ing parent, many a loft despairing child in this metropo lis must bear a very melancholy testimony. Soldiers are alfo taught to confider arms as the only arbiters by which every difpute is to be decided between contend. ing ftates; they are inftructed implicitly to obey their commanders, without enquiring into the justice of the cause they are engaged to fupport. Hence it is that they are ever to be dreaded as the ready engines of tyranny and oppreffion.

22. And it is too obfervable that they are prone to introduce the fame mode of decifion in the difputes of individuals, and from thence have arifen great animofities between them and the inhabitants, who whilft in a naked, defenceless ftate, are frequently infulted and abused by an armed foldiery. And this will be more especial Ty the cafe when the troops are informed that the intention of their being stationed in any city, is to overawe the inbabitants.

23. That this was the avowed defign of ftationing an armed force in this town, is fufficiently known; and we, my fellow citizeni, have feen, we have felt the tragical ef fects! The FATAL FIFTH OF MARCH, 1770, can never be forgotten-The horrors of that dreadful night are but too deeply impreffed on our hearts-language is too feeble to paint the emotions of our souls, when our streets were ftained with the blood of our brethren when our ears were wounded by the groans of the dying, and our eyes were tormented with the fight of the mangled bodies of the dead.

24. When our alarmed imagination prefented to our view our houfes wrapt in flames-our children fubjected to the barbarous caprice of the raging foldiery-our beanteous virgins expofed to all the infolence of unbridled paffon our virtuous wives, endeared to us by every tender tie, falling a facrifice to worse than brutal violence, and perhaps like the famed Lucretia, diftracted with an, guish and defpair, ending their wretched lives by their own fair hands.

25. When we beheld the authors of our diftrefs parading in our ftreets, or drawn up in a regular batalia, as tho in a hoftile city, our hearts beat to arms; we fnatched our weapons, almoft refolved, by one decifive ftroke, to avenge the death of our slaughtered bretoren, and to

secure from future danger, all that we held most dear; but propitious heaven farbad the bloody carnage, and faved the threatened victims of our too keen resentment, not by their difcipline, not by their regular array-no, it was royal George's livery that proved their shield it was that which turned the pointed engines of destruction from their breasts.

26. Thoughts of vengeance were foon buried in our inbred affection to Great Britain, and calm reason dictated a method of removing the troops, more mild than an immediate recourse to the sword. With united efforts you urged the immediate departure of the troops from the town -you urged it with a resolution which ensured fuccessyou obtained your wishes, and the removal of the troops was affected, without one drop of their blood being shed by the inhabitants.

27. The immediate actors in the tragedy of that night were furrendered to justice. It is not mine to say how far they were guilty! they have been tried by the country and ACQUITIED of murder; and they are not again to be arraigned at an earthly bar; but furely the men who have promifcuoufly scattered death amidst the innocent inhabitants of a populous city, ought to fee well to it, that they be prepared to stand at the bar of an omnifcient Judge! and all who contrived or encouraged the stationing of troops in this place, have reasons of eternal importance, to reflect with a deep contrition, on their base designs, and humbly to repent of their impious machinations.

28. The voice of your fathers' blood cries to you fram the ground; My sons, scorn to be SLAVES! In vain, we met the frowns of tyrants in vain we crossed the boisterous ocean, found a new world, and prepared it for the happy refidence of Liberty in vain we toiled-in vain we fought we bled in vain, if you, our offspring, want valor to repel the affaults of her invadors! Stain not the glory of your worthy ancestors, but like them refolve never to part with your birth-right; be wife in your deliberations, and determine in your exertions for the prefervation of your liberty.

29. Follow not the dictates of passion, but enlist yourselves under the facred banner of reason; use every method in your power to secure your rights; at least prevent

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the curses of pofterity from being heaped upon your me

mories.

30. If you, with united zeal and fortitude, oppose the torrent of oppreffion- If you feel the true fire of patriotifin burning in your breasts if you, from your fouls, defpife the most gaudy drefs that flavery can wear if you really prefer the lonely cottage (whilst blest with liberty) to gilded palaces furrounded with the enfigns of flavery, you may have the fulleft affurance that tyranny, with her whole accursed train, will hide her hideous head, in confufion, shame and defpair.

31. If you perform your part you must have the strongest confidence, that the same Almighty Being, who protected your pious and venerable forefathers, who enabled them to turn a barren wilderness into a fruitful field, who so often made bare bis arm for their falvation, will still be mindful of their offspring.

