Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1859-10-24
A TALK WITH JOHN BROWN.

ed and smeared with blood. He converses
freely, fuently, and checrfuly, without the
| slightest manifestation of fear or uneaSI-
ness, evidently weighing well his words, and
possessing good command of language. His
manner is courteous and affable, and lie ap'
| pears to make a favorable impression upon his
| auditory.
| When l arrived in the armory, shortly after
two O'Clock in the afternoon, Brown was an
swering questions put to him by Senator Ma
son. who had Just arrived from his residence
in Winchester, thirty miles distant, Colonel
Faulkner, member of Congress, who lives but
few miles off, Mr.. Vallandgham, member of
| Congress, of Ohio, and several other distin-
| guished gentlemen. The following is a verba-
TIM report of the conversation =
Mr.. Mason-Can you tell us, at least, who
| furnished money for your expedition
Mr.. Brown furnished most of it myself.
cannot implicate Others. 1t is by my own
| folly that | have been taken. | could easily
have saved myself from it if had exercised
my own better Judgment, rather than yielded
| to my feelings | should have gone away, but
| had thirty odd prisoners, whose wives and
daughters were in tears for their safety, and
felt for them. Besides, l wanted to allay the
fears of those who believed we came here to
burn and kill. For this reason l allowed the
train to pass the bridge, and gave them full
liberty to pass on. did it only to spare the
feelings OF those passengers and their families,
and to allay the apprehension that you had got
here in your vicinity band of men who had
no regard for life and property, nor any feeling
of humanity.
Mr. Mason-But you killed some people
| passing along the streets quietly.
Mr. Brown-Well, sir, if there was anything
of that kind done, it was without my knowl-
/ oJfr ,s;f;1 p.ir
oners will tell you that every possible means
were taken to prevent it. l did not allow my
men to fire, nor even to return fire, when
there was danger of killing those we regarded
as innocent persons, if could help it. They
| will tell you that we allowed ourselves to be
| fired at repeatedly and did not return it.
A Bystander-That is not so. Yod killed
an unarmed man at the corner of the house,
over there, lat the water tank,) and another
besides.
| Mr.. Brown-See here, my friend it is use
less to dispute or contradict the report of your
| own neighbors who were my prisoners.
| Mr.. Mason-If you would tell us who sent
| you here-who provided the means-that
| would be information Of some value.
| Mr.. Brown will answer freely and faith
| fully about what concerns myself will an
swer anything | can with honor but not about
| others.
Mr.. Vallandigham (member of Congress
from Ohio, who had just entered MIR.
Brown, who sent you here?
Mr.. Brownie man sent me here; it was
| my own prompting and that of my Maker, or
| that of the devil, which ever you please to
ascribe it to. l acknowledge no master in
human form.
Mr.. Vallandigham-Did you get up the
expedition yourself?
| Mr.. Brown did.
| Mr.. Vallandigham-Did you get up this
| document called constitution
! Mr.. Brown did. They are a constitution
and ordinances of my own contriying and get
ting up.
Mr.. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. long have you
been engaged in this business
MIR. Brown-From the breaking out of the
difficulties in Kansas. Four of my sons had
gone there to settle, and they induced me to
go did not go there to settle but because Of
the difficulties
Mr.. Mason-How many are engaged in this
movement! l ask those questions for your
own safety.
Mr.. Brown-Any questions that can hon
orably answer, | WILL not otherwise. So far
as | am myself concerned have told every
thing truthfully. l value my word, sir.
Mr.. Mason-What was your object in COM
ing
Mr.. Brown-We came to free the slaves
and only that.
Young Man, lin the uniform of volun-
teer company)- many men in all had you?
Mr.. Brown came to Virginia with eight
cen men besides myself
Volunteer-What in the world did you sup
pose you could do here in Virginia, with that
amount of men?
Mr.. Brown-Young man, l don't wish to
discuss that question here
Volunteer-You could not do anything.
MIR. Brown-Well, perhaps your ideas and
mine on military subjects, would differ mate
rally.
Mr.. Mason-How do you justify your acts I?
Mr.. Brown-I think, my friend, you are
guilty of great wrong against God and hui
manity-I say it without wishing to be often
sive-and it would be perfectly right for any
one to interfere with you so far as to free those
you wilfully and wickedly hold in bondage.
do not say this insultingly.
Mr.. Mason-I understand that.
Mr.. Brown think | did right, and that
others will do right who interfere with you at
any time and all times / hold that the golden
rule, edo unto Others as you would that others
should do unto you," applies to all who would
help others to gain their liberty.
Lieut.. Stuart-But you don't believe in the
Bible?
Mr.. Brown-Certainly do
Mr.. Vallandigham-Wh did your men
come from Did some of them come from
Ohio
Mr.. Brown-Some of them.
Mr.. Vallandigham-From the Western Re-
servs None came from southern Ohio
Mr.. Brown-Yes believe one came from
below Steubenville, down not far from Wheel
ing.
Mr.. Mason-You consider yourself the COM
mandern-chief of these provisional" militia.
ry forces.
Mr. Brown was chosen agreeaby to the
ordinance of certain document, commander
in-chief of that force.
Mr.. Mason-What wages did you offer7
Mr.. Brown-None.
Lieut.. Stuart-"The wages of sin is DEATH"
Mr.. Brown would not have made such
remark to you, if you had been prisoner and
wounded in my hands.
Mr.. acknowledgements in Cleveland did
you attend the fugitive slave law convention
there
Mr.. Brown-No. / was there abont the
time of the sitting of the court to try
the Oberlin rescuers. l spoke there pub
cy on the subject. spoke on the fugitive
slave law and my own rescue. OF course, so
far as | had any influence at all, was dispos-
ed to justify the Oberlin people for rescuing
the slave, because have myself taken slaves
from bondage | was concerned in taking
eleven slaves from Missouri to Canada last
winter. / think spoke in Cleveland before
the convention. l do not know that / had any
conversation with any of the Obcrlin rescuers.
l was sick part of the time was in Ohio with
the ague. was part of the time in Ashtabu-
la county.
Mr. Vallandigham-Did you see anything
| of Joshua r. Giddings there?