8he gave them a Warm Reception so that they thought proper to Retreat with the Loss of somemen. Tis said many thousands of Country People are at Roxbury & in the neighborhood. ThePeople in Town are alarmed & the entrenchments on <strong>Boston</strong> Neck double Guarded MTM Linzeedin'd at the Admirall's.April 21 [1775]. The Rein<strong>for</strong>cement that was sent to Charlestown by the Gen' are Returned too& the 64'h Regim' that was at the Castle are now in <strong>Boston</strong> Town House. All Business at an end& all Communication Stop'd between the Town & Country. No Fresh Provisions of any kindbrought to this market so that <strong>Boston</strong> is In a most Distressed Condition. This afternoon SeveralGentlemen met with the Selectmen to Consult on Our Situation & chose a Committee to draft aMemorial to Gen1 Gage — viz' — The Selectmen, James Bowdoin, Henderson Inches, AlexHill, Edward Payne & Jos Barrett — they adjourn'd until tomorrow Ten of Clock.July 18 [1776]. This day Independency was Declared in <strong>Boston</strong> from the Balcony of the CouncilChamber. A great Confusion in Town.July 20 [1776]. This Evening Advertisements were put up <strong>for</strong> the Inhabitants to meet on Mondaynext at Ten in the morning in the Common.
9Excerpts from The Diary of Anna Green Winslow: A <strong>Boston</strong> School Girl of 1771, by AnnaGreen Winslow, edited by Alice Morse Earle, <strong>Boston</strong>: Houghton Mifflin and Company,1895.Feb. 13th [1772].--Everybody says that this is a bitter cold day, but I know nothing about it buthearsay <strong>for</strong> I am in aunt's chamber (which is very warm always) with a nice fire, a stove, sittingin Aunt's easy chair, with a tall three leav'd screen at my back, & I am very com<strong>for</strong>table. I tookmy second (& I hope last) potion of Globe salts this morning. I went to see Aunt Storer yesterdayafternoon, & by the way Unkle Storer is so ill that he keeps chamber. As I went down I call'd atMrs Whitwell's & must tell you Mr & Mrs Whitwell are both ill. Mrs. Whitwell with therheumatism. I saw Mad^m Harris, Mrs Mason and Miss Polly Vans there, they all give their loveto you--Last evening I went to catechizing with Aunt. Our ministers have agreed during the longevenings to discourse upon the questions or some of 'em in the assembly's shorter catechism,taking 'em in their order at the house of Mrs Rogers in School Street, every wednesday evening.Mr. Hunt began with the first question and shew'd what it is to glorify GOD. Mr Bacon then tookthe second, what rule &c. which he has spent three evenings upon, & now finished. Mr Hunthaving taken his turn to show what the Scriptures principly teach, & what is GOD. I rememberhe said that there was nothing properly done without a rule, & he said that the rule God hadgiven us to glorify him by was the bible. How miraculously (said he) has God preserv'd thisblessed book. It was once in the reign of a heathen emperor condemn'd to be burnt, at which timeit was death to have a bible & conceal it, but God's providence was wonderful in preserving itwhen so much human policy had been exerted to bury it in Oblivion--but <strong>for</strong> all that, here wehave it as pure & uncorrupted as ever--many books of human composure have had much painstaken to preserve 'em, notwithstanding they are buried in Oblivion. He considered who was theauthor of the bible, he prov'd that GOD was the author, <strong>for</strong> no _good_ man could be the author,because such a one would not be guilty of imposition, & an evil man could not unless wesuppose a house divided against itself. he said a great deal more to prove the bible is certainly theword of God from the matter it contains &c, but the best evidence of the truth of divinerevelation, every true believer has in his own heart. This he said, the natural man had no idea of.I did not understand all he said about the external and internal evidence, but this I can say, that Iunderstand him better than any body else that I hear preach. Aunt has been down stairs all thetime I have been recolecting & writeing this. There<strong>for</strong>e, all this of own head, of consequence.March 26 [1772].--Yesterday at 6 o'clock, I went to Unkle Winslow's, their neighborGreenleaf was their. She said she knew Mamma, & that I look like her. Speaking about papa& you occation'd Unkle Winslow to tell me that he had kiss'd you long be<strong>for</strong>e papa knewyou. From thence we went to Miss Rogers's where, to a full assembly Mr Bacon read his 3dsermon on R. iv. 6, I can remember he said, that, be<strong>for</strong>e we all sinned in Adam our father,Christ loved us. He said the Son of God always did as his father gave him commandment, &to prove this, he said, that above 17 hundred years ago he left the bosom of the Father, &came & took up his abode with men, & bore all the scourgings & buffetings which the vileJews inflicted on him, & then was hung upon the accursed tree--he died, was buried, & inthree days rose again--ascended up to heaven & there took his seat at the right hand of theMajesty on high from whence he will come to be the supream and impartial judge of quick& dead--and when his poor Mother & her poor husband went to Jerusalem to keep thepassover & he went with them, he disputed among the doctors, & when his Mother ask'd
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