The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1860-01-21
From the Indianapolis Journal.
A Huge Joke.

From the Indianapolis Journal 3
A Huge Joke
One of the most amusing of the many
iudicrous incidents of the Harper's Ferry
excitementha just reached our ears. AS the
moral of it is highly instructive. illustrating
both the wisdom of Providence and the
folly of Democracy. we cannot withhold 1t
fro;s our readers. Mr.. Bayless w. Hanna.
of Tsrre Haute, is very pleasant and esti-
mable gentleman, but fearfully diseased with
Democracy. He is the Law partner of Mr..
United States Attorney VOORHEES,, and was
foreman of the last Grand Jury in the last
United States Court, which our readers viii
remember was the most devout of all the
Grand Juries that hare fallen down and
worshippeds slavery at the bidding of John
L.. Robinson. In virtue of these many
claims IT, the regard of Shareholders, he
certainly was justified in expecting the
kindest possible reception from the people
ofViFginia, whenever he should visit them,
and he possibly entertained hope that If
he should go to Charleston, Gen. Taliaferro
would meet him with an escort of honor,
and order all the troops to present arms
when he passed.
: It was doubtless, therefore, with feelings
of Joy as well as sadness, that he received
from Governor Willard and Mr.. Voorhees,,
a short time before Cooks execution, a re-
quest to come to Charleston to assist in the
sad duty of securing and preparing Cooks
body for burial. He went, and stopped At
Harper Ferry, expecting to meet his friends
there Not finding them, he waited a few
hours for them to come. and employed The
interval in buying copy of Helpers book.
and one of Browns pixies, to use in the
campaign of 1860. He meant to take them
with him on his stumping tours, and after
reading some fiery extracts from the book,
to hold up the pike and say Here, fellow
citizens, is the practical result of the doc
trines endorsed by the Republican party
This terrible weapon-I got it at Harper's
Ferry with my own hands-perforating the
bowels and shedding the gore Of our South
erin bretheren, is fit emblem of the party
that now threatens the Union and breathes
blood and destruction upon the South
Look at it fellow citizens. It is fearful
weapon II the Republican party gets the
power, millions and millions of them will
be STEPPED in blood of innocent children.
and this mighty Union sink down, frag-
mentary wreck, into a sanguinary ocean of
gore, with the sun gazing sadly on the ruin,
anu tJO ClOuuS NIipPiuSf fWttu tAO tOctS VI
the heavens ~ Now anybody can see, that
II pike thus used, would be formidable
Democratic weapon, and we have no doubt
that Mr.. Hanna manufactured number of
stirring appeals and patriotic denunciatons
while he was carrying his purchase to his
hotel. Possibly he chuckled with delight
at the slaughter of Republicanism he was
going to make with his pike, and not i'm
l.. l. ~
seat. and even Goyernofship. all earned
by gallant charges with that pike. In his
satisfaction, like the milk maid in, her
dream, he probably made an indiscreet ex-
hibition of his weapon and his book, and
somebody saw him. He was suspected
Terrible dangers were gathering about him,
and he, poor innocent, was enjoying his an
ticipations of victories over Republicanism,
and probably of grand reception at Charles
ton, all unconscious of his peril. He hired
hack and drove at once to Charleston
The moment he landed, he was arrested and
pat wnder guard, and he acas kept so tsceRty
four hours! All night long while he slept,
three soldiers stood over his bed with loaded
muskets. When he asked what he was
charged with, he was told A6oltioatsm -
When he asked upon what grounds, they
showed him the book aud the pike head
which they had taken from his trunk. His
book and his pike, the weapons with which
he expected to crush Abolitionism, had ac
lually got him into jail for being an abol-
ZIONIST. Were ever the designs of the wicked
so happily overruled to their own>confusion?
Did ever Democratic folly so utterly blast
Democratic trick We reckon not. we
suppose not. The next day, Mr.. Hanna
was taken before General Taliaferro, and,
after a rigid examination, he was discharged.
though Mr. VOORHEES, WITH ineonsiderate
zeal insisted on making speech for him.
A wiser, if not Wise, man., be left that
Court, discharged his sad duty at the gal
lows. and came home, where the excellence
of the joke actually squeezed itself out of
him in. spite of his determination never to
breathe il to anybody, and his active efforts
to prevent the newspaper correspondents at
the execution from saying anything about
it. 1t is the best joke of the year. in our
candid opinion.
PorrLArIoN OF W1scoNsIN AND ILL1NoIs.
The Secretary of the State of Wisconsin