「『你是否曾經想過,簽署《獨立宣言》的那56位男士後來發生了什麼事?
其中五位簽署者被英軍當作叛徒捕獲並受到酷刑,直至死亡。十二人的家被洗劫並燒毀。兩位失去兒子在革命軍隊中,另一位有兩個兒子被俘。56位中有九人在革命戰爭中受傷或遭受艱難而戰死。
他們簽署並承諾了他們的生命、財富和神聖的榮譽。
這些人是何等樣的人?其中24位是律師和法官。十一位是商人,九位是農民和大型種植園主,他們富有,受過良好教育。但他們明知如果被捕將面臨死刑,仍然簽署了《獨立宣言》。
維吉尼亞州的卡特·布拉克斯頓是富有的種植園主和商人,他的船隻被英國海軍扣押。他賣掉了家園和財產來償還債務,最終破產而亡。
托馬斯·麥克坎被英國人追捕得幾乎沒有固定居所,他在國會無薪工作,家人藏匿起來。他的財產被沒收,貧窮是他的回報。
破壞者或士兵或兩者皆是,掠奪了埃勒里、克萊默、霍爾、沃爾頓、格溫納特、海沃德、魯特利奇和米德爾頓的財產。
在約克鎮戰役中,湯瑪斯·尼爾森·朱尼爾發現英國將軍康沃利斯佔據了尼爾森家作為總部。屋主悄悄地建議喬治·華盛頓將軍開火。房屋被摧毀,尼爾森最終破產而亡。
弗朗西斯·路易斯的家園和財產被摧毀。敵人監禁了他的妻子,她在幾個月內去世。
約翰·哈特在他妻子臨終時被驅逐出床邊。他們的13個孩子為了生命逃離。他的田地和碾磨廠被荒廢。一年多來他生活在森林和洞穴中,最終回家發現妻子已故,孩子失踪。幾個星期後,他因精疲力竭和心碎而去世。諾里斯和利文斯頓也遭遇了類似的命運。
這些都是美國革命的故事和犧牲。他們不是狂熱的、煽動的暴民。他們是有錢有教育的溫和言行的人。他們有安全感,但更重視自由。挺身而出,堅定不移,他們宣誓:『為了支持這份宣言,堅信神的庇護,我們相互承諾,以我們的生命、財富和神聖的榮譽。』」
~邁克爾·W·史密斯 」
“Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed 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 in the revolutionary army, another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the revolutionary war.
They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
What kind of men 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 or both, looted the properties of Ellery, Clymer, Hall, 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. The owner 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.’”
~Michael W. Smith