There were men training still; and for what? I could with an effort
pardon the cockerels of Concord for crowing still, for they,
perchance, had not been beaten that morning; but I could not excuse
this rub-a-dub of the "trainers." The slave was carried back by
exactly such as these; i.e., by the soldier, of whom the best you
can say in this connection is that he is a fool made conspicuous by
a painted coat.
Three years ago, also, just a week after the authorities of Boston
assembled to carry back a perfectly innocent man, and one whom they
knew to be innocent, into slavery, the inhabitants of Concord caused
the bells to be rung and the cannons to be fired, to celebrate their
liberty- and the courage and love of liberty of their ancestors who
fought at the bridge. As if those three millions had fought for the
right to be free themselves, but to hold in slavery three million
others. Nowadays, men wear a fool's-cap, and call it a liberty-cap.
I do not know but there are some who, if they were tied to a
whipping-post, and could but get one hand free, would use it to ring
the bells and fire the cannons to celebrate their liberty. So some
of my townsmen took the liberty to ring and fire. That was the
extent of their freedom; and when the sound of the bells died away,
their liberty died away also; when the powder was all expended,
their liberty went off with the smoke.
The joke could be no broader if the inmates of the prisons were to
subscribe for all the powder to be used in such salutes, and hire
the jailers to do the firing and ringing for them, while they
enjoyed it through the grating.


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