The Portable Patriot: Documents, Speeches, and Sermons That Compose the American Soul

By Joel J. Miller and Kristen Parrish

What does it mean to think, believe, and act like an American? Get the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and other important United States historical documents all in one book!

The soul of America is far more than a concept—it is a people. Even the most sacred principles mean very little unless lived out passionately by an informed citizenry. In The Portable Patriot you’ll find a carefully assembled sampling of American history’s most formative words, written by the people who made that extraordinary history—George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, and many more of America's Founding Fathers. Speeches and sermons, essays and extracts, poems and proclamations illumine such values as independence, virtue, humility, bravery, thrift, prayer, enterprise, liberty, and reliance on God. While peering back to the cradle of America’s national identity, The Portable Patriot also points a way forward, compelling us to heed poet John Dickinson’s plea to “rouse your bold hearts at fair Liberty’s call.”

“Nothing ignites a patriot’s heart—or the hope that the truths of our founding era will prevail again—like the documents assembled in The Portable Patriot. How grateful we should be, and how quick to make these historic words our own.” ?Stephen Mansfield, author, The Forgotten Founding Father and The Faith of the American Soldier

“Our current struggles over taxation, federal debt, and limited government are part of a larger American story. Kudos to Miller and Parrish for highlighting these essential passages.” ?Hon. Andrew P. Napolitano, Senior Judicial Analyst, Fox News Channel

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: Sep 26, 2012
• ISBN: 9781418562472

Book preview

The

PORTABLE

PATRIOT

The

PORTABLE

PATRIOT

Documents, Speeches, and

Sermons That Compose

the American Soul

Edited by

JOEL J. MILLER & KRISTEN PARRISH

9781595551108_ePDF_0004_001

© 2010 by Joel J. Miller and Kristen Parrish

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Thomas Nelson, Inc., titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail [e-mail].

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the King James Version.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

The portable patriot : documents, speeches, and sermons that compose the American soul / edited by Joel J. Miller and Kristen Parrish.

     p. cm.

  Includes bibliographical references and index.

  ISBN 978-1-59555-110-8

  1. United States—Politics and government—To 1775—Sources. 2. United States—Politics and government—1775–1783—Sources. 3. United States—Politics and government—1783–1809—Sources. 4. Patriotism— United States—History—Sources. 5. Speeches, addresses, etc., American. 6. Sermons, American. I. Miller, Joel, 1975– II. Parrish, Kristen.

E173.P765 2010

973.3—dc22

2010010627

10 11 12 13 WC 6 5 4 3 2 1

JOEL J. MILLER:

To my parents, Dennis and Karen Miller,

who gave me more than they’ll ever know.

KRISTEN PARRISH:

To Ken and Mary Joyce, for instilling

in me a deep love of our nation.

And to my husband, Marc, for his patience and support.

It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people’s minds.

—SAMUEL ADAMS

CONTENTS

Introduction

I. BEGINNINGS

1. The Mayflower Compact

2. Mary Rowlandson Recounts Her Captivity

3. The First Thanksgiving Proclamation

4. Edward Randolph’s 1676 Report on New England’s Disregard of Britain’s Trade Laws

5. John Cotton on the Abuse of Power

6. Anne Bradstreet’s Epitaph on a Patriot

7. Epitaph of Benjamin Franklin, Written by Him in 1728

8. Peter Kalm on America’s Likely Break with England

II. PRE-REVOLUTION

1. Rev. Jonathan Mayhew Defends Civil Resistance

2. Samuel Davies’s Religion and Patriotism the Constituents of Good Soldiers

3. James Otis Opposes Arbitrary Law Enforcement

4. Benjamin Franklin’s Advice on Becoming Wealthy

5. Benjamin Franklin’s Catechism on National Debt

6. Declaration of Rights—from the Stamp Act Congress

7. Benjamin Franklin’s Notions Concerning Trade and Merchants

8. John Dickinson’s The Liberty Song

9. Samuel Adams on the Rights of the Americans

10. Rev. Samuel Cooke, An Election Sermon

11. Paul Revere on the Cause of the Quarrel

12. A Song about the Boston Tea Party

13. George Washington on the Question of Rebellion

III. REVOLUTION

1. A Letter from George Washington to His Generals

2. John Dickinson and Thomas Jefferson on the Causes and Necessity of Taking up Arms

3. George Washington Fixes a Date to Cross the Delaware

4. The Battle of Trenton

5. Richard Henry Lee Offers Certain Resolutions in the Congress

6. John Adams’s Letter to William Cushing

7. The Times That Try Men’s Souls

8. The Declaration of Independence

9. Benjamin Rush Opposes Price Controls

10. Letter from Abigail to John Adams, Boston

11. Paul Revere's Famous Ride, in His Own Words

12. Thomas Jefferson on Passing the Declaration of Independence

13. General Hull on the Killing of His Friend Nathan Hale

14. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense (Selections)

