Few were hanged, at least not yet; incivility rarely turned to bestiality. But no one could say how brutal the war would become. Conformity, censorship, and zealotry now flourished. Even small sins, such as “speaking diminutively of the country congress,” might be punished with forced public apologies, boycotts, ostracism, or property confiscation. A mild word of praise for the British government—or simply being suspected of thinking loyal thoughts—could provoke a beating. Militias served as a political constabulary, bolstered by the Continental Army. When Queens County, a loyalist stronghold
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