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Show ; THE WHISKEY REBELLION a j passage of a law by congress in 1791 placing a GEN. DANIEL MORGAN " curred during the Revolution and to provide August 1. It ended with these words: "Here is sSHBPjw funds tor the costs of the federal government. an expedition proposed in which you will have WBBMS J The law was suggested by Alexander Hamilton, an opportunity for displaying your military tal- SMSBSBy ,Ki then secretary of the treasury, and in presenting ents and of rendering service to your country." his plan for an excise tax on liquor he argued Nothing less was contemplated than an attack GEN. HENRY L.EE that such a tax was not new but that it had upon Fort Pitt and the sack of Pittsburgh. ? been levied by various states before that time. ' On the appointed day there assembled at - sHMSs-f &i What he neglected to tell congress, however, was Braddock's field a motley throng of several jgjjijP' qHBgMfeMtei that, the states had found it virtually impossible thousand backwoodsmen. There was much har- 'jjjEr VBBBBfc' to collect such a tax and that this would be a anguing but little positive, action. The next daj . llliffsi severe test imposed upon the power of the new, the meeting broke up. "About one-third dispersed -3HBy ,:..,--,v JBHR and none-too-strong, federal government. They to their homes, and the remainder marching to hV' iffi were soon to find out just how unpopular such Pittsburgh, paraded through the streets and, mfff'-'i ' - legislation would be generally and more par- finally crossing the river in their turn, scattered. ' 0" HsHB ticularly in the counties of Washington, West- They did no damage to the town beyond the B h , ; -V moreland, Allegheny and Fayette in western burning of a farm belonging to Major Kirk- m$'$jr' i'-."-.B Pennsylvania where the hardy frontiersmen had Patrick of the garrison." m'wKkBS' Bj long been accustomed to making all the whiskey By this time Washington had completely losl ml Mn8 SSMJ! . ShM they wanted and to using it at stores and trad- patience with the rebels and he resolved to Wfjf JH ing posts in lieu of money. smash their power once and for all and restore BfQj 3 When the bill levying the tax, which was the authority and prestige of the federal gov- KjjpysHj fj&v ilsS H passed In March, 1791, was up for consideration ernment First he issued a proclamation on Au- HNHuSjB Jli'V' :S IB in congress, the state legislature of Pennsyl- gust 7 summoning all persons involved In the V-B vania, then In session, went on record In very rebellion to lay down their arms and return to BPJM-:ffl 'rfeff ...,' , ' MH i strong terms opposing the tax, and urging their homes by September 1. He issued requi- BrnmX f M''1''''' ' " ' BJB t Pennsylvania senators and representatives to sitions on the governors of Pennsylvania, Mary- BJHBplfejSlir XfW JBH vote against it. The two congressmen from land, Virginia and New Jersey for 15.000 men B0i- -fMiMr Jflf K Western Pennsylvania voted against the bill and and the troops thus raised were called out on HSe f L J? Mgmi denounced it at every opportunity and such a September 25. 8SBi'! tBL' MH notable as Albert Gallatin, then a resident of While the troops were being organized Wash- BHRis? SmwKmmmWmmW Fayette county and later secretary of the treas- Ington made a final effort to bring the lawless BaMikw ffHKBHKjmBfw ury under Jefferson and Madison, advocated element to their senses and to prevent blood- aHra&gB8Wflll opposition to the law by all constitutional meth- shed if possible. He appointed a committee com- MPJBHBBJHStP ods. posed of James Ross, Jasper Yeates, and William SmKKBBK jBJ-)WPsB The last of the public meetings in protest of Bradford to go to the scene of rebellion "in WmsMBSHK J'''Wm the law was held in August, 1792; the insur- order to quiet and extinguish the Insurrection." SBpBHHnB mW?&mWm?Wl i rection did not break out until 1794, but in the In the meantime many of the calm and decent I Tlf RT C All ATIK1 ' m intervening time "there were five or six uncon- element realized it was high time to take some ALBt-Ki VJALLAl IN ing By ELMO SCOTT WATSON the N THE historic Episcopal church, St. I Luke's of Chartiers, in the little town of Woodville, Pa., is a stone that Is J rich In historic association. It was " brought to the United States from (fo &) Sulgrave Manor in Northamptonshire, H England, the ancestral home of the CaRty Washington family. How this relic JjCflJL from across the Atlantic happens to be in a church in western Pennsyl-J Pennsyl-J vanla is explained by a memorial tablet tab-let which Is attached to it and which bears this inscription: "George Washington and John Neville, united in their ideals of an orderly government, gov-ernment, co-workers in suppressing the whiskey insurrection, the only armed conflict of which occurred on a hill adjacent to this church on July 17. 