James Otis
James Otis
Born	February 5, 1725(1725-02-05) Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States
Died	May 23, 1783 (aged 58)
Occupation	Lawyer
Parents	James Otis, Mary Allyne

James Otis, Jr. (February 5, 1725 – May 23, 1783) was a lawyer in colonial Massachusetts who was an early advocate of the political views that led to the American Revolution. The phrase "Taxation without Representation is Tyranny" is usually attributed to him. James Otis Kaler (1848 — 1912) was an American journalist and author of children’s literature. ... James Otis (born August 11, 1826; died October 30, 1875) was a politican from San Francisco, California. ... Image File history File linksMetadata James_Otis. ... is the 36th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events February 8 - Catherine I became empress of Russia February 20 - The first reported case of white men scalping Native Americans takes place in New Hampshire colony. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Location in Massachusetts Coordinates: Country United States State Massachusetts County Barnstable County Settled 1637 Incorporated 1638 Government  - Type Council-manager city  - Town    Manager John C. Klimm Area  - City  76. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... is the 143rd day of the year (144th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1783 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... is the 36th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events February 8 - Catherine I became empress of Russia February 20 - The first reported case of white men scalping Native Americans takes place in New Hampshire colony. ... is the 143rd day of the year (144th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1783 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... For the fish called lawyer, see Burbot. ... In general, the word colonial means of or relating to a colony. In United States history, the term Colonial is used to refer to the period before US independence. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... An advocate is one who speaks on behalf of another, especially in a legal context. ... Politics is the process by which decisions are made within groups. ... John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen... Most generally, a representation is a performing of selected functions or roles of another physical or abstract object/person/organization in predefined circumstances and it is based on the consensus of the group/community involved. ... This page is about the religious concept of Tyranny. ...

He was born at Sterling Park, near the death star, to James Otis, Sr. and Mary Allyne, the second of thirteen children and the first to survive infancy(he beat them to death with his bottle). His younger sister Mercy Otis Warren, his brother Joseph Otis, and his youngest brother Samuel Allyne Otis also rose to prominence, as did his nephew Harrison Gray Otis. Sterling Park may refer to one of two U.S. communities: Sterling Park, Tennessee Sterling Park, Virginia This article consisting of geographical locations is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... 13 (Thirteen) is the natural number following 12 and preceding 14. ... Sister may refer to: a female sibling a member of a sorority a female member of a religious institution or congregation, often referred to as a nun in common language a female member of a mutual organisation such as a trade union one of a pair or larger group of... Mercy Otis Warren Mercy Otis Warren September 14, 1728 – October 19, 1814) was born in Barnstable, Massachusetts. ... Look up Brother in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Brother may have the following meanings, in addition to and derived from its main one of male sibling; see Family. a male friend or acquaintance, in some cultures shortened to Bro or Brah a peer, male or female (though such usage is... Look up Brother in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Brother may have the following meanings, in addition to and derived from its main one of male sibling; see Family. a male friend or acquaintance, in some cultures shortened to Bro or Brah a peer, male or female (though such usage is... Samuel Allyne Otis (1740-1814) was a politician from Massachusetts who was the secretary of the United States Senate for its first 17 years. ... This article is about the domestic group. ... 2nd Harrison Gray Otis House, Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts. ...

Speaking of James Otis, John Adams said, "I have been young and now I am old, dang it, and I solemnly say I have never known a man whose love of country was more ardent or sincere, never one who suffered so much, never one whose service for any 10 years of his life were so important and essential to the cause of his country (i served more) as those of Mr. Otis from 1760 to 1770." Perhaps not a single person more epitomized the complexities and contradictions of the pre-Revolutionary War period in Boston, i hate the red sox . For other persons named John Adams, see John Adams (disambiguation). ...

==Writs of assistance== and retardism Otis graduated from Harvard in 1743 and rose meteorically to the top of the Boston legal profession. In 1760, he received a prestigious appointment as Advocate General of the Admiralty Court. He promptly resigned, however, when expected to argue in favor of the "writs of assistance." These writs would enable British authorities to enter any colonist's home with no advance notice, no probable cause and no reason given. In a dramatic turnabout following his resignation, Otis instead represented pro bono the colonial merchants who were challenging the legality of the writs before the Superior Court, the predecessor of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. // Events February 14 - Henry Pelham becomes British Prime Minister February 21 - - The premiere in London of George Frideric Handels oratorio, Samson. ... 1760 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... A Writ of Assistance is a legal writ that serves as a general search warrant. ... Pro bono is a phrase derived from Latin meaning for the good. The complete phrase is pro bono publico, for the public good. It is used to designate legal or other professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment, as a public service. ...

According to Adams, "Otis was a flame of fire; with a promptitude of classical allusions, a depth of research, a rapid summary of historical events and dates, a profusion of legal authorities."

James Otis considered himself a loyal British subject. Yet in February 1761, he argued so brilliantly against the writs of assistance in a nearly five-hour oration before a packed audience in the Old State House that John Adams later claimed: "The child independence was then and there born,[for] every man of an immense crowded audience appeared to me to go away as I did, ready to take arms against writs of assistance." 1761 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Old State House is the name of more than one building formerly used as a seat of government: Old State House (Boston), in the U.S. state of Massachusetts Old State House (Little Rock), in the U.S. state of Arkansas This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid...