15. The Articles of Confederation

16. The Conditions at Valley Forge

17. Life and Death on a British Prison Ship

18. The British Prison Ship by Philip Morin Freneau

19. General Washington’s Circular Letter to the Governors of Each of the States

IV. FOUNDING

1. Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur Asks, What Is an American?

2. Benjamin Franklin’s Advice for Those Coming to America

3. From The Happiness of America by David Humphreys

4. Thomas Jefferson on Decentralized Government and the Judiciary

5. Benjamin Franklin on the Pursuits of Power and Position

6. Patrick Henry Calls for an End to Slavery’s Lamentable Evil

7. Thomas Paine Entreats Americans to End Slavery

8. George Washington on the Subject of Slavery

9. Selections from The Federalist Papers

10. The Constitution of the United States

11. Jack Nips on Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Freedom of Religion

12. Joel Barlow on Separation of Church and State

13. The Bill of Rights

14. Amendments XI through XXVII

15. Thomas Paine on Despotism through Bureaucracies

16. Thomas Paine on Unequal Taxation

17. Timothy Stone’s 1792 Election Sermon

18. Joseph Hopkinson’s Hail Columbia!

V. REPUBLIC

1. The First Inaugural Address of George Washington

2. Report on Manufactures, by Alexander Hamilton

3. Benjamin Rush on Education in the New Republic

4. The First Inaugural Address of Thomas Jefferson

5. Noah Webster’s Oration on the Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence

Afterword

Index

INTRODUCTION

A PLACE, A PHILOSOPHY, AND A PEOPLE

The history of the first English settlements in America, and of the measures which prepared the way for a revolution in the colonies, is too interesting not to be well understood by men of common curiosity and reading. . . . That history unfolds a series of great events, evidently suited to accomplish important purposes in the economy of Divine Providence . . . events which every American of expanded views must contemplate with admiration; and every Christian, with delight.

—NOAH WEBSTER

We all recognize that America is a place. Most will recognize that it is also a philosophy. Say it, hear it, read it—however you encounter the word, America is inseparably attached to certain ideas and sentiments, values with which Americans generally identify.

Liberty, thrift, self-determination, public virtue, humility, courage, hard work, prayer, reliance on God—the American philosophy is a molten amalgam of the dreams and aspirations of millions of disparate peoples. But in our foundational years, perhaps more than many others, it was the master wordsmiths and orators, the pastors, lawyers, and politicians who forged and molded those values and hopes into solid prose and soliloquies. From the Puritans to the founders, the American soul was forged in the smithy of the spoken word and printed page.

We are a nation rooted in the revolutionary oratory of men like Patrick Henry and the pamphletry of Thomas Paine, the fiery rhetoric of Samuel Adams and stirring sermonizing from the pens and pulpits of men like the Revs. Samuel Sewell and Jonathan Mayhew. The colonial Committees of Correspondence and newspapers circulated revolutionary ideas, while incendiary tracts by James Otis and others gave backbone and resolve to the colonists. All the while Ben Franklin’s wit shined and amused while it gave context and perspective.

Our reliance on the word goes back to the Pilgrims and the Mayflower Compact. It continues through the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the Constitution of the United States, and the Bill of Rights. It emerges in the political struggles of the Revolution and the ratification arguments of our national charter.

We find our identity in a mountain of words. The Portable Patriot mines that mountain and makes the choicest and most valuable selections from essays, extracts, sermons, poems, songs, and speeches available and accessible to a wide range of readers.

It should be noted here that we’ve abridged most of these selections from the originals. This book is a little library of foundational documents. To include all of these selections in their entirety would have resulted in a book considerably less portable. If you would like the unabridged selections, we’ve cited where they can be found. We’ve made some light edits for clarity but otherwise have left intact the idiosyncrasies of grammar and spelling common to the period.

