Freedom is Never Free
The Fourth of July - Is Always Meaningful !!!
It is a good time to reflect on what the 4th of July really cost.
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

Right here is the "Bottom Line" of the Declaration of Independence!!
They signed!! And they truly pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor!!

What kind of people were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants,
Nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated.

But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death
if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the
British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.
He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken
from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge
and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over
the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire.
The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a
few months. John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for
their lives.  His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and
caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from
exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates. Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American
Revolution. These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means
and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and unwavering,
they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine
providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor."

!!!!!!!!!! Now Think and Reflect: !!!!!!!!!!

They gave you and me a free and independent America. The history books never told you a lot about
what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't fight just the British. We were British subjects
at that time and we fought our own government!

Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't. So, take a few minutes while
enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price
they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!!!!!!!!!!

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