstanceis and sentiments of
this remarkable declaration."
THE SECOND MECKLENBURG DECLARATION.
" The Convention had frequent meetings, and on the 30th
of May, 1775, issued ,the following paper, viz:
' Charlotte, Mecklenburg Countt, ?
May 30th, 1775. \ ,
'[This day the committee of the county met and passed
the following Resolves: — Whereas, by an address pre
sented to his Majesty by both houses of parliament, in
February last, the American Colonies are declared to be iii
a state of actual rebellion, we conceive that all laws and
2

14 The True Origin and Source of
commissions confirmed by, or derived from the authority of
the king or parliament, are annulled and vacated, and the
former civil constitution of these Colonies for the present
wholly suspended. To provide, in some degree, for the
exigencies of this county, in the present alarming period,
we deem it necessary and proper to pass the following re
solves, viz :
' 1st. That all commissions, civil and military, heretofore
granted by the crown, to be exercised in these colonies, are
null <and void, and the constitution of each particular col
ony wholly suspended.
'2d. That the Provincial Congress of each province, un
der the direction of the gi'eat Continental Congress, is in
vested with all legislative and executive powers, within their
respective provinces, and that no other legislative power
does, or can, exist, at this time, in any of these colonies.
'3d. As all former laws are now suspended in this prov
ince, and the Congress have not provided others, we judge
it necessary for the better preservation of good order, to
form certain rules and regulations for the internal govern
ment of this county, until laws shall be provided for us by .
the Congress.
'4th. That the inhabitants of this county do meet on a
certain day appointed by this committee, and having formed
themselves into nine companies, viz : eight in the county,
and one in the town of Charlotte, do choose a Colonel and
other mihtary officers, who shall hold and exercise their
several powers by virtue of this choice, and independent of
the crown of Great Britain and the former constitution of
this province.' "
[Then follow eleven articles for the preservation of the
peace, and the choice of officers to perform the duties of a
regular government.]
" 16th. That whatever person shall hereafter receive a
commission from the crown, or attempt to exercise any such
commission heretofore received, shall be deemed an enemy
to his country; and upon information to the captain of the
company in which he resides, the company shall cause him
to be apprehended, and upon proof of the fact, committed to
safe custody, till the next sitting of the committee, who
¦ shall deal with him as prudence shall direct."
The first great impulse having been given to the spirit of
independence by these remarkable declarations, it was not

The Declaration of Independence, 15
long before their happy influences began to manifest them
selves in other and better forms. On the 4th of April,
1776, the Provincial Congress of North Carolina met at
Hahfax. On the 8th, a committee was appointed '¦'to take
into consideration the usurpations and violence committed
by the king and parliament of Great Britain ;" and on the
12th, four days afterwards, the committee submitted an able
report, concluding with the following resolutions :
"Resolved, That the delegates from this colony, in Con
tinental Congress, be empowered to concur with the dele-i
gates of the other colonies in declaring independence,
and in forming foreign alliances ; reserving to this colony
the sole and exclusive right of forming a constitution and
laws for this colony, and of appointing delegates from time
to time (under the direction of a' general representation
> thereof,) to meet delegates of the other colonies for such
purposes as shall be hereafter pointed out."
This resolution was,,on the same day it was proposed,
unanimously adopted; and is the first public declar
ation FOR independence BY THE CONSTITUTED AU
THORITIES OF A STATE. It was presented to the Conti
nental Congress, May 27th, 1776, nearly six weeks before
the National Declaration.
Now, the similarity between some parts of this Mecklen
burg Declaration, of which the late John Adams says, that
" the genuine; sense of America, at that moment, was never
so well expressed, (6), — and of the celebrated Declaration
of Independence!, is very striking, and has given rise to the
opinion that the Declaration of Independence, framed by
Mr. Jeffers6n fifteen months after it, was framed in
the knowledge of this model, although in a letter to Mr.
Adams, Mr. Jefferson positively denies even the authen
ticity of the paper. (7).
The authenticity of the Mecklenburg Declaration, is,/
however, placed beyond doubt, (8) while the similarity be
tween it and the present Declaration, in their general spirit
arid in some of their most remarkable expressions, is equally .
incontrovertible. (6) See Jones' Det, p. 297. (7) See ibid., p. 2-4.
(8J See Foote's History of N. C., cli. i. and ch. xv. ; and in this work
also will be found instructions prepared by Dr. Brevard, the author of the
Declaration, for those who composed the Mecklenburg Convention, which
are perfectly consonant in spirit with the Declaration itself. See ch. iii.,
p. 68, &c.

