The weekly Anglo-African. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1859-1861, 1859-10-22
THE EMEUTE AT HARPER'S FERRY,

THE EMEUTE AT HARPER'S FERRY.
This affair, which the papers excitedly
call an instruction, has startled the public
mind, from the character Of the occurrence
itself, and the confused details that have
reached the press. 1t seems to have been
at the outset, an attempt to procure large
stampede of slaves, and to have grown, by
force of circumstances, into an invasion of
these United States and of the common
wealth of Virginia. From the mass of de-
tails, we strive to present our readers with
succinct narrat We of the facts.
On Sunday night, Oct. 18th, Capt. John
Brown, of Kansas, with some nineteen
white and four or five free colored men,
entered the town of Harper's Ferry, Va,
took possession of the United States Armo-
ry, into which they took several wealthy
shareholders prisoners. They also took
possession of the railroad bridge which
crossed the Potomac, put out the lights,
cut the telegraph wires, and stopped the
train from tie west.
So far, not a gun was fired. The con-
ductor of the train, Capt. Phelps, after
vainly seeking a pistol or other arms
among the passengers, borrowed a rifle
from the hotel, with which, from the cars,
he fired on those men who were passing
to the armory. They returned the fire,
without injuring any one.
At 81 A. NJ, Captain Cook, of Browns
command, taking large wagon and team
with a number of slaves and arms, made
good his way into the mountains towards
the North, and has not since been heard
from.
At61 A.. NJ, Capt. Anderson, of Browns
command, gave permission to the train to
star which it did, and reached Baltimore.
About this time colored nan was shot
for refusing to join the invaders. The
people of the town, panic struck, remained
shut up in their houses. A party of the
invaders held possession of the bridge; an
other party of five held the armory, in
which they entrapped and imprisoned some
sixty workmen as they came to their work
in the morning, and third and largest par
ty held the engine room with the prison
ers above named.
Between z and - o'clock, the news hav-
ing spread, rush of citizen militia was
made towards Harper's Ferry. One party,
the Charlestown militia, with piece of
cannon, charged upon the two or three men
who guarded the bridge, and drove them
into the armory. At noon the tonnage
men of the railroad promiscuously armed,
and led by Captain Alburtis, charged upon
the few men who held the armory, drove
them off, and liberated the sixty prisoners
held therein.
The engine building now contained
John Brown, his two sons, some eight or
ten others including two colored men, and
their slave-holding prisoners, Col. Wash
ington and others. A few shot were fired
at and from this place with fatal effect, du-
ring the day; but the militia, now amount
ing to several hundred, kept at respect
full distance unwilling to use cannon, lest
the prisoners should be injured. They
kept strict guard all night, and in the morn
ing, at z o'clock, the United States troops,
after vain summons to surrender, under
command of Col. Lee, stormed the engine
building by breaking in the door with a
ladder, and rushing in with bayonets and
sabres, losing one man, and killing or NOR
tally wounding two or three of the be-
seiged.
Capt. Brown was laid senseless by sa-
bre cut on the head and two bayonet
wounds in the body. His prisoners were
unhurt, and speak in praise Of his courtesy
and iron courage. One of his sons was
killed and one MORALLY wounded.
The facts reaching us through pro-sla-
very medium, make out this as an attempt