17 THE UNKNOWN WHO SWAYED THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
Faced with the death penalty for high treason, courageous men debated
long before they picked up the quill pen to sign the parchment
that declared the independence of the colonies from the mother country.
For many hours they had debated in the State House at Philadelphia,
with the lower chamber doors locked and a guard posted–when suddenly a voice rang out
from the balcony. A burst of eloquence to the keynote,"God has given America to be free!"
ended with the delegates rushing forward to sign. … The American patriots
then turned to express their gratitude to the unknown speaker. The speaker was not
in the balcony; he was not to be found anywhere. How he entered and left
the locked and guarded room is not known. No one knows to this day who he was.
~ Manly P. Hall, The Secret Destiny of America, 1944