WHAT’S BEHIND THIS COLLECTION?

Our motivation in assembling this collection is partly selfish. As Noah Webster said, people of common curiosity and reading ought to know this story, and being commonly curious readers, we surmised that it couldn’t hurt to improve our knowledge and appreciation of the American story. What better way than through its foundational documents and speeches? As Webster indicated, we discovered a great deal to admire, and as Christians we also found the delight that Webster said would accompany our contemplations. What else could we do but share what we’d found? Americans of any stripe should find passages that spark joy and stir the soul.

But more than our desire to learn and share, the balance of our motivation is to provoke. Our desire is to hold up the principles and values that make up the American philosophy and then pose a challenge, because America is not only a place on the map and collection of ideals. America is also a people. To say that America has its own peculiar philosophy is meaningless unless Americans act like it. Principles, philosophies, values, and virtues are all just empty abstractions until the moment that someone embodies them. We want to provoke more intentional embodiment of the ideals that compose the American soul—in ourselves and others.

Christians believe that the single most important fact in history is the Incarnation and the bodily ministry of Christ on earth, culminating in his death and resurrection. Far from a vague cloud of ideals floating in the ether, the Word became flesh. Jesus Christ had a ministry. He acted. He served. This is the key to understanding such scriptural statements as faith without works is dead ( James 2:26). To be real and meaningful, principles need bones and blood; they need hands and feet.

These are not merely things that people of common curiosity and reading should contemplate with admiration and delight, though we believe these selections to be as enjoyable as they are edifying. But consider: These orators and writers lived real lives in function of their ideals. They labored, they struggled, they fought, some even gave their lives for the cause they upheld. Faith without works is dead, and politics without policies is a waste of time.

Our challenge comes in the form of a question:

If our selections reflect the American soul, what it really means to think, believe, and act like an American, then how do we measure up? It means nothing to have a heart swelling with patriotism if our hands are not manifesting the same.

Noah Webster gets at this point too. In his 1828 American Dictionary, he defines patriotism as The passion which aims to serve one’s country, either in defending it from invasion, or protecting its rights and maintaining its laws and institutions in vigor and purity. Patriotism is the characteristic of a good citizen, the noblest passion that animates a man in the character of a citizen. Passion and service. Ideas and action. Webster sees the connection plainly enough.

Do we?

I. BEGINNINGS

The stories of the early English settlers are a fascinating blend of trial and tribulation, prayer and steadfast hope, and their writings reflect it. The sense of promise and expectation flows through the lines of many writers from the time. The entries here are chosen to point to some themes that will feature throughout the foundational American experience.

The use of the adjective foundational is intentional. While it is a mistake to conflate the events from the days of English settlement with the founding period, they are undoubtedly linked. There are no discrete or mere facts in history. Everything is dependent on everything else because history is a web of related people, places, and events. We bear the stamp of those who came before us, and that was just as true for the founders as it was for us. The Pilgrims—and a host of other people who were long in the grave when the founders finally drafted the U.S. Constitution—played a vital role in the century and a half that followed because they helped shape the world that the founders inherited.

That fact seems obvious when you see the strong streak of independence that was manifest from the first and would eventually produce the rift between the Mother Country and her colonies, aspects that you’ll see hinted at in these selections. It’s also apparent in the assumed reliance on Providence and God’s direction and help in the events unfolding at the time.

1. THE MAYFLOWER COMPACT

The Mayflower, a ship of 180 tons, set sail from England in 1620. Aboard were 102 souls determined to cross the Atlantic. After 63 stormy days, they landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts, where Plymouth Rock—a huge granite boulder—stood at the water’s edge. These first settlers signed a covenant called the Mayflower Compact just days after they landed in their new home.

In the name of God, Amen! We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord, King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, King. Defender of the Faith, etc., have undertaken for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of our King and Country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia; Do by these Presents, solemnly and mutually, in the Presence of God and of one another covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politick for our better Ordering and Preservation, and Furtherence of the Ends aforesaid; and by Virtue hereof to enact, constitute and frame just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions, and Offices from time to time, as shall be thought most mete and convenient for the general Good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due Submission and Obedience. In witness whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names, at Cape Cod, the 11th of November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign Lord, King James of England, France and Ireland, the Eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth, Anno Domini 1620.

