1776 (1972) - full transcript

The film version of the Broadway musical comedy of the same name. In the days leading up to July 4, 1776, Continental Congressmen John Adams and Benjamin Franklin coerce Thomas Jefferson into writing the Declaration of Independence as a delaying tactic as they try to persuade the American colonies to support a resolution on independence. As George Washington sends depressing messages describing one military disaster after another, the businessmen, landowners and slave holders in Congress all stand in the way of the Declaration, and a single "nay" vote will forever end the question of independence. Large portions of spoken and sung dialog are taken directly from the letters and memoirs of the actual participants.

Mr Adams.

Mr Adams.

Mr Adams.

There you are. Didn't you
hear me call you, Mr Adams?

You could've shouted
down something,

saved me climbing up four flights.

A man that likes to talk as
much as you do, I'd think...

What do you keep coming
up here for, Mr Adams?

Afraid someone's going
to steal our bell?

Well, don't worry.

Been here more than 14 years and
ain't been carried off once.



Better get yourself back
down to Congress, Mr Adams.

Getting ready to vote,
and they said...

they couldn't settle such
an important question...

without Massachusetts being there.

I can just imagine.

All right, what burning issue
are we voting on this time?

On whether or not to grant
General Washington's request...

that all members of the Rhode
Island militia be required...

to wear matching uniforms.

Oh, good God.

I have come to the conclusion
that one useless man...

is called a disgrace...

that two are called a law firm...

and that three or more
become a Congress.



And by God, I have
had this Congress.

For ten years, King George
and his parliament...

have gulled, culled
and diddled these

colonies with their
illegal taxes...

Stamp Acts, Townshend Acts,
Sugar Acts, Tea Acts.

And when we dared
stand up like men...

they have stopped our
trade, seized our ships...

blockaded our ports,
burned our towns...

and spilled our blood.

And still this Congress
refuses to grant

any of my proposals
on independence...

even so much as the
courtesy of open debate.

Good God, what in the
hell are you waiting for?

♪ Sit down, John. Sit down, John ♪

♪ Thomas, for God's
sake, listen to me ♪

♪ For God's sake, John, sit down ♪

♪ Sit down, John ♪

♪ I've had enough of you, sir ♪

♪ Sit down, John. Sit down, John.
For God's sake, John, sit down ♪

♪ Now, listen ♪

♪ Why not open up a window ♪

♪ Will you listen to me
and forget the window ♪

♪ It's 90 degrees ♪

♪ Have mercy, John, please ♪

♪ It's hot as hell
in Philadelphia ♪

♪ Someone ought to
open up a window ♪

♪ I say vote yes ♪

♪ Vote yes ♪

♪ Vote for independency ♪

♪ Someone ought to
open up a window ♪

♪ I say vote yes ♪

♪ Sit down, John ♪

♪ Vote for independency ♪

♪ Someone ought to
open up a window ♪

♪ No, no, no ♪

♪ Too many flies, too many flies ♪

♪ But it's hot as hell
in Philadelphia ♪

♪ Are you gonna open up a window ♪

♪ Can't we compromise here ♪

♪ Vote yes ♪

♪ No, too many flies here ♪

♪ Vote yes ♪

♪ Oh, for God's sake,
John sit down ♪

Good God. Consider
yourselves fortunate...

that you have John Adams to abuse,
for no sane man would tolerate it.

♪ John, you're a bore
we've heard this before ♪

♪ Now, for God's sake,
John sit down ♪

♪ I say vote yes ♪

♪ No ♪

♪ Vote yes ♪

♪ No ♪

♪ Vote for independency ♪

♪ Someone ought to
open up a window ♪

♪ I say vote yes ♪

♪ Sit down, John ♪

♪ Vote for independency ♪

♪ Will someone shut that man up ♪

♪ Never ♪

Never.

Dear God.

For one solid year they have been
sitting here a whole year...

doing nothing.

♪ I do believe you've laid
a curse on North America ♪

♪ A curse that we here now
rehearse in Philadelphia ♪

♪ A second flood,
a simple famine ♪

♪ Plagues of locusts everywhere ♪

♪ Or a cataclysmic earthquake,
I'd accept with some despair ♪

♪ But no you've sent us Congress ♪

♪ Good God, sir, was that fair ♪

♪ I say this with humility
in Philadelphia ♪

♪ We're your responsibility
in Philadelphia if ♪

♪ You don't want to see us hanging
from some far off British hill ♪

♪ If you don't want the voice of
independency forever stilled ♪

♪ Then God, sir, get thee to it ♪

♪ For Congress never will ♪

♪ You see, we piddle
twiddle and resolve ♪

♪ Not one damn thing do we solve ♪

♪ Piddle, twiddle and resolve ♪

♪ Nothing's ever solved ♪

♪ In foul, foetid,
fuming foggy, filthy ♪

♪ Philadelphia ♪

♪ Someone ought to
open up a window ♪

Oh, shut up.

I now call Congress' attention to
the petition of Mr Melchior Meng,

who claims $20 compensation
for his dead mule.

It seems the animal was
employed transporting baggage

in the service of Congress.

The question, then, would
appear to be one of occasion.

For if the mule expired
not while carrying,

but after being unloaded,

then clearly the beast dropped
dead on its own time.

Oh, good God.

♪ They may sit here for years
and years in Philadelphia ♪

♪ These indecisive
grenadiers of Philadelphia ♪

♪ They can't agree
on what is right

and wrong or what is good or bad ♪

♪ I'm convinced the only purpose
this Congress ever had ♪

♪ Was to gather
here specifically ♪

♪ To drive John Adams mad ♪

♪ You see, we piddle,
twiddle and resolve ♪

♪ Not one damn thing do we solve ♪

♪ Piddle, twiddle and resolve ♪

♪ Nothing's ever solved ♪

♪ In foul, foetid,
fuming, foggy, filthy ♪

♪ Philadelphia ♪

♪ John, John ♪

♪ Is that you carrying on, John ♪

Oh, Abigail, Abigail, I have such
a desire to knock heads together.

♪ Then why in heaven's
name do you stay there? ♪

♪ Come home to Boston, John.
It's only 300 miles ♪

♪ If you left tonight you could
be here in only eight days ♪

♪ How can I do that, Abigail? ♪

♪ I'm no further along now than
I was when I first came here ♪

I know, my dearest. I know.

But that's because you make
everything so complicated.

It's all quite simple, really.

♪ Just tell the
Congress to declare ♪

♪ Independency ♪

♪ Then sign your name
get out of there ♪

♪ And hurry home to me ♪

♪ Our children all
have dysentery ♪

♪ Little Tom keeps turning blue ♪

♪ Little Abby has the measles
and I'm coming down with flu ♪

♪ They say we may get smallpox ♪

Madam, what else is new?

Abigail, in my last
letter, I wrote you...

that the king had collected 12,000

German mercenaries
to send against us.

I asked you to organise the ladies
to make saltpetre for gunpowder.

- Now, have you done as I asked?
- No, John, I have not.

Well, why have you not?

Because you neglected to tell
us how saltpetre is made.

By treating sodium nitrate with
potassium chloride, of course.

- Oh, yes, of course.
- Will it be done, then?

John, I'm afraid we have
a more urgent problem.

More urgent, madam?

♪ There's one thing every woman's
missed in Massachusetts Bay ♪

♪ Don't smirk at me you egotist ♪

♪ Pay heed to what I say ♪

♪ We've gone from Framingham to
Boston and we cannot find a pin ♪

♪ "Don't you know
there's a war on" ♪

♪ Says the tradesman with a grin ♪

♪ Well, we will not
make saltpetre ♪

♪ Until you send us pins ♪

Pins, madam? Saltpetre.

- Pins.
- Saltpetre.

- Pins.
- Saltpetre.

- Pins.
- Saltpetre.

- Pins. Pins. Pins.
- 'Peter. 'Peter. 'Peter.

'Peter.

Pins.

Done, madam, done.

Done, John.

- Hurry home, John.
- As soon as I'm able.

Don't stop writing.
It's all I have.

Every day, my dearest friend.

♪ Till then ♪

♪ Till then ♪

♪ I am ♪

♪ As I ever was ♪

♪ And ever shall be ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Saltpetre ♪

♪ John ♪

♪ Pins ♪

♪ Abigail ♪

♪ For God's sake, John ♪

♪ Sit down ♪

Franklin.

Franklin.

Where in hell are you?

I see you hiding behind that
tree. It won't do you any good.

Damn it, this is no
time for playing games.

Franklin, I have been
looking everywhere for you.

Where in God's name have you been?

Right here, John, being
preserved for posterity.

Do you like it?

- It stinks.
- As ever, the soul of tact.

- Well, the man's no Botticelli.
- And the subject's no Venus.

Where were you last night
when I needed you?

You should have heard
what I suffered in there.

I heard, all right, along with
the rest of Philadelphia.

Lord, your voice
is piercing, John.

Well, I wish to heaven
my arguments were.

My God, Franklin, when are they
going to make up their minds?

With one hand they
can raise an army

dispatch one of their
own to lead it and

cheer the news from
Bunker's Hill...

and with the other, they
wave the olive branch...

begging the king for a happy
and permanent reconciliation.

Fat George has declared
us in rebellion.

- Why in bloody hell can't they?
- John, really.

You talk as if independence
were the rule.

It's never been done before.

No colony has ever broken from the

parent stem in the
history of the world.

Damn it, Franklin, you
make us sound treasonous.

Do I? Treason?

"Treason is a charge
invented by winners...

as an excuse for
hanging the losers."

I have more to do than stand here
listening to you quote yourself.

No, that was a new one.

Damn it, Franklin, we're at war.

To defend ourselves, nothing more.

We expressed our displeasure,
the English moved against us...

and we in turn have resisted.

Now our fellow congressmen want
to effect a reconciliation...

- before it becomes a war.
- Reconciliation, my ass.

The people want independence.

The people have read Mr
Paine's "Common Sense."

- I doubt very much Congress has.
- That's true.

John, why don't you give it up?

Nobody listens to you. You're
obnoxious and disliked.

I'm not promoting John Adams.
I'm promoting independence.

Evidently, they cannot
help connecting the two.

Even your own cousin.

And if Sam Adams can't put
up with you, nobody can.

You're getting at something.

How can you tell?

All right, out with it, Franklin.

What new intrigue
are you cooking up?

Let someone else in
Congress propose.

Never.

Why? Who did you have in mind?

I don't know. I really haven't
given it much thought.

You sent for me, Benjamin?

- Never.
- Hello, Johnny.

Richard.

Johnny and I need some advice.

If it's mine to give, it's yours.

Thank you, Richard.

The cause that we support has
come to a complete standstill.

- Why do you suppose that is?
- Simple.

Johnny here is obnoxious
and disliked.

That's true.

What's the solution, I wonder?

Get somebody else in
Congress to propose.

Oh, Richard, that's brilliant.
Wasn't that brilliant, John?

Brilliant.

The question remains
who can it be.

The man that we need must
belong to a delegation...

publicly committed to
support independence.

At the present time,
only Massachusetts,

New Hampshire and Delaware...

have declared our way.

And Virginia. Don't
forget Virginia.

Richard, I haven't. How could I?

But strictly speaking,
while Virginia's

views on independence
are well known...

your legislature in Williamsburg
has never formerly authorised...

its delegation here in
Congress to support the cause.

If we could think
of a Virginian with

enough influence to
go down there...

and persuade the House
of Burgesses...

I've thought of someone.

- Who?
- Me.

Well, why didn't I think of that?

I'll leave tonight.

Why, hell, I'll leave
right now, if you like.

I'll just stop off
in Stratford long

enough to refresh the missus...

and then straight to the matter.

Yes, sir, I really
have to compliment

you on your judgement, Johnny.

Whoa, boy. Steady.

You've come to the one colony
that can get the job done.

Virginia, the land
that gave us our

glorious commander-in-chief...

George Washington...

will now give the continent
its proposal on independence.

And when Virginia proposes,
the South is bound to follow.

And where the South goes,
the middle colonies go.

Gentlemen, a salute.

To Virginia, the mother
of American independence.

Incredible. We're free and
he hasn't even left yet.

What makes you so
sure you can do it?

♪ My name is Richard Henry
Lee, Virginia is my home ♪

♪ My name is Richard Henry
Lee, Virginia is my home ♪

♪ And may my horses turn to glue
if I can't deliver up to you ♪

♪ The resolution on independency ♪

♪ For I am FFV ♪

♪ The first family ♪

♪ In the sovereign
colony of Virginia ♪

♪ Yes, the FFV ♪

♪ The oldest family ♪

♪ In the oldest
colony in America ♪

♪ And may the British
burn my land ♪

♪ If I can't deliver
to your hand ♪

♪ A resolution on independency ♪

♪ You see, it's here
a Lee, there a Lee ♪

♪ And everywhere a Lee, Lee ♪

- ♪ Social.
- Lee ♪

- ♪ Political.
- Lee ♪

- ♪ Financial, natural.
- Lee, Lee ♪

- ♪ Internal, external.
- Lee, Lee ♪

- ♪ Fraternal.
- Lee ♪

- ♪ Eternal.
- Lee ♪

♪ The FFV ♪

♪ The first family ♪

♪ In the sovereign
colony of Virginia ♪

♪ And may my wife refuse my bed ♪

♪ If I can't deliver as I said ♪

♪ A resolution on independency ♪

Spoken modest-Lee. God help us.

