Here is a translation of the wording on the flag, which may be the same that's on the suspender buckle.
Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem is a
Latin passage and the official motto of the U.S.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the
University of Massachusetts Amherst. The phrase is often loosely translated into English as "
by the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty". The literal translation, however, is "she seeks with the sword a quiet peace under liberty." The "she" in question is the state. The passage itself is an excerpt from a longer quotation "Manus haec inimica tyrannis ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem," which means "this hand, hostile to tyrants, seeks with the sword a quiet peace under liberty."
It was written c. 1659 by English soldier-statesman
Algernon Sidney, an opponent of
Charles II later executed for treason. The motto was first adopted by the
Massachusetts General Court (I.e. The state legislature) and applied to the a temporary seal of Massachusetts in 1775. On December 13, 1780 the legislature approved its application to the current
Great Seal of Massachusetts.
The motto evokes the values of a peace-loving people, but a people who value liberty more than peace.