John Adams (2008): Season 1, Episode 1 - Join or Die - full transcript

Hup! Hup! Hup!

Lobsters for sale!
Lobsters!

Who'll buy?
Lobsters!

Clean out my shit bucket,
lobster!

Who'll buy lobsters?

Hup! Hup! Hup!

- Lobsters! Who'll buy?
- Go back to England!

Take that!

Hit 'em right
in the head!

We are people, not
an animal, lobster!

Thattagirl.



Come on now. Come on,
you old fool.

Get over here.

Come here.

There we go.

Ah, look at that.

Quite a big one, huh?

That must have hurt.

You lost.

I did.

I could tell

by the set of your shoulders.

My client alleged

that his neighbor's horse

had trampled his crops.



And had it?

Hard to say.

There were no witnesses

and the beast
refused to testify

for some reason.

Hey, follow me!

Father.

Allow the child
to breathe, John.

There, can you breathe now?

Did you go to the farm?

Mr. Bass is sending
a cord of wood.

And there's a fence
down in the south field...

Fire!

It's a fire!

Where is it coming from?

Mr. Adams! Mr. Adams!

Coming coming
coming coming!

Here we go. Here we...

There we go.

There we go.
Off we go.

Reload!

Please help me! Help!

Anyone, please!

Murderers!

No! No!

Don't fire. Do not fire, lads!

- Come on! Come on!
- Help me!

Look at me. Yes?

- Can you breathe?
- My son.

Is this your boy?

Murderers!

Come away.
Come away, Sam!

Shoot me too, Preston,
if you dare!

Sam, Sam, come away!

You'll suffer the full
penalty of the law!

Sam!

These people
need to be tended to.

These people
need our help here, yes?

Go!

What happened, Father?

- We looked, we couldn't see the fire.
- It's all over now.

Just a little
hubbub is all.

Nothing to worry about.

Return to bed.

Bed! Both of ya!

British soldiers
fired into a crowd

on State House Square.

God help us.

I thought it might
come to this.

- People were killed?
- Uh-huh.

I cannot say what number...

one of them
no more than a child,

from what I could see.

I have no words
for it, Abigail.

"Omnia Gallia

in tres partes

divisa est."

"All Gaul is divided
unto three parts."

Good. Who do you
think would divide Gaul?

- John!
- Beggin' your pardon.

- Yes?
- Mr. Adams, my name is Forrest.

What happened to you?

It's nothing, sir.

I'm known to be a friend
of the soldiers here.

What is your business, sir?

I'm here to ask you
to help a man.

Captain Preston.

No one else
will plead his case.

Come in.

I will get a basin
to dress those cuts.

That's very kind.
Thank you.

Here. Sit.

Sit.

Come, here.

Can it harm to go
and see this soldier?

- Aya.
- How?

Because you will find
a way to believe him.

He may be
telling the truth.

All your clients
tell the truth, John Adams,

but your prospective client is the most
despised man in Boston.

By the time the news
of last night's events spread,

I have no doubt he will be the most
despised man in all of Massachusetts.

- It will be much talked of.
- Ah. Ambition.

Counsel is the last thing

an accused person should lack
in a free country, Abigail.

Then accept it.

But will I be
condemned for it?

They will say you
are the Crown's man.

I care not for malicious
tongues on either side.

These are the murderers.

May God forgive them.

And you too, sir.

Captain Preston,

you wish to engage my
services in your defense?

They've all refused us, sir,

every man jack of them.

They say you're a man
of integrity, Mr. Adams.

Well, you may expect
from me no art of address,

no sophistry or prevarication
in such a cause.

Nothing more
than fact, evidence

and the law will justify,
Captain Preston.

But before I can even
consider taking your case,

I must hear your
account of what happened.

My men came
to the aid of a sentry

outside the customhouse.

He was being abused
by the crowd.

They asked me to empty
their shit buckets.

