Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1859-12-08
"Old Brown is Dead.

1
"Old Brown is Dead.
Virginia brcathes easy again. We read
Of man who fired the great Athenium, sim
ply that he might gain notoriety. Thrown
had had no other motive, his success would
have been complete. But while his specific
act is punishable with death, yet the old
man had motive worthy of Washington.
While the means he used were of the most
character, not to be justified
by common sense, by patriotism, nor by
yetwe venture the predic-
tion that future generations Will forget his
crime il admiration of his bravery, and his.
honesty oi-Purpose. Had he died for raising,
his hand against the freedom ofhis fellows.
there would have beenia acorded TO him the
heaviest epithet is of dehunciation. no' sym,
pathy would have stirred the bosom Of either
friend or foe, but he would have gone down
to an unenviable obivions As it is, be dies
the victim of slavery, and while the majesty
of the law demands his death, and the lovers
of law everywhere yield obedience, yet, for
the old man, there wells up q strong sym
pathy in the hearts OF millions, even from,
his enemies, and when the sober sen Sc OF
after reflection takes the place Of the pres;
ent wild excitement and prejudice. this sym
pathy will even grow stronger, for future
generations will spread the mantle OF char
ity over his faults and laud hsvirtres.
Brown is dead, and Gov. Wise and
his fana,ical advisers have glut,ed their
greedy thirst for his blood, and in SO Going
have shown themselves less human, and
more savage than Brown himself. An Indian
war chief never exulted over the scalp of q
fallen foe, more than Wise and his clan
over poor Old Brown. Locks of his hair
were distributed among the people, aud even
the rope with which he was hanged, was
cut in pieces to satisfy their morbid greed to
have a relic as trophy of victory.
The incidents connected with the execu-
ton. show state, of excitement tia: we of
a free State can hardly appreciate, Browns
execut ion. cost Virginia, not less than a
quarter of million of dollars. Twenty five
hundred soldiers were required to guard the
old man, and yet these were not allowed to
approach near enough to hear. anything
he might say. The fact that his, lips
were sealed from giving utterance to his
dying convictions has Its own commentary.
He was hanged in cpsn field. with circle
of troops. "a distance, of three or four hun
dred yards around the gallo1s, outside o.
this, people who were known to be ''all-
right were permitted TO stand, but circling
them again were more troops. All this
parade to hang poor old man is supremely
ridiculous. The imaginary enemies an,ici-
pated, instead of being an excuse were just
as reciculeus. o. Bio - ~ s=aod rs b.
Brown remai ked, as he was hauled to the.
scafoid in furniture wagon. "that he had
been taught to look upon fear as u myth.
hat he did not know what il was. ie was
,aIm and composed TO the last, dying brave
Is 5rave Can be. ~ .'' d .'.E'
When the physicians to the number, of
lozen had examined, and pronounced him /
leai. his body was cut down aud taken ITO |,
Iatper's Ferry, and delivered to his wife.
,he had been allowed to visit her hush and
he day before, and spend three hours with
i'm, but the majesty of Virginia's laws.
would not ssullow her to9remain longer.
rhere seemed to be fear that she might
pirit him away, she was consequently taken
y heavy guard ofsoldiers back TO Har-
ers Ferry 4a "a g9r q igs,d .sfes
The superhumsn efforts put forth by the
Democracy. to make capital out Of this mad
aid Of Browns, together wit Wise'sc. ex-
ravagant nonsense, gave this whole affair
n Importance that really did not belong to
t. 1t excited in the South, and among the
laves, a spirit of inquiry, and in the North,
sympathy that must eventually develop it.
ell in other Old Browns, and for all this
he Democracy are directly to ,blame.-
lad the penalty of the law been visited
pom Brown, without making such great ado
bout it, he would not have have died SO
much OF martyr, and the deplorable con.
pquences that seem almost inevitable
vould not have followed. But Wise has
een fit to play the petty tyrant, display
imself in all 1.-The pomp and Circumstance
# war" suppress tree speech, close The
venues of travel against all who are not
,ncwn 10 favor lhe hanging Of Old Brown,
md all this not that necessity demands it,,
.,,, IN chow his poWpr b. . rH.- |