16 The True Oi^igin and Sotirce of
How, then, is this similarity to be accounted for'/
It may be accounted for in one of two ways : either by
the supposition, that notwithstanding his positive disclaim
er, Mr. Jefferson had both seen and used this paper,
— or that both papers may be traced up to a common
source. To this latter conclusion, we are led by feelings of
charity towards the character of Mr. Jefferson, to whom,
notwithstanding all his enmity to Christian truth, injustice
should not be done.
The sentiments and expressions, common to both Declar
ations, are traceable to a source, with which it can be shewn
that both parties were famihar, and from which, therefore,
without collusion, both parties might have derived the sen
timents arid language common to both papers.
There is such a source. And that it was known
and familiar to the respective authors of these two declara
tions, is happily beyond doubt. Charity, therefore, will re
joice in being able .to give to the respective authors of these
two declarations, all the honor to which they are unques
tionably entitled, while truth and justice require that the
ultimate honor due to the noble sentiment's contained in
both, should be given to whom it will be found owing. It
has, indeed, been said that the sentiments in question had be
come general and were the common property of the nation.
Now, to some extent, this was doubtless the case ; (9) but
that they had become common and familiar, is not in evi
dence before us, and may, or may not, be true. But, be
this as it may, it will be our object to point out a source
(9) In the Charleston Mercury, for July 4th, 1847, speaking of South
Carolina, it is said : " But while others halted and hesitated, it was the
proud destiny of South Carolina to set the first glorious example of open
resistance. She was then, as ever, in the van of freedom's battle, and
nine years before Boston immortalized herself by destroying the tea, her
citizens, acting -under orders, seized the King's Fort, captured the odious
Stamps, put them on board one of his ships in the harbor of Charleston,
and expelled them forever from the country. She nullified the act, and it
was repealed. She was again shoulder, to shoulder with Massachusetts
in 1775, when that Colony resisted the Tea Act, and was, in fact, the first
to declare her independence. On the 10th February, 1776, Christopher
Gadsden, in her General Assembly, raised the first Voice heard in its favor
in this country, and on the 26th March following, the same Assembly
adopted the first Constitution ever made in America, establishing a gov
ernment, and vesting it with all the powers incident thereto. The Pre
amble is an eloquent and virtual Declaration of Independence, referring
Xo nearly the same causes of complaint, reciting the sami? wrongs, an3
proclaiming the same reasons, as are set forth in the General DeclaratioA
ef the Colonies, with a striking similarity of tone and language."

The Declaration of Independence. 17
from which these sentiments, and the language in which
they are here conveyed, and the general form, style, and
manner of these declarations, respectively, may have been
derived; and if it shall appear that we are indebted in
SOME good measure FOR THE SPIRIT, METHOD, AND
LANGUAGE, OF THESE CELEBRATED DOCUMENTS, TO A RE
LIGIOUS, AND STILL MOliE, TO A PRESBYTERIAN ORIGIN,
the fact will, we trust, confirm our attachment to a system
of doctrine and of polity, of which, even its opponents tes
tify that it has ever been found on the side of liberty and
freedom, both civil and religious, and ever ready to " con
tend, even urito Hood," for the defence of truth and freedom.
The source, then, to which we would trace the spirit,
sentiments, order of arrangement, and to some extent, the
very language of these celebrated declarations, is no other
than the solemn leagues, bands and covenants, entered into
by our forefathers, at the period of the reformation, and
especially those adopted by our Presbyterian forefathers, in
Scotland and in Ireland. That there is in these National
Covenants a similarity — in thought, in word, in style, and
in arrangement — to the Mecklenburg and National Declar
ations of Independence, will be the first position we shall
attempt to establish; and that the knowledge of these doc
uments, and consequently, of their spirit, manner and ar«
rangement, was possessed by both Mr. Jefferson and Dr.
Brevard, the authors of these declarations, respectively, will
be the second point which we shall endeavor to sustain.
First, then, we will 'endeavor to shew that the Confes
sions, Covenants, and Bands, adopted by our Presbyterian
forefathers in Scotland and in Ireland ^ — in style, in order,
in spirit, in general sentiment, and in some of the most re
markable expressions, — are strikingly similar to these two
Political Declarations of Independence.
The documents are similar in their object, which was
TO SECURE uisrioN, by a public .testimony to common
truths ; by a common exposure to the danger to which such
testimony made its subscribers inevitably hable ; by the
necessity of common prudence, watchfulness and devotion ;
and by the strength derived from such a combination and'
such entire consecration to the cause at stake.
The documents are similar in the order pursued in their
arrangement. In both the religious and the political docu-
ments, there is first a general introduction, — then an enu^