I told 'em to back off,
but they kept at it...

screaming at me,
throwing things.

Mr. Montgomery
called for the guard.

I led them to the square,

we made formation
facing the crowd,

bayonets fixed,
muskets loaded.

Look, I gave no order
to fire, sir. I swear.

I was standing
in front of the men.

I was talking
to a big fella.

He had a club and...

I think they
call him Palmes.

Yet some of your soldiers
did fire, Captain Preston.

As of this morning,
five are dead...

men and boys.

My men acted in
self-defense, Mr. Adams,

as God Almighty
is our judge.

The hotheads have
finally tasted blood.

We cannot be
surprised by it.

The presence of the soldiers
here is much resented.

Of course, the people
of Boston would be lining up

to pay taxes if they were
represented in Parliament.

But the fact remains
that they're not,

and defiance will not
ensure their inclusion.

Our other colonies understand this.
Why can't Boston?

Do you speak as yourself here
or as the attorney general?

The man and the office
are one in the same.

The governor is pleased

that you've taken on
the Preston matter.

I was not aware that the governor
took any notice of me at all.

You do not
think it merited?

Ah, well...

it is not for me to say.

Well, surely, John,
you did not move your practice

from the country to
go unnoticed in Boston.

Jonathan...

Please do not trouble
yourself with a rebuttal.

I know you too well.

You're a hero, boy.

You haven't much
of a case, John.

Do I not?

No Boston jury will
ever vote for acquittal.

Thank you for your
kind advice, Sam.

This is not a time for showing
how clever you are, cousin.

This is a time
for choosing sides.

I am for the law, cousin.

Is there another side?

There are those
who fight for our rights

- as natural-born Englishmen.
- Yeah!

And those that would
strip us of those rights!

I do not have
the luxury

of your birth
or your purse, Sam,

to spend my days
fomenting dissension.

I intend to prove this
colony is governed by law...

John.

- Whatever you and your Sons of Liberty
may say on the matter!

John.

We're all Sons of Liberty here.

Hear hear.

The jury are all
but certain

to have judged this issue before
they hear a word of evidence.

"Does the government of
King George have the right

to tax the citizens
of Boston

when they are
denied representation

in the Parliament
in Westminster?"

Charles, stay away
from the fire!

But this is not a trial
about taxes levied on Massachusetts.

You would do
well to acknowledge it.

No, it is a trial about
whether or not Captain Preston

ordered his men
to fire on that crowd,

and if that crowd was
a lawful assembly or a mob.

Remove yourself, sir!

Nabby!

Charles, please.

The... the...
the resentment of Boston

towards the Crown
is irrelevant!

Do not ignore it.
It must be said.

Acknowledge it
as a fact.

Do not comment. Do not sit in judgment
of the jury's prejudice.

Suggest that they
must rise above it as you have done.

You have a higher opinion
of juries than I.

You must persuade even more,

and mask your impatience

with those less intelligent
than yourself.

Good heaven.

Is my demeanor
in the court on trial now?

I would not dream

of telling you how to conduct
yourself in court.

Would you not?

I heard Captain Preston

plain as day.

"Damn your bloods!"
He said.

"You won't
treat me this way."

Then he told
the soldiers to fire.

And how would you
describe the behavior

of these young lads

just before
the soldiers fired?

Throwing snowballs.

Ah! Snowballs!

Well, a terrifying prospect

for armed soldiers...
snowballs!

Oh, they didn't like it, sir.
Chilly on the skin and all.

Mr. Adams.

Mr. Goddard,

when you arrived
in the square,

you had ample opportunity
to observe the crowd, huh?

I did, sir.

Mmm. And were any of them
carrying anything

apart from snowballs?

Well, let me see.

I don't recall, sir.

Were any of these men
carrying clubs?

- They were, sir.
- Indeed?

A lawful assembly.
Not a riot, a lawful assembly

in which people
were carrying clubs.