1794." Thus is recalled to visitors to the church of today an all-but-forgotten chapter in American history, the story of what has been called "the first American civil war" which was running its course 140 years ago. The reason for placing the memorial tablet in St. Luke's of Chartiers is that this church, which is the oldest west of the Allegheny mountains, was only a log cabin I when it was founded in 1765 by General Nevilie, who was its first senior warden, and it was burned to the ground by the insurrectionists during the Whiskey rebellion. The Whiskey rebellion had its genesis in the passage of a law by congress in 1791 placing a small tax on whiskey to help pay off debts incurred in-curred during the Revolution and to provide funds for the costs of the federal government J The law was suggested by Alexander Hamilton, ,Kj then secretary of the treasury, and In presenting his plan for an excise tax on liquor he argued that such a tax was not new but that it had been levied by various states before that time. ' What he neglected to tell congress, however, was that, the states had found it virtually impossible to collect such a tax and that this would be a severe test imposed upon the power of the new, and none-too-strong, federal government. They were soon to find out just how unpopular such legislation would be generally and more particularly par-ticularly in the counties of Washington, Westmoreland, West-moreland, Allegheny and Fayette in western Pennsylvania where the hardy frontiersmen had long been accustomed to making all the whiskey they wanted and to using it at stores and trading trad-ing posts in lieu of money. When the bill levying the tax, which was passed in March, 1791, was up for consideration in congress, the state legislature of Pennsylvania, Pennsyl-vania, then in session, went on record in very i strong terms opposing the tax, and urging I Pennsylvania senators and representatives to f i vote against it. The two congressmen from i Western Pennsylvania voted against the bill and B denounced it at every opportunity and such a notable as Albert Gallatin, then a resident of gji Fayette county and later secretary of the treasury treas-ury under Jefferson and Madison, advocated opposition to the law by all constitutional meth- The last of the public meetings in protest of H the law was held In August, 1792 ; the insur-j insur-j rection did not break out until 1794, but in the M intervening time "there were five or six unconnected uncon-nected riots, or assaults on collectors, in differ- P ent parts of the western country, on account of H the excise." In some cases federal revenue officers were tarred and feathered, their commissions torn up, their records seized, and by threats compelled or(. to print their resignations In the Pittsburgh Ga-gis(3 Ga-gis(3 zette. If a law-abiding farmer gave information oWD as to the location of stills his barn would be tlie burned. Early in the disturbances President Washington Washing-ton issued a proclamation condemning lawless " acts and warning all the malcontents to "return to their allegiance" and assuring them that It 1 was his Intention to enforce the law "at all haz ards." This was without effect. In fact, it seemed only to fan the flames, and organized rebellion began to be talked about. An Insurgent leader, David Bradford, sprang to the front and called upon the free whiskey forces to organize and defend their cause with force of arms. If necessary. Although congress had indorsed Washington's proclamation, the whiskey forces began to arm themselves here and there. Congress tried to allay the bitterness bitter-ness by reducing the tax and providing for monthly payments but there seemed to be no abatement of the fury. In July, 1794, an armed detachment of the Insurgents attacked the home of General Neville, who was an inspector in Westmoreland county. ?g He had called to his aid a small detachment from the garrison at Fort Pitt, which then con-ggpi con-ggpi sisted of hut 11 men under the command of MaJ. m Abraham Kirkpatrick. The major refused to allow al-low the insurgents to search the home of Neville lfi for papers, and the insurgents then withdrew to jgg cover and opened a brisk fire upon the house, which was returned by the troops. Bradford, determined to aggravate the disturbance, disturb-ance, stopped the mail at Greensburg, on the IpF road between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, and robbed It of letters, some of which he published, icag" On July 28 a circular signed by Bradford and band one or two others was sent out summoning to Eric personal service the militia of the county and n-af calling for volunteers to rendezvous at Brad-iusl6 Brad-iusl6 dock's field, eight miles south of Pittsburgh, August 1. It ended with these words : "Here is an expedition proposed in which you will have an opportunity for displaying your military tal H ents and of rendering service to your country." Nothing less was contemplated than an attack upon Fort Pitt and the sack of Pittsburgh. On the appointed day there assembled at Braddock's field a motley throng of several thousand backwoodsmen. There was much haranguing har-anguing but little positive, action. The next day i the meeting broke up. "About one-third dispersed m to their homes, and the remainder marching to j Pittsburgh, paraded through the streets and, finally crossing the river in their turn, scattered. They did no damage to the town beyond the burning of a farm belonging to Major Kirkpatrick Kirk-patrick of the garrison." By this time Washington had completely lost patience with the rebels and he resolved to smash their power once and for all and restore the authority and prestige