Oh, he will, John. He will.

♪ They say that God in
heaven is everybody's God ♪

- ♪ Amen.
- I'll admit that God in heaven ♪

♪ Is everybody's God ♪

♪ But I tell you,
John with pride ♪

♪ God leans a little on
the side of the Lees ♪

♪ The Lees of old Virginia ♪

♪ You see, it's here
a Lee, there a Lee ♪

♪ And everywhere a Lee, a Lee ♪

♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee
and everywhere a Lee ♪

♪ Look out, there's
Arthur Lee, Bobby Lee ♪

♪ General Lighthorse Harry Lee ♪

♪ Willie Lee, Jesse Lee ♪

- ♪ And Richard H.
- That's me ♪

♪ And may my blood
stop running blue ♪

♪ If I can't deliver up to you
the resolution on independency ♪

♪ Yes, sir, my God it's
here a Lee, there a Lee ♪

Come on, boys. Join in with me.

- ♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee
- When do you leave? ♪

♪ Immediate-Lee ♪

- ♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee
- When will you return? ♪

♪ Short-Lee ♪

♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee and
I'll come back triumphant-Lee ♪

♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee
everywhere a Lee, a Lee ♪

♪ Forward ♪

♪ Ho ♪

That was the most revolting
display I have ever witnessed.

They're a warm-blooded
people, Virginians.

Oh, not him, Franklin. You.

You and your infernal
obsession for deviousness.

If you'd come straight
out and asked the man,

he'd have been gone
a half hour ago.

Yes, and he'd have been
doing us a favour.

Cheer up, John. At
this very moment,

sitting straight in the saddle
and in full gallop for Virginia.

♪ And our women are serene ♪

Oh, good God.

♪ Full-bosomed ♪

♪ Full-bosomed, Benjy,
Everyone a queen ♪

♪ Why they are Lees, damn
it Lees of old Virginia ♪

♪ Yes, sir, by God, it's
here a Lee, there a Lee ♪

♪ C'mon, John, step lively ♪

♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee,
here a Lee, there a Lee ♪

♪ Everywhere a Lee, a Lee,
everywhere a Lee, a Lee ♪

♪ Here a Lee, there a Lee
Here a Lee, there a Lee ♪

♪ Everywhere a Lee, a Lee,
everywhere a Lee, a Lee ♪

♪ Forward, ho ♪

Excuse me.

Yes?

I'm Dr Lyman Hall, the new
delegate from Georgia.

I'm Andrew McNair,
congressional custodian.

If you'll be wanting anything at
all, just holler out "McNair"...

as all the others do and there
won't be too long to wait.

Where does the Georgia
delegation belong?

Oh, they mill about over in that
corner near the two Carolinas.

It's after 10:00.

I was told Congress
convenes at ten.

Well, they'll be wandering
in any time now, sir...

with Old Grape 'n Guts
leading the pack.

- Old who?
- McNair.

Grape 'N Guts.

'Nair.

Fetch me a rum.

Mr Hopkins, you'll be pleased
to meet Dr Lyman Hall.

I don't need a doctor, damn it.

New delegate from Georgia.

Well, why didn't you say so?

I'm Stephen Hopkins, old
delegate from Rhode Island.

McNair, fetch two rums.

I fear it's a little
early in the day.

Nonsense.

It's a medicinal
fact that rum gets a

man's heart started
in the morning.

I'm surprised you
didn't know that.

Speaking as the oldest man in the

Congress, I can tell
you right now...

Ben Franklin is older
by almost a year.

Rum.

Tell me, Doctor.

Where does Georgia stand on
the question of independence?

With South Carolina, of course.

Neddy, good morning.

Neddy, come over
here and shake the

hand of Dr Lyman Hall of Georgia.

Dr Hall, this here is
Edward Rutledge from...

whichever Carolina
he says he's from.

God knows I can't
keep 'em straight.

It's a pleasure, Dr Hall.

Your servant, Mr Rutledge.

You've met the long
and the short...

of it now, Doctor.

Neddy here is just a lad.
He's the youngest of us.

- Except for Ben Franklin.
- McNair.

Your rum.

Well, where did you go
for it, man? Jamaica?

Well, now, come along, Dr Hall.

I know you must be anxious to meet
your colleagues from the South.

Doctor, may I present
to you Joseph Hewes.

This is Dr Lyman Hall, the
new delegate from Georgia.

An honour and a
pleasure, gentlemen.

Where do you stand on
independence, Dr Hall?

I'm here without
instructions, Mr Hewes...

able to vote my own
personal convictions.

And they are?

Personal.

Now, Dr Hall...

the Deep South speaks
with one voice.

It's traditional.

Even more, it is historical.

Enter Delaware.

(SPEAKING LATIN)

Speak plain, Rutledge.
You know I can't

follow a word of your damn French.

It's Latin, Colonel McKean...

a tribute to the eternal peace and

harmony of the
Delaware delegation.

What are you saying, man?
You know perfectly well...

that neither Rodney nor I can
stand the sight of this louse.

- Now, Thomas...
- Gentlemen, please.

This is Dr Lyman Hall of Georgia.

- Caesar Rodney.
- An honour, sir.

Sir.

George Read and Colonel
Thomas McKean.

Your servant.

Dr Hall.

I wonder if I might speak to
you for a moment in private.

By all means.

- McNair.
- I'm coming. I'm coming.

Help me. I'm stuck.

Tell me, sir.

Would you be a doctor of
medicine or theology?

Both, Mr Rodney. Which
one can be of service?

By all means, the physician first.

Then we shall see about the other.

I shall call at your convenience.

I trust, Caesar, when you're
through converting...

the poor fellow to independency...

that you'll give the opposition
a fair crack at him.

You're too late, John.

Once I get them, they're got.

Dr Lyman Hall of Georgia, Mr
John Dickinson of Pennsylvania.

- An honour, sir.
- Your servant, sir.

Tell me, Doctor.

Where do you stand on
the question of...

Independence?

Treason.

I've no stomach for it.

Then be careful not to
dine with John Adams.

Between the fish
and the souffle...

You'll find yourself hanging
from an English rope.

Your servant, sir.

Oh, Judge Wilson, forgive me,
but how can anyone see you...

if you insist on standing
in Mr Dickinson's shadow?

James Wilson, also
of Pennsylvania.

Sir.

An honour, sir.

Good morning. Good morning.

Good morning, ladies.
Good morning.

Steady, steady.

Make gangway, sir. Make gangway.

Good morning, Mr
Wilson. Good morning.

Watch where you're going,
damn it. Over there.

McNair, get me out of this
thing. Watch out for my foot.

Good morning, all.

- Morning, Ben.
- Morning, Ben.

Here you are. Two coppers apiece.

Now, straight back
to jail with you.

- Good morning, Stephen.
- All right, Benjamin.

Dear God.

What are you staring at? Haven't
you ever seen a great man before?

Good Lord, sir, do you have
the honour to be Dr Franklin?

Yes, I have that
honour. Unfortunately,

the gout accompanies that honour.

Been living too high again, pappy?

Oh, Stephen, I only
wish King George

felt like my big toe all over.

McNair. Fetch a pillow
and two more rums.

Well, Franklin, where's
that idiot Lee?

Is he back yet? I don't see him.

Softly, John. Your voice
is hurting my foot.

One more day. That's how long I'll

remain silent, not
a minute longer.

That strutting popinjay was
so damn sure of himself...

he's had time to bring back
a dozen proposals by now.

Tell me, James. How do you explain

the strange,
monumental quietude...

that Congress has been treated
to these past 30 days?

Has the ill wind of independence
finally blown itself out?

Well, if you ask me...

For myself, I must confess that a

month free from New
England noise...

is more therapeutic than
a month in the country.

- Don't you agree, James?
- Well, I feel...

Mr Adams, pray look
for your voice, sir.

It cannot be far, and
God knows we need

the entertainment
in this Congress.

Congratulations, John.
You just made your

greatest contribution
to independence.

- You kept your flap shut.
- One more day, Franklin...

then I shall do the proposing.

Gentlemen, the usual morning
festivities concluded...

I will now call Congress to order.

Mr Thomson...

The Second Continental
Congress, meeting

in the city of Philadelphia,
is now in session.

Seven, June, 1776,
the 380th meeting.

Sweet Jesus.

The Honourable John Hancock of
Massachusetts Bay, president.

Thank you, Mr
Thomson. Mr McNair...

the stores of rum
and other drinking

spirits are hereby closed...

to the colony of Rhode Island
for a period of three days.

- Yes, sir.
- Johnny, you can't do that.

Sit down, Mr Hopkins. You've
abused the privilege.

The chair would like to
take this opportunity...

to welcome Dr Lyman Hall of
Georgia to this Congress...

and hopes he will
make the best of it.

My God, it's hot.

The secretary will read the roll.

All members present with
the following exceptions:

Mr Paine, Mr Gerry, Mr Samuel
Adams of Massachusetts...

Mr Morton of Pennsylvania,
Mr Wythe and

Mr Richard Henry
Lee of Virginia...

and the entire delegation
of New Jersey.

I'm concerned over the
continual absence

of one-thirteenth
of this Congress.

Where is New Jersey?

Somewhere between New
York and Pennsylvania.

Thank you very much.

Dr Franklin, have you heard
anything? Your son resides there.

Son, sir? What son?

The royal governor
of New Jersey, sir.

As that title might
suggest, sir...

we are not in touch
at the present time.

Yes.

Well... Now for the
weather report...

Mr Jefferson of Virginia.

- Mr Jefferson.
- Present, sir.

May we hear about the weather?

As if it weren't
speaking for itself.

Eighty-seven degrees
of temperature...

30-point-aught-six
inches of mercury.

Wind...

from the southwest for
the rest of the day.

- And tonight...
- tonight I'm leaving for home.

- On business?
- Family business.

Give her a flourish
for me, young feller.

From the commander, army
of the United Colonies.

To New York, dispatch
number 1,137.

Ah, sweet Jesus.

To the Honourable Congress, John
Hancock, president. "Dear sir...

it is with grave apprehension
that I have learned this day...

of the sailing from
Halifax, Nova Scotia...

of a considerable force
of British troops...

in the company of
foreign mercenaries

and under the command...

of General, sir William Howe.

There can be no doubt that their
destination is New York...

for to take and hold this city
and the Hudson Valley beyond...

would serve to
separate New England

from the rest of the colonies...

permitting both sections
to be crushed in turn.

Sadly, I see no way of stopping
them at the present time...

as my army is absolutely
falling apart.

My military chest is
totally exhausted.

My commissary general has
strained his credit to the last.

My quartermaster has no food,
no arms, no ammunition...

and my troops are in a
state of near mutiny.

I pray God some
relief arrives before

the armada, but fear it will not.

Your obedient...

G. Washington."

- Mr President.
- Colonel McKean.

Surely we have managed
to promote the

gloomiest man on this continent...

to the head of our troops.

Those dispatches are the most
depressing accumulation...

of disaster, doom
and despair in the

entire annals of military history.

Colonel McKean, please.

- What?
- It's too hot.

Well, I suppose so.

General Washington will continue

wording his dispatches
as he sees fit.

And I'm sure we all pray...

he finds happier thoughts to
convey in the near future.

Mr Thomson, are there
any resolutions?

Dr Josiah Bartlett
of New Hampshire.

"Resolved: That for the duration
of the present hostilities...

the Congress discourage every type
of extravagance and dissipation...

elaborate funerals and other
expensive diversions...

especially all horse
racing, gambling...

and other forms of
sinful activity...

Fire waggon.

Where's the fire?
Can anybody tell?

Looks like the Pepperton house.

- Couldn't be. It's brand-new.
- It might be the city tavern.

Bite your tongue, man.

Benjy, I'm back. I'm back, Johnny.

- Lee, is it done?
- First things first. Tom.

Tom. Tom, your little
bride wants to know:

"When is he coming home?"

I leave tonight.

Never mind that, man. Is it done?

Done? Why, certain-Lee.

Mr President, I have returned from

Virginia with the
following resolution.

"Resolved: That these
united colonies

are, and of a right ought to be...

free and independent states...

that they are absolved from
allegiance to the British crown...

and that all political connection

between them and
Great Britain is...

and ought to be
totally dissolved."

Hear, hear.

Mr President, I
second the proposal.

The resolution has been
proposed and seconded.

The chair will now
entertain debate.

- Mr Dickinson.
- Mr President.

Pennsylvania moves, as always...

that the question of independence
be postponed indefinitely.

I second the motion.

Judge Wilson...

in your eagerness to be loved,
you seem to have forgotten...

that Pennsylvania cannot
second its own motion.

Delaware seconds.

You would, you lousy wart.

The motion to postpone has
been moved and seconded.

Mr Thomson.

On the motion to
postpone indefinitely...

the resolution on independency
or proceed with the debate...

all those in favour
of debate say "yea,"

all those for
postponement say "nay."

