Show printer and patriot IN N the annals of colonial journalism the one outstanding figure Is that of benjamin franklin who however soon deserted the print shop tor for the larger theater of world affairs every american knows the name of franklin but how bow many of them know that of another printer and the part he played in the cau cause s e of american freedom stout 0 old I 1 d alexander Alac macdougall Dougall macdougall started life as a sailor then took to the shore and the trade of a printer in N new y york ork when the ell trouble with th the e british tish government over the stamp tax began in 1705 1 her he helped organize the sonson liberty to resist oppression by the mother alother country and soon became one of the lit lenders riders in the movement ue ile again rose to prominence in 1709 when the new york provincial assembly which was predominantly tory passed a series of oppressive laws one morning new york city woke up to find itself covered with hand bills denouncing the legislature for these laws and calling for a mass meeting to protest at the meeting resolutions which blistered the cegla gators and asserted the rights of the citizens were adopted so the cegla lature formally proclaimed the hand bill as sedition and started a search tor for its author the man who printed tt it became frightened and revealed the tact fact that macdougall was the author immediately helas he was baled into court coun on a charge of seditious libel where he defied the authorities who thereupon sentenced him to jail this not only conferred upon him the distinction of being the first man mail to suffer imprisonment for the american cause but la Is also made him a hero in the eyes of the common people they paraded in front og of the jail sang hymns under til and in general they made him th the man of the hour the nu an thorit les whose stupidity had not al cowed lowed them to foresee that putting macdougall into jail would result to in a patriotic i tyr dom were soon glad of an excuse to let him out at the outbreak of the revolution he raised a body of troops was made of it and developed an un expected genius for military affairs lie ilo superintended super intended the removal of army to the mainland lifter the disastrous battle of long is island ian d and distinguished himself I 1 in various other ways waya later lie he alde elded d n the escape of littye salomon from sew lew york after salomon had been im irl rl as a spy and he aided koo koa chusko in fortifying the highlands ta lott 1111 western union |