en
put to flight and had gone to the defense of New England and New York.
Neither Pennsylvania nor Virginia had a militia that could withstand
the French and their red allies. They could only wait till the panic had
subsided and then see what could be done.

One thing was accomplished, however, when the Pennsylvania Assembly
passed a Quaker militia law which is one of the most curious legal
documents of its kind in history. It was most aptly worded, drafted by
the master hand of Franklin. It recited the fact that the province had
always been ruled by Quakers who were opposed to war, but that now it
had become necessary to allow men to become soldiers and to give them
every facility for the profession of arms, because the Assembly though
containing a Quaker majority nevertheless represented all the people of
the province. To prevent those who believed in war from taking part in
it would be as much a violation of liberty of conscience as to force
enlistments among those who had conscientious scruples against it. Nor
would the Quaker majority have any right to compel others to bear arms
and at the same time exempt themselves. Therefore a voluntary militia
system was established under which a fighting Quaker, a Presbyterian, an
Episcopalian, or anybody, could enlist and have all the military glory
he could win.

It was altogether a volunteer system. Two years afterwards, as the
necessities of war increased, the Quaker Assembly passed a rather
stringent compulsory militia bill; but the governor vetoed it, and the
first law with its volunteer system remained in force. Franklin busied
himself to encourage enlistments under it and was very successful.
Though a philosopher and a man of science, almost as much opposed to war
as the Quakers and not even owning a shotgun, he was elected commander
and led a force of about five hundred men to protect the Lehigh Valley.
His common sense seems to have supplied his lack of military training.
He did no worse than some professional soldiers who might be named.
The valley was supposed to be in great danger since its village of
Gnadenhutten had been burned and its people massacred. The Moravians,
like the Quakers, had suddenly found that they were not as much opposed
to war as they had supposed. They had obtained arms and ammunition from
New York and had built stockades, and Franklin was glad to find them so
well prepared when he arrived. He built small forts in different parts
of the val