of the federal government gov-ernment First he issued a proclamation on August Au-gust 7 summoning all persons involved in the rebellion to lay down their arms and return to their homes by September 1. He issued requisitions requi-sitions on the governors of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Mary-land, Virginia and New Jersey for 15,000 men and the troops thus raised were called out on 1 September 25. K While the troops were being organized Wash- f: Ington made a final effort to bring the lawless k element to their senses and to prevent blood- I shed if possible. He appointed a committee com- 9 posed of James Ross, Jasper Yeates, and William Bradford to go to the scene of rebellion "in 1 order to quiet and extinguish the Insurrection." In the meantime many of the calm and decent element realized it was high time to take some action. Accordingly a convention was called which was attended by 200 delegates from the rebellious counties. Gallatin, who was secretary of the meeting, was the outstanding figure of the gathering. He impressively explained the folly of past resistance resist-ance and pointed out the ruinous consequences to the country of the continuance of the rebellion. rebel-lion. In unmistakable language he told them that President Washington was bound to vindicate vindi-cate the laws of the land and would surely send an overwhelming force against them. A committee com-mittee was appointed to confer with the state and federal committees. This conference, however, how-ever, made but little headway. The bulk of the population still remained stubborn and mean. Washington now ordered the troops to move forward. Gen. Henry Lee. governor of Virginia, was placed In chief command. Gov. Thomas Mifflin of Pennsylvania, Gov. Richard Howell of New Jersey, Gov. Thomas S. Lee of Maryland, and Gen. Daniel Morgan of Virginia commanded the volunteers from the respective states. President Pres-ident Washington, accompanied by Gen. Elenry Knox, secretary of war; Gen. Alexander Hamilton, Ham-ilton, secretary of the treasury; and Judge Richard Rich-ard Peters of the United States District court, mounted their horses and set out for, Western Pennsylvania. At Carlisle, Pa., they Joined the main body of the army. At this place Washington was called upon by a committee from the outlaw area and assured that a change of heart had come over the people; that the majority were remaining quietly at home, and that organizations were being formed to enforce the law. Washington told them the army was now on Its way and inarching orders would not be countermanded. He assured the committee violence would not be used unless necessary, and all that was desired was to have the Inhabitants come back to their allegiance. Washington then returned to the Capitol at Philadelphia, and General Lee said: "Forward, march '." By this time the rebels were convinced that the President meant business and they began to weaken. A committee called upon General Lee and assured him that the majority of the peo- pie In the region wanted peace, to which he re plied that no peaceable inhabitant or his property prop-erty would be harmed. He then issued a proclamation proc-lamation to the Inhabitants of the four western counties, recommending the subscribing of "an oath to support the Constitution and obey the laws, and to enter into an association to protect and aid all the officers of the government in the execution of their respective duties." The collapse of the rebellion was swift. Bradford, Brad-ford, the principal leader, fled to New Orleans, then Spanish territory. On the eighth of November, Novem-ber, Hamilton, who had remained with the army, wrote to President Washington that General Lee had concluded to take and hold all who were worth the trouble and then deliver them to the disposition of the judiciary. The night of November No-vember 13, 1794, was appointed for the arrests. At eight o'clock the cavalry sallied forth, and before daylight arrested in their beds about 200 men. The seizures were made In the Mingo i Creek settlement, the hotbed of the insurrection i and the scene of the early excesses. The pri-soners pri-soners were taken to Pittsburgh, and thence i mounted on horses, and guarded by the Phlla- j delphia Gentlemen corps, to Philadelphia. Against some 22 of these. Indictments for treason were returned but In the trials only two were convicted con-victed and condemned to death and these two were later pardoned by Washington. Meanwhile out in Western Pennsylvania the troops, with the exception of a small detachment detach-ment commanded by General Morgan, were ordered or-dered home. It was considered wise to keep a few troops at Pittsburgh during the winter. But they were not needed. From that time on the excise collectors had ao difficulty In collecting the taxes. Thus at the cost of nearly a million dollars In money, and a minimum of bloodshed, the i federal government demonstrated Its right to in- : terfere within the state for the enforcement of Its laws. So the Whiskey rebellion, minor affair though it was, takes its place among the significant signifi-cant events In our history significant because it marked one of the first steps toward the , establishment of a strong central government. by Western Newspaper Union. |