New Hampshire.

New Hampshire favours
debate, and says yea.

New Hampshire says
yea. Massachusetts?

Massachusetts, having borne the
brunt of the king's tyranny...

Yes, I said tyranny.

Massachusetts now and
for all time, says yea.

Massachusetts says yea.

Rhode Island?

Mr Hopkins.

Where's Rhode Island?

Rhode Island is out
visiting the necessary.

After what Rhode
Island's consumed,

I can't say I'm surprised.

We'll come back to
him, Mr Thomson.

Rhode Island passes.

Connecticut.

While Connecticut has, till now...

been against this proposal...

our legislature has instructed
me that in the event...

it is introduced by any colony
outside of New England...

we could not any longer
withhold our support.

- Connecticut says yea.
- Hear. Hear.

Connecticut says yea. New York.

New York abstains, courteously.

- New York abstains.
- Courteously.

- New Jersey.
- Absent, Mr Secretary.

New Jersey's absent. Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania, for the
24th time, says nay.

Pennsylvania says nay. Delaware.

Delaware, as ever for
independence, says yea.

Delaware says yea. Maryland.

Maryland would welcome
independence if it were given...

but is highly sceptical
that it can be taken.

Maryland says nay.

Maryland says nay. Virginia.

Virginia, the first
colony, says yea.

Virginia says yea. North Carolina.

North Carolina respectfully
yields to South Carolina.

- South Carolina.
- Mr President...

although we of South Carolina have
never seriously considered...

the question of independence...

when a gentleman proposes
it, attention must be paid.

However, we in the Deep South...

unlike our friends
in New England...

have no cause for impatience
at the present time.

If at some future
date it becomes the

wish of all our sister colonies...

to effect a separation, we
will not stand in the way.

But for the time being...

South Carolina will
wait and watch.

The vote is nay.

- North Carolina...
- Says nay. Yes, Mr Hewes. I know.

Georgia.

Georgia.

Mr President, Georgia
seems to be split

right down the middle
on this issue.

The people are against
it, and I'm for it.

However, I'm afraid I'm
not quite certain...

whether representing
the people means

relying on their
judgement or on my own.

In all fairness, until I
can figure that out...

I'd better lean a
little on their side.

Georgia says nay.

Georgia says nay.

Rhode Island.

Second call, Rhode Island.

Rhode Island.

I'm coming. I'm coming.

Hold your damn horses.

We're waiting on you, Mr Hopkins.

Well, it won't kill you.

You'd think the Congress
would have its own privy.

All right, where does she stand?

Five for debate, five
for postponement,

one abstention and one absence.

So it's up to me, huh?

Well, I'll tell you.

In all my years I never seen,
heard nor smelt an issue...

that was so dangerous it
couldn't be talked about.

Hell, yes. I'm for debating
anything. Rhode Island says yea.

- McNair, get Mr Hopkins a rum.
- But you said...

Get him the whole damn
barrel if he wants.

The chair now declares
this Congress

a Committee of the whole...

for the purpose of
debating Virginia's

resolution on independence.

Mr Dickinson.

Well, now, you've got your
way at last, Mr Adams.

The matter may now be discussed.

I confess I'm almost relieved.

There's a question I've been
fairly itching to ask you.

- Why?
- Why what, Mr Dickinson?

Well, why independence, Mr Adams?

Well, for the obvious reason...

that our continued
association with

Great Britain has
grown intolerable.

Well, to whom, Mr Adams? To you?

Well, then I suggest you
sever your ties immediately.

But please be kind enough...

to leave the rest
of us where we are.

For myself, I have no
objection at all...

to being part of the
greatest empire on earth...

to enjoying its protection
and sharing its benefits.

Benefits?

What benefits?

Crippling taxes?
Cruel repressions?

Abolished rights?

Is that all England
means to you, sir?

Is that all the pride and
affection you can muster...

for the nation that bore you...

for the noblest, most civilised
nation on the face of this planet?

What, would you have us forsake
Hastings and Magna Carta...

Strongbow and Lionheart,
Drake and Marlborough...

Tudors, Stuarts and Plantagenets?

For what, sir?

Tell me. For what?

For you?

Some men are patriots,
like General Washington...

and some are anarchists,
like Mr Paine.

Some even are internationalists,
like Dr Franklin.

But you, sir...

you are merely an agitator,
disturbing the peace...

creating disorder, endangering the
public welfare, and for what?

Your petty little
personal complaints:

"Your taxes are too high."

Well, sir, so are mine.

Come, come, Mr Adams.

If you have grievances,
and I'm sure you have...

our present system must provide a

gentler means of
redressing them...

short of revolution.

Yes, that's what he wants.

Nothing less will satisfy him.

Violence, rebellion, treason.

Now, Mr Adams...

are these the acts of Englishmen?

Not Englishmen,
Dickinson. Americans.

No, sir. Englishmen.

Please, Mr Dickinson,
must you start

banging? How is a man to sleep?

Forgive me, Dr Franklin, but
must you start speaking?

How is a man to stay awake?

We'll promise to be quiet, sir.

I'm sure everyone prefers
that you remain asleep.

If I'm to hear myself called
an Englishman, sir...

I assure you I'd prefer
I'd remained asleep.

Oh, now, what's so terrible about
being called an Englishman?

- The English don't seem to mind.
- Nor would I...

were I given the full
rights of an Englishman.

But to call me one without those

rights is like calling
an ox a bull.

He's thankful for the honour, but
he'd much rather have restored...

what's rightfully his.

When did you first notice
they were missing, sir?

Fortunately, the people
of these colonies...

maintain a higher regard
for their mother country.

Higher, certainly, than
she feels for them.

Never was such a
valuable possession...

so stupidly and so
recklessly managed...

than this entire continent
by the British crown.

Our industry discouraged,
our resources pillaged.

Worst of all, our very
character stifled.

We've spawned a new race
here, Mr Dickinson...

rougher, simpler, more violent,
more enterprising, less refined.

We're a new nationality.
We require a new nation.

Well...

that may be your opinion,
Dr Franklin, but...

as I said, the people
feel quite differently.

Now, what do you know about
the people, Dickinson?

You don't speak for the people.
You represent only yourself.

And that precious status quo...

you keep imploring the people to
preserve for their own good...

is nothing more than the eternal
preservation of your own property.

Mr Adams, you have an
annoying talent...

for making such
delightful words as

"property" sound
quite distasteful.

In heaven's name, what's
wrong with property?

Perhaps you've forgotten that many

of us first came
to these shores...

in order to secure
rights to property...

and that we hold
these rights no less

dear than the rights you speak of.

Yes. So safe, so fat, so
comfortable in Pennsylvania.

And what is this
independence of yours...

except the private grievance
of Massachusetts?

Why is it always Boston that
breaks the king's peace?

My dear Congress, you must
not adopt this evil measure.

It is the work of the devil.

Leave it where it
belongs... in New England.

Brother Dickinson, New England has

fought the devil
more than 100 years.

And as of now, Brother Sherman...

the devil has been
winning hands down.

Why, at this very moment, he's

sitting right here
in this Congress.

Don't let him deceive you. This
proposal is entirely his doing.

Oh, it may bear Virginia's name...

but it reeks of Adams,
Adams and more Adams.

Look at him. Ready to
lead this continent...

down the fiery path
of total destruction.

Oh, good God. Why can't you
acknowledge what already exists?

It has been more than a year
since Concord and Lexington.

Damn it, man, we're
at war right now.

You may be at war. You...
Boston and John Adams.

But you will never speak
for Pennsylvania.

- Nor for Delaware.
- Mr Read...

you represent only
one-third of Delaware.

The sensible third, Mr Rodney.

Sit down, or I'll knock you down.

Sit down, all three
of you. McNair,

do something about that damn dog.

- Fetch me a rum.
- Get the dog first.

I only got two hands.

Christ, it's hot.

Oh. Please do go on, gentlemen.

You're making the only
breeze in Philadelphia.

Mr Adams, perhaps you could
clear up something for me.

After we have achieved
independence...

who do you propose would
govern in South Carolina?

The people, of course.

Which people, sir? The
people of South Carolina...

or the people of Massachusetts?

Admit it, Neddy. You're against

independence now and
you always will be.

Aye.

Gentlemen, you refuse
to understand us.

We desire independence. Yes.

For South Carolina.
That is our country.

And as such, we don't
wish to belong to anyone.

Not to England and not to you.

We intend to have one
nation, Rutledge.

A nation of sovereign
states, Mr Adams.

United for our mutual
protection, but...

separate for our
individual pursuits.

Now, that is what we have
understood it to be...

and that is what we will support.

As soon as everyone supports it.

Well, there you are, Mr Adams.

You must see that we need time.

Time to make certain
who we are and where

we stand in regard to one another.

For if we do not
determine the nature

of the beast before
we set it free...

it will end by consuming us all.

For once in your life, Wilson...

take a chance.

I say the time is now.

It may never come again.

Your clock is fast, Mr Adams.

I say we're not yet
ripe for independence.

Not ripe? Hell, we're
rotting for want of it.

Gentlemen, please, what in God's
name is the infernal hurry?

Why must this question
be settled now?

What's wrong with now, Mr Chase?

General Washington
is in the field.

If he's defeated
as it now appears,

we'll be inviting the hangman.

But if, by some miracle,
he should actually win...

we can then declare
anything we damn please.

The sentiments of North
Carolina precisely.

Has it ever occurred
to either of you...

that an army needs
something to fight for...

in order to win?

A purpose? A goal?
A flag of its own?

Mr Adams...

how can a nation of only
two million souls...

stand up to an empire
of ten million?

Think of it. Ten million. How do
we compensate for that shortage?

It's simple, Mr Chase.
Increase and multiply.

How's that?

We will more than
compensate with spirit.

I tell you that there is a spirit
out there among the people...

that is sadly lacking
in this Congress.

Yes, of course. Now it's spirit.

Why didn't I think of that?

No army, no navy, no
arms, no ammunition...

no treasury, no friends.

But bless our soul, spirit.

Mr Lee, Mr Hopkins...

Mr Rodney, Colonel McKean...

Dr Franklin.

Why have you joined this
incendiary little man...

this Boston radical...

this agitator...

this demagogue...

this madman?

Are you calling me
a madman, you...

you fribble.

You and your Pennsylvania
proprietors.

Oh, you cool, considerate men.

You hang to the
rear on every issue

so that if we should go under...

you'll still remain afloat.

- Are you calling me a coward?
- Yes. Coward.

- Madman.
- Landlord.

Lawyer.

Stop it. Stop it.

This is the Congress.
Stop it, I say.

The enemy's out there.

No, Mr Rodney, the enemy is here.

No. I say he's out there.

England. England closing
in, cutting off our air.

There's no time.

No air.

Dr Hall.

- Colonel McKean.
- Aye. It's the cancer.

But he should go home.

A man should die in his own bed.

- John. John Adams.
- I'm here, Caesar.

I leave you...

a divided Delaware.

- Forgive me.
- I'll take you home, Caesar.

I'll be back within the week.

Mr President, South Carolina
calls the question.

- What's that, Mr Rutledge?
- I said, Mr President...

South Carolina desires
to end the debate...

and calls the question
of independence.

- Delaware seconds.
- Thank you.

Gentlemen, please.

The question has been
called and seconded.

The secretary will
record the vote.

Franklin, do something. Think.

I'm thinking, but
nothing's coming.

All those in favour of the
resolution on independence...

as proposed by the colony of
Virginia, signify by saying...

Mr Secretary...

would you please read
the resolution again?

What?

- I'd forgotten it.
- Now, please.

"Resolved: These
united colonies are...

and of a right ought to be
free and independent..."

Excuse me. Is this the
Continental Congress?

Well, yes, I can see
that it must be.

It's all right. We found it.

We've been looking for
you everywhere, you see.

Someone told us that you might
be at Carpenters' Hall...

and someone else
suggested Library Hall.

So finally we asked a constable...

Excuse me, sir, but...

if you don't mind, the
Congress is about to decide...

the question of
American independence.

How splendid. That means
we're not too late.

These gentlemen are Mr
Francis Hopkinson...

Mr Richard Stockton, and I'm
the Reverend John Witherspoon.

We're the new delegates
from New Jersey.

New Jersey?

Dr Franklin, I regret
that I must be

the bearer of unhappy
tidings, sir...

but your son, the royal
governor of New Jersey...

has been taken prisoner...

and has been moved
under guard to the

colony of Connecticut
for safekeeping.

Is he unharmed, sir?

When last I heard,
he was. Yes, sir.

Then why the long face? I hear

Connecticut is an
excellent location.

Tell me. Why did they
arrest the little bastard?

Our...

New Jersey legislature
has recalled the

old delegation to this Congress...

and has sent a new one.

Quickly, man, where do you
stand on independence?

Well, haven't I made that clear?
Well, I suppose I haven't.

But that's the reason
for the change.

We've been instructed to
vote for independence.

Massachusetts is now ready for
the vote on independence...

and reminds the chair
of its privilege

to decide all votes
that are deadlocked.

I won't forget, Mr Adams.

