Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1859-12-17


But shall be told, perhaps, that all this
is imaginary; that the alarm at the South is
fictitious, or, rather, a groandless panic, for
which there is no substantial cause-fit sub !
iect for ridicule rather than serious anxiety.
But see no signs of panic in Virginia. ex
cept for few hours at Harper's Ferry. when
in the confusion of the first surprise, and in
profound ignorance of the extent of the
danger, the community for short time
paralyZed. / am not sure that town of
four or five hundred families in this region,
invaded at midnight by Iesolute band of
twenty men, entering the houses of inflHen-
tial citizens, and hurrying them from their
beds to a strong hold previously occupied,
sands there holding them as hostages-I am
not sure, Sir, that an equal panic would not
be created till the extent of the danger was
measured. Besides. Sir, if the panic had
been much more extensive than il was. the
panics of great and brave communities are
no trifes. Burke said he could not frame an
indictment against a whole people. 1t seems
to me ,qually in bad taste at least to try to
point a sheer at State Ike Virginia. The
French are reputed gallant and warlike
people: but the letters from the late seat of
war tell us that even after the great victory
Of Solferino a handful of Ausirians, strag-
Cling into village, put corps OF he French
army-thousands strong-to flight. hun
dred ard fifty men overturned the French
monarchy, on the occasion TO which L have
already alluded in 1913. When the circum-
stances of the case are taken into considera-
lion, suspect it will be agreed th 1t any
other community in the country, similarly
situated would have been affected in the
same wav. A conflict of such an unpreceden-
ted chan acter. in which twelve or fourteen
persons on the two sides are shot down, in
the course Of few hours, appears to me an
event at which levity ought to stand re-
buked. and a solemn chill fall upon every
right thinking man.
fear Sir from the tone of some of the
public journals. that we have not made this
case our own. Suppose party of desperate,
misguided men. under resolved and fear
less leader had been organized in Virginia.
to come and establish themselves by stealth
in Springfield in this State, intending there,
after possessing themselves. at the unguarded
hour of midnight. of the National Armoryr
to take advantage of some cause OF disaffcction
say the feud between Professionals and CathO
lies (Which led to a very deplorabie occur
renee in this vicinity few years ago. to
stir ap social revolution; that pixies and
rifles To arm twenty five hundred men had
been procured by funds raised by extensive
subscriptions throughout the SOuth-that at
the dead of a Sunday night. the work of de-
strucIiOn bad begun, by shooting down an
unarmed man, who had refused to Join the
invading force; that citizens OF tn frst
Standing were seized and imprisoned three
or four others killed; and when, on the en-
tire failure of the conspiracy, its leader had
been tri d-aby defended by counsel from
his own part of the country. convicted ana
executed, that throughout Virginia, which
sent him forth on his fatal Grand and the
South generally, funeral bells should be toll
cd, meetings of sympathy held, a. at the death
of some great benefactor, ard the person who
L.. Il 10 or. "a
hands of twenty-five hundred men. to be used
against their fellows inhabitants of the same
town, inmates of the same houses; with an
Interior nItntion and purpose of wrapping
the whole community IN civil war OF the
deadliest and bluOdiest type In which man
foes should he those OF his own household;
suppose | say. that the person who planned
and plotted this. and with his own hand or
that of his assoc iatcs acting by his command,
had taken the lives of several fellow beings
should be eXtolltd. canoniZed. placed on
lev, with the great heroes Ofhumanity. nay,
assimlated to the Saviour OF mankind; and
all this not the effect of a solitary individual
impulse, but the ripe, fruit of Il systematic
agitation pursued i'll the South, unrebuked
for years! What Sir. should we feel think,
say. under such a state of things? Should we
weigh every phrase of indignant remon-
STRANGE with critical accuracy. and divide our
those whom we believe, however unjustly, TO
be directly or indirectly concerned in the
murderOus aggression.
Mr.. Chairman, those who look upon the
existing excitement at the South as factious
or extrav agant, have, / fear, formed very
Inadequate idea of the nature OF such an at
tempt as that which was made at Harper's
Ferry was intended to be. and would have
been, had ii proved successful. 1t Is o want
Al =, hot
nscribc the fact that any civilized man. IN
his right mind, and still more any man of in
telligence and moral discernment in other re-
speets, can be found to approve and sympa-
tn ne with it. | am sure If such persons VIII
bring home to their minds. in any distinct
COM" ption. the real nature OF the undertake
ing. they would he them, elves amazed that
they had ever given it their sympathy. 1t
appears from his own statements and those
OF his deluded associates, OF his biographcr,
of his retched wife, that the unhappy man
who has just paid the forfeit of his life had
for years medita ted a general insure ction in
the Southern States; that he thought the
time had now come to effect it; that the
slaves were ready TO rise, and The non-slave-
holding whites to join them; and both uni
ted were ready to form new Common
wealth, of which the Constitution was or
ganZed aud the officers chosen. With this
vdcs weapons for those on whose rising he
calculated at Harper's Ferry, he seiz the
National Arsenal, where there was supply
of plmS for a hundrt d thousand men, and he
into nded. if unable to maintain himself at
once in the open country, to retreat To the
mountains. and from their iastn SIS, hlr-
rass, paIaly r., and finally revUlutiOnze the
South. To talk of the pix aud rifles not
being intended for offensive purposes is sim
fret aaf oil oft hta TfN
WAS 10 shoot down free cOlored man,
whom they were attempting to impress. and
who fled from them. One might as well say
that the rifitd ordinance of Louis Napoleon
was intended only Tor s,li-defence. TO he
used iu case the Austrlans should undertake
To arrest his march.
No, sir, IL was an attempt tn do on a vast
scale what was done ia ~. Domingo in 1891,
where the coored population was about
equal TO that oil Virginia ard ii any one
would form Distinct idea what such an
operation il, let him see it-not as matter
of vague conceptinn-a crude prujcct-in
the mad OF heat, fanatic, but as it should
in the sober pages oi history. that record the
revolt in that island; the midnight burning.
the Wholesale massacres, the mercilcss tor
turc, the denominations not TO Ice named 10y
Christian lips in the hearing OF Christian
ears-some of which, too unutterably afro
ciuus for the English language, are of n"ces-
sity yelled in the obscnrity of the Latin
tongue. Allow me To read you "A few sen
fences from the historian OF these events:
. In tue town itself the general belief for
some time was that the revolt Was by no
means an extensive one, but a sudden and
partial Instruction only. The largest sugar
plantation on the plain was that OF Mons.
Gallifrt situated about eight miles from the
town. the negroes belonging To which had
always been trraIed With such Kindness and
lberulity, aud possessed so many advantages,
that il became proverblal expression among
the lower white people, ia speaking az ANY
mans good fortune, to say, Il est heuyear
ooBms m negre d Gailya Che Is a. happy as
one OF NJ. Gallilet's negroes) NJ. Odelue,