Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1859-11-01
sold Brown.n

Evarv writer occasionally feels the want ex-
pressed by Lord Byron in the opening stanza OF
ono of his celebrated poems, and breathes sign
for a ''hero." Under the pressure OF necessity
the noble bard took his "ancient friend, Iha'
graceless scamp, "Don juan" We, in common
with the entire newspaper fraternity, are dls-
posed to seize greedily upon the veteran ieader
of the Harper's Ferry insurgents, and turn a
paragraph upon sold Brown"--commonly called
"Ossawotamie.n Old Brown is emphGtieslly the
celebrity of the dsy, and he will inevitably con-
tinue to be talked about and written about even
after he drops from the gallows into the grave
We want to get the benefit OF "Old brown
while he is going, and as he is very nearly gone
we are almost compelled to use him little tnls
week.
We regret that there should be such esgerness
to make way with the distinguished chief OF the
army of INVASION We consider it bad policy for
=. more reasons than one. In the first place the
Sdemand for summary vengeance will give some
color of pretence to the claim OF msrtyrdom
which Captain Brown is disposed to set up and
which his friends at the North will assert for
him. The moral effect at the North would De
much better, If, instead of manifesting so much
shot haste" to infiict merited punishment upon
the culprits, justice were meted ont to them with
cool and calm elaboration, allowing them ialr
and impartial trial, not only all that the law
would entitle them TO, but much that they might
desire themselves, but not deserve. To hurry
sold Brown" to the gallows, even after his con-
viction, will in our opinion, be grave error.-
1t looks too much as if the great State of Virgin
ia was 10 great trepidation, lest in spite Of the
bristling bayonets of whole regiment OF soldiers
surrounding his prison, "Old Brown" battered
to pieces with balls and bleeding from sabre
wounds as he is, should rally bis lscerated con-
Sederates, break through the iron CRATES of his
dungeon, raise again the standard OF instruction,
and fight his way to liberty. The effect upon all
who have participated in or connived at the
conspiracy would be much better if the soldiers
were disbanded, and Captain Brown we're kept
Gagged for few weeks by the jailOr of Jefferson,
just to satisfy all concerned that the people of
Virginia have not been frightened out of their
wits by the crazy enterprise OF few blinded
fanatics.
In the third place, we protest against the pre-
mature hanging of "Ossswotamie," because the
newspapers have not yet exhausted the supply of
paragraphs which he will afford d'ily as long as
he is permitted to live. "Old Brown" makes
new developments every day, bu5 "dead men tell
no tales" While he survives every editor feels
it to be solemn duty to prick him with his pen
and slice him with his scissors, for his own q
musement and the qualification Of the commupi-
ty, but the ohivalry which belongs to the pro-
fession would forbid any interference with his
bones after they are consigned to mother earth.
Then, bad as sold Brown" is, no editor will rel
ish the work of heaping obloquy upon his mem
DRY. We feel professional interest, therefore,
in the prolongation of Capt. Browns days, until
something else occurs to furnish abundant pabu-
lum for voracious gentlemen of the press.