The chair takes
this opportunity to

welcome the New
Jersey delegation...

and appoints the
Reverend Witherspoon

congressional chaplain...

- if he will accept the post.
- With much pleasure, sir.

Very well. Mr Thomson, you may now

proceed with the vote
on independence.

All in favour of the
resolution on independence...

as proposed by the
colony of Virginia...

Mr President.

Pennsylvania moves that any vote
in favour of independence...

must be unanimous.

- What?
- I second the motion.

- Judge Wilson.
- Oh, my God.

Delaware seconds, Mr President.

No vote has ever had
to be unanimous,

Dickinson, and you know it.

- Yes, but this one must be.
- On what grounds?

That no colony be
torn from its mother

country without its own consent.

Hear. Hear.

But it will never be
unanimous, damn it.

If you say so, Mr Adams.

It has been moved and seconded
that the vote on independence...

must be unanimous
in order to carry.

All those in favour,
signify by saying yea.

Yea.

One, two, three, four, five, six.

- Six colonies say yea. Against?
- Nay.

One, two, three, four, five, six.

Six colonies say nay.

Mr Secretary, New York
abstains, courteously.

Mr Morris, why does New
York constantly abstain?

Why does New York simply
stay in New York?

Very well. The vote is tied.

The principles of
independence have

no greater advocate in Congress...

than its president...

and that is why I must join
those who vote for unanimity.

Good God, John. What are
you doing? You've sunk us.

Now, hear me out.
Don't you see that

any colony who opposes
independence...

will be forced to fight
on the side of England?

That we'll be setting
brother against brother...

that our new nation will carry
as its emblem the mark of Cain.

I can see no other way.

Either we all walk together or

together we must
stay where we are.

- The man's from Massachusetts.
- Very well. Proceed, Mr Thomson.

A unanimous vote being
necessary to carry...

if any be opposed to the
resolution on independence...

as proposed by the
colony of Virginia...

Mr President.

Oh, for heaven's sake, let
me get through it once.

Mr President.

- I move for a postponement.
- Postponement?

I wish you the same
luck I had with it.

Mr Adams is right. We
need a postponement.

- On what grounds?
- On what grounds?

Mr President, how can this
Congress vote on independence...

without a written declaration
of some sort defining it?

What sort of declaration?

Well, you know. Listing the
reasons for the separation...

our purposes, goals,
so forth, so on.

Ditto, Ditto.

Ditto, ditto, et
cetera, et cetera.

We know those, don't we?

Oh, yes, good God, we know them.

But what about the
rest of the world?

Certainly we require
the assistance...

of a powerful nation such
as France or Spain...

and such a written
declaration would

be consistent with
European delicacy.

Come now, Mr Adams. You'll
have to do better than that.

Answer straight. What
would be its purpose?

Yes. Well...

To place before mankind the
common sense of the subject...

in terms so plain and firm...

as to command their assent.

Mr Jefferson, are you
seriously suggesting...

that we publish a paper
declaring to all the world...

that an illegal rebellion is,
in reality, a legal one?

Oh, Mr Dickinson, I'm
surprised at you.

You should know the rebellion is

always legal in the
first person...

such as our rebellion.

It's only in the third
person... "their"

rebellion... that it is illegal.

Mr President, I
second the motion to

postpone the vote
on independence...

for a period of time sufficient
for the writing of a declaration.

It has been moved and
seconded. Mr Thomson.

All those in favour of the motion

to postpone, signify
by saying yea.

Yea.

One, two, three, four, five, six.

- Six colonies say yea. Against?
- Nay.

One, two, three, four, five, six.

Six colonies say nay.

Mr Secretary, New York
abstains, courteously.

Mr Morris, what in hell
goes on in New York?

I'm sorry, Mr President, but
the simple fact is that...

our legislature has never sent us
explicit instructions on anything.

Never?

That's impossible.

Mr President, have you
ever been present...

at a meeting of the
New York legislature?

They speak very fast
and very loud...

and nobody listens
to anybody else...

with the result that
nothing ever gets done.

I beg the Congress's pardon.

My sympathies, Mr Morris.

The vote again being
tied, the chair

decides in favour of postponement.

So ruled.

A committee will now be formed
to manage the declaration.

Said document to be
written, debated,

approved by the
beginning of July...

some three weeks hence,
at which time...

Virginia's resolution on

independence will
finally be voted.

Is that clear? Very well.

Will the following
gentlemen serve on

the Declaration
Committee: Dr Franklin?

Gladly.

- Mr John Adams?
- Yes.

Mr Sherman?

- Mr Livingston?
- Right.

And, of course, Mr Lee.

Oh, excuse me, but I
must be returning

to the sovereign
colony of Virginia...

as I have been asked
to serve as governor.

And therefore I must
decline, respectful-Lee.

Very well, Mr Lee. You're excused.

I supposed we could leave
it a four-man committee.

Just a moment. This
business needs a Virginian.

Therefore, I propose a

replacement... Mr
Thomas Jefferson.

No. Mr Adams...

Very well. Mr
Jefferson will serve.

- I'm going home, too, to my wife.
- Move to adjourn.

- Wait.
- I second.

Mr Hancock, I haven't
seen her for six months.

Moved and seconded.
Any objections?

I have objections. I
have lots of objections.

So ruled. Congress
stands adjourned.

John, I need to see my wife.

- It's all right. Come along.
- No. I'm going home tonight.

Of course you are. Of course.
McNair, some rum up to my office.

Don't worry, Tom.
Let me handle it.

I'll get Adams to write it.

I don't know. He had a
funny look on his face.

He always does.

All right, gentlemen,
let's get on with it.

Which of us will write our
Declaration of Independence?

♪ Mr Adams I say you
should write it ♪

♪ To your legal mind and
brilliance we defer ♪

♪ Is that so well, if
I'm the one to do it ♪

♪ They'll run their
quill pens through it ♪

♪ I'm obnoxious and disliked,
you know that, sir ♪

♪ Yes, I know.

I say you should
write it, Franklin ♪

- ♪ Yes, you.
- Hell, no ♪

♪ Yes, you, Dr Franklin, you ♪

- ♪ But, but.
- You, you ♪

- ♪ You.
- But ♪

♪ Mr Adams but, Mr Adams ♪

♪ The things I write are
only light extemporaneous ♪

♪ I won't put politics
on paper It's a mania ♪

♪ So I refuse to use the
pen in Pennsylvania ♪

♪ Pennsylvania Pennsylvania ♪

♪ Refuse to use the pen ♪

♪ Mr Sherman I say you
should write it ♪

♪ You were never
controversial as it were ♪

♪ That is true ♪

♪ Whereas, if I'm
the one to do it ♪

♪ They'll run their
quill pens through it ♪

♪ I'm obnoxious and disliked ♪

- ♪ You know that, sir.
- Yes, I do ♪

♪ So I say you should write
it Roger, yes, you ♪

- ♪ Good heavens, no.
- Yes, you, Roger Sherman, you ♪

- ♪ But, but.
- You, you ♪

♪ But ♪

♪ Mr Adams but, Mr Adams ♪

♪ I cannot write with any
style or proper etiquette ♪

♪ I don't know a participle
from a predicate ♪

♪ I am just a simple
cobbler from Connecticut ♪

♪ Connecticut Connecticut ♪

♪ A simple cobbler, he ♪

♪ Mr Livingston maybe
you should write it ♪

♪ You have many friends
and you're a diplomat ♪

♪ Oh, that word ♪

♪ Whereas, if I'm
the one to do it ♪

♪ They'll run their
quill pens through it ♪

♪ He's obnoxious and disliked,
did you know that ♪

♪ I hadn't heard ♪

♪ So I say you should
write it, Robert ♪

- ♪ Yes, you.
- Not me, Johnny ♪

♪ Yes, you, Robert
Livingston, you ♪

- ♪ But.
- You ♪

- ♪ But, but.
- You, you ♪

♪ But ♪

♪ Mr Adams Dear Mr Adams ♪

♪ I've been presented with a
new son by the noble stork ♪

♪ So I am going home to
celebrate and pop the cork ♪

♪ With all the Livingstons
together back in old New York ♪

♪ New York ♪

♪ New York ♪

♪ Livingston's going
to pop a cork ♪

♪ Mr Adams ♪

♪ Leave me alone ♪

- Mr Jefferson.
- Mr Adams, I beg of you.

I've not seen my wife
these past six months.

"And we solemnly declare that we
will preserve our liberties...

being with one mind
resolved to die free men...

rather than to live slaves."

Thomas Jefferson,
on the "Necessity

of Taking up Arms," 1775.

Magnificent.

You write ten times
better than any

man in Congress, including me.

For a man of only 33
years, you possess

a happy talent for composition...

and a remarkable
felicity of expression.

Now, then, sir. Will
you be a patriot...

or a lover?

A lover.

- ♪ But I burn, Mr A
- So do I, Mr J ♪

- You?
- You do?

Who'd have thought it?

♪ Mr Jefferson ♪

♪ Dear Mr Jefferson ♪

♪ I'm only 41 I still
have my virility ♪

♪ And I can romp through Cupid's
grove with great agility ♪

♪ But life is more than
sexual combustibility ♪

- ♪ Jefferson, stop right there.
- Bustability ♪

♪ Bustability ♪

- ♪ Combustibility.
- Quiet ♪

Now, you'll write it, Mr.J.

Who will make me, Mr A?

I.

You?

Yes.

How?

By physical force, if necessary.

It's your duty,
damn it. Your duty.

♪ Mr Adams ♪

♪ Damn you, Mr Adams ♪

♪ You're obnoxious and disliked ♪

♪ That cannot be denied ♪

♪ Once again you stand between
me and my lovely bride ♪

♪ Lovely bride ♪

♪ Oh, Mr Adams you are
driving me to homicide ♪

- ♪ Jefferson, stop right there.
- Homicide ♪

♪ Homicide ♪

Quiet.

The decision is yours, Mr
Jefferson. Do as you like with it.

♪ We may see murder yet ♪

Damn the man.

Goddamn the man.

Sorry.

Pardon me, sir.

How are you?

What is that racket?

Latest thing from Europe,
John. It's called music.

I came here hoping to hear a
pen scratching, not a bow.

Jefferson, I know you're in there.

Are you finished?

Well, is it written yet?

Well, you've had a
whole week, man.

Is it done?

Can I see it?

"There comes a time
in the lives of

men when it becomes necessary...

to advance from that subordination

in which they have
hitherto rem..."

This is terrible.
Where's the rest of it?

Do you mean to say that
it is not yet finished?

No, sir. I mean to say
that it's not yet begun.

Good God.

A whole week.

The entire earth was
created in a week.

Someday you must tell
me how you did it.

Disgusting.

Look at him, Franklin.
Virginia's most famous lover...

Virginia abstains.

Well, cheer up, Jefferson.

Get out of the dumps. It'll come
out all right, I assure you.

Now, get back to work.

Franklin, tell him
to get back to work.

I think he's asleep.

Wake up, Franklin.

View, hello. And who,
little girl, are you?

- John, who is she?
- His wife.

I hope.

What makes you think so?

- Because I sent for her.
- You what?

It simply occurred to me that the
sooner his problem was solved...

the sooner our problem is solved.

That's good thinking,
John. Good thinking.

Madam, may I present
myself? John Adams.

Oh, and Dr Franklin.

The inventor of the stove.

Jefferson, kindly present
me to your wife.

She is your wife, isn't she?

Of course she is. Look
at the way they fit.

Come along, John, come along.

- Franklin, where are you going?
- Come along, John.

Come along where? There's
work to be done.

Obviously.

Good God. You don't
mean to say that...

I mean, they're not going to...

In the middle of the afternoon?

Not everybody's from Boston, John.

Incredible.

- Well, goodbye, John.
- Franklin?

- Have you eaten?
- Not yet, but...

I understand the turkey's
fresh at Bunch O' Grapes.

Well, the fact is, I
have a rendezvous, John.

I'd ask you along, but
talking makes her nervous.

Yes, of course.

Incredible.

Abigail?

I'm very lonely, Abigail.

♪ Are you, John? Then as long
as you were sending for wives ♪

♪ Why didn't you
send for your own? ♪

Oh, now, don't be
unreasonable, Abigail.

♪ Oh, now I'm unreasonable ♪

♪ You must add that to your list ♪

List?

The catalogue of my faults you
included in your last letter.

Oh, they were fondly
intended, madam.

- That I play at cards badly?
- A compliment.

- That my posture is crooked?
- An endearment.

That I read, write
and think too much?

An irony.

That I'm pigeon-toed?

Oh, well, now there
you have me, Abby.

I'm afraid you are pigeon-toed.

Please. Come to
Philadelphia. Please come.

Oh, thank you, John.

I do want to, but you know
now it's not possible.

The children have the measles.

So you wrote.

Tom and little Abby.

Only now it's Quincy and Charles.

And it appears the farm here
in Braintree is failing, John.

The chickens and the
geese have all died.

And the apples never
survived the late frost.

How do you suppose she
managed to get away?

Well, the winters are
softer in Virginia.

And their women, John?

Fit for Virginians,
madam, but pale,

puny things beside
New England girls.

I thank you for that.

Abigail, how goes it with you?

