Curiosities of History: Boston, September Seventeenth, 1630-1880Wheildon, William W. (William Willder)
History
Curiosities of History: Boston, September Seventeenth, 1630-1880
Wheildon, William W. (William Willder)
Boston (Mass.) -- Description and travel; Boston (Mass.) -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775
But Heaven beheld these bloody men,
No longer now would bear with them,
Inspires the Duke of Cumberland
To take the work into his hand,
To scourge this cursed barbarous Brood
For all their Rapine, Stealth, and Blood.
Away he goes, post haste he flies,
To face the raging Enemies,
To Scotland, where the wretches fled,
When chas'd from Carlisle, full of dread,
Where being come, his troops combine,
And all in lovely Consort join,
And strong Desires do now express,
To slay these Sons of Wickedness.
Great Joy and Gladness now was shown,
When to the Folk it was made known
That Cumberland, the brave, was come
To save them from expected Ruin."
The people joining the Duke, the enemy was pursued, when--
"A church in which their stores did lay,
They blow'd up ere they ran away,"
after they had bid the people enter in, and many "precious souls at one
sad Blast, into eternity are cast."
"But hard beset by British force
They dare not stay, or they'd do worse;
Some fly to mountains, some to dales,
When all their hellish Courage fails.
* * * * *
Flying I leave them, 'till we hear
The end of this most bloody war.
* * * * *
For which the thankful folk proclaim
Thanksgivings to the Almighty name,
And may we all now join with them,
And to their Thanks join our Amen."
Sold by B. Gray, near the market. Without date; printed in 1744.
XII.
REVOLUTIONARY PROCLAMATIONS.
Gen. Gage's administration of less than a year and a half in the "Province
of Massachusetts Bay," for he never had any government over the province
other than military, was prolific in proclamations, some of which are
rather curious. On the 1st of June, 1774, by order of Parliament and the
King, Boston Harbor was closed and possessed by ships of the British navy.
Nothing could enter or leave the port: wood as fuel could not be brought
from the islands, or merchandise or lumber removed from wharf to wharf by
water; nothing whatever could be water borne within a circle of sixty
miles, either to arrive or depart. At the same time British troops held
the town; and the government, such as it was, was removed to Salem, where
the General Court reassembled on the 7th of June. At this session, on the
17th, as the result of arrangements made by Samuel Adams and his
fellow-patriots, five delegates were chosen to represent the colony in the
proposed Continental Congress, at Philadelphia. As soon as these
proceedings, while yet in progress, reached Gen. Gage's ears by a tricky
tory, who got out of the hall by feigning a call of nature, he issued his
first proclamation, which Mr. Secretary Flucker, as he found the door
locked and could not get into the chamber, had to read on the stairs, as
follows:--
"Province of MASSACHUSETTS-BAY.
By the GOVERNOR.
"A PROCLAMATION for dissolving the General-Court.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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