The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-12-01
A CHARGE OF SEDITLoN

Wesubjoin from the local columns oftbe STATE,
and Union an account of an examination. beror.
two justices of peace, of a solicitor of patep,s
and late an Examiner, a respectable citizen on
the charge of using incendiary language. The
allegation was, that Dr. Breed, in a converso
ton with Dr. Van Camp, dentist, and Mr.
Stabler, claim agent, in the office of the Is,.
ter, defended the conduct of Brown in his ipvo.
sion of Virginia, and asserted that the nogroas
have right to secure their freedom nv cnt,.,..
the threats of their masters with a GOOD d.aI
more in the same vein.
Van Camp swore to these statements o,5
was to some extent sustained in them bv S,o
bier; while the prisoner, though not allowed 70
testify in has own case, denies positively that he
used the language attributed to him. He e %
Quaker, and processes to act upon the Ooato,
principles ofpeace and love to all men. sltbor,l
it seems be showed readiness to defend hin
selfif assailed. 1t seems by the admission &c
his enemies, that DR.. Breed is man of as mucb
responsibility as the men who have Informed
against him; and we have little doubt that II.
nature of the affair was greatly exaggerated in
the excitement and animosity which promn,e5
the witnesses to give information of a private
conversation which occurred at the house or
one Of them.
DIR. Van Camp was contradictory and inco
herent and Stabler says that he was not inter
ested, and paid no particular attention, ezcept
in the hot parts" We may therefore very
fairly offset their statements with the denial or
the prisoner.
What, then, must the country think or the
administration Of law at the seat of Cover.
ment, when it is known that respectable ct.
zen has been held to bail for seditious lanruage
in the exorbitant sum OF $4,000? IfDr. Breed
had threatened to murder one Of the witnesses
we believe that the recognizance could not have
exceeded the fourth of that sum- This l.
affords another illustration of the "iust..e"
which is dispensed by Federal officials in
Washington.
Siace writing the above, we have learned
some facts in regard to DR.. Breed, of which we
were not before aware. We learn that he held
Office as an Examiner of Patents for several
years, until he voluntarily resigned, since the
Inauguration of Mr.. Buchanan. He is a chem.
list, and his talents and attainments were found
highly useful in the Office he held. He is
French and German scholar, and has translated
several German works on Chemistry into Eng
lish. He now acts as solicitor, or agent for
patents, and is reported to be doing a fine
business. HIS circular ,chich is before as. hl,
a formidable list Of " Democratic" references
and 1t as expressly stated that they are " Jy per.
mission" We quote as follows from the circu
lar:
Ia rsgard to integrity, responsibility,
promptness, and efficiency, DR.. Breed would
refer to the officers employed in the United
States Patent Office during seven years past
and also, by permission, to the following gen
tlemen Prof f. n Horsford, Harvard Uni
versity, Mass; Hon. Charles Mason. Iowa. late
Commissioner of Patents Hon. Edmund
Burke, New Hampshire, formerly Commission
er of Patents Hon. Richard Mott Ohio. Mem.
Der of Congress; Hon. Thomas A. Hendricks
Indiana, Commissioner U. S. General Land
Office; Mr.. George Clifford, New York city,
Counsellor at Law Messrs. Sweeny. Ritten.
house, FAINT, Co, Washington, d. c.. Bank
ers; Messrs. Suter, Lea, d Co., Washington D.
c., Bankers"
The following is the first notice which the
public received of the seditious conversation.
1t is from the States of Wednesday week:
Haze zee John Bro,cn among as Ina
conversation, few evenings since, in the pres,
ence OF two persons, one DR. Breed, of No. 4Ol
street, (ostensibly engaged as a solicitor of
patents, made the assertion that Brown and
Cook and their party done what they considered
right at Harpers Ferry and he also considered
that they had done perfectly right and further,
that he believed that it was the duty of every
good Christian to teach the slave that in,orJeT
to get their freedom, if necessary, they should
murder their masters, cut the threats of their
fire their houses, and run away 10
the North by the light Of them. He remarked
further, that the shareholders did not know in
what danger they stOod-that there were many
more persons that held the same opinions in
this District. Much other conversation of the
same nature was used by DR.. Breed at the same
time.
"The police will probably be serving him as
they have served others"
This statement must have been furnished 10
the States by either Van Camp or Stabler.
The following is the account of the examina.
ion which occurred before Justices Dom and
Giberson, on Friday evening, and was report
I'd in the States of the next day. Though
ong, we give it, as an illustration of Federal
ustice
4" The Charge Of Scdition.-An examination
On this charge was had yesterday, at three P.
NJ, before Justices Dom and Giberson. of the
case of DIR. Breed, formerly an Examiner in the
Patent Office, and for several years past a so
icitor of patents, and resident Of the District.
According to the evidence, the parties pres
ent at the time of the alleged offence were DR..
Breed, DR.. Van Camp, and George Stabler;
hat the meeting was purely accidental Drs.
Breed and Van Camp, although for a long pc
'iod near neighbors, becoming personally &C.
luainted for the first time and that the Ian.
suage complained Of was used in Mr. Stabers
,oom, to which Dr. Breed had gone with the
object of hiring horse and carriage for the
use of himself and wife on the following day.
I" Mr.. Stabler was at the time occupied in wri
ing, and after making the other gentlemen &C.
Iuainted, did not pay special attention to the con-
1ersation, which lasted upward of twenty min
ites, but at last became attracted by the acri.
nony and excitement mutually manifested.
The discussion, as was elected, had in the
irst place been general, and on subjects of
piritualism, psychology, and others rather
bordering on the abstract, until it branched on
he more practical theme of the Harper's Ferry
Gray, on which both parties, taking decided
nd opposite grounds, warmed up until physi.
al irrepressible conflict was imminent
The general provocation toward this was
trough the alleged assertion by Dr. Van Camp,
Tho quoted from speech attributed to Sew.
I'd, that he would shoot any man who dared
use such language in his presence or words
} that effect.
. This was Immediately responded to by DR..