Ethan Allen
The body of
But the soul of
It was there that Ethan Allen,
After passing round the “flowing bowl” (an eighteenth
century euphemism for having a few beers) it was suggested to Allen with a wink
and a nod that if he as Vermont’s brave and wise leader would acquiesce to the
so very reasonable suggestion that Vermont be annexed to New York, his
courageous action would surely be remembered and his own Vermont holdings
spared from the ensuing taxation that was to follow.
There it was. The bribe. Worse, this bribe was made in a manner all too
familiar to those who have occupied the “outback” of world from the hills of
biblical antiquity to the great plains of the American west – wherever the
cities confront the farms, the big the small, the powerful the weak. The
subtext read. “This hillbilly won’t even know he is being bribed.”
One can only imagine the mix of emotion – from anger to
bemused delight – that Allen felt when he declined the offer, rose from the
table and said.
“The Gods of the hills,” Sirs “are not the God’s of the
valleys.”
It was at this precise moment that
As with all great persons controversy followed Allen
throughout his life and controversy continues among those who interpret his
life.
But two truths are clear.
First he was a rebel. Aligning himself with the more radical
elements of
Second. He could not be bought. Not by Hew
We see this mix of stubborn defiance and loyalty to
principle throughout the history of our state. Allen would have agreed with
much of it, disagreed with more. But he would have always admired our style.
This is Frank Bryan from Starksboro