9781595551108_ePDF_0017_002

THE MAYFLOWER. Image source: U.S. History Images, from History of the Colonization of the United States, by George Bancroft (New York: Julius Hart and Company, 1886).

Mr. John Carver,

Mr. William Bradford,

Mr. Edward Winslow,

Mr. William Brewster,

Isaac Allerton,

Miles Standish,

John Alden,

John Turner,

Francis Eaton,

James Chilton,

John Craxton,

John Billington,

Joses Fletcher,

Digery Priest,

Thomas Williams,

Gilbert Winslow,

Edmund Margesson,

Peter Brown,

Richard Britteridge,

George Soule,

Edward Tilly,

John Tilly,

Francis Cooke,

Thomas Rogers,

Thomas Tinker,

John Ridgdale,

John Goodman,

Mr. Samuel Fuller,

Mr. Christopher Martin,

Mr. William Mullins,

Mr. William White,

Mr. Richard Warren,

John Howland,

Mr. Steven Hopkins,

Edward Fuller,

Richard Clark,

Richard Gardiner,

Mr. John Allerton,

Thomas English,

Edward Doten,

Edward Liester.

The Federal and State Constitutions, Colonial Charters and Other Organic Laws of the United States, part 1, 2nd ed. (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1878).

2. MARY ROWLANDSON RECOUNTS HER CAPTIVITY

Mary Rowlandson was the wife of the pastor at Lancaster, Massachusetts, when she was taken captive by the Native Americans on February 10, 1675. For weeks Mary relied on the grace of God as she was forced to stay with the Indians as they fled through the wilderness to elude the colonial militia. On May 2, 1675, Rowlandson was ransomed for £20.

On the tenth of February 1675, Came the Indians with great numbers upon Lancaster: Their first coming was about Sun-rising; hearing the noise of some Guns, we looked out; several Houses were burning, and the Smoke ascending to Heaven. There were five persons taken in one house, the Father, and the Mother and a sucking Child they knockt on the head; the other two they took and carried away alive.

Their were two others, who being out of their Garison upon some occasion, were set upon; one was knockt on the head, the other escaped: Another their was who running along was shot and wounded, and fell down; he begged of them his life, promising them Money (as they told me) but they would not hearken to him but knockt him in head, and stript him naked, and split open his Bowels. Another seeing many of the Indians about his Barn, ventured and went out, but was quickly shot down. There were three others belonging to the same Garison who were killed; the Indians getting up upon the roof of the Barn, had advantage to shoot down upon them over their Fortification. Thus these murtherous wretches went on, burning, and destroying before them,

At length they came and beset our own house, and quickly it was the dolefullest day that ever mine eyes saw. The House stood upon the edg of a hill; some of the Indians got behind the hill, others into the Barn, and others behind any thing that could shelter them; from all which places they shot against the House, so that the Bullets seemed to fly like hail; and quickly they wounded one man among us, then another, and then a third, About two hours (according to my observation, in that amazing time) they had been about the house before they prevailed to fire it (which they did with Flax and Hemp, which they brought out of the Barn, and there being no defence about the House, only two Flankers at two opposite corners and one of them not finished) they fired it once and one ventured out and quenched it, but they quickly fired it again, and that took Now is the dreadfull hour come, that I have often heard of (in time of War, as it was the case of others) but now mine eyes see it. Some in our house were fighting for their lives, others wallowing in their blood, the House on fire over our heads, and the bloody Heathen ready to knock us on the head, if we stired out. Now might we hear Mothers & Children crying out for themselves, and one another, Lord, what shall we do? Then I took my Children (and one of my sisters, hers) to go forth and leave the house: but as soon as we came to the dore and appeared, the Indians shot so thick that the bulletts rattled against the House, as if one had taken an handfull of stones and threw them, so that we were fain to give back. We had six stout Dogs belonging to our Garrison, but none of them would stir, though another time, if any Indian had come to the door, they were ready to fly upon him and tear him down. The Lord hereby would make us the more to acknowledge his hand, and to see that our help is always in him. But out we must go, the fire increasing, and coming along behind us, roaring, and the Indians gaping before us with their Guns, Spears and Hatchets to devour us. No sooner were we out of the House, but my Brother in Law (being before wounded, in defending the house, in or near the throat) fell down dead, whereat the Indians scornfully shouted, and hallowed, and were presently upon him, stripping off his cloaths, the bulletts flying thick, one went through my side, and the same (as would seem) through the bowels and hand of my dear Child in my arms. One of my elder Sisters Children, named William, had then his Leg broken, which the Indians perceiving, they knockt him on head. Thus were we butchered by those merciless Heathen, standing amazed, with the blood running down to our heels. My eldest Sister being yet in the House, and seeing those wofull sights, the Infidels haling Mothers one way, and Children another, and some wallowing in their blood: and her elder Son telling her that her Son William was dead, and my self was wounded, she said, And, Lord, let me dy with them; which was no sooner said, but she was struck with a Bullet, and fell down dead over the threshold. I hope she is reaping the fruit of her good labours, being faithfull to the service of God in her place. In her younger years she lay under much trouble upon spiritual accounts, till it pleased God to make that precious Scripture take hold of her heart, 2 Cor. 12. 9. And he said unto me my Grace is sufficient for thee. More then twenty years after I have heard her tell how sweet and comfortable that place was to her, But to return: The Indians laid hold of me, pulling me one way, and the Children another, and said, Come go along with us; I told them they would kill me: they answered, If I were willing to go along with them they would not hurt me.