Not well, John. Not at all well.

♪ I live like a nun
in a cloister ♪

♪ Solitary, celibate I hate it ♪

And you, John?

♪ I live like a monk in an abbey ♪

♪ Ditto, ditto I hate it ♪

♪ Write to me with
sentimental effusion ♪

♪ Let me revel in
romantic illusion ♪

♪ Do you still smell of
vanilla and spring air ♪

♪ And is my favourite
lover's pillow ♪

♪ Still firm and fair ♪

♪ What was there, John ♪

♪ Still is there, John ♪

♪ Come soon as you
can to my cloister ♪

♪ I've forgotten the
feel of your hand ♪

♪ Soon, madam, we shall walk
in Cupid's grove together ♪

♪ And we'll fondly survey ♪

♪ That promised land ♪

♪ Till then, till then ♪

♪ I am as I ever was ♪

♪ And ever shall be ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

♪ Saltpetre ♪

♪ John ♪

- What?
- What are you doing down here?

I thought you'd be up
there, cracking the whip.

Well, the shutters
are still closed.

My word.

So they are.

- Well, as the French say...
- Oh, please, Franklin.

Spare me your bawdy mind,
first thing in the morning.

Dare we call?

A congressman dares anything.

- Go ahead.
- Me?

Your voice is more piercing.

- Oh, John, look at her.
- Oh, I am.

She's even more magnificent
than I remember.

Of course, we didn't see much
of her front last night.

- Good morrow, madam.
- Good morrow.

Is it the habit in Philadelphia to
shout at ladies from the street?

- Not really, but...
- And for men of your age...

it is not only unseemly,
it is unsightly.

Excuse me, madam, but
we met last evening.

- I spoke to no one last evening.
- Indeed, you did not.

Nonetheless, we did
present ourselves.

This is Mr John Adams. I'm
Dr Benjamin Franklin.

The inventor of the stove.

Oh, please. I know your
names very well, but...

Well, you said you presented
yourselves last night?

It's of no matter. Your thoughts
are well-taken elsewhere.

As my husband is not yet up.

Well, then shall we start over
again? Won't you join us?

Why, yes, of course.

No wonder the man couldn't write.

Who would think of
independence married to her?

- I'd feel an absolute fool.
- That's good for you, John.

I tell you, Franklin,
it's positively indecent.

- John, they're young and in love.
- Not them, Franklin. Us.

Standing down here,
waiting for them to...

Well, what will people think?

Don't worry, John. The history
books will clean it up.

Well, it doesn't matter.

I'll not appear in the history
books anyway. Only you.

Franklin did this and
Franklin did that...

and Franklin did some
other damned thing.

Franklin smote the
ground and out sprang...

George Washington...

fully grown and on his horse.

Franklin then electrified him with
his miraculous lightning rod...

then the three of
them... Franklin,

Washington and the horse...

conducted the entire
revolution all by themselves.

- I like it.
- I beg your pardon, gentlemen.

My husband is not yet up.

It is indeed an honour to meet
the two greatest men in America.

Certainly the greatest
within earshot anyway.

I'm not an idle
flatterer, Dr Franklin.

My husband admires
you both greatly.

Then we are doubly flattered,

for we admire very much that
what your husband admires.

Did you sleep well, madam?

Huh.

Oh...

Well, I mean, did you
lie comfortably?

Damn it, you know what I mean.

Yes, John, we know what you mean.

Tell us about yourself. We've
heard precious little.

- What's your first name?
- Martha.

Martha. He might at least
have told us that.

Your husband doesn't
say very much.

Most silent man in
Congress. I've never

heard him utter three
sentences together.

Not every man's a talker, John.

Yes, it's true, you know.
Tom is not a talker.

♪ Oh, he never speaks
his passions ♪

♪ He never speaks his views ♪

♪ Whereas other men
speak volumes ♪

♪ The man I love is mute ♪

♪ In truth I can't recall ♪

♪ Being wooed with words ♪

♪ At all ♪

♪ Even now ♪

- Oh, don't stop, madam.
- No. Tell us, how did he win you?

And how does he hold on
to a bounty such as you?

Well, surely you've
noticed that Tom

is a man of many accomplishments.

Author, lawyer, statesman,
architect, farmer.

And still one more that
I hesitate to mention.

- Don't hesitate, madam.
- No, tell us.

What else can that
red-headed tombstone do?

♪ He plays the violin ♪

♪ He tucks it right
under his chin ♪

♪ And he bows ♪

♪ Oh, he bows ♪

♪ For he knows Yes, he knows ♪

♪ That it's heigh, heigh
heigh diddle-diddle ♪

♪ 'Twixt my heart Tom
and his fiddle ♪

♪ My strings are unstrung ♪

♪ Heigh, heigh, heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ I am undone ♪

The violin, madam?

♪ I hear his violin ♪

♪ And I get that feeling within ♪

♪ And I sigh Oh, I sigh ♪

♪ He draws near very near ♪

♪ And it's heigh, heigh
heigh diddle-diddle ♪

♪ And goodbye to the fiddle ♪

♪ My strings are unstrung ♪

♪ Heigh, heigh, heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ I'm always undone ♪

That settles it, John. We're
taking up the violin.

Very well, madam.
You have us playing

the violin. What happens next?

- Next, Mr Adams?
- Yes. What does Tom do now?

Why, just what you'd expect.

- We dance.
- Dance?

Dance? Incredible.

One, two, three. One, two, three.

Who's playing the violin?

Oh, John, really.

Oh, John, you can dance.

We still do a few things
in Boston, Franklin.

♪ Heigh, heigh, heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ When heaven calls to me ♪

♪ Sing me no sad elegy ♪

♪ Say I died ♪

♪ Loving bride ♪

♪ Loving wife Loving life ♪

♪ For it was heigh, heigh
heigh, diddle-diddle ♪

♪ 'Twixt my heart Tom
and his fiddle ♪

♪ And ever 'twill be ♪

♪ Heigh, heigh, heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ Through eternity ♪

♪ He plays the violin ♪

♪ He plays the violin ♪

♪ He plays the violin ♪

Look. Look, Franklin, he's
done it. He's written it.

"Dear Mr Adams, I am taking
my wife back to bed.

Kindly go away. Your
obedient, T. Jefferson."

Incredible.

You know, perhaps I should have
written the declaration after all.

At my age, there's
little doubt the

pen is mightier than the sword.

♪ For it's heigh, heigh
heigh, diddle-diddle ♪

♪ And God bless a man
who can fiddle ♪

♪ And independency ♪

♪ Heigh, heigh, heigh ♪

♪ Heigh ♪

♪ Ya da da da la ♪

♪ Through eternity ♪

♪ He plays the violin ♪

♪ Violin ♪

♪ Violin ♪

Pennsylvania, Delaware...

Maryland... Virginia's absent...

and North Carolina, South
Carolina and Georgia.

And what follows is a complete
and up-to-date list...

of all the committees
of this Congress...

now sitting, about to
sit or just having sat.

"A committee formed to investigate
a complaint made against...

the quality of yeast manufactured
by Mr Henry Pendleton's mill...

designated as the Yeast Committee.

A committee formed
to consider the most

effective method of
dealing with spies...

designated as the Spies Committee.

A committee formed to
think, perhaps to do...

but in any case, to gather, to
meet, to confer, to talk...

and perhaps even to resolve
that each rifle regiment...

be allowed at least
one drum and one

fife attached to each company...

designated as the Drum
and Fife Committee.

A committee formed to..."

Where is that committee?

What do you think of
it, Doctor? Democracy.

What Plato called "a charming
form of government...

full of variety and disorder."

I never knew Plato had
been to Philadelphia.

Ben, I want you to see some cards
I've gone and had printed up.

Oughta save everybody here a
lot of time and effort...

considering the epidemic of bad
disposition that's been going on.

"Dear sir, you are, without any
doubt, a rogue, a rascal...

a villain, a thief, a scoundrel
and a mean, dirty...

stinking, snivelling, sneaking,
pimping, pocket-picking...

thrice double-damned
no-good son-of-a-bitch."

And you sign your name.
What do you think?

- I'll take a dozen right now.
- Aha. Here it is.

"A committee formed to answer all
congressional correspondence...

designated as the Congressional
Correspondence Committee."

All right, Franklin, enough

socialising. There's
work to be done.

- Good morning, John.
- What?

- Good morning.
- Oh, good morning, good morning.

- Now, then, let's get to it.
- Get to what?

Unanimity, of course.
Look at that board.

Six nays to win over in
little more than a week.

"A committee formed
to consider the

problem of counterfeit money...

"designated as the Counterfeit
Money Committee."

- Oh, God. What...
- All right, John, all right.

- Where shall we start?
- Well, what about Delaware?

Sad thing to see them on the
wrong side after all this time.

- Any news of Rodney?
- Yes. McKean's back.

- Thomas.
- "A committee formed to study...

the causes of our military
defeat in Canada."

Thomas, how did you leave
Caesar? Is he still alive?

Aye, but the journey to Dover
was fearful hard on him.

He never complained,
but I could see

the poor man was
suffering terrible.

But you got him safely home.

I did, but I doubt he'll never
set foot out of it again.

That leaves you and
Read split down

the middle. Will he come over?

I don't know. He's a
stubborn ignoramus.

Work on him. Keep after him
till you wear him down.

John, face facts,
will ya? If it were

just Read standing in our way...

it wouldn't be so bad, but
look for yourself, man.

Maryland, Pennsylvania and the
entire South. It's impossible.

Well, it's impossible if we all
stand around complaining about it.

To work, McKean. One foot
in front of the other.

I believe I put it a better way:
Never leave off until tomorrow...

Oh, shut up, Franklin.

But what good will it do?

You know Dickinson.
He'll never give in.

And you haven't heard the
last of Rutledge either.

Never mind about them.
Your job is George Read.

Talk him deaf if you have to,
but bring us back Delaware.

- There's a simpler way.
- What?

- This'll break the tie.
- All right, John, who's next?

"A committee formed
to keep secrets...

designated as the
Secrets Committee."

Pennsylvania and
Maryland. I suggest

you get your own house in order...

and I'll take a crack
at old vacant-face...

Lord, look at him stuff himself.

Ah, Mr Chase.

How about it, Chase? When are
you coming to your senses, man?

Please, Mr Adams, not
while I'm eating.

Mr Wilson, sir?

It's time to assert yourself.

Tell me something. When
you were a judge...

how in hell did you
ever make a decision?

The decisions I made were all
based on legality and precedence.

But there is no legality here
and certainly no precedent.

Because it's a new idea, you clot.

We'll be setting
our own precedent.

No, Mr McKean. No, no, no.

Damn your eyes, Read. You come
into this world screaming no...

and you're determined to leave
it the same way, ya slimy worm.

The Congress is waiting
on you, Chase.

America is waiting. The
whole world is waiting.

What's that? Kidney?

Leave me alone, Mr Adams.
You're wasting your time.

If I thought we
could win this war,

I'd be at the front
of your ranks...

but you must know it's impossible.

You've heard General
Washington's dispatches.

His army has fallen to pieces.

Washington is exaggerating
the situation...

in order to arouse this
torpid Congress into action.

Why, as chairman of the War

Committee, I can
state for a fact...

that the army has never
been in better shape.

Never have troops
been more cheerful.

Never have soldiers
been more resolute.

Never have training and
discipline been more spirited.

Oh, good God.

May we have your ears, gentlemen?
Mr Thomson has a dispatch.

From the commander, army of the
United Colonies in New York...

dispatch number 1,157...

to the Honourable Congress, John
Hancock, President. "Dear sir...

it is with the utmost despair
that I must report to you...

the disorder and confusion that
reign in every department.

Oh, sweet Jesus.

The Continental soldier is
as nothing ever seen...

in this or any other century.

He is a misfit,
ignorant of hygiene...

destructive, disorderly and
totally disrespectful of rank.

Only this last is
understandable...

as there is an incredible reek of
stupidity amongst the officers.

The situation is most desperate...

at the New Jersey training
ground in New Brunswick...

where every able-bodied
whore in the..."

Whore?

"In the colonies has assembled.

There are constant reports of

drunkenness, desertion,
foul language...

naked bathing in the
Raritan River...

and an epidemic...

of the French disease.

I have placed this town off-limits
to all military personnel...

with the exception of officers.

I beseech the Congress to dispatch
the War Committee to this place...

in the hope of
restoring some of the

order and discipline
we need to survive.

Your obedient...

G. Washington."

That man would depress a hyena.

Well, Mr Adams, you're
chairman of the War Committee.

Do you feel up to
whoring, drinking,

deserting and New Brunswick?

There must be some mistake. I have

an aunt who lives
in New Brunswick.

You must tell her to
keep up the good work.

Come, come, Mr Adams.

You must see that it's hopeless.

Let us recall General
Washington...

and disband the Continental
Army before we're overwhelmed.

Oh, yes, indeed. The English would
like that, now, wouldn't they?

Why not ask them yourself? They
ought to be here any minute.

And when they hang
you, Mr Adams...

I hope you will put in a good
word for the rest of us.

Face facts, Mr Adams.

