Samuel Adams and the Vagabond Henry Tufts: Virtue Meets Vice in the Revolutionary Era

One a revolutionary leader and the other a vagabond who deserted from the Continental Army, Samuel Adams and Henry Tufts appear opposites, yet they were two sides of the same coin. While one devoted his life to overthrowing British colonial rule and the other to rambling, womanizing and stealing horses, Adams and Tufts represented the self-interested capacity for survival as well as the lofty ideals that made the American Revolution possible. When they crossed paths in 1794, with Adams serving as governor of Massachusetts and Tufts a hapless prisoner facing the gallows, it was the serendipitous climax of three decades of revolutionary activity and crime.

Recalling the sometimes complementary roles of virtue and vice in the early republic, the story of these two men reflects themes of the American Revolution, including class differences among colonists, the importance of education in fostering republicanism, and the founders’ emphasis on improving criminal justice. It is also a story of redemption--both for these two imperfect individuals and for the revolution that they participated in.

Nathaniel Parry is an American researcher and writer living in Denmark. He is the editor of several books and his work has appeared in outlets such as Consortium News, In These Times, Common Dreams, Global Research, and Truthout. Since 2008, he has worked at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe, where he is currently head of communications.