Oh the dolefull sight that now was to behold at this House! Come, behold the works of the Lord, what dissolations he has made in the Earth. Of thirty seven persons who were in this one House, none escaped either present death, or a bitter captivity, save only one, who might say as he. Job. 1.15. And I only am escaped alone to tell the News. There were twelve killed, some shot, some stab’d with their Spears, some knock’d down with their Hatchets. When we are in prosperity, Oh the little that we think of such dreadfull sights, and to see our dear Friends, and Relations ly bleeding out their heart-blood upon the ground. There was one who was chopt into the head with a Hatchet, and stript naked, and yet was crawling up and down. It is a solemn sight to see so many Christians lying in their blood, some here, and some there, like a company of

Reviews for The Portable Patriot

[texicanwife_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Portable PatriotDocuments, Speeches and Sermons that Compose the American SoulEdited by Joel J. Miller and Kristen ParrishThomas Nelson PublishingNashville, TN - 2010ISBN 978-1-59555-110-8I have to admit, the thought of sitting down and reading patriotic speeches and sermons, by choice, was not the way I would have chosen to spend an evening! However, I quickly found myself engrossed in the multiple patriotic discourses in this volume, and have to confess, that yes, I did in fact read the entire volume in about 3 hours without stopping!I sat riveted to my chair as I read Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson, to name but just a few of the varied writers who are quoted within these pages.Instead of feeling bored, I felt a sense of how right these great men were for our founding fathers! There insight holds true to this very day! Their words are as appropriate today as when they first spoke them or wrote them down!Inside the reader also finds the Declaration fo Independence, the Bill of Rights, and so many more articles that helped to not only form this great Nation, but unite it as no other.I felt my chest swelling with pride, and my heart became overwhelmed.This is surely a must read for all high school and college students!!! And for every patriotic American!I highly recommend this great compilation for all libraries, home and commercial.I give this book a five star rating.***Thomas Nelson Publishing supplied me with a free copy of this book for independent review. I am in no way affiliated with Thomas Nelson Publishing and this review was not written for monetary refund.

[lauranav_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book looked interesting, collecting documents, speeches, and even sermons that "compose the American soul" as the subtitle says. The book is small (hence the portable title) with the ragged cut pages that make a book feel older. Before each entry is a short description of the person or the event, placing it in context of the history of the nation. The contents are broken out by time period, from the Mayflower and other beginnings, just before the revolution, during the revolution, the founding, and the first documents of the republic. They have fit a lot of information in here. Of course the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, even some selections from the Federalist Papers. Plus any other writings not as well known. I see us referring to this book for years. As a former home schooler, I can see it being a cool resource for American History. But I must admit some disappointment. I didn't think portable would mean it had to be quite so small. Everything runs in together and the descriptive text is really only a few sentences. It is all about the actual documents, but the font and page size doesn't even make reading the documents easy. I'm not saying it had to be a text book, but I think a different format would have been more pleasurable to hold and read. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review.