A History of the Wars of the United States; Containing a History of the Revolution, and of the Wars of 1812 and Mexico, with Biographical Sketches of All the Prominent American Military Heroes Engaged in Those Wars (Paperback)

Book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1859. Excerpt: ... patriots descending mto the hold, passed up the tea, while the remainder broke open the chests as fast as they appeared, and threw the contents into the sea. It was night, and a profound stillness reigned. There was no cheering from the mob, no disorder, no haste. The only sound heard, was the crash of the chests, and the tread of the patriots as they crossed the decks. In two hours three hundred and forty chests were staved and emptied into the harbor. No other property whatever was injured. When all was finished, the disguised citizens left the ships, and quietly losing themselves among the crowd, disappeared, from that hour, from the public eye. Discovery would, perhaps, have led to the scaffold; and hence those most active concealed their participation even from their own families. Tradition narrates one instance in which a good dame discovered, to her dismay, that her husband had.been one of the Indians, in consequence of finding his shoes filled with tea the next morning by her bed-side. This memorable act, destined to excite the popular enthusiasm so much in subsequent times, happened ou the 16th of December, 1773. On receiving intelligence of this event the British ministry were excessively exasperated; and the feeling was shared by a majority ofall classes in England. A bill was immediately passed through Parliament to deprive Boston of her privileges as a port of entry, and bestow them on Salem: another to revoke, in effect, the charter of Massachusetts, by making all magistrates in the colony be appointed by the King, and at his pleasure: and a third to give the royal governor the power, at his discretion, to send persons charged with homicide, or other criminal offences, to England for trial. To these measures of rigor was added one of conciliation. The governor of Massa...