18 The True Origin and Source of
meration of grievances, against which protest is made, —
then a declaration of independence and resistance, — and,
finally, a vow of mutual devotion, fidelity and determina
tion. These documents are similar also in their respective
titles. The first Scottish paper, " subscribit" in 1580, 1581,
and 1590, is called a "A General Confession," or "General
Band for maintainance of the trew religion and the king's
person and estate." (10). The second paper issued by the
Scottish Church, in 1588, 1590, is denominated "A General
Band of Maintainance of the trew and Christian Religion "
and which was also subscribed by all classes. (11). The
third paper adopted by this church, in the year 1638, and
subscribed by the nobles, barons, &,c. in that year, and
generally in 1639, is entitled " The General Confession of
Faith, together with a Resolution and Promise," &c. (12).
Now, these titles are only modernized, to use Mr. Jefler-
son's own phrase, (13) in the title given to the political pa
pers in question, both of which are termed " Declaratiqns,"
that is "Confessions;" and both of which embody a "mu
tual pledge," which is, in other words, a " band."
Again, the analogy between the religious 'and the politi
cal declarations, is seen in the adaptation of both for being
engrossed upon parchment, in order to have the names of
parties — wilhng to commit themselves to the hazard of all
consequences — subscribed upon it, which was, in both
cases, accordingly done.
The circumstances in which both were drawn up and
subscribed, were also very analogous. In both cases, the
grievances endured were manifold ; — in both, the power to
which the parties were opposed was tenible; in both, the
chances of defeat were great, — and in both, the danger in
curred was most imminent.
There is a further similarity between the religibus and
political documents, — inexplicable on any other suppo
sition, than that of precedent, ^ — we ,mean a similarity in
the language employed in both documents. This will
appear from the following tabular view :
(10) See in Dunlop's Collection of Confessions of Faith, vol. 1 p 103
&c. • I i;- >
(11) Ibid., p. 108. .
f 12) This is what is known as " The National Covenant. '^
(13) See (juoted beloWi

THE RELIGIOUS DECLARATIONS.-r
-general Band.

' — we believe with our hearts, confess with our
mouths, subscribe with our hands, and constantly
ailu-m l5[.efore God, and the whole world.
Third Scottish Decl. and Itrst. Scottish DecL
We resist and refuse the usurped authonty of
that Roman Antichrist, all his tyranny, laws, &c.
against our Christian liberty, and tha consciences of
men. See Do. " ' --
— and viewing the imminerit danger threatened to
the said religion^ as well by .foreign preparations for
prosecuting of that damiiable conspiracy agSinst
Christ and his evangel.
[Here follows a long Ust of grievances and usur
pations.} See Do.

And swearing by \he great name of the Lord our
God, that we shall defend the same under danger
both of body and soul.-- -
We protest and promise solemnly with our hearts
under the same oath, hand', write and pains, that
we shall defend, with bur gear, bodies and lives, &c.
— First Declaration.
Faithfully and upon our truths and honours,
bind and oblige us to others, &c. to expose and haz
ard our llyes, lands and goods, in defence of the said
truereligion, &c. and generally to assist and defend
every one' ot us one another, as we shall answer
to God upon our honors, and to the world upon
our truths and honors, &c. — Second Declaration.
And swearing by the great name of the Lord our
God and (as abovOj) •.. . We protest and promise
with, our liearts, tnat we shall defend with our
goods, bodies and lives, the liberties of our country
against all enemies, &c — Third Declaration and
tke JVational Covenant.

