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Francis Lewis was born in South Wales in 1713. He was partly educated in Scotland, and was then sent to Westminster. He entered a mercantile house in London, and at the age of twenty-one years came to America, and commenced business in New York. He was an agent here of British merchants in 1756, and was made a prisoner and sent to France. He returned to America, and became an active politician. He was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1775, and served there for several years. He owned property on Long Island, which the British destroyed. He died on the thirtieth of December, 1803, in the ninetieth year of his age.

Lewis Morris was born in New York in 1726. He graduated at Yale College in 1746, and then retired to the farm of his father, in Lower West Chester, near Harlem. He took sides with the patriots when the war broke out, and was sent to the Continental Congress as a delegate in 1775. He was a member in 1776, and continued in office until 1777, when he was succeeded by his brother, Gouverneur Morris. He suffered much in loss of property during the war. He died in January, 1798, in the seventy-second year of his age.

NEW JERSEY.

Richard Stockton was born near Princeton, on the first of October, 1730. He graduated at Princeton College in 1748, studied law with David Ogden, and rose rapidly to eminence. He visited Great Britain in 1767, where he became acquainted with many distinguished men. He was an ardent patriot, and in 1776 was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress. In the autumn of that year, while returning from an official visit to the Northern ariny, he was made prisoner, and was treated with much cruelty. His constitution became shattered before his release, and, sinking gradually, he died on the twenty-eighth of February, 1781, in the fifty-third year of his age. His residence is delineated on page 242 of this volume.

John Witherspoon was a native of Scotland, and was born on the fifth of February, 1732. He was educated at Edinburgh, studied divinity, and was ordained a minister in the Scotch Church. He came to America, by invitation, in 1768, and was inaugurated president of Princeton College, where he became very popular. He was a warm patriot, and espoused the cause of freedom with great energy. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1776, and with pen and speech he ably advocated American independence throughout the war. He continued in Congress several years. His death occurred on the fifteenth of November, 1794, at the age of seventy-two years. Francis Hopkinson was born in Pennsylvania in 1737. He became distinguished in the profession of the law, and was always noted for his wit. He was a poet of considerable merit, and wrote several pamphlets on political subjects. He was a delegate from New Jersey (his residence being at Bordentown), in the Continental Congress in 1776, and in 1720 he was elect ed judge of admiralty for the State of Pennsylvania. In 1790 he was appointed district judge in the same state. He died in May, 1791, in the fifty-third year of his age. For his poem called The Battle of the Kegs, see page 310 of this volume.

John Hart was born in New Jersey, at what precise time is not recorded. He was a man of strong mind and decided principles. He was an agriculturist by profession, and was called from his plow to a seat in the Continental Congress in 1774. He remained there until after he had affixed his name to the Declaration of Independence. He was an active patriot dur. ing the war, and suffered much at the hands of the Loyalists, Broken in constitution, Mr. Hart died in 1780, and was buried at Rahway, New Jersey.

Abraham Clark was born at Elizabethtown, New Jersey, on the fifteenth of February, 1726. He was a self-taught, strong. minded, energetic man, able and willing to perform a variety of service. He became very popular, and in 1776 he was elected a delegate in the Continental Congress. He was active in the public affairs of his state until his death, which occurred suddenly in the month of June, 1794, at the age of sixty-eight

years.

PENNSYLVANIA.

Robert Morris was born in England in January, 1733, came to this country while yet a child, and was educated in Philadelphia. He served an apprenticeship with a merchant, and

and veneration of his friends and children. This monument is erected by his grandson, Stephen Van Rensselaer."

at twenty-one commenced business for himself. Remarkable for energy, acuteness, and strict integrity, he was very success. ful, and possessed the entire confidence of the community. He was elected a member of the Continental Congress in 177C, and throughout the war was considered the ablest financier in the country. For a long time his individual credit was superior to that of Congress itself. He lost an immense fortune, and died in comparative poverty on the third of May, 1806, in the seventy-third year of his age.

Benjamin Rush was born near Philadelphia on the twenty. fourth of December, 1743, O.S. He graduated at Princeton College in 1760, commenced the study of medicine the next year, and in 1766 went to Edinburgh, where, two years afterward, he received the degree of M.D. He returned to Philadelphia in 1769, where he was elected professor of chemistry in the College of Pennsylvania. He was elected a member of the Continental Congress in 1776, and from that period until his death he took an active part in public affairs, politics, science, and general literature. He stands in the highest rank of American physicians and philosophers. Dr. Rush died on the nineteenth of April, 1813, in the seventieth year of his age.

