[Iron Munro]

My addition would be, "The Militia shall consist of all males between 17 and 65 who shall possess a rifle or other weapon issued to the Regular Military and 300 rounds of ammunition to be kept in their residence."

Good start.

How about this minor alteration:

FROM: The Militia shall consist of all males between 17 and 65

TO: The Militia shall consist of all able-bodied Patriots, age 14 and over

[Little Bill]

I would have to give 14 some though. Looking through my family history most of the males married around 18 and the girls at 16 or 17 with wide variation.

In those days the eldest got the farm and the youngest got the boot.

Then there is the problem of the young woman dragging the young boy in to the woods to avoid becoming an old maid, had multiple instances of that in the 17TH and 18TH century. The confession before the Parish tended to be embarrassing, especially if he wasn't the only draggy.

You get your head, the top one, together around 17 or 18, I will go 17.