THE MECKLENBURG DECLARATION. THE NATIONAL DECLARATION.
— dissolve the. political bands which have con_ —dissolve the political bands which have connect-
nected us with tiie mother country, and hereby ab- ed then! witb anorher.
solve ourselves from all allegiance, and from all —we utterly dissolve all political connexion, re-
politlcal connection. ject and renounce all allegiance.
— a decent respect to the opinions of the world re
quire that they should declare,~&c.
' — let facts be submitted to a candid world.
— unchartered and dangerous invasion of our —a history of unremitting injuries. -
right^. —-a long train of abuses and usurpations.
— the inherent and inalienable rights of men. — inherejit and unalienable rights.
— trampled on our rights and liberties, and inhu- —{Seethe omitted paragraph on the Slave Trade^
maoly shed the blood of American patriots at Lex- and the catalogue of usuipatidns and injuries.!
ington. - . - - ° ./J..

We do hereby declare ourselve? to be a free and
independent people, are, and of right ought to be,
a sovereign and self-governing association. ,
{Compare also Resolution Ath with the preamble
of the National Declaration.] .
We solemnly pledge to each other our mutual
cooperation, our lives, our fortunes, and our most
sacred Jionour. -

We assert these Colonies to be free and inde
pendent States, and 'do all things whichjndepen'd-
ent States may of right do.
— it is their right, it is their duty to tlirow ofl'such
government. Appealing to the supreme" Judge for the rectitude
of our intentions, witJi a firmrehauceon the pro
tection of Providence, we mutually pledge to each
other our hves, our fortunes, and our sacred hon
our.

^

OS

iO

N. B. — This analogy might be enlarged, and especially between the 2d and 3d.

20 The True Origin and Source of
The analogy between these celebrated documents, will
be further manifested by their spirit. This is in all the
same bold, conscientious, and, therefore, fearless spirit ; — a
spirit confident of the truth of the positions it assumes, of
the rectitude of its principles, of the equity of its demands,
and of the assured certainty of ultimate triumph.
In both cases, the same tyranny had been exercised, and
the same despotism endured. In both, there was the same
•enlightened view of rights and duties, of truth and privi-
ilege. In both, there was the same determination to endure
no further tyranny, to assert their rights, to resist all op
pressive acts, and to contend earnestly, even unto blood, for
their civil and religious liberties.
We have thus given an outline of some prominent char
acteristics, in which the the Religious Declarations of our
Presbyterian forefathers, exhibit a similarity to the two cele
brated American Political Declarations ; a similarity, not to
be accounted for by any accidental causes. It can only be
explained, therefore, by the supposition that the authors of
the latter declarations were acquainted with the former, and
being fired by their spirit, and captivated with their style,
order and method, with the , force and beauty of their
thoughts, the grandeur and sublimity of their sentiments,
the deep and powerful impression they were adapted to
produce, and had actually and indelibly made, and by the
transcendently noble results to which they had given birth,
had made theni the models of their compositions and the
fountains from which they drew their inspiration.
Is this supposition credible, considering that both of these
political declarations are of American authorship, and that
one, at least, is the production of a man bitterly opposed to
every thing of a religious character 1 To this we might
reply, that from the public and national character of these
religious declarations, there is nothing improbable in the
supposition that they were some or all of them known to
these gentlemen, inasmuch as they are still found in the
established, confessions of several branches of the Presby
terian church in this country. Charity also favors the sup
position, since it opens up a way of explaining the perfect
identity in many/ remarkable words and ideas between the
Mecklenburg and the National Declarations, without in
volving the character of Mr. Jefierson, in the, charge of per
fidious dishonesty, which his denial of any knowledge of

