Lynchburg daily Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1852-1861, 1859-12-07


duty aud to be the 6rss 70 encounter danger A
finer spirit and botaer temper Of soldiers could
not have bcen displayed. h set
The State Judiciary took the eulprits Ia obarge.
Legal Warrants were i,saed and served upon
them; court Of examination was regularly hold
over thoss who did not waive IL. and they were
formally indicted in acourt Of competent jurisdic-
tion. They had the full bensAt Of compulsory
process for Witnesses in their dscnce had ooursel
assigned them and counsel Of their own selection
were confronted by Witness and acousers; and
given. according to our bill Of rights. as in
all other cases. apeldy and fair trial by an i'm,
partial jury Of the vicinnge; upon their own con
iession and upon other evidence, leaving no doubt
Of guilt, legally convicted Of several capital
oGcnoss; were hoard in person and by o"anscl.
why sentence should not by pronounced on them;
were given every opportunity Of APPLYING for
writs Of sapersedcas; did apply. aud the court Of
highest resort. the Court Of Appeals. Sustained
the judgment and sentence Of the court which
tried them. Never were prisoners treated with
more lsnity of trinl. And never in any case. in
the history of t,ials, was justice administered
with more lorbcarancc, more dignity and more
nm iesty of law-never were such prisoners trent
cd with as much henignant kindness they hnye
beev by tho people whom they outraged SUFFICIENT.
" 10 have melted summary punishm
To prevent any such punishment on the ono
hand. and rescue on the other: to guard justice.
In II word | called into service military guards.
To aid the civil authority and keep the peace. Rc-
ccivng information that organization of guards
was necessary. sent m aid to the scene, there to
what was wanting to assist the Adjutant dcn-
orul, aud 10 pass my orders. Col. j. Lucius Davis.
competent soldier. volunteered his services. aud
accepted them. 10 organize tho corps. to distrib-
ute aru. to post guardsNud to provide subsistence
AM quarters, AMI 10 call for whatever was want
Ing Thesc services he continued most faithfully
aai efficiently to perform. with my full approba-
ton until very recent events made il necessary TO
rnil for moro troops and Major General Wm. 1'.
Taiafcrro. of the fourth division, repaired to tho
place, aud volunteered in person 70 take communal.
Many Of the troops we're from his division. and
could not decline the tender Of his services. Dur
ing the trial o tho prisoners and since, appeals
aud threats Of every sort. the mos. extraordinary.
from every quarter. have been made to the Exc
ru,ive-l lay before you the mass of these. it be-
ing impossible to enter into their details. Though
the Mws do not permit me to pardon in cases of
treason, yet pardons and reprieves have been de-
inanded on the grounds Of, 1st. insanity; ID ma
gnanimity Sd. tho policy OF not making martyrs.
As 70 the 6rst. the parties themselves or coun-
sci put in n" plea of insauity. No insanity was
feigned ovens ihe prisoner Brown spurned IL. Since
his sentence, md since the decision the appeal
one of his counsel, Samuel Chiffon, ESQ., has filed
with me a number Of afidavits profe ,sing TO show
grounds for delaying execution. in order to give
time TO make an issue OF fact A. to tho sanity Of
the prisoner How such an issue now, after
sentence, confirmed by the Court Of Appeals. bo
made. am ignorunt but il 10 sufficient to say that
hnd repeatedly seen and converseJ with the priS-
oner, and had just returned from visit To him.
when this appeal to me was put into my hands
As we'll rs / can knog the state Of mind of any
one, know that no was sane. aud remarkably
sane. II quick aud clenr perceptions; II assumed
rational premises, and consecutive reasoning from
tlon,; IL cautious tact in avading disclosure. and
in covering conclusions and inferencH; If memory
and conception and practical common sense, and
IL eornposure und self possession evidences of
q sound state OF mind. He was more sane than
his rrompters and promoters. and concealed we'll
the secret which made him seem to do an act Of
mad impulse by leaving him without his hackers
at Ilarpcr's Ferry but he did not conceal hiscon-
tempt for the cowardice which did not bnck him
him better than with plea Of insanity. which he
spurned to put in on his trial ct Charlestown.
As to the second ground Of appeal know Of
no magnnnimity which IL inhumane. and no init
manity could well exceed that TO our society, our
slaves a. well rs their masters. which would turn
feons like these. proud and defiant in their guilt
loose again on border already torn by fannti-
cal and sectional strife which threatens the liher
ties If the white oven more than it does the boa
dage Of the black race
As TO the third ground: Il 1t true that the due
execution of our laws, fairly and justly admins
tered upon these confessed robbers n,urdsrers and
traitors, will make ihem martyrs in the public
sentiment Of other Statcsf lfso. then II Is time
indeed that execution should ho done upon them
and that we should prepare in earnest for tho ''ir
rcpressible conflict" with that sympathy which,
in demanding for thesc criminals pardons and re-
pricves. and in wreaking vengeance FOR their refu
sal, would make criminals Of Us: Indecd.a bias
phemous moral treason, An expressed fellow-ieel
ing with feions, professed conservatism Of crime,
n defiant and boa-tful guilty demoniac spirit
bined, arraign us, the outraged community, as tho
wrong-doers who must do penanee and prevent our
penalty bv pardon and reprieve of these martyrs.
rhis sympathy sent these men. its mere tools,
to d, the deeds which sentenced them. 1t may
have seat them to be martyrs for mischiers sake;
bt the execution of our laws 10 necessary to warn
future victims not again TO be its tools. To heed
this outside clamor at oil, was To grant al
conditional grace. 10 hang would be no n,re
martyrdom than tO incarcerate the fanatic. The
sympathy would have asked on and on for libera-
ton and to and snotbe him. whilst life Last
ed in prison. Iii, state Of health would have been
heralded weekly rs from palace; visitors would
have como afectedly reveront, to the shorn
felon at his "hard labor" the work of his hands
would have been sought rs holy rolics; and his
parti -colored dress would have become. perhaps.
u uniform for the next band Of impious Inaraud-
ers. There was middle ground Of mitigation.
To pardon or repreye at oil, was 70 proclain IL
censed impunty to this thousand fanatics who are
mad only in the guilt and tally Of setting up their
indvidusl supremacy over law, life. property. and
civil liberty itself This sympathy with the lead
or was worse than the invasion ITSELF The ap-
deal was; policy b. make no martyrs, but dis
arm mordcrers, traitors, robbers, iasurrectionists
by free pardon for wanton, malicious. unprovoked
felons could hut ask, will execution o the legal
sentences Of humane Law make martyrs Of such
criminalsi Do sectional and social msssee hal
low these crimesi Do whole communities sym-
pathize with the outiaws Instead Of sympaahising
with the outraged society Of sister sovereignty
Ifso, then the sympathy 10 - fslonious - the
criminals, and is far more dangerous than WAS tho
Invasion. Thethreat Of martyrdom is 9 threat
against our peace. and demands execution to defy