To make certain nothing
unlawful occurred, perhaps?

The men are
rope makers, sir.

As any true
Boston man would know,

the clubs they were carrying
are for beating out rope.

For beating out rope,

indeed?

But could they
not also be used

for beating out
men's brains?

No!

There was no riot!
Any man who suggests there was is lying!

Order!

Uh, Mr. Goddard,

where exactly
were you standing

when you say you heard the officer
in the dock, Captain Preston,

give the order to fire?

Close enough
to have touched him, sir.

Mmm. And where
was he standing?

He stood behind his men, sir.

I see, I see.

Behind his men?

I will ask the jury
to take note of that.

Mr. Holmes...

would you please describe
the events you witnessed

on the night
of March the 5th?

I saw some boys
near the sentry...

at the customhouse door.

And what were they doing,
these boys?

- Making a noise.
- Shouting...

at the sentry?

I suppose.

Were they doing
anything else?

What were they doing?

Throwing ice, sir,

and oyster shells.

And did this harassment

continue with the arrival
of Captain Preston and his men?

Yes.

It did.

Did you yourself pick up
everything you could find

and throw it at them?

Yes, sir.

How many people were
there about, Mr. Holmes?

Near 200 boys and men
before it was over.

200 boys and men.
Good heavens.

And as you say,

they were all throwing
ice and oyster shells.

Were they throwing
anything else?

Did they throw
their clubs, Mr. Holmes?

As you say,
this crowd,

they were making
a great hullabaloo, huh?

- Yes.
- They were shouting?

- Yes.
- Mmm. What were they shouting

to the soldiers?

Just before the soldiers
started shooting...

Yes?

...I heard the people say...

What did you
hear them say?

Please, Mr. Holmes.

What did you hear them say?

"Fire, damn you. Fire!"

"Fire! Fire!
Fire, damn you!

Fire!"

Now, did you take this
to be the cry of "Fire"

or bidding these
soldiers to fire?

No, they meant
for the soldiers to shoot, sir.

You say that this crowd

actually dared
the soldiers to fire?

That they did.

God help me, they did.

Thank you, sir.

Mr. Palmes?

Mr. Palmes.

I know that you spoke
to Captain Preston.

I simply want you to say
what you saw that evening.

If British soldiers fired

on a defenseless crowd
without provocation

I will be the first to want
to see them hanged for it.

But suppose
they are innocent.

I do not wish to see
innocent men die in my name.

Do you?

I wish to point out

that my next witness

does not appear
in support of either party.

The court calls...

- Richard Palmes.
- Richard Palmes...

to come forth
and be heard!

Richard Palmes!

Mr. Palmes,

Captain Preston
has told me...

that you were
standing next to him

just before
the fatal moment.

I was.

So close, in fact,
that your coat

was scorched
with musket fire.

Did you have occasion
to exchange words with the accused?

I did.

What did you say to him?

I asked him
if he had intention

to order his men
to fire on the crowd.

And what did
Captain Preston reply?

He said...

as he was standing
in front of them...

he would be
foolish to do so.

So you are
prepared to swear

he was standing
in front of his men...

not behind them

as Mr. Goddard told us?

Mr. Palmes...

and when did you hear
the command to fire?

After the first shot
went off.

And did these words
come from behind his men?

I think they did.

Could you swear

that Captain Preston
did not shout that command?

I could not.

Very good, Mr. Palmes.

Captain Preston, you have heard
the words of Richard Palmes.

Do you agree that you were
standing not behind,

but in front of your men?

I do, sir.

Order!

It was while I was
speaking with him

the first shot
was fired, sir.

Without your giving orders?

Indeed, sir.

If I may recall to the court the words
of Richard Palmes.

I asked him "And when did you
hear the command to fire?"

And he answered

"After the first
shot went off."

Which man fired, Captain?

Young Mont...
Private Montgomery, sir.

And what caused this man
to fire, Captain?