The Declaration of Independence. 21 '
the Mecklenburg Declaration and his attempt to prove that
it is spurious, (14) would otherwise render inevitable.
But, we can go beyond mere conjecture, and offer proof to
shew that such acquaintance, on the part of Dr. Brevard and
of Mr. Jefferson, with these religious declartions, was perfect.
As it regards Dr. Ephraim Brevard, the author of the
Mecklenburg Declaration, we have full and interesting in
formation in the volume of Mr. Foote. (15.) Dr. Brevard
was one of seven sons of a widow, who were all in the
rebel army, and was taken prisoner at the surrender of
Charleston, in May 1780. He has left behind him a paper
of instructions for the delegates of Mecklenburg county,
fired with the noblest spirit of the revolution, which he has
here embodied in a most condensed form, and expressed
forcibly. Of him, Mr. Foote says, "he thought clearly—^
felt deeply — wrote well — resisted bravely — and died a
tnart3rr to that libferty none loved better and few understood
so well." This eulogium is merited by the Mecklenburg
Declg,ration, which he drew up and submitted to the meet
ing, by which it wa,s adopted with a universal " aye," and
which led in April 4th, 1776, to the promulgation by the
Provincial Congress of North Carolina of the first public
Declaration of Independence by the constituted authorities
of a' State. (16). "Whence, then, came those principles of
civil and religious liberty, which struck so deep in the soil
of Carolina, and led to the outpouring of the first blood shed
in the revolution on the Almac^ — and to the first Declar
ation of Independence by a county and by a State? (17).
Suffice it to say, the inhabitants of Mecklenburgh county,
were Presbyterian emigrants from the North of Ireland. (18).
.Trained in religious things by the strict doctrines of the
lleformation, their settlements were m.ade in congregations,
and their places of worship so arranged s,s to accommodate ,
all the families.' Their descendants now assemble where
their fathers worshiped before the Revolution. Their forms
and creed were the forms and creed of their ancestors, who
were eminently a religious people; and their Confession of
Faith has descended as a legacy from the emigrants, to go
down to the latest posterity." "
¦• (14) See his letter to John Cluincy Adams, in Jones's Defence of the
Revolutionary History of N. Carolina, Introd.
5) Ch. i. and ch. iii. ' ' (16) Foote, p. 43.
7) Do., ch. i. and ii. (18) See do., p. 187 and 201.

22 The True Origin and Source of
" But, the question arises with increased force, who were
these peoplg, and whence did they come? In what school
of politics and religion had they been disciplined? At what
fountaitis had they been drinking such inspirations, that
here in the wilderness, common people, in their thoughts of
freedom and equality, far outstripped the most ardent lead
ers in the Continental Congress? Whence came these
men, that spoke out their thoughts, and thought as they
spok^ ; and both thought and spoke unextinguishable prin
ciples of freedom of conscience and civil liberty? That
they were poor and obscure but adds to their interest, when
it is known that their deeds in the Revolution were equal
to their principles. Many a " life" was given in Mecklen
burg, in consequence of that declaration," and much of
" fortune" was sacrificed ; but their " honor" came out safe,
even their great enemy Tarleton being witness. They did
not get their ideas of liberty and law from Vattel, or Puf-
fendorf,"or the tornes of English law.. From what book,
then, did they get their knowledge, their principles of life ?
Ahead of their own State in their pohtical notions, as a
body, they never wavered through the whole Revolutionary
struggle; and their descendants possess now just what
these people asserted then, both in religion and politics, in
conscience and in the state."
" In less than one quarter of a century after the first per
manent settlement was formed in Mecklenburg, men talked
of defending their rights, not against the Indians, but the
of&cers of the crown; and took those. measures that event
uated in the Convention of May 20th, 1775, to deliberate
on the crisis of their affairs. Of the persons chosen to meet
in that assembly, one was a Presbyterian minister, Heze
kiah James Balch, of Poplar Tent ; seven were known to
be elders of the church — Abraham Alexander, of Sugar
Creek, John McKnitt Alexander and Hezekiah Alexander,
of Hopewell, David Reese, of Poplar Tent, Adam Alexan
der and Robert Q,ueary, of Rocky River, (now in the bounds
of Philadelphia), and Robert Irwin of Steel Creek ; two
others were elders, but in the deficiency of church records
their names,' not known with certainty, but the report of
tradition is, without variation, that nine of the members
were elders, and the other two are supposed to have been
Ephraim Brevard and John Phifer. Thus, ten out of the

The Declaration of Independence. 23
twenty-seven, were office bearers' in the church; and all
were connected with the congregations of the Presbyteries
in Mecklenburg.
These Presbyterian settlers in Mecklenburg had been
instructed by the Rev. Mr. Craighead, from Ireland, (19)
and who settled there in 1766, " the solitary minister be
tween the Yadkin and Catawba."
In this retired country, he found full and undisturbed ex
ercise for that ardent love of personal hberty and freedom
of opinion, which had rendered him obnoxious in Pennsyl
vania, and was in some measure restrained in Virginia.
He was ahead of his ministerial brethren in Pennsylvania,
in his views of civil government and religious liberty, and
became particularly offensive to the Governor for a pamph
let of a political nature, the authorship of which was at
tributed to him. This pamphlet attracted so much attention,
that in 1743, Thomas Cookson, one of his Majesty's jus
tices, for the county of Lancaster, in the name of the Gov
ernor, laid it before the Synod of Philadelphia. The Synod
disavowed both the pamphlet and Mr. Craighead ; and
Agreed with the Justice, that it was calculated to foment
•disloyal and rebellious pr^-ctices, and disseminate principles
of disaffection."
" In Carolina, he found a people remote from the seat of
authority, among whom the intolerant laws were a dead
letter, so far divided from other congregations, even of his
own faith, that there could be no collision with him, on
account of faith or practice; so united in their general
principles of religion and church government, that he was
the teacher of the whole population, and here his spirit
rested. Here he passed his days ; here he poured forth his
principles of religious and civil government, undisturbed by
the jealousy of the government, too distant to be aware ot
his doings or too careless to be interested in the poor and
distant emigrants on the Catawba."
" Mr. Craighead had the privilege of forming the princi
ples, both civil and religious, in no measured degree, of a
race of men that feared God, apd. feared not labor and
hardship, or the face of man ; a race that'sought for freedom
and property in the wildemess, and having found them re-
(19) Foote, p. 183.