A handful of drunk and disorderly

recruits against the
British Army...

the finest musket men on earth.

How can we win? How can
we even hope to survive?

Answer me straight, Chase.

If you thought we could
beat the Redcoats...

would Maryland say
yea to independence?

- Well, I suppose...
- No supposing.

Would you or wouldn't you?

Very well, Mr Adams.

Yes, we would.

- Then come and see for yourself.
- John, are you mad?

You heard what Washington
said. It's a shambles.

They're pushing you
into it, Johnny.

What do you say, Chase?

Go ahead, Sam. It sounds
lively as hell up there.

All right. Why not?

And maybe it'll be John Adams
who comes to his senses.

Mr President, the
War Committee will

heed General Washington's request.

A party consisting
of Chase, Franklin

and myself will leave immediately.

Is...

Is that satisfactory
with you, Dr Franklin?

Wake up, Franklin. You're
going to New Brunswick.

- Like hell I am. What for?
- The whoring and the drinking.

All right, Chase. Move all that
lard. Not a moment to lose.

Left, right, left, right.
Left, right, left, right.

Left, right, left.

Mr McNair, all this
talk of independence...

has left a certain
foulness in the air.

My friends and I would appreciate
it if you could open some windows.

Well, what about the flies?

The windows, Mr McNair.

Open the windows,
close the windows.

Sweet Jesus.

♪ Oh, say, do you see what I see ♪

♪ Congress sitting here
in sweet serenity ♪

♪ I could cheer, the
reason's clear ♪

♪ For the first time in a year ♪

♪ Adams isn't here ♪

♪ And look the sun is in the sky ♪

♪ A breeze is blowing by ♪

♪ And there's not a single fly ♪

♪ I sing, Hosanna ♪

♪ Hosanna ♪

♪ Hosanna, Hosanna ♪

♪ And it's cool ♪

♪ Come, ye cool, cool
conservative men ♪

♪ Our like may never,
ever be seen again ♪

♪ We have land, cash in hand ♪

♪ Self-command, future planned ♪

♪ Fortune thrives,
society survives ♪

♪ In neatly ordered lives ♪

♪ With well-endowered wives ♪

♪ Come sing, Hosanna ♪

♪ Hosanna ♪

♪ In our breeding and our manner ♪

♪ We are cool ♪

♪ Come, ye cool, cool
considerate set ♪

♪ We'll dance together
to the same minuet ♪

♪ To the right,
ever to the right ♪

♪ Never to the left,
forever to the right ♪

♪ Let our creed be
never to exceed ♪

♪ Regulated speed ♪

♪ No matter what the need ♪

♪ Come sing, Hosanna ♪

♪ Hosanna ♪

♪ Emblazoned on our
banner is, keep cool ♪

♪ To the right,
ever to the right ♪

♪ Never to the left,
forever to the right ♪

♪ Hands attach, tightly latch ♪

♪ Everybody match ♪

♪ I have a new dispatch ♪

From the commander, army of the
United Colonies in New York...

dispatch number 1,158...

to the Honourable Congress, John
Hancock, president. "Dear sir...

I awoke this morning to
find that General Howe...

has landed 25,000 British regulars
and Hessian mercenaries...

on Staten Island...

and that the fleet,
under the command

of his brother,
Admiral Lord Howe...

controls not only
the Hudson and the

East River, but New
York Harbour...

which now looks like
all of London afloat.

I can no longer, in
good conscience...

withhold from the
Congress my certainty

that the British
object at this time...

is Philadelphia.

Happy should I be if I could see
the means of preventing them...

but at present, I
confess I do not.

Oh, how I wish I had never
seen the Continental Army.

I would have done better to
retire to the back country...

and to live in a wigwam.

Your obedient...

G. Washington."

♪ What we do we do rationally ♪

♪ We never, ever go off
half-cocked, not we ♪

♪ Why begin till we
know that we can win ♪

♪ And if we cannot win
why bother to begin ♪

♪ We say this game's
not of our choosing ♪

♪ Why should we risk losing ♪

♪ We're cool, cool men ♪

Mr Hancock, you're a man
of property, one of us.

Why don't you join
us in our minuet?

Why do you persist in
dancing with John Adams?

Good Lord, sir, you
don't even like him.

♪ That is true, he
annoys me quite a lot ♪

♪ But still I'd rather trot
to Mr Adams new gavotte ♪

Why? For personal glory?
For a place in history?

Be careful, sir.
History will brand

him and his followers as traitors.

Traitors, Mr Dickinson? To what?

The British crown or the
British half crown?

Fortunately, there are
not enough men of

property in America
to dictate policy.

Perhaps not, but don't forget
that most men with nothing...

would rather protect the
possibility of becoming rich...

than face the reality
of being poor.

And that is why they
will follow us...

♪ To the right,
ever to the right ♪

♪ Never to left,
forever to the right ♪

♪ Where there's gold,
a market to behold ♪

♪ Tradition that is old ♪

♪ Reluctant to be bold ♪

♪ I sing, Hosanna ♪

♪ Hosanna ♪

♪ In a sane and lucid manner ♪

We are cool.

♪ We're the cool, cool
considerate men ♪

♪ Whose like may never,
ever be seen again ♪

♪ We have land, cash in hand ♪

♪ Self-command Future planned ♪

♪ And we'll hold to our gold ♪

♪ Tradition that is old ♪

♪ Reluctant to be bold ♪

♪ We say this game's
not of our choosing ♪

♪ Why should we risk losing ♪

♪ We're cool, cool
cool, cool, cool ♪

♪ Cool, cool, cool cool, cool ♪

♪ Cool, cool men ♪

How'd you like to try and borrow
a dollar from one of them?

- You want some more rum, General?
- General?

Lord, I ain't even a corporal.

Yeah, well, what's the army know?

Here, son. There you go.

Sit down, gentlemen. The chair
rules it's too damn hot to work.

Well, General, what's
it like out there?

You probably know more than me.

Sitting here? Sweet Jesus...

this is the last place to
find out what's going on.

I'm aiming to join up.

What are you talking about?
You don't have to join up.

- You're in Congress.
- What's that got to do with it?

Well, you don't see them rushing
off to get killed, do ya?

They sure are great
ones for sending

others, I can tell ya that.

Hey, who sits here?

Caesar Rodney of Delaware.

Where are you from, General?

Watertown.

- Where's that?
- Massachusetts.

Well, then you belong over there.

But be careful.

There's something about that chair
that makes a man awful noisy.

You seen any fighting?

Sure did.

I see'd my two best friends get
shot dead on the very same day.

And at Lexington it was too.

Right on the village green.

When they didn't come
home, their mamas

went down the hill
looking for 'em.

Mrs Lowell, she found Timothy.

Right off.

But Mrs Pickett...

she looked near half
the night for William.

He went and crawled
off the green...

before he died.

♪ Mama, hey, Mama ♪

♪ Come looking for me ♪

♪ I'm here in the meadow ♪

♪ By the red maple tree ♪

♪ Mama, hey, Mama ♪

♪ Look sharp ♪

♪ Here I be ♪

♪ Hey, hey ♪

♪ Mama, look sharp ♪

♪ Them soldiers, they fired ♪

♪ Oh, Ma, did we run ♪

♪ But then we turned round ♪

♪ And the battle begun ♪

♪ Then I went under ♪

♪ Oh, Ma, am I done ♪

♪ Hey, hey ♪

♪ Mama, look sharp ♪

♪ My eyes are wide open ♪

♪ My face to the sky ♪

♪ Is that you I'm hearing ♪

♪ In the tall grass nearby ♪

♪ Mama, come find me ♪

♪ Before I do die ♪

♪ Hey, hey ♪

♪ Mama ♪

♪ Look sharp ♪

♪ I'll close your eyes ♪

♪ My Billy ♪

♪ Them eyes that cannot see ♪

♪ And I'll bury ya ♪

♪ My Billy ♪

♪ Beneath the maple tree ♪

♪ And ♪

♪ Never again ♪

♪ Will ya whisper to me ♪

♪ Hey ♪

♪ Hey ♪

♪ Oh, Mama ♪

♪ Look sharp ♪

The secretary will now read the

report of the
Declaration Committee.

Mr Thomson.

"A declaration by
the representatives

of the United States of America...

in general Congress assembled.

When in the course
of human events it

becomes necessary
for one people...

to dissolve the
political bands which

have connected them
with another...

and to assume among the
powers of the earth...

the separate and equal station
to which the laws of nature...

and of nature's god
entitle them...

a decent respect to the
opinions of mankind...

requires that they should
declare the causes...

which impel them
to the separation.

We hold these truths
to be self-evident...

that all men are created equal.

They're endowed by their creator
with certain inalienable rights...

that among these are life, liberty
and the pursuit of happiness...

that we secure these rights..."

Jefferson, we're back,
and we've got Maryland.

That is, we will, as
soon as Chase gets

through telling the
Maryland assembly...

what we saw in New Brunswick.

He's in Annapolis,
describing a ragtag

collection of provincial
militiamen...

who couldn't drill together, train
together or march together.

But when a flock of
ducks flew over...

and they saw their first
meal in three full days...

sweet Jesus, could
they shoot together.

- It was a slaughter.
- A slaughter.

They're reading the declaration.

Good God. How far
have they gotten?

"To render the
military independent

of and superior to
the civil power."

"independent of and
superior to the..."

Nothing to fear.
It's a masterpiece.

I'm to be congratulated.

You?

- For making him write it.
- Oh, of course.

♪ It's a masterpiece, I say ♪

♪ They will cheer every
word, every letter ♪

♪ I wish I felt that way ♪

♪ I believe I can put it better ♪

♪ Now then attend as
friend to friend ♪

♪ Our Declaration Committee ♪

♪ For us I see immortality ♪

♪ In Philadelphia City ♪

♪ A farmer, a lawyer ♪

♪ And a sage ♪

♪ A bit gouty in the leg ♪

♪ You know it's quite bizarre
to think that here we are ♪

♪ Playing midwives to an egg ♪

Egg? What egg?

America. The birth
of a new nation.

If only we could be sure of what
kind of a bird it's going to be.

Tom has a point. What sort
of bird shall we choose...

as the symbol of our new America?

- The eagle.
- The dove.

The turkey.

The eagle.

- The dove.
- The eagle.

- The eagle.
- The turkey.

The eagle is a majestic bird.

The eagle is a scavenger,
a thief and a coward.

A symbol of over ten centuries
of European mischief.

The turkey?

The turkey is a truly noble bird.

Native American. Source of

sustenance of our
original settlers.

An incredibly brave fellow
who will not flinch...

at attacking a regiment of
Englishmen single-handedly.

Therefore, the national bird
of America is going to be...

- The eagle.
- The eagle.

♪ We're waiting for the
chirp, chirp, chirp ♪

♪ Of an eaglet being born ♪

♪ Waiting for the
chirp, chirp, chirp ♪

♪ On this humid Monday morning ♪

♪ In this congressional
incubator ♪

♪ God knows the
temperature's hot enough ♪

♪ To hatch a stone
let alone an egg ♪

♪ We're waiting for the
scratch, scratch, scratch ♪

♪ Of that tiny little fellow ♪

♪ Waiting for the egg to hatch ♪

♪ On this humid Monday morning ♪

♪ In this congressional
incubator ♪

♪ God knows the
temperature's hot enough ♪

♪ To hatch a stone ♪

♪ But will it hatch an egg ♪

The declaration will be a
triumph. I tell you, a triumph.

If I was ever sure of
anything, I'm sure of that.

A triumph.

And if it isn't, we still got four

days left to think
of something else.

♪ The eagle's going
to crack the shell ♪

♪ Of the egg that England laid ♪

♪ Yes, sir we can
tell, tell, tell ♪

♪ On this humid Monday morning ♪

♪ In this congressional
incubator ♪

♪ And just as Tom
here has written ♪

♪ Though its shell may
belong to Great Britain ♪

♪ The eagle inside belongs to us ♪

♪ And just as Tom
here has written ♪

♪ We say to hell
with Great Britain ♪

♪ The eagle inside ♪

♪ Belongs to us ♪

"And to do all other
acts and things...

which independent
states may of right do.

And for the support of
this declaration...

we mutually pledge to
each other our lives...

our fortunes and our
sacred honour."

Thank you, Mr Thomson.

The Congress has heard the report
of the Declaration Committee.

Are there any here who wish
to offer alterations...

deletions, amendments
to this declaration?

Mr President.

Gentlemen. Gentlemen, please.

Colonel McKean, I saw
your hand first.

Mr Jefferson...

it's a funny paper you've written,
Tom, but somewhere in it...

you mention Scottish and foreign
mercenaries sent to destroy us.

Scottish, Tom?

That is in reference to
a Highland regiment...

which stood against us at Boston.

It's more likely Germans wearing

kilts to disguise
their being there.

I ask you to remove
the word and avoid

giving offence to a good people.

Mr Jefferson?

- The Reverend...
- Witherspoon.

Mr Jefferson, nowhere do you
mention the Supreme Being.

Surely this was an
oversight, for how

could we hope to
achieve a victory...

without his help?

Therefore, I suggest the following
addition to your final sentence.