He received a severe
blow with a club, sir.

He fell to the ground
and his musket discharged.

After that happened,
more clubs, bats...

Order!

Order! Order!

- Planks rained down
on my men!

I was telling them
not to fire, sir!

Order!

But some voices

were urging them to fire.

"Fire! Fire!

Fire!

Shoot me if you dare."

They were, sir.

Where did these voices
come from, Captain?

From the alley
behind my men, sir.

Voices from a crowd saying...

Shouting "Damn your bloods!

Why don't you open fire?"

Kindly recall for the court

the evidence
of Robert Goddard.

"I heard the voice
of Captain Preston say

'Damn your bloods! '

And then he gave
the order to fire."

Be still.
Allow me to finish.

- Well?
- John, how can I answer

if you'll not let me finish?

- You did not like it.
- I did not say that.

Oh, you did not have to.

It is a fine summary
for the defense.

There is...
is much to admire.

It is, perhaps, at times...

Yes?

John,

there's not a person in Boston
who doubts your education.

- Your command of language...
- Oh, dear.

You are charming me, Abigail.

You never charm me

unless what you're
about to say is cutting.

John...

- vanity.
- Vain?

You have overburdened
your argument

with ostentatious erudition.

You do not need to quote great men
to show you are one.

My purpose is to show

that certain principles

are eternal.

And that men
of great minds have...

- why are you laughing?

- Through the ages agreed
on certain basic principles.

A noble purpose, no doubt.

But some of the jury
might think

that you want to prove
the brilliance of the speaker

rather than the truth
of the case he is arguing.

Well, perhaps
in certain passages,

a more direct line...

might be an improvement.

Well, I can see that I am
to have no sleep tonight.

Hmm. Hmm.

Would you have me lose
all the quotations?

John.

What species
of homicide is this?

Is there, in law, such a thing

as voluntary manslaughter?

No, a person cannot
justify killing if he can

by any means
make his escape.

He that commits
a cruel act voluntarily

is guilty of malice
aforethought.

And malice was very much

on these prisoners' minds.

By the very act
of loading their muskets

with powder and ball,
they have proved this.

They stand condemned
by their own actions.

Hear hear. Yes. Yes.

Order!

I ask that you heed
the words of the indictment,

that the accused,

not having the fear
of God before their eyes,

but being moved
by the instigation

of their own wicked hearts,

did perpetrate
nothing less than murder.

You must
pronounce them guilty!

Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!

Order!

I am for
the prisoners at the bar.

In the words
of the Marquis of Beccaria...

"If by supporting
the rights of mankind

I shall save from
the agonies of death

one unfortunate
victim of tyranny,

or of ignorance
equally fatal...

His blessings will be
sufficient consolation to me

for the contempt
of all mankind."

When people are taxed
without representation,

they are sometimes
to feel abused.

And sometimes
they may even rebel.

But we must take care, lest

borne away by
a torrent of passion

we make shipwreck
of conscience.

The prisoners
must be judged

solely upon the evidence
produced against them in court

and by nothing else.

And the evidence we have heard

speaks plainly enough,
gentlemen.

A sentry's post
is his castle!

And to attack it,
by English law,

is an illegal act.

Soldiers so assaulted
may defend themselves

to the death.

The people are crying,

"Kill them! Kill them!

Knock them down!"

And they're heaving
sharp cutting ice,

oyster shells, clubs.

What are they to do,

behave like stoic philosophers
lost in apathy?

Disregard these uniforms.

Consider the men
who wear them.

Consider yourselves
in such a situation

and judge
if a reasonable man

would not fear
for his life.

Facts are stubborn things.

See, whatever our wishes,
our inclinations...

or the dictums
of our passions...

they cannot alter the state
of facts and evidence.

You see, the law
on the one hand

is inexorable

to the cries and lamentations
of the prisoners.

But on the other hand,

it is deaf,
deaf as an adder

to the clamors
of the populace.

