Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1859-11-24

0Gov. Wise, the great letter writer of
the sge. has found his match, if no, for
length OF letters, then for keenness of ex-
preston and strength Of argument. 1t is
Gov. Wise against L. Maria Child It takes
a poman to outwrite hero of the quill and
if Mrs. Child has not done this then we are
mistaken. She first wrote to the Governor
asking permission to visit Old John Brown,
and for a reply got permission if she come
on peaceful" mission, and then went on
in his usual prolific style to condemn B-own
for murder, treason &c. She replies by
quoting from the Governors speech in Con-
eress in 1872, where he favored the subjuga-
ton of Mexico by f.libuster means, and
said if Government sent her troops there
Buffalo" From this she proceeds to say:
Even if Capt. Brown were as bad as you
paint him should suppose he mast natura l.
ly remind you of the words o. Macbeth:
1--WE but teach
BIocdv ir.truciions which, being taught return
To pl,gue the inventor: This even-i,an1ed justice
Commends the ingredients Of our poisoned chalice
| To our own lips"
If Captain Brown intended, as you say,
to commit treason, robbery, and murder,
think have shown that he could find ample
suihority for such proceedings in the public
dec clsration of Gov. Wise. And if. as he
himself declares, he merely intended to free
the oppressed, where could ne read a more
forcible lesson than is furnished by the
State Seal of Virginia, | looked at it
thoughttully before opened your letter;
and though it had always appeared to me
very suggestive. it never seemed TO me so
much SO as it now did in connection with
| Captain John Brown. A lberiy-lovIng
he ro stands with his foot upon PROSTATE
despot; under his strong arm, manacles and
chains lie broken; and the motto is "aic
Semper Tyrdnn,s," ''Thus be i, ever done
10 Tyran,s" And this is the blazon of a
State whssa most profitable bu siness is the
internal Slave Trade! In whose highways
ceffles of human chattels, chained snd man.
acled, are frequently seen! And the Sea-
and the Cofies are both locked upon BY
other chattels. constantly exposed to the
same fate! Wba; if some Vezey, or Nat
Tuner, should be growing up among those
parently quiet spectators! 1t is in nc
spirit of taunt or of exutaiion, that ] ask
this question. never think Of it but with
anxiety, sadness, and sympathy. l know
that slaveholcing community necessarily
lives in the midst of gunpow6er; and, in
this age, sparks of free thought are flying
in every direction. You cannot quench the
fires of free thought and human sympathy
by any process of cunning or force; but
there is method BY which you can effect
uslly wet the gunpowder. England has al.
ready tried it, with safety and success
Would that you could be persuaded to set
aside the prejudices of education. aad can
didiy examine The actual working of that
experiment.! Virginia is richly endowed by
nature that Free Institutions alone are want
ing TO render her the most prosperous and
rowerful of the States.
In your letter you suggest that such a
scheme as Capt Browns is the natural re-
snIt of the opinions with which symPa-
thize. Even if | thought this to be cor
rect statement, though should deeply re-
gret it, ] could not draw the conclusion
| that humanity ought to be stifed, and truth
struck dumb, for fear that long-successful
despotism might be endangered by their ut
terance. But the Fact is. you mistake the
source Of that strange outbreak. No a5oli
tion arguments or denuciations, however
earnestly, loudly, or harshly proclaimed,
would have produced that result. Ii was the
legitimate consequence of the continual,
and constantly increasing aggressions of the
Slave Power. The Slave States, in their
desperate efforts to sustain bad dangerous
| institution, have encroached more and more
| upon the liberties of the Free States. Our
| inherent love of law and order, and our
superstitious attachment TO the Union, You
have mistaken for cowardice; and rarely
have ) you let slip any opportunity to add in
suit ts aggression.l
In reply to this We may expect a letter
as long as Secretary Cass' on the San Juan
difficulty. The Governor bad better quit,
else he may expect the worst .drubbing he
ever got.