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on the seventeenth of January, 1706. He learned the business of printing with his brother, and while yet a lad wrote many excellent articles for publication. He left his brother at the age of seventeen years, went to New York, and from thence to Philadelphia, in search of employment. He settled in the latter city, became acquainted with men of learning and science, and finally went to London, where he worked at his trade for some time. He returned to Philadelphia in 17:32, and pursued the profession of printer for many years with great success. He was appointed clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly in 1736, and the next year, postmaster. He commenced a popular magazine in 1741. He was very active in public affairs, and was sent to England as agent for several of the colonies. He returned to America in 1775, and was immediately elected a delegate in the Continental Congress. He was appointed com. missioner to the court of France in 1776, where he remained He was the first minister to several years in efficient service. that court, and assisted in negotiations for peace with Great Britain. He returned to Philadelphia in 1785, when he was elected president of Pennsylvania, and continued in office for three years. He died on the seventeenth of April, 1790, in the eighty-fourth year of his age. On his death, Congress ordered a general public mourning throughout the United States.

John Morton was born in Delaware, of Swedish parents, in 1724. He took an active part in political affairs, and in 1765 was elected a delegate from Pennsylvania to the "Stamp Act Congress," which assembled in New York. He filled various civil offices in Pennsylvania, and in 1774 was elected a mem ber of the Continental Congress. He remained a member for about three years. He was one of the committee which reported the Articles of Confederation, and died soon after that report was presented to Congress, in the fifty-third year of his age.

George Clymer was born in Philadelphia in 1739. Being left an orphan, he was reared by a paternal uncle, who gave him a good education. He entered his uncle's counting-room to prepare for the mercantile profession, but general science and literature had more charms for him. He was a decided patriot, and in 1776 was elected to the Continental Congress. He served several years in that body, and in 1781 was a member of the Legislature of his native state. He was a revenue officer at the time of the "Whisky Insurrection" in Pennsylvania, and there did efficient service in quieting the rebellion. His last public duty was a mission to the Cherokees in 1796. He died on the twenty-fourth of January, 1813, in the seventyfourth year of his age.

James Smith was born in Ireland, but would never give the date of his birth. He was educated by Dr. Allison of Philadelphia, and studied law. He commenced professional life on the frontiers of Pennsylvania, where he had great influence. In 1776, he was elected to the Continental Congress, where be remained several years. He resumed his profession in 1781. He relinquished practice in 1800, after a professional career of about sixty years. He died in 1806, at the supposed age of eighty-six years.

George Taylor was born in Ireland in 1716. He came to America when a young man, with no fortune but good health and industry. He performed menial labor for some time, and

then became a clerk in a large iron establishment. Many years afterward, he married his employer's widow, and became possessed of considerable property. He was a member of the Pennsylvania Legislature before the Stamp Act excitement. Being an ardent Whig, he was elected to a seat in the Continental Congress in 1776. Although he was not present to vote on the resolution for independence, he gladly affixed his name to the Declaration. He retired from Congress the following year, and moved to the State of Delaware, where he died on the twenty-third of February, 1781, in the sixty-fifth year of his age.

vania.

James Wilson was born in Scotland in 1742. He was thor oughly educated in Edinburgh, emigrated to America in 1766, and became a tutor in the Philadelphia College, where he studied law. He became eminent in his profession, and in 1774 was chosen a member of the Provincial Congress of Pennsyl. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775, where he continued for several years. He was appointed an assistant judge of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1789, and held that office until his death, which occurred on the twenty eighth of August, 1798, in the fifty-sixth year of his age.

George Ross was born at Newcastle, Delaware, in 1730, and at the age of twenty-one years began the practice of law in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly in 1768. In 1776 he was chosen a member of the Continental Congress, advocated the Declaration of Inde. pendence, and signed his name to the important document. He was very active in public life until 1789, when death term. inated his labors in July of that year, in the fiftieth year of his age.

DELAWARE.

