Tim and his fellows that the descendants of
David and the Maccabees were soldiers worthy of their ancestors.

Smiling a little grimly, he turned his face again toward the young
officer and listened with stirring pulses to the charges brought
against the British king; boy that he was, he realized that he and his
companions were fighting not the English people, but a servile
Parliament and an unworthy ruler who, according to the Declaration,
was indeed a "tyrant unfit to be the ruler of a free people." How he
wished that King George himself would cross the ocean to frighten the
colonists into submission; he would much rather meet him in battle
than any of his overdressed officers or those wretched Hessians, sold
by their ruler like so much cattle to do battle for a country in which
they had no interest. Well, anyhow, Isaac told himself resolutely, he
would do his best to defeat the redcoats--but he would teach Tim
Durgan a well-needed lesson first!

"And for the support of this declaration," ended the reader, "with a
firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually
pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

Silence at first--then a mighty shout from the assembled soldiers. The
air rang with cries of "With our lives--With our honor!" as the men of
the new Republic pledged themselves to fight for the faith she had
just declared to the world. Isaac Franks looked toward Washington; the
Virginian sat leaning forward slightly in his saddle. His usually
calm, almost cold face was working with emotion; his lips moved as
though he were about to address his men. Then he leaned toward the
officer who had read the Declaration and murmured something in a low
tone. The latter turned to the army.

"The general hopes," the clear tones rang forth, "that this important
event will serve as an incentive to every officer and soldier to act
with fidelity and courage, as knowing that now the peace and safety of
the country depend, under God, solely on the success of our arms and
that he is in the service of a state possessed of sufficient power to
reward his merit and advance him to the highest honors of a free
country."

Slowly the soldiers broke ranks, the dullest man among them touched
and awed as though he had attended a new church and had consecrated
himself to her service. For a moment Isaac Franks forgot his jeering
comrade and his own threats; he walked to his quarters, head high in
the