Gentlemen of the jury,

I submit to your candor

and justice...

the prisoners
and their cause.

All those trees we planted...

keep them well pruned.
They should fetch a shilling each.

And perhaps we should
try flax instead of corn this year

in the north pasture.

- The jury's back already, sir.
- Thank you.

An ill omen for our side.

Go.

Don't leave those
lying all about, Charles.

Here.

Well done.

On the charge of murder...

we the jury
find the accused,

Captain Thomas Preston,
not guilty.

Order!

- Hang them!
- Order!

Hang them!

On the charge of murder,

we the jury find the accused:
John Carroll,

James Hartigan,

Matthew Kilroy,
William McCauley,

Hugh Montgomery,

William Warren,

William Wemms

and Hugh White...

not guilty.

Order!

There being further business
before the court

I hereby declare

this session adjourned!

God save the king!

God save the king!

- God save your king!
- Move.

Bastard.

- Well well, gentlemen.
- Thank you, sir.

Captain Preston.

- Mr. Adams.
- Please take this, sir.

It isn't much, but it's
from the lot of us...

Now if I were you,
I'd confine myself to barracks

for a good while, yeah?

What about yourself,
Mr. Adams?

You really think you're
gonna be safe from this rabble?

No, you forget,
Captain Preston,

you have just been acquitted
by a jury of New England men.

Massachusetts
is my country, sir.

- With me, lads.
- Thank you, sir.

Well...

I have done it, Mrs. Adams.

Oh!

Oh! There will be no living with you
at all now, I suppose.

Children,
congratulate your father.

- Congratulations.
- Congratulations, Father.

Well, thank you.
Thank you.

- Charles, fetch my pipe.
- Yes, sir.

- Nabby, tea.
- Yes, Father.

Johnny, come here

- and help me with my boots.
- Yes, Father.

- There we are.
- Oh, John.

Harder!

There we go.

Whatever the cost
to your practice,

your defense
of Captain Preston

has earned you
a reputation for impartiality.

If you were now to speak out
in opposition to the Crown,

it would lend
gravity to our cause.

I know you share
our sympathies, cousin.

Why not stand for election
on the Massachusetts Council?

I have no talent
for politics.

I am by nature
far too independent-minded.

And besides, I hardly
think that my name

will add luster to your
cause at this time.

Half my clients have
left me since the trial.

- John.
- I have already served one term

on the Massachusetts Council

and it made me ill with work,

work which made it
almost impossible for me

to attend to my practice.

Well, I have no desire
to serve again.

I thank you
for your offer, gentlemen...

but my family
must take precedence.

Many in Boston are unable
to make their living.

The Crown's policies
are reducing them to poverty.

- No, you exaggerate, sir.
- We are required...

- Mr. Paine...
...are required to import British goods

and then expected
to pay for the privilege.

They've taxed
our paper, our glass,

the lead
in our paint...

even our playing
cards and dice.

All such taxes,
I remind you, repealed.

Repealed because we've
spoken out against them.

And we'll continue to do so.

Without your support
it would seem.

I cannot oblige you,
gentlemen.

I'm sorry.

The office
of Advocate General

in the Court of Admiralty
has become vacant.

Is that so? Huh.

I have spoken about you
to the governor.

We were both of the opinion
that you would be...

the ideal candidate.

Well, I'm flattered.

A recommendation has been
agreed to by the king.

The appointment
is yours, John,

and brings with it
the powers and privileges

attached to the king's name.

Congratulations, John.

Well, it's no secret, John,

that your practice has
fallen off since the trial.

Well, for the most part,
that is the case.

This would be an entree to the most
profitable business in the colony.

What do you say,
my friend?

You do not speak, John.

Qui tacet consentire?

Mrs. Adams means to say
that her husband's silence

suggests that he is willing

to have his name
put forward to King George.

My father was a shoemaker.

My mother could not read.