Ceasar Rodney was born at Dover, Delaware, in 1730. He was an active politician as early as 1762. He was a member of the Stamp Act Congress in 1765, and in 1768 was speaker of the Assembly of his state. He was a fine writer, and his pen was actively employed in the cause of liberty. He was a member of the first Continental Congress, and remained in that body until the close of 1776, when he took the field as brigadier of militia. He was chosen president of the state after the adoption of a State Constitution. A cancer in the check finally incapacitated him for business, his health rapidly failed, and he died early in 1783, in the fifty-third year of his age.

George Read was born in Maryland in 1734, and was edu cated by Dr. Allison, in Philadelphia. He studied law, and was admitted to the bar while yet a youth. He commenced practice at Newcastle, Delaware, and was soon afterward elected a member of the State Legislature. He was chosen a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1774. where he remained for several years. He was president of the convention which framed a State Constitution for Delaware. He was appointed an admiralty judge in 1782. In 1786, he was a member of the first convention to revise the Articles of Confederation. In 1793 he was made chief justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware, which office he held until his death, in the autumn of 1798, in the sixty-fourth year of his age.

Thomas McKean was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, in 1734. He was educated by Dr. Allison, and entered a law office at an early age. He was a member of the Stamp Act Congress in 1765, and from that time he was active in public affairs, always on the side of popular rights. He was chosen a member of the Continental Congress for Delaware in 1774, where he was a leader. He was a member for the same state in 1776, and voted for independence. He took an active part in military affairs during the war, and after its close he was called to fill many important civil offices. He was president of Congress in 1781. For twenty years he was chief justice of Pennsylvania, and in 1799 was elected governor of that state. He retired from public life in 1812, and died on the twentyfourth of June, 1817, in the eighty-fourth year of his age.

MARYLAND.

Samuel Chase was born in Maryland on the seventeenth of April, 1741. He received a good classical education in Baltimore, studied law, and commenced its practice in Annapolis. He soon became a popular and distinguished man. In 1774 he was chosen a member of the Continental Congress. He was re-elected in 1775, and remained a member of that body until 1778. In 1786 he moved to Baltimore, and, two years after

ward, was appointed chief justice of the Criminal Court of that district. He was soon afterward appointed chief justice of the state. In 1796 he was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of the United States, which office he filled for fifteen years. He died on the nineteenth of June, 1811, in the seventieth year of his age.

Thomas Stone was born in Maryland in 1740. He was a law. yer by profession, and an early patriot. In 1774 he was elect ed to a seat in the Continental Congress, to which he was again chosen the following year. He remained a member of that body until early in 1778, having, in the mean while, signed the Declaration of Independence, and assisted in the formation of the Articles of Confederation. He was active in his own state until 1783, when he was again elected to Congress. He was present when Washington resigned his commission, and in 1784 was elected president of that body, pro tempore. He died at his residence, at Port Tobacco, on the fifth of October, 1787, in the forty-fifth year of his age.

William Pace was born in Hartford, Maryland, on the thirty. first of October, 1740. He was well educated by Dr. Allison in the Philadelphia College, and then studied law at Annapolis. He soon became conspicuous, and in 1771 was elected a member of the State Legislature. He was a member of the Continental Congress in 1774, was re-elected in 1775, and remained in that body until 1778, when he was appointed chief justice of the State of Maryland. In 1782 he was chosen governor of the state, and was very popular. He was appointed district judge for the State of Maryland in 1789, which office he held until his death, which occurred in 1799, when he was in the sixtieth year of his age.

Charles Carroll was born at Annapolis, Maryland, on the twentieth of September, 1737. His father being a Roman Catholic, he was sent to France to be educated. He returned to Maryland in 1765, a finished scholar and gentleman. He took an active part in public affairs, and was elected a member of the Continental Congress in July, 1776, and, with others, signed the Declaration of Independence on the second of August following. He retired from Congress in 1778, and, after taking part in the councils of his native state, was elected United States Senator in 1789. He retired from public life in 1801, and lived in the enjoyment of accumulated honors and social and domestic happiness, until November 14, 1832, when he died at the age of ninety-four years. Mr. Carroll was the last survivor of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence.

VIRGINIA.

George Wythe was born in Elizabeth county, Virginia, in 1726. His parents were wealthy, and as the law opened a field for distinction, he chose that as a profession. He was a mem ber of the Colonial Legislature of Virginia, and in 1775 was elected a member of the Continental Congress. Like other signers of the great Declaration, Mr. Wythe suffered much from foes, especially in loss of property. He was speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates in 1777, and the same year was appointed judge of the High Court of Chancery. He was afterward appointed chancellor, and filled that office with distinction for more than twenty years. He died on the eighth of June, 1806, in the eighty first year of his age.

