Our All Is At Stake,

Who Are The Militia? They Consist Now Of The Whole People, Except A Few Public Officers. But I Cannot Say Who Will Be The Militia Of The Future Day. If That Paper On The Table [the Constitution] Gets No Alteration, The Militia Of The Future Day May Not Consist Of All Classes, High And Low, And Rich And Poor.

We Are Now To Rank Among The Nations Of The World; But Whether Our Independence Shall Prove A Blessing Or A Curse Must Depend Upon Our Own Wisdom Or Folly, Virtue Or Wickedness.... Justice And Virtue Are The Vital Principles Of Republican Government.

I Ask, Sir, What Is The Militia? It Is The Whole People Except For A Few Public Officials.

When The Resolution Of Enslaving America Was Formed In Great Britain, The British Parliament Was Advised By An Artful Man [sir William Keith], Who Was Governor Of Pennsylvania, To Disarm The People. That It Was The Best And Most Effectual Way To Enslave Them. But That They Should Not Do It Openly; But To Weaken Them And Let Them Sink Gradually, By Totally Disusing And Neglecting The Militia.

Our All Is At Stake, And The Little Conveniencys And Comforts Of Life, When Set In Competition With Our Liberty, Ought To Be Rejected Not With Reluctance But With Pleasure.