And I have
been singled out

for preferment
by the King of England.

I am for the law...

and yet, in whom
is the power of that law vested?

The king.

I am for the law...

and yet who can
give me preferment?

The King of England.

Ah, to be the king's man,

and all that
it would carry with it.

So what is it
Mr. Hancock requires of me?

He would like your advice.

Well, if he is in need of legal advice,
I will speak to him.

But if this is yet again
an exercise to win me over...

John, this is business, John.

The Dartmouth,
The Eleanor, The Beaver,

just in,
their holds full of tea.

All British ships. The king demands
that their cargo be unloaded,

cargo on which we,
the citizens of Boston,

must pay a new tax.

You will not land
this cargo, gentlemen!

This is legitimate cargo,
tea from the East India Company

that you are bound
by law to unload.

What's legitimate
about it, friend?

No other tea is allowed
in Boston Harbor!

Either we drink the king's
foul brew or nothing at all.

And who may you be, sir?

John Hancock,
ship owner.

Not John Hancock, smuggler?

Watch your words, sir!

I'm an honest man being
strangled by monopoly!

Shame on you, sir!

Shame on you!

Shame! Shame!

Shame on you!
Shame on you!

Shame on you!

- Shame on you!
- Sam!

Teach him a lesson!
Tar the bastard!

Tar him! Tar him!

No, Sam.

For the love of God, Sam!

This is barbarism!
Barbarism!

Tar him! Tar him!

John.

Tar him! Tar him!
Tar him!

Feather him!

Do you approve of this?

People are hurt
when they fight

- for what is rightfully theirs!
- Do you approve

of brutal and illegal acts

to enforce a political
principle, Sam?

Answer me that, can you?

I am afraid

of where this may lead us...

if we do not chart
our course carefully...

together.

This colony does not

dictate to Parliament,
John,

nor to the king.

If the Crown decides
tea is to be taxed, it will be taxed.

Well, would you have
the empire bankrupted?

The war we fought
to expand our territory,

to protect our borders
from the Indians

and their French allies,
it was a costly affair.

I'm not here to
debate the necessity of taxes, Jonathan,

but the manner
in which they are imposed.

Massachusetts must shoulder
its share of the burden.

And be treated
as second-class citizens?

Without the rights and liberties
of natural-born Englishmen...

Oh, liberty in this colony

has often carried
a taint of anarchy.

My offer still stands, John.

The Crown has
a high opinion of you.

So do I.

The Crown is misguided,

but it is not despotic.

I firmly believe that.

Your cousin does not.

Nor his many friends.

They have cause.

It seems my cousin
and his friends

intend to take
the government of this colony

into their own hands.

People are in need
of strong governance, Abigail...

restraint.

Most men are weak

and evil and vicious.

"Whereas dangerous
insurrections

have been fomented
in the town of Boston

to the utter subversion
of His Majesty's government

and the utter destruction
of the public peace,

be it enacted that no goods
or merchandise whatever

be transported to
or brought from

any other colony or country."

"Be it enacted
for the suppression of riots, tumults,

all disturbers
of the King's peace

are to be
transported to England

for trial."

"Any British soldier
or officer charged

with a capital crime

will, in like manner,
be transported out of the colony

to receive a fair hearing.

Be it enacted that
for better regulating

the government
of Massachusetts,

the present council
is to be immediately disbanded.

Be it enacted that
Royal Army officers

are authorized
to quarter their troops

among the citizenry.

General Thomas Gage
is hereby dispatched

with four of our regiments
to compel compliance

with all these measures."

Gage's ships
will close up the bay

and cut us off
from the rest of the country.

Boston must suffer martyrdom.

Our principal consolation is that
it dies a noble death.

Our people
will not stand idly by.

They have weapons
and they know how to use them.

Against the British Empire?

A congress will be
meeting in Philadelphia

to determine how to recover
our rights and liberties.