"With a firm reliance on the
protection of Divine Providence."

Mr Jefferson?

Mr Read.

Among your charges against
the king, Mr Jefferson...

you accuse him of depriving us of
the benefits of trial by jury.

This is untrue, sir. In Delaware,
we've always had trial by jury.

In Massachusetts, we have not.

Well, then I suggest that the
words "in many cases" be added.

Mr Jefferson?

"In many cases"? Brilliant.

I suppose every time you
see those three words...

your puny chest will
swell with pride...

over your great
historical contribution.

It's more memorable than your
unprincipled whitewash of that...

race of barbarians.

Race of barbarians?
Why, I'll have you...

Colonel McKean, Mr
Read, that's enough.

- Mr Hopkins.
- I've no objections, Johnny.

- I'm just trying to get a drink.
- I should've known.

McNair, get him a rum.

- Mr Bartlett.
- Mr Jefferson.

I beg you to remember that we
still have friends in England.

I see no purpose in antagonising
them with such phrases as...

"unfeeling brethren"
and "enemies at war."

Our cause is with the British
king, not the British people.

Be sensible, Bartlett.

Remove those phrases
and the entire

paragraph becomes meaningless.

And it so happens that it's one of
the most stirring and poetic...

of any passage in the
entire document. Now...

We're a Congress, Mr Adams,
not a literary society.

I ask that the
paragraph be stricken.

Mr Jefferson?

Oh, good God,
Jefferson, when are you

going to speak up
for your own work?

I had hoped that the work
would speak for itself.

- Mr Hancock?
- What is it, Mr McNair?

I'm not fond of "The
United States of

America" as a name
for a new country.

I don't care what you're
fond of, Mr McNair.

You're not a member
of this Congress.

Mr Sherman.

Brother Jefferson, I
noted at least two

distinct and direct references...

to the British Parliament
in your declaration.

Do you think it's wise to
alienate that august body...

in light of our
contention that they've

never had any authority
over us anyway?

This is a revolution, damn it.

We're going to have
to offend somebody.

Brother Hancock.

You'll give yourself an attack of
apoplexy if you're not careful.

Have you heard what they're doing?

I heard.

And that's just our
friends. Can you

imagine what our enemies will do?

The word "parliament" will be
removed wherever it occurs.

They won't be satisfied
till they remove

one of the F's from
Jefferson's name.

Courage, John. It won't
last much longer.

Mr Dickinson.

Mr Jefferson, I have very little
interest in your paper...

as there's no doubt
in my mind that

we've all but heard
the last of it...

but I am curious about one thing.

Why do you refer to King
George as a tyrant?

Because he is a tyrant.

I remind you, Mr Jefferson, that
this tyrant is still your king.

When a king becomes a tyrant...

he thereby breaks the contract
binding his subjects to him.

- How so?
- By taking away their rights.

Rights that came from
him in the first place?

All except one. The right to
be free comes from nature.

And are we not free, Mr Jefferson?

Homes entered without warrant.

Citizens arrested without charge.

And in many places, free
assembly itself denied.

No one approves of such things,
but these are dangerous times.

Be careful, Mr Dickinson.

Those who'd give
up some liberty in

order to obtain
temporary safety...

deserve neither
liberty nor safety.

Mr Wilson.

Do we in Pennsylvania consider
King George a tyrant?

Well, I don't know.

He...

Oh, no. No, we don't.

He's not a tyrant...

- in Pennsylvania.
- There you are, Mr Jefferson.

Your declaration does
not speak for us all.

I demand the word
"tyrant" be removed.

Very well.

Just a moment, Mr Thomson.

I do not consent.

The king is a tyrant
whether we say so or not.

- We might as well say so.
- But I already scratched it out.

Then scratch it back in.

Put it back, Mr Thomson. The
king will remain a tyrant.

- Mr Hewes.
- Mr Jefferson.

Nowhere do you mention
deep-sea fishing rights.

Oh, good God. Fishing rights.

How long is this
piddling to go on?

We have been here for
three full days.

We have endured, by my count,
85 separate changes...

and the removal of
close to 400 words.

Now, would you whip it and beat
it till you break its spirit?

I tell you that
document is a masterful

expression of the American mind.

If there are no more changes...

then I can assume
the report of the

Declaration Committee has been...

- Just a moment, Mr President.
- Look out.

I wonder if we might
prevail upon Mr Thomson...

to read again a small portion
of Mr Jefferson's declaration.

The one beginning "He
has waged cruel war."

"He has affected. He's combined.

He's abdicated. He's plundered.

He's constrained. He's
excited. He's incited.

He's waged cruel war." Here it is.

"He has waged cruel war against
human nature itself...

in the persons of a distant
people who never offended him...

captivating and carrying them into
slavery in another hemisphere...

determined to keep open a market

where men should be
bought and sold.

- He has prostituted his..."
- That will suffice, Mr Thomson.

Mr Jefferson, I can't
quite make out

what it is you're talking about.

Slavery, Mr Rutledge.

Oh, yes. You're referring to
us as slaves of the king.

No, sir. I'm referring
to our slaves.

Black slaves.

Black slaves.

Why didn't you say so, sir?

Were you trying to
hide your meaning?

No, sir.

Just another literary
licence, then.

If you like.

I don't like at all, Mr Jefferson.

To us in South Carolina,
black slavery

is our peculiar institution...

and a cherished way of life.

Nevertheless, we must abolish it.

Nothing is more certainly
written in the Book of Fate...

than that this people
shall be free.

I am not concerned with the Book
of Fate right now, Mr Jefferson.

I'm more concerned with what is

written in that
little paper there.

That little paper there deals
with freedom for Americans.

Oh, really.

Mr Adams...

is now calling our black
slaves "Americans."

- Are they, now?
- Yes, they are.

They're people and they're here.

If there's any other requirement,
I've never heard of it.

They are here, yes, but they are
not people. They are property.

No, sir. They are people who
are being treated as property.

I tell you, the rights
of human nature...

are deeply wounded by
this infamous practise.

Then see to your own wounds,
for you are a practitioner.

Are you not?

I have already resolved
to release my slaves.

Then I'm sorry...

for you've also resolved the

ruination of your
personal economy.

Economy. Always economy.

There's more to this than a
filthy purse string, Rutledge.

It's an offence
against man and God.

It's a stinking business, Mr
Rutledge. A stinking business.

Is it really, Mr Hopkins?

Then what is that I smell...

floating down from the North?

Could that be the
aroma of hypocrisy?

For who holds the
other end of that

filthy purse string, Mr Adams?

Our northern brethren feeling a
bit tender toward our slaves.

They don't keep slaves.

Oh, no.

But they're willing to be
considerable carriers...

of slaves to others.

They're willing...

for the shilling.

Or haven't you heard, Mr Adams?

Clink, clink.

Clink, clink.

♪ Molasses to rum ♪

♪ To slaves ♪

♪ Oh, what a beautiful waltz ♪

♪ You dance with us ♪

♪ We dance with you ♪

♪ In molasses and rum and slaves ♪

♪ Who sail the ships
out of Boston ♪

♪ Laden with Bibles and rum ♪

♪ Who drinks a toast
to the Ivory Coast ♪

♪ Hail, Africa the
slavers have come ♪

♪ New England with Bibles ♪

♪ And rum ♪

♪ Then it's off with the
rum and the Bibles ♪

♪ Take on the slaves,
clink, clink ♪

♪ Then hail and
farewell to the smell ♪

♪ Of the African coast ♪

♪ Molasses to rum to slaves ♪

♪ 'Tisn't morals, 'Tis
money that saves ♪

♪ Shall we dance to the sound
of the profitable pound ♪

♪ In molasses and rum and slaves ♪

♪ Who sail the ships
out of Guinea ♪

♪ Laden with Bibles and slaves ♪

♪ 'Tis Boston can boast to
the West Indies's coast ♪

♪ Jamaica, we brung
what ye craves ♪

♪ Antigua, Barbados ♪

♪ We brung Bibles ♪

♪ And slaves ♪

Gentlemen, you mustn't think
that our northern friends...

see our black slaves as
merely figures in a ledger.

Oh, no. They see them
as figures on a block.

Look at the faces at the
auctions, gentlemen.

White faces on African wharves.

Seafaring faces.
New England faces.

"Put them in the ships.

Cram them in the ships.

Stuff them in the ships."

Hurry, gentlemen. Let
the auction begin.

♪ Ya ha, ya ha ma Cundah ♪

Gentlemen, do you hear? That's
the cry of the auctioneer.

♪ Ya ha, ya ha ma Cundah ♪

Slaves, gentlemen.

Black gold.

Living gold.

Gold from Angola.

Guinea, Guinea, Guinea.

♪ Blackbirds for sale ♪

Ashanti, ebo, ebo, ebo.

♪ Blackbirds for sale ♪

Handle them.

Fondle them.

But don't finger them.

♪ They're prime, they're prime ♪

♪ Ya ha, ya ha ma Cundah ♪

For the love of God,
Mr Rutledge, please.

♪ Molasses to rum ♪

♪ To slaves ♪

♪ Who sail the ships
back to Boston ♪

♪ Laden with gold See it gleam ♪

♪ Whose fortunes are made
in the triangle trade ♪

♪ Hail, slavery the
New England dream ♪

Mr Adams, I give you a toast.

♪ Hail, Boston ♪

♪ Hail, Charleston ♪

♪ Who stinketh the most ♪

Mr Rutledge, please.

Mr Hewes.

Dr Hall.

Don't worry, John.
They'll be back.

Aye, to vote us down.

Adams. Franklin.

It's done. I have it. And the
Maryland Assembly's approved it.

I told them about
one of the greatest

military engagements in history...

against a flock of...

Well, what's wrong? I thought...

You'll have to forgive
them, Mr Chase.

They just suffered
a slight setback.

And after all, "What
is a man profited...

if he shall gain Maryland
and lose the entire South?"

Matthew, chapter 16, verse 26.

McNair.

- Oh, I know. The flies.
- No.

The rum.

Well, what are we all
sitting around for?

We're wasting time. Precious time.

Thomas, I want you to ride
down into Delaware...

- and fetch back Caesar Rodney.
- John, are you mad?

It's 80 miles, and
he's a dying man.

No, he's a patriot.

John, what good will it do?
The South's done us in.

And suppose they
change their minds?

Can we get Delaware
without Rodney?

God. What a bastardly
bunch we are.

- Stephen, I want you to...
- I'm going to the tavern, Johnny.

If there's anything I can do
for you there, let me know.

Chase. Bartlett.

What's the use, John? The
vote's tomorrow morning.

There's less than a full day left.

- Roger.
- Face facts, John. It's finished.

I'm sorry, John.

We have no choice, John.

The slavery clause has got to go.

Franklin, what are you saying?

It's a luxury we can't afford.

A luxury?

A half million souls in chains...

and Dr Franklin calls it a luxury.

Maybe you should've walked
out with the South.

You forget yourself, sir.

I founded the first antislavery
society on this continent.

Don't wave your credentials at me.

Perhaps it's time you
had them renewed.

The issue here is independence.

Perhaps you've forgotten
that fact, but I have not.

How dare you jeopardise our
cause when we've come so far.

These men...

no matter how much we may
disagree with them...

are not ribbon clerks
to be ordered about.

They're proud, accomplished men.
The cream of their colonies.

And whether you like
it or not, they

and the people they represent...

will be part of this new
nation you'd hope to create.

Now either learn how to live with
them or pack up and go home.

In any case, stop acting
like a Boston fishwife.

Good God. What's happened to me?

John Adams. The great John Adams.

What have I come to?

Law practise down the pipe.
Farm mortgaged to the hilt.

At a stage in life when
other men prosper...

I'm reduced to living
in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia.

Abigail, what am I going to do?

♪ Do, John? ♪

I need your help.

♪ You don't usually
ask my advice ♪

Yes, well, there doesn't appear
to be anyone else right now.

♪ Very well, John, what is it? ♪

The entire South has just
walked out of this Congress...

George Washington is on the
verge of total annihilation...

and the precious cause for which I

have laboured these
several years...

has come to nothing.

And it seems that I'm
obnoxious and disliked.

♪ Nonsense, John ♪

That I am unwilling
to face reality.

♪ Foolishness, John ♪

That I'm pigheaded.

♪ Ah, well, there
you have me, John ♪

♪ I'm afraid you are pig-headed ♪

Well, yes.

Oh, Abby.

Has it been any kind
of a life for you?

God knows I haven't
given you very much.

I never asked for more.

After all, I am Mrs John Adams.

That's quite a lot
for one lifetime.

- Is it, Abby?
- Well, think of it, John.

To be married to the
man who is always

the first in line to be hanged.

Yes. The agitator.

Why, Abby?

You must tell me what it is. I...

Well, I have always been
dissatisfied. I know that.

But lately, I find that I
reek of discontentment.

It fills my throat, and
it floods my brain.

Sometimes I fear there
is no longer a dream.

Only the discontentment.

Can you really know so
little about yourself?

And can you think so little
of me that you'd believe...

I'd marry the man
you've described?

Have you forgotten what you
used to say to me? I haven't.

"Commitment, Abby.

Commitment.