Otis did not identify himself as a revolutionary; his peers, too, generally viewed him as more cautious than the incendiary Samuel Adams. Otis at times counseled against the mob violence of the radicals and argued against Adams' proposal for a convention of all the colonies resembling that of the British Glorious Revolution of 1688. Yet on other occasions Otis exceeded Adams in rousing passions and exhorting people to action. According to some accounts, at a town meeting on September 12, 1768, Otis even called his compatriots to arms. For other uses, see Samuel Adams (disambiguation). ... The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, was the overthrow of King James II of England (VII of Scotland) in 1688 by a union of Parliamentarians and the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau (William of Orange), who as a result ascended the English throne as William... // Events A high-powered conspiracy of notables, the Immortal Seven, invite William and Mary to depose James II of England. ... 1768 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Patriot and pamphleteer

Originally politically based in the rural Popular Party, Otis effectively made alliances with Boston merchants so that he instantly became a patriot star after the writs of assistance oration. He was elected by an overwhelming margin to the House of Representatives a month later. Otis subsequently authored several important patriotic pamphlets, served in the Massachusetts legislature and was a leader of the Stamp Act Congress. He also was friends with Thomas Paine, the author of "Common Sense". The Stamp Act Congress was a meeting in New York City in October 1765 of delegates from the American Colonies that discussed and acted upon the recently passed Stamp Act. ... For other persons of the same name, see Thomas Paine (disambiguation). ...

Otis suffered from increasingly erratic behavior as the 1760's progressed. Otis received a gash on the head by British tax collector John Robinson's cudgel at the British Coffee House in 1769. Some mistakenly attribute Otis's mental illness to this event. That it was completely unrelated is shown by Wroth and Zobel (see below). John Adams has several examples in his diary of Otis's mental illness well before 1769. By the end of the decade, Otis's public life largely came to an end. Some believe Otis was a manic-depressive or schizophrenic and that his illness could be successfully treated today. Otis was able to do occasional legal practice during times of clarity.

During the American Revolution Otis slipped off to serve at the Battle of Bunker Hill, in June, 1775. John Trumbulls Declaration of Independence, showing the five-man committee in charge of drafting the Declaration in 1776 as it presents its work to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia The American Revolution refers to the period during the last half of the 18th century in which the Thirteen... For a list of numerous places and things that are named after this battle, see Bunker Hill. ...

In many ways, Otis went beyond the traditional mentality of the pre-Revolutionary War era. For example, Otis favored extending the basic natural law freedoms of life, liberty and property to African-Americans, a position with few adherents among the leaders of the Revolution. Languages Predominantly American English Religions Predominantly Christianity and Islam Related ethnic groups Sub-Saharan Africans and other African groups, some with Native American groups. ...

Death

Otis died suddenly in May of 1783 at the age of 58 when, as he stood in the doorway of a friend's Andover house. He is reported to have said to his sister, Mercy Otis Warren, "My dear sister, I hope, when God Almighty in his righteous providence shall take me out of time into eternity." Apparently, he died of a lightning strike. Mercy Otis Warren Mercy Otis Warren September 14, 1728 – October 19, 1814) was born in Barnstable, Massachusetts. ...

Further reading

According to Bernard Bailyn, the dean of revolutionary war historians, the best description of Otis is found in

• Wroth and Zobel, eds, Legal Papers of Adams II, (1965) Vol. II, No. 41, Petition of Lechmere, pp. 106 - 147. It may seem surprising that the best analysis of Otis is in the Legal Papers of John Adams (no reference to Otis in the title). Wroth and Zobel’s forty page editorial commentary is more accurate and detailed than most of the Otis literature.

Perhaps the two most valuable essays on Otis after Wroth and Zobel are:

• 1) Bernard Bailyn himself: Pamphlets of the American Revolution 1750-1776 (1965) Vol. I. pp 409 – 415; Vol. II. pp 546 – 552,

• 2) William Cuddihy, the leading fourth amendment scholar whose monumental work on the Fourth Amendment remains in its 1,200 page dissertation form (until it is finally published in book form). See William J. Cuddihy, The Fourth Amendment: Origins and Original Meaning, 602-1791, at 1510 (1990) (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Claremont Graduate School) (UMI Dissertation Services, 300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI).

Cuddihy, known in the scholarly field for years, reached public attention through Sandra Day O’Connor’s opinion in Vernonia School District v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646, 669, 115 S.Ct. 2386, 2398, 132 L.Ed.2d 564 (1995) (O'Connor, J., dissenting).

There are two biographies of Otis which, although hagiographic and filled with inaccuracies, are a must read for any Otis scholar.

• William Tudor, Life of James Otis (1823).
• John Clark Ridpath, James Otis, the Pre-Revolutionist (1903) (available at Project Gutenberg)

See also: First issue of the North American Review with signature of its editor William Tudor. ...

• Jeffrey W. Purcell, “James Otis, ‘Flame of Fire’ Revolutionary Opposing the Writs of Assistance and Loyal British Subject?” in Massachusetts Legal History (1999).

Unfortunately much of the Otis literature is rife with inaccuracies.

External link

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

James Otis

• Full text of James Otis, the pre-revolutionist by John Clark Ridpath, from Project Gutenberg