24 The True Origin and Source of
joiced — a race capable of great excellence, mental and
physical,' whose minds could cdhceive the glorious idea, of
Independence, and whose Convention announced it to the
,, world, in May, 1775, and whose hands sustained it in the
trying scenes of the Revolution."
When, therefore, we have proved that Dr. Brevard was a
Presbyterian of Scotch-Irish descent, a graduate of Prince
ton, (a Presbyterian college,) and a ruling elder in the church,
we;have proved that he wa.s ex-officio familiar with those
standards in which these national religious covenants are
embodied, and that nothing, therefore, could be more natu
ral, than that being imbued with their spirit and versed ia
their style and order of arrangement, he should have drawn
from them the models of his own covenant and declara
tion. And, now, as it regards Mr. Jefferson, though it might
seem impossible to connect him with these religious docu
ments, yet, strange to say, he has himself in his own Me
moir preserved the facts, which afford the strongest confir
mation of our position. In the first place, he teUs us that
from the age of nine, his " teacher was Mr. Douglas, a cler
gyman from Scotland, and that on the death of his father,
he went to the Rev. Mr. Maury." " It was," he adds, " my
great good fortune, and what probably fixed the destinies
of my life, that Dr. William Small, of Scotland, was then
(that is when he was at College,) Professor of Mathematics,
&c. * * * He, most happily for me, became soon at
tached to me, and made me his daily companion, when not
engaged in the school. * * * * With him, (Governor
Fanquier,) and at his table, Dr. Small and Mr. Wythe, and
myself formed a private quarree, and to the political con
versations on these occasions I owed instruction." (20.)
, It is thus apparent that the attention of Mr. Jefferson
would be early drawn, by those necessai'ily familiar with
them, to the National Covenants, as models 'of that free, in
dependent and daring spirit, which the condition of this
country then demanded. And that such was the case
would appear from these further facts, also stated by himself:
" The next event which excited our sympathies for Massa
chusetts, was the Boston port bill, by which that port was
(20) See Memoirs in ¦arks., vol. 1, p. 2.

The Declaration of Independence. 25
to be shiit up on the 1st of June, 1774. This arrived while
we were in session, in the spring of that year. The lead
¦in the House, on these subjects, being no longer left to the
old members, Mr. Henry, R. H. Lee, F. L. Lee, three or
four other members, whom I do not recollect, and myself,
agreeing that we must boldly take an unequivocal stand in
the line with Massachusetts, determijied to meet and con
sult on the proper measures, in the cotmcil chamber, /or the
benefit of the library in that room. We were under con
viction of the necessity of arousing our people from the
lethargy into which they had fallen, as to passing events ;
and thought that the appointment of a day of- general fast
ing and prayer, would be most likely to call up and alarm
their attention. No example of such a solemnity had ex
isted since the days of our distress in the war of '55, since
which a new generation had grown up. With the help,
therefore, of Rushwoijth, whom we rummaged over for the
revolutionary precedents and forms of the Puritans of
that day, preserved by him, we cooked up a resolution,
^somewhat modernizing their phrases, for appointing the
first day of June, on which the port' bill was to comnaence,
for a day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer, to implore
Heaven to avert from us the evils of civil war, to inspire us
with firmness in support of our rights, and to turn the hearts
of the king and parliament to moderation and justice. To
give greater emphasis to our proposition, We agreed to wait,
the next morning on Mr. Nicholas, whose grave and reli
gious character was more in unison with the tone of our
resolution, and to solicit him to move it. We accordingly
went to him in the morning. He moved it the same day;
the 1st of June was proposed ; and it passed without oppo
sition. The Governor dissolved us, as usual. We retired
to the Apollo, as before, agreed to an association, and in
structed the Committee of the other Colonies, to appoint
deputies to meet in Congress at such place, annually, as
should be convenient, to direct, from time to time, the meas
ures required by the general interest : and we declared that
an attack on any one colony, should be considered as an
attack on the whole. This was in May. We further re
commended to the several counties, to elect deputies to meet
at Williamsburg, the 1st of August ensuing, to consider the
state of the colony, and particularly to appoint delegates to