32. May this ALMIGHTY BEING graciously preside in all our councils---may he direct us to fuch measures as he himself shall approve, and be pleased to blefs. May we

ever

be favored of GOD.---May our land be a land of lib-. erty, the feat of virtue, the afylum of the oppressed, a name and a praise in the whole earth, until the last thock of time shall bury the empires of the world in the undiftinguished. ruin L

ORATION, delivered at Boston, March 5, 1774, by the bonorable JOHN HANCOCK, Esq in commemoration of. the evening of the fifth of March 1770, when a number of the citizens were killed by a party of Britishtroops, quartered among them, in a time of peaсе. Men, Brethren, Fathers, and Fellow-countrymen!

1.

T HE artentive gravity---the venerable appearance of this crowded audience the dignity which 1 be hold in the countenances of fo many in this great assembly -the folemnity of the occafion upo upon which we have met together, joined to a confideration of the part I am to take in the important business of this day, fill me with an awe hitherto unknown; and heighten the sense which I have ever had, of my unworthiness to fill tihs facred desk.

2. But, allured by the call of fome of my refpected fel

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low-citizens, with whofe requeft it is always my greatest pleasure to comply, I almost forget my want of ability to perform what they required. In this fituation I find my only fupport in affuring myfelf that a generous people will not feverely cenfure what they know was well intended, tho its want of merit fhould prevent their being able to appland it. And I pray, that my fincere attachment to the intereft of my country, and my hearty deteftation of every defign formed against her liberties, may be admitted as fome apology for my appearance in this place.

3. I have always, from my earlieft youth, rejoiced in the felicity of my fellow-men; and have ever confidered it as the indifpenfable duty of every member of fociety to promote, as far as in him lies, the profperity of every individual, but more efpecially of the community to which he belongs; and alfo, as a faithful fubje&t of the ftate, to ne his utmoft endeavors to detect, and having detected, ftrenuofly to oppofe every traiterous plot which its enemies may de vife for its deftruction.

4. Security to the perfons and proprietors of the gov erned, is fo obviously the defign and end of civil government, that to attempt a logical proof of it, would be like burning tapers at noon day, to affift the fun in enlightening the world. It cannot be either virtuous or honorable, to attempt to fupport a government, of which this is not the great and principal bafis; and it is to the laft degree vicious and infamous to attempt to fupport a government, which manifeftly tends to render the perfons and properties of the governed infecure.

5. Some boat of being friends to government; I am a friend to righteous government, to a government founded upon the principles of reafon and juffice; but I glory in publickly avowing my eternal enmity to tyranny. Is the prefent fyftem which the British adminiftration have adopted for the government of the colonies, a righteous government? Or is it tyranny? Here fuffer me to ask (and would to heaven there could be an answer) what tenderness, what regard, refpect, or confideration has Great-Britain fhewn, in their late tranfactions, for the fecurity of the perfons or properties of the inhabitants of the colonies? or rather, what have they omitted doing to de. froy that fecurity?

6. They have declared that they have ever had, and of right ever ought to have, full power to make laws of futficient validity to bind the colonies in all cafes whatever: They have exercised this pretended right, by impofing a tax upon us without our confent; and lest we should shew fome reluctance at parting with our property, her fleets and armies are fent to fupport their nad pretensions.

7. The town of Boston ever faithful to the British crown, has been invested by a British fleet: The troops of George the IIId. have crossed the wide Atlantic, not to engage an enemy, but to assist a band of traitors, in trampling on the rights and liberties of his most loyal fubjects in America-those rights and liberties which, as a father, he ought ever to regard, and as a king, he is bound, in honor, to defend from violation, even at the risk of his own life.

8. Let not the hiftory of the illuftrious house of Brunswick inform pofterity, that a king, defcended from that glorious. monarch, George the Ild. once font' his Briush subjects to conquer and enslave his fubjects in America; but be perpetual infamy entailed upon that villain who dared to advise his master to such execrable measures, for it was easy to forefee the consequences which so naturally followed upon sending troops, into America, to enforce obedience to acts of the British parliament, which neither God nor man ever empowered them to make.

9. It was reafonable to expect that troops, who knew the errand they were fent upon, would treat the people whom they were to fubjugate, with cruelty and haughtiness, which too often buries the honorable character of a soldier in the difgraceful name of an unfeeling ruffian. The troops, upon their first arrival, took poffeffion of our fenate house, and pointed their cannon against the judgsment hall, and even continued them there, whilst the Tupreme court of judicature for this province was actually fitting to decide upon the lives and fortunes of the king's Tubjects.

10. Our ftreets nightly refounded with the noife of riot and debauchery; our peaceful citizens were hourly exposed to shameful infults, and often felt the effects of their violence and outrage. But this was not all! as though they thought it not enough to violate our civil