Ipswich High School - Tiger Yearbook (Ipswich, MA)

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The Ipswich town meeting was held August 23rd, 1687, but on the night before some twelve or four- teen men, including the Rev. John Wise, met at the house of John Ap- pleton, town clerk, and resolved that the act of levying taxes in the manner specified by the Andros warrant abridged their liberties and agreed not to commit the town to this method of the said “Sir Ed- mund and his council.” The town meeting held the next day unani- mously voted not to concur in the demands of Governor Andros. The leader in this Remonstrance was the Reverend John Wise of Chebacco parish. The importance of the position taken by Wise and his associates can be understood, for in 1687 Ipswich was second only to Boston in population, wealth, and influence . The penalty of leadership fell upon Wise, and he and five others were soon arrested, carried to the old stone jail in Boston, denied the writ of Habeas Corpus, tried by a packed jury, and found guilty of contempt and misdemeanor. Exces- sive fines were imposed, and Mr. Wise was suspended from the Min- istry. Thus it was from Ipswich that the first open resistance to the Brit- ish crown was offered, and of that historic occasion, two hundred and forty-seven years ago this summer, Ipswich rightfully deserves the honor of the birthplace of Ameri- can Independence. The freemen of Ipswich, with their charter rights abrogated, stood upon the same principle as John Hampden when he resisted the taxation of Charles the First, and John Wise made affirmation of his rights as an Englishman pro- tected by Magna Charta. Rufus Choate, a son of Ipswich, in his oration delivered one hun- dred years ago at the two hun- dredth anniversary of the Incorpo- ration of Ipswich has this to say of John Wise and Ipswich: “These men may justly claim a distin- guished rank among the patriots of America. You, their townsmen, may well be proud of them, prouder still, but more grateful than proud, that a full town meeting of the free- men of Ipswich adopted unani- mously that declaration of right, and refused to collect or pay the tax which would have made them slaves. The principle of that vote was precisely the same on which Samuel Adams, Hancock, and War- ren resisted the Stamp Act — the principle, that if any po wer but the people can tax the people, there is an end of liberty.” We hold the heritage of the Puri- tan fathers in high esteem. It is to the virtues of the early settlers that we owe the bed rock of char- acter on which the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was founded. The town of Ipswich was settled by men and women who sought the light of a Power higher than their own, and in the hearts of those who landed on these shores three hundred years ago, come germs of creative life that were not crushed but cher- ished. And in the words of John Greenleaf Whittier: “The great eventful Present hides the Past; but through the din 26

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cause of his ability was promoted to command all the troops of Massa- chusetts Bay. The Reverend Thomas Franklin Waters relates of the hardships and losses sustained by this old town in the long: struggle with the Indians. Many a story of the Narragansett campaign was told about the fire- sides of Ipswich two hundred and fifty years ago. The restoration of the Stuart Charles the Second brought thirty years of uncertainty for the colo- nies. The colonists were a part of the traditions of the Long Parlia- ment and friendly to the men who deposed the Stuarts. The political conception of Mass- achusetts was based on the idea that the charter left no right to the crown other than those actually re- served. Charles the Second sent his Commissioners to New England to enforce all laws, and their presence was at once resented. The colonists deemed the Commissioner’s actions unwarranted intrusions on their po- litical sovereignty. It is said that all persons took the liberty to abuse Edward Randolph, agent of the king, and the demand made that Massachusetts surrender its charter was seriously debated in the colony. On December 20, 1686, Sir Ed- mund Andros arrived in Boston ac- companied by one hundred soldiers and supported by the English fri- gate, “The Rose,” with his commis- sion as royal governor of the Mass- achusetts Bay and all of New Eng- land. Andros demanded the church- es to open their doors to the Church of England out of which the found- ers had fled. He claimed all land for the King of England and finally ordered the levying of taxes for the maintenance of his own govern- ment. The following year, August of 1687, the warrants were executed levying a tax, not in itself exces- sive, and ordering the towns to ap- point a collector, who, with the selectmen, should assess each town’s quota. The Rev. Washington Choate, in an address delivered nearly fifty years ago on the Andros Remon- strance has this to say of the most important period in the town’s his- torv, “Out from the century and a half which lies between the settle- ment of Agawam under the leader- ship of John Winthrop, the son of Massachusetts’ first governor, and that dividing line of colonial and national life the War of the Revo- lution, there arises before us one decade in which occurred the event which calls for the loval remem- brance of each successive genera- tion.” The General Court, at the time of the Restoration of Charles the II, had reasserted the rights of the Massachusetts Colony under its Charter, — those essential privilieges of a democracy within the limits of a Puritan commonwealth, the rights of the freemen to select their own governor, judges, and representa- tives, and to assess and collect taxes by their own officers. 24

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Of its loud life, hints and echoes from the life behind steal in; and the lore of home and fireside, and the legendary rhyme, Make the task of duty lighter which the true man owes his time. Olympic Games By Marion Perkins A SUBJECT of ever-increasing interest to its fans all over the world is athletics. Athletics serves two purposes, for they are con- ducted either for business or for pleasure. The higher type, which is conducted for pleasure, develops healthy bodies, promotes moderate recreation, and forms ideal habits of living. The other type has three aims : to win games, to make money, and to win either personal or group fame. Such a large group of people are interested in the lat- ter type that no roofed building has ever been erected large enough to hold the throngs which gather to witness various athletic games. Athletics is now being more fully appreciated and developed. The length to which this athletic enthus- iasm has gone is far beyond our comprehension. Athletics, with us, stands for democracy, self-control, honesty, and patience. Their origin and growth is of the greatest im- portance to us, for the Olympics have made for democracy and lev- eled social distinctions by the just and fair manner in which they are conducted and by the spirit of friendliness which they create. Farther back than any historian has ever recorded, a group of Greeks began to hold foot-races in honor of Zeus, a Greek god. These races, which were held yearly, gradually became an affair of national importance. The ancient Olympics were held in the valley of Elis, a remote part of Greece, and it was there that the Grecian ath- lete strove for fame. In the course of time, boxing, wrestling, discus- throwing, chariot racing, and other athletic games were added to the original foot-race. These games were held every four years, and spectators came by the thousands, stayed for about a week, and then were gone for another fou r years. The games were celebrated near the end of summer, when rain was least expected, since a wet season would have turned Olympia into a scene of misery. About a month before the festival, messengers went throughout Greece proclaim- ing a sacred truce, and all Greeks were forbidden to bear arms during the season of the games. Those who entered the list were compelled to undergo special gymnastic train- ing and to show a name free from civic or personal dishonor. A boy’s companion may overlook many things, but a boy who cheats or is the least bit unfair in his games soon becomes an outcast. In all the decades and in all the contests at. Olvmpia the rumor of dishonesty did not arise once in a hundred years. At first the contestants were of pure Hellenic blood, but later, after the infusion of the Roman people into Greece, both Greeks and Ro- 26