Semi-weekly Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, South-Carolina) 1851-1852, 1851-02-07
CAMDEN, SOUTHCAROLINA FEBRUARY 7, 1851.


seemed t e foam of folly, and his finest sat.
tire horrible profanity, when compared with
! the iuimitable sallirs and exterminatng sar
casms Of the stranger, interspersed with Jest
and anecdotes, that filled the forum with roars
of laughter.
Then without so much as bestowing an 81.
lasion on Prenliss, he turned short on the per-
iured witnesses of Hopkins, tore their testimo-
ny into atoms, and hurled in their faces such
terrible nvcc i've, that all trernbled as with IN
ague, and two of them actually fled dismaycd
from the Court House.
The excitement of the crowd was becoming
pearcd to hang on the burning tongue OF the
stranger. He inspired them with the poison Of
his own malicious feelings. He seemed to
have stolen natures long hidden secret Of at
traction. He WAS the sun to the sea of all
thought and emotion, which rose and fell and
boiled in billows as he chose. But his great.
est triumph was to come.
His eye began to glare furtively at the assas.
sin, Hopkins, as his lean, taper fingers slowly
assumed the same direction. He hemmed the
wretch around with decentralization of strong
evidence and imprcgnable argument, cutting
off all hope OF escape He piled up huge bas-
tions of insurmountable facts. He dug beneath
the murderer and slanderer's feet bitches. Of
demmas, such as no sophistry could rvereap,
and no stretch of ingenuity evade, and having
thus, as one might say, impounded the victim,
and grt him about like scorpion in a circle
OF fire, he stripped himself to the work of mas.
sacre!
Oh then, but it was vision both glorious
and dreadful to behold the orator. His action,
before graceful as the wave of golden will
low in the breeze, grew impetuous rs the mo.
ton Of an oak in the hurricane, His voice be-
came n trumpet, filled with wild whirwnds,
dealening the ear with crashes of power, and
yet interninglcd all the while with sweet un.
dersong of the sotcst cadence. His face was
red us drunkards-his forehead glowed like
Il heated furuace-his countenance looked hag-
gard like that ola maniac; and ever anon he
fun" his long hony arms Oh high, as if grasp.
iag after thunderboltI He drew a picture OF
murder in such appalling coors that in COM
parison hell itself mig ght be considered beauti.
ful. He painted the slandercr SO black, the
sun seemed dark at monday, when shining on
such u monstcr-a and then lie fixed hoth por.
traits on tie shrinking brow of Hopkins, and
he nailed them there forever. The agitation
OF the audience near V amounted to madness
All at once the 81 eaker descended from his
petinas height. His voice walled out for tue
murdered dead, AM! described the sorrows Of
the widowed living the beautiful Mary, more
beautiful every moment, as her tears flowed
l;islcr-till meu wept and lovely women sobbed
Ike children.
lie closed by 4 strange cyhortation to the
iIrr. and taiongh them to the bystandrrs.
Re enlrcaed the panel, after they should bring
in their verdict for the plaintiff. not to offer vip.
lcnce u the Ger!!daut, however richly he
might deserve it: in other words, "uot to lynch
the william, Hopkins, but leave his punishment
to God
This was the most artful trick Of all, and the
bes. calculated to insure vengeance.
fac jury returned a verdict for fifty thou.
sand dollars; and the night afterwards Hop.
kins taken ont of his bed by lvnchers, and
heltrn almost to-deat;.
As the Court adjourned, the stranger made
known his name, and called the attention OF
the peorl. with the announcement John
Taylor will preach here this evening, at early
can H. lig!,t!'
The crowd, OF course, all turned out, and
Taylors sermon rqml'ed, lift did not surpass,
The sI.lcndor of his forensic effort. This is no
cxaggeration. ! have listened to Clay, Webster
aud Ialhoun-to Dewy, Tying and Bascom,
bat have never heard anything in the form OF
Sabine words even remotely approximating |
the eoquence Of John Taylor-massive asa
mountain, and wildly rushing as cateract o!
ire. And this is the opinion Of all who ever
heard the marvellous man.