| 340 until we had tried to enforce the law; and then if we could not he would enable us to do it.
"We therefore saw plainly that we were under the necessity of making a trial in our weak situation, in opposition to the wrath and violence of the enemy. And notwithstanding we should in so doing become exposed to death and destruction from the hands of the mob, yet we determined to magnify the laws of the land, and honor the advice of the Governor, by entering a prosecution against them. Accordingly we employed counsel for that purpose, and when the mob had learned this fact, their wrath seemed for a few days to abate; but they soon began to rage again, and to threaten to do their mischief in the night.
"Until this time we had been in a defenseless situation, perfectly so, not even pretending to use any weapons, or even standing in our own defense. But on seeing that the wrath of the mob was great, and that our lives, as well as our property, was in danger; knowing also that we had suffered as much as the law of man or of God required of us, and even more without resisting; and also being advised by good counsel, we concluded on the whole to prepare ourselves for self-defense.
"But in this we found ourselves somewhat lame; for many of us had not weapons to defend ourselves with. And again, a question arose in our minds to what extent we might go in defending ourselves; but on inquiry we found that a man was justified in defending his own person, his family, and his house. But again, another difficulty arose, which was this: one man in his house alone could not defend it against many. We again asked counsel, and found that inasmuch as the mob gathered together to destroy us, we were justified in gathering together to defend ourselves.
"We then came to the conclusion, that inasmuch as they should embody and come against us, we would embody to defend ourselves; although we knew that in this we should labor under great disadvantages; yet we supposed that if we prepared ourselves as well as we could for self-defense, that this would have a tendency to stop the enemy from coming on us; but in this we were disappointed.
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