March 12, 1776

   Today I have received word that Howe's army has retreated from Boston to Canada. The place where the patriots began is now theirs again. Today I also received the 47 page pamphlet called Common Sense. It was published anonymously, but most of the colonist know that Thomas Paine. He argued that citizens, not kings and queens, should make laws. At a time when monarchs ruled much of the world, this was a bold idea for the time. This pamphlet will eventually sell 500,000 copies, that means that almost every person in the colonies will have one. Common Sense changes the way many colonists are viewing their king. It made a strong case for economic freedom and for the right to military self-defense. The Continental Congress is meeting this year to draft the declaration of independence,they also have a committee to come up with a seal, and a motto.

Deverell, William, and Deborah Gray. White. United States History: Beginnings to 1877. Orlando, FL: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2007. Print.

"Revolutionary War." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. Web. 17 Nov. 2011. <http://www.wikipedia.com>.