There are only two creatures of
value on the face of this earth...

those with a commitment...

and those who require the
commitment of others."

Do you remember, John?

Yes, I remember.

Mr Adams.

Are you up there, Mr Adams?

What do you want?

There's a delivery
down here for ya.

What is it?

Where did it come
from? Who sent it?

♪ Compliments of the Concord
Ladies' coffee club ♪

♪ And the Sisterhood of
the Truro Synagogue ♪

♪ And the Friday evening
Baptist sewing circle ♪

♪ And the Holy Christian
Sisters of St. Claire ♪

♪ All for you ♪

♪ John ♪

♪ I am, as I ever was ♪

♪ And ever shall be ♪

♪ Yours, yours, yours ♪

♪ Yours ♪

Abigail, what's in these kegs?

♪ Saltpetre, John ♪

McNair.

McNair, go out and
buy every damned

pin you can find in Philadelphia.

Pin? What sort of pin?

Well, I don't know. Whatever the
ladies use for their sewing.

Franklin, Jefferson, what are
you all sitting around for?

Didn't you hear a
word I said before?

Oh, never mind about that.

Here's what I want you to do.

John, I'm not even
speaking to you.

It's too late for that, damn
it. There's work to be done.

Jefferson, go find Rutledge.

Don't come back until
you've worn him down.

Now, you're both
southern aristocrats.

If he'll listen to anybody,
he'll listen to you.

Franklin, out of that chair.

What good is the South if you
can't deliver Pennsylvania?

Talk to Wilson. Get him
away from Dickinson.

That's the only way to do it.
Go on, now, both of you.

- John?
- Time's running out, damn it.

Now move.

I'm still from
Massachusetts, John.

You know where I stand.
I'll do whatever you say.

No. You're the
president of Congress.

You're a fair man,
Hancock. Stay that way.

Tell me, Mr Thomson,
out of curiosity...

do you stand with Mr Dickinson,
or do you stand with me?

I stand with the general.

Well, lately, I've had the
oddest feeling that he's been...

writing to me.

♪ I have been in expectation ♪

♪ Of receiving a reply ♪

♪ On the subject of my
last 15 dispatches ♪

♪ Is anybody there ♪

♪ Does anybody care ♪

♪ Does anybody care ♪

"Your humble and obedient..."

"Is anybody there?

Does anybody care?"

♪ Does anybody see what I see ♪

♪ They want me to quit ♪

♪ They say John,
give up the fight ♪

♪ Still to England, I say ♪

♪ Good night forever, good night ♪

♪ For I have crossed the Rubicon ♪

♪ Let the bridge be
burned behind me ♪

♪ Come what may ♪

♪ Come what may commitment ♪

♪ The croakers all say
we'll rue the day ♪

♪ There'll be hell to pay
in fiery purgatory ♪

♪ Through all the gloom,
through all the gloom ♪

♪ I can see the rays
of ravishing light ♪

♪ And glory ♪

♪ Is anybody there? ♪

♪ Does anybody care? ♪

♪ Does anybody see what I see? ♪

♪ I see fireworks ♪

♪ I see the pageant
and pomp and parade ♪

♪ I hear the bells ringing out ♪

♪ I hear the cannons roar ♪

♪ I see Americans ♪

♪ All Americans free ♪

♪ Forevermore ♪

♪ How quiet, how quiet
the chamber is ♪

♪ How silent, how
silent the chamber is ♪

♪ Is anybody there ♪

♪ Does anybody care ♪

Does anybody see...

what I see?

Yes, Mr Adams.

I do.

Dr Hall.

I didn't know anyone was...

I'm sorry if I startled you.

I couldn't sleep.

And in trying to
resolve my dilemma...

I remembered something
I'd once read.

"That a representative owes the
people not only his industry...

"but his judgement...

and he betrays them if he
sacrifices it to their opinion."

That was written
by Edmund Burke...

a member of the
British Parliament.

Good night, Mr Adams.

Good night.

It's never been done before

No colony has ever broken from the

parent stem in the
history of the world

If you have grievances
and I'm sure you have

Our present system must provide a

gentler means of redressing them

We've spawned a new race here

Revolution?

Rougher, simpler, more violent
more enterprising, less refined

"My quartermaster has no
food no arms, no ammunition

And my troops are in a
state of near mutiny

I pray God some
relief arrives before

the armada, but fear it will not."

And when they hang you, Mr Adams

I do hope you'll put in a
good word for the rest of us

England closing in cutting
off our air. There's no time

Place before mankind the
common sense of the subjects

The issue here is independence

Perhaps you've lost sight of
that fact, but I have not

"We mutually pledge to
each other our lives

Our fortunes and our
sacred honour."

Can you really know so
little about yourself?

Very well.

The Congress will now vote on

Virginia's resolution
on independence.

Thank you for coming, Caesar,
and God bless you, sir.

The secretary will call the roll.

And I remind you, gentlemen...

that a single "nay" vote...

will defeat the motion.

Mr Thomson.

- New Hampshire.
- New Hampshire says yea.

New Hampshire says
yea. Massachusetts.

- Massachusetts says yea.
- Massachusetts says yea.

- Rhode Island.
- Rhode Island says yea.

Rhode Island says
yea. Connecticut.

- Connecticut says yea.
- Connecticut says yea.

New York.

Mr Secretary, New York
abstains courteously.

- New York abstains.
- Courteously.

- New Jersey.
- New Jersey says yea.

New Jersey says yea. Pennsylvania.

Mr Secretary, Pennsylvania is not

ready. Please come
back to us later.

Pennsylvania passes. Delaware.

Delaware, by majority vote...

- Aye.
- Says yea.

Delaware says yea. Maryland.

- Maryland says yea.
- Maryland says yea.

- Virginia.
- Virginia says yea.

Virginia says yea. North Carolina.

North Carolina yields
to South Carolina.

South Carolina.

Well, Mr Adams?

Well, Mr Rutledge?

Mr Adams...

you must believe that I will
do what I promised to do.

What is it you want?

Remove the offending passage
from your declaration.

If we did that, we
would be guilty of

what we ourselves are
rebelling against.

Nevertheless, remove it...

or South Carolina will
bury now and forever...

your dream of independence.

John, I beg you, consider
what you're doing.

Mark me, Franklin...

if we give in on this issue,
posterity will never forgive us.

That's probably true, but we won't
hear a thing. We'll be long gone.

Besides, what will posterity
think we were? Demigods?

We're men... no more, no less...
trying to get a nation started...

against greater odds than a more
generous God would have allowed.

First things first, John.
Independence. America.

If we don't secure that, what
difference will the rest make?

Jefferson, say something.

What else is there to do?

Well, man, you're the
one that wrote it.

I wrote all of it, Mr Adams.

There. There it is, Rutledge.

You have your slavery.
Little good may it do you.

Now vote, damn you.

Mr President, the fair
colony of South Carolina...

- says yea.
- South Carolina says yea.

- North Carolina says yea.
- North Carolina says yea.

- Georgia.
- Georgia says yea.

Georgia says yea.

Pennsylvania, second call.

Mr President, Pennsylvania regrets
all of the inconvenience...

that such distinguished men as
Adams, Franklin and Jefferson...

were put to just now.

They might've kept
their document intact

for all the difference
it will make.

Mr President, Pennsylvania says...

Just a moment.

I ask the delegation to be polled.

Dr Franklin, don't be absurd.

A poll, Mr President.
It's a proper request.

Yes, it is. Poll the
delegation, Mr Thomson.

- Dr Benjamin Franklin.
- Yea.

- Mr John Dickinson.
- Nay.

Mr James Wilson.

Judge Wilson?

There it is, Mr Wilson.
It's all up to you now.

The question of
American independence

rests squarely on your shoulders.

An entirely new nation ready to
be born or to die at birth...

all on your say so.

Which will it be, Mr Wilson?

Every mapmaker in the world
is waiting for your decision.

Oh, come now, James.
Nothing has changed.

We mustn't let Dr Franklin
create one of his confusions.

The question is clear.

Most questions are clear when
someone else has to decide them.

It'd be a pity for
a man who's handed

down hundreds of wise decisions...

from the bench...

to be remembered only for the one

unwise decision he
made in Congress.

James, you're keeping
everybody waiting.

The secretary has
called for your vote.

Please.

Don't push me, John. I know
what you want me to do.

But Mr Adams is correct
about one thing.

I'm the one who'll be
remembered for it.

What do you mean?

I'm different from you, John.

I'm different from
most of the men here.

I don't want to be remembered.

I just don't want the...

responsibility.

Yes, well, whether you
want it or not, James...

there's no way of avoiding it.

Not necessarily, John.

If I go with them, I'll
just be one among dozens.

No one will ever remember
the name of James Wilson.

But if I vote with you...

I'll be the man who prevented
American independence.

I'm sorry, John.

I just didn't bargain for that.

And is that how new
nations are formed?

By a nonentity trying
to preserve...

the anonymity he so
richly deserves?

Revolutions come into this world

like bastard children,
Mr Dickinson.

Half improvised and
half compromised.

Our side has provided
the compromise.

Now Judge Wilson is
supplying the rest.

James.

I'm sorry, John.

My vote is yea.

Mr Secretary,
Pennsylvania says yea.

The count, being twelve to none...

with one abstention...

the resolution on independence...

is adopted.

It's done.

It's done.

Mr Thomson, is the declaration
ready to be signed?

- It is.
- Then I suggest we do so.

And the chair further
proposes, for

our mutual security
and protection...

that no man sit in this Congress
without attaching his name to it.

I'm sorry, Mr President.

I cannot, in good conscience,
sign such a document.

I will never stop hoping for our

eventual reconciliation
with England.

But because...

in my own way...

I regard America no less
than does Mr Adams...

I will join the army and
fight in her defence...

even though I believe that
fight to be hopeless.

Goodbye, gentlemen.

Gentlemen of the Congress...

I say yea, John Dickinson.

Very well.

Are there objections
to the declaration

being approved as it now stands?

- I have one, Mr Hancock.
- You, Mr Adams?

Yes. Mr Jefferson...

it so happens that the
word is "unalienable,"

not "inalienable."

I'm sorry, Mr Adams, but
"inalienable" is correct.

I happen to be a Harvard
graduate, Mr Jefferson.

I attended William
and Mary, Mr Adams.

Gentlemen, please.
Mr Jefferson, will

you yield to Mr Adams's request?

No, sir, I will not.

Oh, very well. I withdraw it.

Oh, good for you, John.

I'll speak to the printer
about it later on.

Very well, gentlemen.

We're about to brave the storm
in a skiff made of paper.

And how it shall
end, God only knows.

That's a pretty large
signature, Johnny.

So Fat George in London can
read it without his glasses.

Step right up, gentlemen. Don't

miss your chance
to commit treason.

Hancock is right. This paper is
our passport to the gallows.

But there's no backing out now,
for if we do not hang together...

we shall most assuredly
hang separately.

In my case, hanging
won't be so bad.

One snap and it'll be all
over, just like that.

But look at Read there. He'll be
dancing a jig long after I'm gone.

Gentlemen, forgive me if I
don't join in the merriment...

but if we are arrested now...

my name is still the only
one on the damn thing.

From the commander, army of
the United Colonies in...

army of the United
States in New York...

dispatch number 1,209...

to the Honourable Congress, John
Hancock, President. "Dear sir...

I can now report with
some certainty...

that the eve of battle
is near at hand.

Toward this end, I have ordered
the evacuation of Manhattan...

and directed our
defences to take up

stronger positions
on Brooklyn Heights.

At the present time,
my forces consist

entirely of Haslet's
Delaware Militia...

and Smallwood's Marylanders...

a total of 5,000 troops
to stand against...

25,000 of the enemy.

And I begin to notice
that many of us...

are lads under 15 and old men...

none of whom could truly
be called soldiers.

One personal note to Mr
Lewis Morris of New York.

I must regretfully report that his

estates have been
totally destroyed...

but that I have taken the liberty
of transporting Mrs Morris...

and eight of the children
to Connecticut and safety.

The four older boys are now
enlisted in the Continental Army.

As I write these words...

the enemy is plainly in
sight beyond the river.

How it will end, only
Providence can direct.

But dear God, what brave men...

I shall lose...

before...

this business...

ends.

Your obedient...

G. Washington."

Very well, gentlemen.

McNair.

Go ring the bell.

- Mr President.
- Mr Morris.

To hell with New York.
I'll sign it anyway.

Thank you, Mr Morris.

Stephen, sit down.

No.

I want to remember each
man's face as he signs.

Very well.

Mr Thomson.

New Hampshire. Dr Josiah Bartlett.

Massachusetts. Mr John Adams.

Rhode Island. Mr Stephen Hopkins.

Connecticut. Mr Roger Sherman.

New York. Mr Lewis Morris.

New Jersey. The Reverend
John Witherspoon.

Pennsylvania. Dr
Benjamin Franklin.

Delaware. Mr Caesar Rodney.

Maryland. Mr Samuel Chase.

Virginia. Mr Thomas Jefferson.

North Carolina. Mr Joseph Hewes.

South Carolina. Mr
Edward Rutledge.

Georgia. Dr Lyman Hall.