Happy 4th of July - the Price of our Freedom

 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

 serving 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 looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,

 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.

 He 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. Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't.

 So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

 Remember: Freedom is never free!

 I hope you will show your  support by sending this to as many people as

 you can, please. It's time we  get the word out that patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July  has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball  games.