I have nominated you
to represent Massachusetts.

We're sending five men.

You should be among them.

Does this congress
have any legal authority?

Since all assemblies
have been outlawed,

I cannot imagine
that it does.

Sam, I repeat,

does this congress
have any legal authority?

Tosspots.

Massachusetts is in
a state of open rebellion...

the abuse
of customs officers,

342 chests of tea

spilled into the harbor by vandals
masquerading as Indians.

The time for gentleness
has passed.

These acts strip us
of our rights, Jonathan,

our rights...

the power of
self government,

the replacement of court officers
loyal to the Crown...

the position that
you yourself offered me.

Which you refused.

Which I would no doubt
be ineligible for now

as I am not a loyal Tory.

The Crown believes that
the courts of Massachusetts

are hopelessly biased.

They can no longer
be trusted to deliver justice.

I see.

Did Captain Preston
and his soldiers not receive justice?

I staked my reputation
and the security of my family

on a case that will
now be tried in England

because he is
an English officer?

Are we considered too young,

too unprincipled
to understand justice?

The Crown has ruled, John.

The only reasonable
course left is obedience.

And you would
do well to remember that

and act accordingly,
old friend.

Good day, old friend.

From our Committee
of Correspondence in Virginia,

we hear that
the House of Burgesses

has selected
deputies to join

the great
Continental Congress.

We have heard tonight from
our own representatives to Congress

convening in Philadelphia...

Mr. John Hancock...

Mr. Robert Treat Paine

and Mr. Elbridge Gerry.

I give you now
a new delegate

from Massachusetts...

a man whose prudence

and probity are
well known to you all...

Mr. John Adams!

- Let it be known...
- Speak up!

Let it be known

that British liberties

are not the grants
of princes or parliaments...

that many of our rights

are inherent
and essential...

agreed on as maxims
and established as preliminaries

even before
Parliament existed.

We have a right to them,

derived from our Maker.

Our forefathers have earned

and bought liberty for us

at the expense
of their ease,

their estates,
their pleasures

and their blood.

Liberty is not built
on the doctrine that a few nobles

have a right to inherit the earth.
No!

No!

It stands
on this principle:

That the meanest and lowest
of the people are,

by the unalterable,

indefeasible laws
of God and nature,

as well entitled to the benefit
of the air to breathe,

light to see,
food to eat

and clothes to wear
as the nobles or the king.

That is liberty...

and liberty
will reign in America!

They have chosen
their delegate well, John.

Have they?

To argue against the Crown,

the Commons, the Lords...

- John...
- No, we New England men

are not fit
for the times, Abigail.

What have we seen
of the world beyond Boston?

What have we seen?

I fear we not know
what we do, Abigail.

When men know not
what to do, John,

they ought not to do
they know not what.

I want you
to keep your head

and look after your mother and your
brother and your sister.

Charles, put
those things back!

Are these britches
suitably dignified

for a delegate
of the great

Continental Congress
of America?

A delegate's britches
are one of his most important tools.

Why is that?

Because the art of politics
is the art of applying

the seat of the britches
to the seat of the chair.

It's the procession!

All a gift
from the Sons of Liberty!

God help us.

My old horse will
suit me just fine, Sam.

A plain horse
for plain John Adams.

Well, come on, John!

And if it is a girl,

we will name her Elizabeth,

after your mother.

- Your favorite waistcoat.
- No no no, it's okay...

- No, I have not packed it.
- It's nothing.

Will you be safe?

We will go to the farm.
We will be fine.

Good.

Won't let anyone
steal the place, John.

Been in your family
since Charles II.

- Go. Go.
- Yeah.

Go.

Forgive me, Abigail.

For what, John?

Goodbye, you little pumpkins.

John, you remember
what I said.

- To Philadelphia!
- Philadelphia!

To Congress!

Look sharp, boys! Look sharp!

Scum!

In.

{{{the end - part 1}}}