Richard Henry Lee was born in Westmoreland county, Virginia, on the twentieth of January, 1732. He was educated in England, and soon after his return, in 1757, he was elected a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1774, and in 1776 had the honor to offer the resolution declaring the colonies free and independent. He was a very active member of Congress during a greater part of the war. He was appointed United States Senator under the Federal Constitution, which office he filled with great ability. He died on the nineteenth of June, 1794, in the sixty-second year of his age. A notice of Mr. Lee's birthplace may be found on page 423 of this volume.

Thomas Jefferson was born at Shadwell, Albemarle county, Virginia, on the thirteenth of April, 1743. He was educated at William and Mary College, from which he early graduated. He studied law with George Wythe, and when a very young man, was admitted to the bar. He was a member of the Vir ginia Legislature before the Revolution, where his talents as a writer were appreciated. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775, and in 1776 was one of the committee ap pointed to draw up the Declaration of Independence. I health prevented his acceptance of an embassy to France, to

which he was appointed in 1778. He was elected governor of Virginia in 1779. In 1781 he retired from public life, and devoted his time to literary and scientific pursuits. He was sent to France to join Franklin and Adams in 1783, and in 1785 succeeded Franklin as minister there. Washington appointed him Secretary of State in 1789, which office he held until 1793. He was elected vice-president of the United States in 1797, and in 1801 was elevated to the chief magistracy. He was reelected in 1805, and after eight years service as president, he retired from public life. He died on the fourth of July, 1826, in the eighty-fourth year of his age, just fifty years after voting for the Declaration of Independence. His residence and seal are delineated on pages 547 and 548 of this volume.

Benjamin Harrison was a native of Virginia. He was educated at William and Mary College, and commenced his political career in 1764, when he was elected to the Virginia Legislature. He was elected a member of the Continental Congress in 1774, where he continued until the close of 1777. He was chosen speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses early in 1778, and held that office until 1782, when he was elected governor of Virginia. He retired from that office in 1785, but remained active in public life until his death, which was caused by gout, in April, 1791. Mr. Harrison was father of the late W. H. Harrison, president of the United States. His residence is delineated on page 441 of this volume.

Thomas Nelson, Jun., was born at York, Virginia, on the twenty-sixth of December, 1738. He went to England to be educated, at the age of fourteen years, and graduated at Cambridge with a good reputation. He entered upon political life soon after his return to America, and in 1775 was elected a member of the Continental Congress. He held a seat there during the first half of the war, and in 1781 was elected governor of Virginia. He was actively engaged in a military capacity at the siege of Yorktown, when Cornwallis and his army were made captives. Governor Nelson died on the fourth of January, 1789, in the fiftieth year of his age. His residence is delineated on page 521 of this volume.

Francis Lightfoot Lee was born in Westmoreland, Virginia, on the fourteenth of October, 1734. He was educated at home by Doctor Craig. In 1765 he was elected a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses, in which he continued a delegate until 1775, when he was sent to the Continental Congress. He remained a member of that body until 1779, when he retired to private life. Himself and wife died of pleurisy at about the same time. Mr. Lee's death occurred in April, 1797, at the age of sixty-three years.

Carter Braxton was born in Newington, Virginia, on the tenth of September, 1736, and was educated at William and Mary College. Possessed of wealth, he went to England, where he remained until 1760, when he was called to a seat in the Virginia House of Burgesses. He distinguished himself there in 1765, when Patrick Henry's Stamp Act resolutions agitated the Assembly. He was elected to succeed Peyton Randolph in the Continental Congress in 1775. He was active in the National Legislature and in that of his own state until his death, which occurred on the tenth of October, 1797, from the effects of paralysis, in the sixty-first year of his age.

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tire from office the following year. He died in October, 1790, at the age of forty-eight years.

Joseph Hewes was born at Kingston, New Jersey, in 1730, and was educated at Princeton College. He prepared for mercan tile life, entered successfully upon that pursuit, and at the age of thirty, located at Wilmington, North Carolina, where he soon accumulated a fortune. He was a member of the Colonial Legislature several consecutive years, and was elected to the Continental Congress in 1774. He continued in that body until 1779, when sickness compelled him to leave. He died on the tenth of November of that year, in the fiftieth year of his age.

