1776 brought trials and tribulations to the Colonies.
from Great Britain was a good thing, while others believed that becoming independent .
from the "mother country" would be treason and the end of the colonies. The southern .
states, in general, were against independence. And, in general, the northern states were .
for it. Thomas Jefferson composed the Declaration of Independence and it was signed by .
every single delegate. But the process was not without disagreements. .
Many issues came up when debating the Declaration. A motion was to remove the .
content stating that the King was a tyrant. Jefferson believed that the King was a tyrant .
for taking the rights that British citizens (the ones living in England) had away from those .
living in the colonies. On the flip side of the coin, Pennsylvania argued that the King could .
could not be a tyrant. He gave the colonists their rights and could therefore take them .
away as he deemed fit to do so. Jefferson sticks by his beliefs and continues to testify that .
the King is, in fact, a tyrant. .
Another issue that was brought up was the condition of the army. Britain had .
thousands more soldiers than the colonies, and they were better equipped and prepared .
than the colonist volunteer soldiers. They had readily available supplies due to the wealth .
of Britain and the support of her king. While the barefoot, starving American soldiers .
were doing their best to hold off the redcoats, they were failing. It was stated that if we .
could beat the British and improve our army's situation, independence would be supported .
by Maryland who, up until that point, had been against it. It was agreed and Maryland .
changed her vote to "yea". .
Perhaps the largest and most serious of the bickering came when the slavery clause .
in the Declaration was put under attack. The south, quite obviously, was against keeping the .
article that stated that all slaves would be set free and not bound to their owners any .
