The weekly pioneer and Democrat., 1859-12-16

The Abolition eulogists, and Republican
apologists and sympathizers Of JOHN Brown
and his murderous scheme for the insurrec-
tion of negroes and the murder of innocent
women and children, have provoked the
New York Erpress, to revive the following
"reminiscences in the history of Gotham it
was the negro plot of 1781. The city of
New York then contained about 5000 in.
habitants, of whom only 1900 were slaves
1t says
On the 18th of March, fire occurred in the
fort, which consumed the Secretary's Office and
the Dutch church. About week later, another
though inconsiderable fire occurred and with
in two or three weeks later, some half-dozen
more, most of them, however. only the burning
of chimneys. These frequent fires, together
with a prevalent belief that a great deal of
petty robbery was carried on by the negroes.
with the aid of certain white men, gave rise to
general uneasiness, which soon increased to
q panic. This was greatly, heightened by
proclamation offering reward of a hundred
pounds for the discovery of the incendiaries.
The reward was too tempting to be long re-
sisted An indentured servant woman soon
after obtained her freedom and the hundred
pOuuuSs Dy pTolcuuiHS w UlVulSc b plOL IOrueQ
by her master, low tavern keeper, named
HughsOn, and three negroes, to burn the city
and the entire white population. This infor.
nation was like spark among timber. The
whole population was thrown into a paroxysm
of rage and fear. The military paraded the
streets almost continually. The accused par.
ties were arrested and hurried to the Jail, and
the utmost rage against the negroes infamed
every breast. So intense was the panic, that
the most unreasonable and contradictory
statements were greedily caught up, and the
least suspicious circumstances were ronstrued
as plain evidence against the accused.
In a short time one hundred and fifty-four
negroes and twenty suspicious whites were
lodged in prison. The following is the way
the lawyers behaved on the occasion:
There were at that time only eight lawyers
in New York, all of whom volunteered their
services to the Government, and assisted by
turns in the prosecution, leaving the miserable
prisoners without the aid Of counsel. To OBJ
tain the required evidence upon which to base
q sentence, pardon and freedom were offered
to any whe wonld turn Kings evidence, and
by this means any amount Of testimony, to al
most any fact, could be obtained. While there
was no one to say single word to the accused,
the lawyers We'd with each other in ,scurrility,
in heaping abuse upon them, in which they
were outdOne by the judge, when he came to
pass sentence. Many purchased their own
lives by confessng their participation in crimes
of which it was afterward proved they knew
nothing, and accusing others; and, strangest
of all, some confessed at the stake their guilt
who knew nothing of the things with which
they were charged. sss AsE aats
= This is the result i: 8gF sgsss Vlsa 81.
AS the result Of this bloody delusion, th;r.
teen scers' burnt, esghteen hanged, and seventy
transpo, ted. The public blood seemed now
to be somewhat satisfied, and the frenzy hagan
to. ahate !; q reaction at length ensued. and
the, persons remaining ID prison were set at
liberty. $50 sE&f e srs S. yssss s 30 ssssss ~