Lindsey Graham

When asked if military force could make the colonists comply, he warned the members of Parliament that if troops were sent to America, they will not find a rebellion.

They may indeed make one.

Franklin's testimony helped convince Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act, and across the Atlantic, the colonies celebrated their victory.

Certain that their work was done, the Sons of Liberty disbanded, while the residents of New York erected a new statue of King George III.

But despite backing down on the Stamp Act, British officials remained intent on raising revenue from the colonies, none more so than the head of the Treasury, Charles Townsend.

Townsend had become famous for rhetorical brilliance, even while drunk on champagne, and he convinced Parliament to pass the Townsend Acts, placing new taxes on imports on glass, paper, paint, lead, and tea.

Townsend emphasized that unlike the Stamp Act, these were indirect taxes to be paid by merchants at American ports.

But colonists knew that merchants would inevitably pass the high costs on to consumers, and the news of these Townshend Acts sparked a fresh wave of resistance.

Among the protesters were thousands of women who, despite having few legal rights and little political power, now organized under the banner of the Daughters of Liberty.

They enforced boycotts by refusing to buy British goods, made homespun cloth, and organized public spinning events.

A newspaper writer wrote, "...I presume there never was a time when, or a place where, the spinning wheel could more influence the affairs of men than at present."

Meanwhile, Samuel Adams once again sought to turn popular anger into political action.

In February 1768, he convinced the Massachusetts Assembly to issue a letter to other colonial assemblies, urging them to work together to resist the Townshend Acts.

But when this same Massachusetts Assembly refused British demands to rescind their letter, the royal governor of Massachusetts dissolved it, leaving the colony without an elected legislature.

Then in June, a riot erupted in Boston when customs officials seized a ship owned by John Hancock, a wealthy merchant and member of the Sons of Liberty.

To restore order, 1,000 British troops arrived in Boston in October 1768 and placed the city under military occupation.

Tensions mounted over the next year and a half, as underpaid soldiers competed with residents for civilian jobs, and fights broke out in the streets.

Reacting to the news from London, Benjamin Franklin warned, Some indiscretion on the part of Boston's people or of the soldiers may occasion a tumult, and if blood is drawn, there is no foreseeing how far the mischief may spread.

Franklin's premonition came to pass on the icy night of March 5, 1770, when a mob of colonists began taunting a British soldier guarding the Royal Customs House.

When more soldiers arrived, the colonists pelted them with snowballs, oyster shells, and stones.