John Penn was born in Carolina county, Virginia, on the seventeenth of May, 1741. His early education was neglected. but a strong mind overcame many obstacles. He studied law with Edmund Pendleton, and commenced its practice in 1762. He went to North Carolina in 1774, took a high position at the bar, and in 1775 was elected to a seat in the Continental Con gress. He was an active member of that body until 1779, when he returned home. He retired from public life at the close of the war, and died in September, 1788, in the forty-sixth year of his age.

SOUTH CAROLINA.

Edward Rutledge was born in Charleston in November, 1749. He was educated at Princeton, and studied law with his elder brother, John. He completed his legal education in England. and returned to America in 1773. In 1775, at the age of twen ty-five, he was elected to the Continental Congress. He remained a member until the close of 1776, and was re-elected in 1779. He was made a prisoner at Charleston in 1780. After his release, he engaged in the duties of his profession until 1798, when he was elected governor of the state. He died on the twenty-third of January, 1800, in the fifty-first year of his age.

Thomas Heyward, Jun., was born in South Carolina in 1746. After receiving a thorough classical education, he commenced the study of the law. He completed his legal education in England, and, returning to America, married and settled. He was an early opponent of British oppression, and in 1775 was elected a delegate to the Continental Congress. He left that body in 1778, to fill a judicial seat in his native state. He commanded a battalion of militia during the siege of Charleston in 1780, was made a prisoner, and was sent with others to St. Augustine. He continued in public life as judge until 1798, when he retired. He died in March, 1809, in the sixty-fourth year of his age.

Thomas Lynch, Jun., was born in South Carolina on the fifth of August, 1749. He was educated in England, and graduated at Cambridge with honor. He studied law in London, returned home in 1772, and immediately took an active part in pol itics. He was appointed to the command of a company in a South Carolina regiment in 1775, and was soon afterward elect ed to a seat in the Continental Congress. His health failed, and, soon after affixing his signature to the Declaration of Independence, he returned home. With his wife, he sailed for the West Indies at the close of 1776. The vessel was never heard of afterward.

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Arthur Middleton was born in South Carolina in 1743. He graduated at Cambridge, England, and returned to America in 1773. He was elected a member of the Council of Safety at Charleston in 1775, and in 1776 was sent a delegate to the Continental Congress. He was in Charleston when it was surrendered to the British in 1781, was made prisoner, and remained in captivity more than a year. A large portion of his ample fortune was melted away by the fires of the Revolution. He was engaged in active political life until his death, which oc curred on the first of January, 1789, in the forty-fourth year of his age.

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GEORGIA.

Button Gwinnett was born in England in 1732. He was well educated, and after being engaged in mercantile business in his native country for several years, he came to America, settled first at Charleston, and afterward purchased a large tract of land in Georgia, where he made his permanent residence. He was a delegate for Georgia in the Continental Congress in 1776. but returned home soon after signing the Declaration of Inde pendence. He assisted in framing the State Constitution of Georgia, and under it was elected president of the state, an

SUPPLEMENT.

office equivalent to that of governor. He had a quarrel with General M'Intosh which resulted in a duel. Gwinnett was mortally wounded, and his life ended at the age of forty-six years.

The

Lyman Hall was born in Connecticut in 1721. He graduated at Yale College, studied medicine, and went to South Carolina in 1752. He removed to Georgia, and was practicing the profession of a physician when the Revolution broke out. parish of St. John's elected him to a seat in the Continental Congress in 1775. Georgia soon afterward joined the confederation of revolted colonies, and Dr. Hall was elected a general delegate, with Gwinnett and Walton. He resided at the North while the British held possession of Georgia, and all his property was confiscated to the crown. He returned to his adopted state in 1782, and was elected governor the following year. After exercising the duties of his office for some time, he retired from public life. He died in Burke county in 1784, in the sixty-third year of his age.

George Walton was born in Frederick county, Virginia, in 1740. He was bred a mechanic, but on attaining his majority, he went to Georgia and commenced the practice of the law. He was elected a member of the Continental Congress in 1776, and remained active in that body until near the close of 1778, when he returned home. He was wounded and made prisoner at Savannah when it was taken by Campbell. In October, 1779, he was elected governor of the state, and, in 1780 was again sent to Congress. He was again governor of Georgia, then chief justice, and in 1798 was a United States Senator. There he remained one year, and then retired. He died at

Augusta on the second of February, 1804, in the sixty-fourth
year of his age.