26 The Tfue Origin and Source of
a general Congress, should that measure be acceded to by
the committees of correspondence generally. It was ac
ceded to; Philadelphia was appointed for the place^.and
the 5th of September for the time of meeting. We returned
home, and in our several counties invited the clergy to
meet assemblies of the people on the 1st of June, to perform
the ceremonies of the day, and to address to them discourses
suited to the Occasion. The people met generally, with
anxiety and alarm in, their countenances, and the effect of
that day through the whole Colony was like a shock of
electricity, arousing every man, and placing him erec,t and
solidly on his centre. They chose, universally, delegates
for the Convention. Being elected one for my own county,
I prepared a draught of instructions to be given to the dele
gates -whom we should send to the Congress, which I meant
to propose at our meeting. In this I took the grouhd that,
from the beginning, I had thought the only one orthodox or
tpnable, which was, that the relation between Great Britain
and these Colonies was exactly the same as that of Eng
land and Scotland, after the accession of James and until
the union."
From this paragraph, it is evident 1, that from educa
tional feehngs, Mr. Jefferson was led to estimate as very
great and very essential, the influence of religion in calling
up and alarming the slumbering patriotism and devotion of
the people ; 2, that from previous knowledge he was at once
led to look for models in the covenants and declarations of
the Puritans, and especially the Scotch Reformers, which
he terms very emphatically "revolutionary precedents and'
forms." 3. That to give his plans greater effect, he com
mitted them to the advbcacy of one whose "grave and reli
gious character" was known ; 4, that he invited the clergy
(as they were wont to do in those olden times of reforma
tion,) "to meet assemblies of the people, ahd address to
them discourses suited to the occasion ;" 5thly, that he re- ;
cords the effect of this combination of religious forms, lan
guage and influences to have been, "that the effect of the
day was like a shock of electricity, arousing every man, and
placing him solidly on his centre, and 6thly, that "the
only ground he considered orthodox or tenable" "from the
beginning w&s" " that the relation between Great Britain
and these Colonies.was exactly the same as that of England

The Declaration of Independence. 27'
and Scotland, after the accession of James and until the
union," that is the very period when the National Declara
tions in question were produced and acted upon.
It appears to us, therefore, a most reasonable and charita
ble conclusion, that both the Mecklenburg and the Jeffer
son Declarations are traceable for their manner, spirit, de
sign, order, and language, to the Declarations of the Re
formers; and that it is to them, and not Mr- Jefferson, (21)
we are indebted for whatever "like an electric shock
aroiised the country" to revolutionary effort. It may be a
confirmation of this theory to remark, that it has suggested
itself to other luinds.
In the author's work on "Ecclesiastical Republicanism,"
he has said: "Let any man, we again say, attentively
compare the solemn leagues and covenants, by which the
continental and Scottish reformers, and the puritans and
non-conformists at a later pe^-iod, pledged themselves to one,
another by their lives, propertyj and sacred honor, and bound
themselves to spend and be spent in the cause of civil and
religious freedom, with our declaration of independence,
and he will, we think, allow, that in the former, we have
the plan, the spirit, and the prototype of the latter."
The Rev. John McLeod, in a recent discourse on Pro
testantism, (22) says : "And we have ourselves heard
another distinguished civilian (Hon. GuJian C. Verplanck)
of our own State, in-a public add ress, trace the origin of the
Declaration of American Independence to the National
Covenant of Scotland. Nor was it a mere flight of fancy.
The Scottish reformers from popery had drunk deep at the
fountains of protestantism, as they had been opened on the
continent of Europe, and especially in republican Geneva;
or, rather, they had drunk, along with the continental re
formers, at the same open fountain of God's word. They
succeeded the reformers of the Continent in the movement
against antichrist,, and had all the advantage of their lights.
(21) And yet this is the substance of the famous inscription prepaid by
Jefferson for himself. • ' ¦ ' .
Here lies bilried
THOMAS JfiFFEESON,
Author of the Declaration of Independence,
Of the. Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom,
And Father of the University bl Virginia.
(33) N. York,, 1843,'- p. 31, 20.

