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An Early Liberty Bell

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Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, Cal. · Jul 16, 1912

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 39, No. 27.

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An Early Liberty Bell

RHODE ISLAND has the honor of being the first state in the world which granted religious liberty to all. How they cherished that principle is indicated by the motto upon the large bell, weighing 2,515 pounds, in the Baptist church built at Providence in 1774, and dedicated May 28, 1775, a little over a year before that grand old “sister bell” at Philadelphia rang out national independence. The motto on the Rhode Island bell reads:
“For freedom of conscience the town was first planted; Persuasion, not force, was used by the people. This church is the oldest, and has not recanted, Enjoying and granting bell, temple, and steeple.”
Not the greatest kind of poetry, by any means, but it stood for the greatest of principles.