Tom Paine's Revolution; J. B. Philips

Paine was an undistinguished Englishman when he arrived in Philadelphia in November 1774 armed with several letters of introduction from Benjamin Franklin. Aided by Franklin's letters, Paine quickly found work as an editor and chief writer for Pennsylvania Magazine. Sharing Franklin's interest in science, Paine wrote about the newest inventions of the day, as well as political issues, but he remained rela tivelyobscure. However, in January 1776 that began to change, when Paine anonymously published a pamphlet titled Common Sense. While the ideas expressed in the pamphlet weren't new, the ap proach and comprehensive treatment were. "[G]overnment," Paine wrote, "even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worst Mr. Phillips is a freelance writer based in Houston, Texas. state an intolerable one. ,,1 The purpose of gov ernment, he held, is to insure the security of the citizenry by protecting their rights. The central issue of the war, he believed, was over what form America's government should take. He went on to write: "I draw my idea of the form of government from a principle in nature . . .

that the more simple a thing is, the less liable it is to be disordered, and the easier repaired when disordered." (p. 68) To those who urged reconciliation because England was the "parent country," Paine re plied, "Even brutes do not devour their young, nor savages make war upon their families." (p. 84) Then Paine became one of the first to publicly proclaim, "The authority of Great Britain over this continent, is a form of govern ment, which sooner or later must have an end. " (p. 87) Loyalists reacted quickly to Common Sense, declaring the pamphlet's author to be ignorant of modem history and thought. Some said that Negro slaves, and Quakers and other pacifists wouldn't support the war effort. Charles Inglis argued that Paine's conception of man's inher ent goodness was as flawed as the Hobbesian view that only force and violence could induce men to live under a government. Much as the Loyalists despised Paine, many supporters of the Revolution held him in higher contempt. Indeed, John Adams would later call him "that insolent blasphemer of things sacred and transcendent libeler of all that is good.... ,,2 Wealthy colonists feared that Paine's ideas were too democratic, that he would advocate forcible redistribution of wealth. Paine, how165 Thomas Paine was born in Norfolk, England, in 1737. Dur ing his lifetime, he was a sailor, teacher, exciseman, and inventor, as well as the premier propagandist for republi can government in England, France, and what would be come America. His pamphlets Common Sense and the se ries The Crisis united idealists with those interested in the economic advancement of the country, and gave great sup port to the morale of the common soldier in "the times that try men's souls. " He died in 1809, almost forgotten, but eulogized by Thomas Jefferson as one who did as much as any man "to advance the original sentiments of democracy."

ever, never advocated such a policy, and was an ardent supporter of free trade. Despite these criticisms, Common Sense had an unprecedented influence on the minds of the American people. Paine estimated that 150,000 copies were sold in the first year; other esti mates went as high as 500,000 copies. With fewer than 3 million people in the colonies at the time, either figure is astounding. Nearlyev ery adult read the pamphlet, and less than seven months after its publication independence was declared. Significantly, Thomas Jefferson con sulted Paine while he was drafting the Declara tion of Independence. Paine, of course, wasn't the only writer to exert influence on colonial Americans. How ever, what he accomplished provides an impor tant lesson for modem advocates of liberty. The parallels between Revolutionary Amer ica and modern America are striking. Most Americans today complain about high taxes, government interference in their personal af fairs, welfare fraud, inflation, and other maniThomas Paine festations of overextended government. Opin ion polls show that most Americans favor less government, at least in theory. When ques tioned about specific programs and policies, however, Americans favor the continuation of the status quo.

Just as colonial Americans were willing to reconcile with a despotic King, modem Amer icans are willing to tolerate a despotic Con gress. As Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence: "all experience has shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed." It wasn't greater tyranny on the .. iy..ii i yi•....i................... part of the King that led colonial Americans to embrace freedom, but an awareness of just how terrible conditions actually were. Modem patri ots can achieve similar results, but only if we remain confident that our goals are attainable. I hasten to add that we cannot expect laissez faire capitalism to emerge shortly after the pub lication of a modem version of Common Sense. Statism, and its ethical roots, are too deeply ingrained for that to occur. However, if we are more cognizant of the history of freedom, then our struggle is far more tolerable. And more significantly, the length of that struggle may be shortened.

Philosophically, the American Revolution was a product of the Enlightenment. More than any other writer of his time, Thomas Paine made the ideas of the Enlightenment individual rights and economic freedom accessible to the public. These ideas remain a part of the American culture, if only implicitly. The emergence of the entrepreneur as a modem hero is evidence of this, as is a greater willing ness to consider private alternatives to functions traditionally performed by government. More than 200 years ago, one man-Thomas Paine-provided the key that unlocked the door to freedom. When our cause seems hopeless, we should remember this, for the knowledge that success is possible is the fuel that will pro pel us to our ultimate goal: freedom in our time. 0 1. Thomas Paine, Common Sense (New York: Penguin Books, 1985), p. 65. Subsequent quotations are from the same edition, with page references given in parentheses.

2. John Adams, The John Adams Papers (New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1965), p. 86.