The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-11-10
FEMALE HERoIsM III VIRGINIA.

at S"athS 49, 'NN~He
invasion to that of flock 90 eep. The United
States Armory, in town o. two thousand in
habitants, was taken and hsld for twenty -four
hours by eighteen lawless men, while scores of
the inhabitants were made. prisoners But, if
the men acted like sheep, che heroism of one
woman in behalf of humanity goes far to re-
deem tbs honor of the Old Dominion:
Henry Hunter called. Examined by counsel
for defence. -.
90. Did you witness the d ,ath of this man
Thompson?
"A. Witnessed the death. ? one whose name
have been informed was Thompson.
a. The one who was isOnerf
20. Well, sir, what were she circumstances
attending it
"A. Do you wish my own Connection with it,
or simply description of to circumstance
shall mention the names ?ss
Mr.. Andrea Hunter. Everv bit oft, Henry
state all you saw.
Witness. There was pt.~oner confined in
the parlor of the hotel anse after Mr.. Beck
hams death, he was shot do y by number of
us there belonging to this shssp-shooting band.
"Mr. Andrea Hunter. WE. you allow him to
state, before proceeding fusher, how he was
connected with Mr.. Beckhar. Z
"Mr. Green. Certainly, SIR
Witness. He was my grid uncle and my
special fiend-a man l low above all others
after he was killed, Mr.. CHI fabers and myself
moved forward to the hotel, ssr the purpose of
taking this prisoner out and y angling him we
were Joined by a number of ffaer persons, who
cheered us on in that work J; we went up into
his room, where he was bot.ad, with the I'M
doubted and undisguised purpose of taking his
life; at the door we were stEs ,ped by persons
guarding the door, who rerncs strated with us,
and the excitement so Great that persons
who demonstrated with us o. moment would
cheer US on the next; we ist into the room
where he was and found ". sral around him.
but they offered only fec ie resistance we
brought our guns down to his -3ead repeatedly
myself and another person.. t,r the purpose of
shooting him, in the room y here was young
lady there, the sister of Nj. Fouke, the hotel
keeper, who sat in this matf lap, covered his
face with her arms, and shisxed him with her
person whenever We brought cur guns to bear;
she said to us, For Gods sa., wait and let the
law take its course; my a 9ciate shouted to
kill him; Let us shed hi. blood were his
words; ali around were shk ing, Mr. Beck
hams life was worth ten tho. and of those vile
Abolitionists l was cool : out it, and DELHI
crate my gun was pushed u by some one who
seized the barrel, and / then moved to the back
q
but with veiw to divert str, ,tion from me, in
order to get an opportunitya,t some moment
when the crowd should be less dense, to shoot
him; after moments thpight, it occurred to
me that that was not the proper place to kill
him we then proposed to axe him out and
hang him some person of ~ band then open.
ed a way to him, and first pa ming Miss Fouke
aside, we slung him out of q 'rs gave him a
push, and many others did ! same we then
showed him along the plato t. and down to the
trestle work of the bridge, -. begging for his
life all the time, very piteou ly at first by the
bye, before we took him oqt.9f the room, ask
ed the question what he cam, here for :? He said
their only purpose was to Fl E the slaves-that
he came here to free the sli or die; then he
begged, Don't take my he ga prisoner but
i put the gun to him, and said, You may
kill me, but it will be revenge there are eighty
thousand persons sworn to carry this work =
that was his last expression we bore him out
on the bridge with the purp. then of hanging
him we had no rope, and ne, could be found;
| it was moment of wild excitement; two of us
raised our guns--which ons was first do not
know-and pulled the triggr before he had
reached the ground, i suppSse some five or six
shots had been fired into hi1 body he fell on
the railroad track, his back down to the earth,
and his face up; we then w 4 back for the pur
pose of getting another one tStephens,) but he
was sick or wounded, aud K sons around him,
and persuaded them myse to let him alone;
l said, Don't let oper' e on him, but 60
around and get some more we. did this act
with purpose, thinking it : Int and justi6able
under the circumstances, an fired and excited
by the cowardly, savage ma er in which Mr..
Beckham's life had been tal IN.
"Mr. Andrero Hunter. = that all, gentle
men? :.
"Mr Bolts. Yes, sir.
"Mr. Andrew Hunter, TO the witness.)
Stand aside"
! The selfsacrifcing cout, e Of this young
woman is in strange contra, with the cowardly
brutality Of the men who m dered Thompson,
and its similarity to the act itch immortalized
another daughter of Virgins Pocahontas, must
strike every one.
THE POTOMAC REGIOzs OF VIRGINIA.
A Northern settler in the otomac region of
Virginia thinks that great justice was done
to the section in which he esides, by para
graph copied into the Err some weeks ago,
from the Philadelphia In Firer. Our recol-
lection of the article is, THAI referred entirely
to those districts which rem IN unreclaimed by
| free labor from the sterilit in which Slavery
has left Them and that 81 ~h expressions as
would seem to include Il northern settle
ments have been taken too orally by our cor
respondent. At any rate, re cheerfully give
place to the reply, and hi. no doubt of its
truthfulness, since it CORES unds with the rep
reservations we have had fr various sources.
To the Editor Of the Natio,f. Era:
| / presume that Oldschov..s Northern neigh
Dor must have made his v. IT to that part of
the Old Dominion to which, allusion is made
| in the Era of the 9th instan,, several years ago.
when the statement would have applied but it
is much to be regretted that q picture which was
a true delineation then, SHOULD be sent abroad
as applicable now, when it + so far from being
correct, and when the .atte9iion of so many is
being turned toward Virginia as place of set
| Element.
| If Oldschool's Northern neighbor will visit
that section Of the Old Dominica again at the
proper season of the year, aud the season ordi-
narily favorable, have no doubt he will see
land from which twenty to .wenty.fv bushels
of wheat and two tons of bay per acre is pro-
duced. 1t is true, our corn-6elds have pre-
scented this season a sickly appearance, and
| some of them may not produce more than
Oldschool's neighbor says: but it is owing to
the drought that has prevsiled, and not to the
poverty and starvation of the soil, as would
have been evident to his mind had he been
here any of the last few years, when he might |
readily have seen from thirty to fifty bushels !
Of corn per acre. And as 10 our houses, they |
are almost ali Of very modssn construction |
plain, substantial, neat, and Convenient of am