Winsome Wisdom – The Price of Freedom

A few weeks ago, the United States of America celebrated its 241st birthday. There were Lion's Club BBQ's, rounds of golf, fishing and jet skiing on the lake, family and neighborhood cookouts, parades, ceremonies, all topped off with the spectacle of fireworks.

I wonder if anyone gave a thought to any of those 56 patriotic souls who signed their name to a piece of paper that would forever change the course of civilization and turn their lives upside down. Me, neither... but I know someone who did. His name is Rowe and he was a classmate at college. .

Rowe’s forwarded email was an article that’s made the rounds for several years entitled The Price They Paid. After some fact checking, the following is an accurate overview of the fate of some who affixed their signatures to 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.

These were men of means, leaders in their communities, well-educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well what the consequences would be if they were captured. And sure enough:

• Carter Braxton of Virginia, a tobacco farmer and trader, saw his ships captured or sunk by the British Navy, and had to sell his home and properties to pay his debts.
• British soldiers commandeered and occupied the properties of William Ellery, Lyman Hall, George Clymer, George Walton, Button Gwinnett, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Edward Rutledge, and Arthur Middleton.
• Francis Lewis’ home was raided and properties destroyed. Shortly thereafter, his wife was taken prisoner by the British after she disregarded an order for citizens to evacuate Long Island. 
• John Hart’s farm in New Jersey was looted by the British, and he was forced to hide out in the nearby mountains.
• Lewis Morris watched as his property was appropriated, looted, and burned by the British when they occupied New York.
• Philip Livingston lost several properties to the British occupation of New York and sold off others to support the war effort

Fast forward 241 years, and much has changed. But the promise of America continues despite the variety of chasms that continue to test the resolve of true patriots.

The price of freedom is constant vigilance and persistence in the path laid out by the founding fathers. The cost of freedom lost is too dire to contemplate or risk.