VII.

THE LOYALISTS.

THE Loyalists of the Revolution were of two kinds, active
the mercenary and the honest. We have elsewhere observed
and passive, and these were again divided into two classes each,
that when the Declaration of Independence was promulgated,
many influential men, who were fully alive to the importance
of demanding from Great Britain a redress of existing and in-
creasing grievances, were not prepared to renounce all alle-
giance, and they adhered to the interests of the crown. These
formed a large class in every rank in society, and, being actu-
spect. Many of these took up arms for the king, remained
ated by conscientious motives, command our thorough re-
when the contest was ended. Others, for purposes of gain,
loyal throughout the contest, and suffered severely in exile
and some to indulge in plunder and rapine under legal sanc-
tion, were active against the patriots, and their crimes were
charged upon the whole body of the Loyalists. The fiercest
animosities were engendered, and common justice was de-
throned. The Whigs, who suffered dreadfully at the hands of
marauding Tories, hated the very name of Loyalist, and.
measures, the innocent were often punished for the crimes of
through the instrumentality of confiscation acts and other
justice bore sway, and much property was restored. Yet the
the guilty. But when peace came, and animosities subsided.
claims of the British commissioners in negotiating the treaty

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RECEPTION OF THE AMERICAN LOYALISTS IN ENGLAND.*

*This is from an allegorical picture by Benjamin West. Religion and Justice are seen extending the mantle of Britannia, while she herself is holding out her arm and shield to receive the Loyalists. Under the shield is the crown of Great Britain, surrounded by Loyalists. The group has representatives of the Law, the Church, and Government, with other people. An Indian chief extends one hand toward Britannia, and with the other points to Widows and Orphans, rendered so by the war. In a cloud near Religion and Justice is seen the Genii of Great Britain and America, in an opening glory, binding up the broken fasces of the two countries, as emblematic of the treaty of peace. At the head of the Loyalists, with a large wig, is seen Sir Willian Pepperell, one of their most efficient friends in England, and imme

diately behind him, with a scroll in his hand, is Governor William Franklin, of New Jersey, son of Dr. Franklin, who remained loyal until the last. The two figures on the right are Mr. West and his wife, both natives of Pennsylva

nia.

I have already noticed Governor Franklin (page 436, volume i., and 217, volume ii.) as prisoner in Connecticut. Among other places where he was in custody in that state was Wallingford, at the house of Doctor Jared Potconversations with the family, to whom he became much attached. Franklin ter, where he spent his time mostly in reading, walking in the garden, and and Joseph Galloway were among the most prominent of the loyal refugees who sought shelter in England

of peace, to indemnity for the Loyalists by the United States government, could not be allowed, for it was justly argued that during the war the Wh.gs had lost as much and more by the machinations of the Tories, as the latter had done by confisca tions and the consequences of exile.

It is estimated by Sabine that at least twenty thousand Loyalists took up arms for the king during the war. The first organizations were under Governors Dunmore and Martin; and besides those under Butler and Johnson, in New York, and Colonel Ferguson, at King's Mountain, there were twenty-nine or thirty regiments, regularly officered and enrolled. These were disbanded at the close of the war, and some of the officers were transferred to the regular army and continued in service for life. Others, less fortunate, went, with a host of military and civil companions, into exile, the Northern ones chiefly to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and the Southern ones to the Bahamas, Florida, and the British West Indies. Many also went to England, and for years they were importunate petitioners to the government for relief. The officers generally received half pay.

Toward the close of 1782, a committee of Parliament was appointed to attend to the claims of the Loyalists. The result of their 'investigations was to deny the claims of some who had already received aid, and to allow more to others of greater worth. By their decision in June, 1783, £43,245 per annum were distributed among six hundred and eighty-seven Loyalist pensioners. The claimants finally became so numerous, that a permanent Board of Commissioners was appointed, which continued for almost seven years. On the twenty-fifth of March, 1784, the number of claimants was two thousand and sixty-three, and the amount of property claimed to have been lost by them was £7,046,278, besides debts to the amount of £2,354,183. The commissioners continued their labors, reported from time to time, and in 1790 Parliament settled the whole matter by enactment. It appears that on the final adjustment of claims nearly fifteen millions of dollars were distributed among the Loyalists, "an unparalleled instance of magnanimity and justice in a nation which had expended nearly one hundred and sixteen millions of dollars in the war." A minute account of the Loyalists, their aggressions, sufferings, claims, and indemnities, may be found in the Historical Essay prefixed to Sabine's biographical sketches of the American Loyalists.

