Paying the Exciseman
David S. Gibson
HIS115
December 9, 2010
George Megenney

Paying the Exciseman
The portrait, Paying the Exciseman, portrays the colonists’ growing anger for the British government, and the Boston Tea Party. It is a picture of multiple topics within a multitude of issues.
The taxman in the portrait is portrayed as the recipient of a “tar and feathering.” This punishment was used as a constant threat to government employees, and loyalists in the colonies. This was done by applying hot tar to the person’s skin, and topping that with feathers for humiliation purposes.
The tree in the picture is the liberty tree. This tree is significant because every colony had a liberty tree. All of the original 13 original colonies selected a tree that was strong in stature for a meeting place to discuss a possible rebellion against Great Britain. The first liberty tree, and the tree in the portrait, was in Boston. After the passing of the Stamp Act, Bostonians awoke to multiple effigies hanging from the tree. Knowing what the tree meant to the citizens of Boston, the British soldiers cut down the Liberty Tree as they were being pushed out of Boston in 1775 (History of the Liberty Tree, n.d.).
During this part of history, the colonists’ desires for freedom were beginning to grow immensely. They were getting tired of the growing taxation, and the tyrannical rule of the British. They began meeting at places such as the Liberty Tree to discuss a possible rebellion. After the Stamp Act was passed, the colonists’ became rebellious, and boarded ships. They tossed the tea overboard show of rebellion to the British.

Reference
History of the Liberty Tree. (n.d.). Liberty trees - a brief history. Retrieved from http://http://www.thelastone.org/history.html