28 The True Origin and Source of
Their covenants were bonds of union among themselves,
and public declarations of the grounds of their opposition
to the anti-christian system, in all its parts. And they were
distinguished,J?rst, as connecting civil arid religious liberty
together in the definitions which they made — and, secondly,
in combining all classes of the community in the effort to
. secure them. As first formed, and afterwards renewed at
various crises of their history, the National Covenant of
Scotland was a declaration of the independence of the
Church of Christ, as a distinct community from the State ;
and of both church and state from all foreign control. It
was subscribed by the inass of the people, as well as the'
privileged orders. And as ultimately embodied with addi
tions, in the Solemn league and covenant, it became the
constitution of the British empire. Under it, the Pi-'esby-
terians of Scotland and the North of Ireland, the Puritans
of England, of whom the majority were Presbyterians, and
all other protestants who chose to receive it, united together
in the strife for liberty, which had already commenced."
Thanks be to God for that blessed word and that holy
faith, which,' in proportion as they are pure and undefiled,
foster the spirit of freedom, nourish and sustain liberty, civil
and religious, and nerve the heart to fight valiantly and
dare every thing in defence of " inherent and inalienable
rights." How forcibly also are we taught that righteousness ex-
alteth a nation, and that godliness has the promise of the,
life that now is as well as of thatwhich is to cotue, and that
he is the best patriot who is most deeply imbued with the
spirit of the Bible.
How forcibly also are we taught by these facts, that infi
delity is as powerless to effect great good as it is powerful
to do great harm; and that even infidels are obliged to use
the sword of the Spirit when they would accomplish noble
and self-denying achievements.
How are we led to value the spirit and principles of the
Reformers, from which, as from the two breasts of freedom,
the sincere milk of civil and religious freedom have so
freely flowed. , '
Weare also taught that religious freedom must, in, the
nature of the case, ,and has, in fact, always preceded civil
freedom. And to pro^ve that this connection between civil

, ¦¦ The b'eclar ation of Independence. . , 29
liberty and pure Christianity, is not "incidental, wo may re-"
fer^ to the,.histoi;y of Europe-. The dawn of religious light
> at the Reformation, was equally the dawn of political en-
l^fgenient.. In proportion as the refoi'rtcltio;i in religion'
¦.^dvanced in any. nation, so did tliat nation partake of the
blessings; of civil hberty. Spain felt the rise and quick sup
pression of thfe reformed opinions, and she' continues pas
sively to wear the chains of despoi;isni. Iii'Swilzerland the'
.doctrines of • a pure religion ' flourished, ¦, and its cantons
• formed. an asylum for the persecuted.; Holland cherished ;
the spread of Protestantism,- ahd was repaid in political"
freedom. France, displays the».alteratjon'of change ; now
struggling for the refonriM faith and enjoying the rights of
freedom, and again subinitting to the corruptions of faith
and .the usiirpatiorl of tyranny. In Britain the blessings
, of pure Christianity and. of civil rights have prospered to-
g:eTther; .\The foundations of British freeddtn were securely
fixed in; the great Christian principles of the'revolution, and ',
it has been through the careless observance of these that the
goodly fabric has. risen in strength and in beauty; and
.what is American freedom but the everflowing, stream of
this fountain.
Finally, how noble is r the testimony here given to the
genius and character of Preabyterianism". Even were it as
true, as it is untrue; t-hat Jt has "written no poem" and
achieved no literary triumph, it, has done MoiiE.- It
HA?. PROVED ITSELF TO BE THE PILLAR; AND GROUND OF,'
THE ; TRUTH AMID ERROK AND DEFECTION. It HAS
PpUIJDED EMPIRES, IN THE SPIRIT Ofn FREEDOM AND
LIBERTY, AND HAS GIVEN BIRTH TO DECLARATIONS AND
ACHIEVEMENTS WHICH ARE THE .WONDEI?. OF "THE PRES
ENT, AND WILli BE THE ADMIRATION OF, EVERY FUTURE '
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