VIII.

THE FOSTER CHILD OF THE REPUBLIC.

ON the fifth of April, 1777, the Continental Congress, after resolving to erect appropriate monuments to the memory of Generals WARREN and MERCER, the first in Boston, and the second in Fredericksburg, Virginia, also resolved "That the eldest son of General Warren, and the youngest son of General Mercer, be educated from this time at the expense of the United States." The monuments have never been erected, but the promises to the living were faithfully performed. The "youngest son of General Mercer" was born about six months after the father made his will and joined the army of patriots,

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in July, 1776. His mother was Isabella Gordon. vived her martyred husband about ten years, and during that time made an indelible impression of her own excellence upon the character of her son. He was educated at William and Mary College during its palmiest days, while under the charge of Bishop Madison. For a long series of years he was colonel of the militia of his native county (Spottsylvania), and for twenty years he was an active magistrate. For five consecutive years Colonel Mercer represented his district in the Virginia Legislature, when, preferring the sweets of domestic life to the honors and turmoils of office, he declined a re-election. He was soon afterward elected president of the Branch Bank of Virginia, located at Fredericksburg, which station he has continued to fill until the present time. Through life Colonel Mercer has enjoyed good health, and has ever been distinguished for energetic and methodical business habits. He is now in the seventy-seventh year of his age; and at the "Sentry Box," his estate near Fredericksburg, he lives in dignified ease, one of the few remaining specimens of a Virginia gentleman of the old school. He is the last survivor of his father's family, which consisted of four sons and a daughter.

Hugh Mercer

and was only five months old when the hero fell in battle at Princeton. That son yet survives, bears the honored name of

*See The American Loyalists, &c., by Lorenzo Sabine, page 58. †The following are the names of many of these corps, preserved by Sa bine, page 60. The King's Rangers; the Royal Fencible Americans; the Queen's Rangers; the New York Volunteers; the King's American Regiment; the Prince of Wales's American Volunteers; the Maryland Loyalists; De Lancey's battalions; the second American Regiment; the King's Rangers, Carolina; the South Carolina Royalists; the North Carolina Highland Regiment; the King's American Dragoons; the Loyal American Regiment; the American Legion; the New Jersey Volunteers; the British Legion; the Loyal Forester; the Orange Rangers; the Pennsylvania Loyalists; the Guides and Pioneers; the North Carolina Volunteers; the Georgia Loyalists; the West Chester Volunteers. To these may be added the Newport Associates; the Loyal New Englanders; the Associated Loyalists; Went worth's Volunteers; Johnson's Royal Greens, and seventeen companies of Loyal militia, under Colonel Archibald Hamilton of New York. + Adolphus.

See Journals, iii., 98. This signature of General Mercer I copied from his will, which is dated February 6, 1776; about eleven months previous to his death.

IX.

AUTOGRAPHS OF WASHINGTON'S LIFE GUARD.

SINCE the publication of the account of Washington's Life Guard, on page 120, of this volume, I have received from Schuyler Colfax, Esq., grandson of General Colfax (who was the commander of the Guard during the last years of the war), an interesting document, containing the signatures of the members of the corps in February, 1783. These were appended to an order accepted by the commander, to pay to Melancthon, Smith, & Co. the amount of one month's pay, which that firm had advanced with the understanding that they were to wait for reimbursement until the corps was paid by Congress. Colfax's acceptance was as follows: "Accepted to pay when received from the paymaster general." It appears by the amount set opposite each man's signature or "mark" (for several of them, it will be observed, could only make their mark), that the pay of officers and privates was as follows, per month: the commander and his lieutenant, twenty-six dollars and sixty cents each; sergeants, ten dollars each; corporals and drummers, seven dollars and thirty cents each; drum-major (Diah Manning), nine dollars; and privates, six dollars and sixty cents each. I have grouped the autographs as closely as possible, so as to economize space. I am also indebted to Mr. Col. fax for the following brief sketch of the public life of the “captain commandant:"

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