The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1859-12-15
JOHN BROWNS INVASION.
JOHN BROWN AND THE UNICN


a conversation between myself and dis
tinguishrd public man a Shareholder and
gradual en naucipationi.t in a.
Southern State, a few weeks before the
Presidential election of 1856. 1t occur
red at his own house:
How will 20 the election in your
State 7" be asked.
"For Fremont" was the reply.
"Well, if that be the case be will be
probably elected
"Perbaps so, but hardly think FIRE.
mont will carry States enough to elect
him"
al don't know about that. This Free
Soilism is creeping stuff. and With the ex.
ASPIRATION of feeling which the Kansas
iu,qu,te- has created in your Northern
people, fear the worst. 1t will be bad
business. fear"
"Suppose Freu ont should be elected;
what would you Southern people dol"
Submit. of course, when they 6ud
that their threats cannot frighteD you
Our sensible people understand this mat
ter we'll enough We know it is all non
sence; but there are always demagogue-
enoush to kick up fuss. and keep the
fools in trouble for fear the Abolition
will come Gown among Us, and run off
our slaves and thus destroy our property
But, to illustrate my sentiments. III tell
you a story. A few days ago, | was
down iu--. At one of the principal
public houses, fell in with q company
OF people in the evening, and among 9TH
er topics, the probabilities of the coming
Presidential election were canvsssed.
SWELL" says one, "if Fremont is elect
ed, we'll rcbel!' Howl in what way!'
l a,ked hin. why. we'll get up Con
vention of the Southern States, declare
the Union dissolved, and have an inde
pendent Government of our own" "Of
course; but you'd expect the Northern
States to agree to it; and suppose they
shouldn't. What thenl' "Weli, then.
we'd let them go; place cordoo of troops
along our frontiers to prevent the escape
of our slaves and treat the North as hos
tile nation. .'-"Yes; but the slave would
escape. Sure ofprotection when once a
cross the border. and then what would you
dol" "We'd 60 after them and if they
didn't give them up, we'd fight" "Ah,
there will be trouble. You would proba-
bly, try peaceably to make treaty With
them, at first One Of the items in that
treaty would lie the surrender, on their
part. of our fugitive slaves. That being
the only cause of your separation. they
would Dot yield, as, being Free States, and
so abandoned by US on account of that
cry freedom; and as Free States, it would
lie point OF punctilio on their part to re
fuse. What next would you dor Eight
them, of course" "Hold on, ny friend;
think little Tue North il two to one a
gaiast you 10 white neD. We have bali a,
mauy slaves as whites, and every SLAVE
in such q war is agsin-t US. knoa0 the
Northern people | have lived amony
them for years IFsthink theu towards
but in that lies great mistake. Draw
but one drop OF NortBera tlood in an az
greSslUe way. and there sill be no disun
MON, nor difference OF opnIoD aw oDg
them then, and the whole North viii be
upon you a, once. They will invade our
territory, drive US back, aud as they go
every single slave man, koDwing the cause
of the Invasion, will be armed to the teeth
and join tbeu,, and the first We know VIC
hall all BE- Oh the shores Of the Gulf oi
Mexico without foot of land or a slave
left to Us
"Such," continued this eloquent man
"are my sentiments on the dissolution o.
the UDioup' And such, no doubt, are
the sentiments OF thousands of intelligent
lave holders st the South. Another ele
mept of great weak kn,ss to themselves ex
Ists au ong them, which they have not al
all considered. To the three hundred
thousand shareholders at the South there
are tbre' millions of"of poor white folks.
who neither own slave nor are admitted
to the prisileges. and franchises of the
shareholders and their abettors who man
age and thrive on the labors of the slaves
These r,en are comparatively IandleSS
and, though ignorant, are quick witted
enough to see that Hte5r interest, both pc
cuniary and moral, lies in the abolition OF
Slavery among them. What would they
be apt to do in a war of this kind-the III
selves TO be the gamers in the event OF a
conquest Of the North over the Southl-
A question scarce worth the while to
ask.
But enough. I do not wish to pursue
such Hypothetical case any further -
We bave had this GLORIOUS pion" dis
solved, by proclantion and on paper,
many time at the South It wa to be
"dis, olsed when California was admitted
Free State. 1t was again to be dis
solved when Banks was elected Speaker
1t was yet again TO be dissolved when
Slavery was driven out of Kansas. 1t i.
is nov, to a dead certainty, to be dis
solved it Seward. or any other "Black
Bepublican' shall be elected President
Very we'll, let US see Indeed, there i. a
possibility of dissolution 10 case Mr..
Senator Ma.on's resolusion of inquiry, in :
trodnced Oh the first day of the present