The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1860-02-22
For the Portage Sentinel.
When Doctors Disagree, who
shall decided

vince the people OF all sections that It is in
no way responsible for the conduct of John
Brown and his coadjutors in their invasion OF
Virginia. The Republican press and party
leaders tell US that John Brown, a quiet in
offensive citizen of Ohio, left our State few
yesrs since, and, with his sons, went to the
Territory of Kansas for the purpose of qui.
etly settling upon government land, ,and grow
up with the Territory and become permanent
residents. But after having been there
short time the pro.slaVery men from Nilsson
ri invaded the Territory, murdered one Of his
sons and drove him iroA1 his land, confsca-
ted bic property and hunted him as beast of
prey, and the cause of all this was that he
preferred freedom to slavery. l am unable
to enunerate all the wrongs which they tell
US were perpetrated against John Brown in
Kansas. But they say that this was the
main cause Of his attack at Harper's Ferry;
that smarting under the cruel treatment
which he received at the hands Of the border
ruffians, he determined 10 make the slave.
holders feel his power. That he went to
Virginia for the purpose of running off the
negroes, and with no intention of committing
any crime against the laws of humanity. For
the purpose of clearing themselves from
completely with John Brown, they have
charged the whole to the debtor account of
the Kansas. Nebraska bill. We msy Judge
of the honesty of this charge by the follow
ing extract from letter written by Mr.. R.
Realf, Secretary Of State, under Browns
Provisional Government, published in the
New York Times, under date of Jan. 30th.
In defending the Republicans, he says:
The charge thus alleged is ,cholly and alto
9ether untrue, and this for this simple reason,
that the movement of John Brown was con
ceived and originated OF least score OF years
antecedent to the formation of the Republi-
can Party. While yet Clay was in the ze.
NTH OF his fame, and Webster had not "sold
himself TO the South" and the issues which
have since torn The country were unknown,
John Brown was brooding upon his scheme.
In the Convention held at Chatham, c. w.,
he made speech decluratory ot his purposes
and expressive of his views, wherein he sta.
| ted that for twuhty years the project which
has resulted SO fatally to himself and dsas.
trously to the slaves, had been the absorbing
passion Of his nature, to which all other pur.
suits and purposes had been rendered sub
servient. In the year 1861, he (being then
an Ohio wool grower,) went to England,
bearing samples of wool as his contribution
to the great International Exhibition and
this journey was undertaken solely on &C
count of the reasons which follow:
With view to the ebolitipn of Slavery,
he had been close student of the theory of
mountain and guerilla welfare through long
series OF years ; and, being desirous OF prac.
tically examining the different modes OF for.
tIflcation, entrenchment, &c, employed in
the States of the Old World, he chose for
the period OF his visit that in which London
would naturally be thronged with the repre-.
sentalives of Continental Europe, and when,
consequently, it would not be difficult mat
ter to provide onese with letters OF introduc.
ton to people in all parts OF those countries.
Immediately after he had secured such let.
ters, be crossed into France, whence, after
a careful inspection of its Notifications he
Sl0i'Co 'oI SPo'H1 AloJS AuolIIu, 4IuSoiuS
&c. through which countries, especially
their mountainous portions, he made length
ened tour, with the sole view OF applying tha
knowledge thus obtained to the prosecution
of the enterprise in which he died. This
was in 1851. The Republican party had no
existence until 1854. The slstement, there.
fore, that the incurson into Virginia result.
ed as consequence of the inculcated doc
trines of Repub!canism, is now disproven.
He tells US in the above letter that before
the name Of Stephen A. Douglas was known,
and when Kansas was an unknown forest,
and under the good old Missouri Compro.
mise, twenty years antecedent to the lorma.
tion of the Republican party, this quiet,
peaceable, christian man, John Brown, was
plotting treason against the government
"With view the the abolition OF Slavery,
he had been close student of the theory OF
mountain and guerilla warfare through a
long series of years." The shove opens up
to our vision more clearly than ever what
the Democratic party have always maintain.
ed, that the mission of John Brown to Kan
sss, was not that Of a peaceable quiet settler,
but that he went there at the instgation OF
the leaders of the Republican party, os a
"eueriHa," being armed and equipped by the
Beechers ard screecllers OF New England,
for the purpose Of driving from the Territory
enigrants from the southern and slave. hold.
ing States, and thereby bring into collision
the two sections of our confederacy, and
manufacture breath for the Republican par
ty. This is the man for whom the bells of
your quiet village tolled, and the Democrat
compared to Jesus Christ-the man who has
been for more than twenty years studying
the moet approved method of cutting the
thronts of large part of our fellow citizens,
and it is to be supposed that during all this
time, the Giddinges, Chases, Stewards.
Beechers and screechers have been profound
ly ignorant of the purposes OF Old Brown
"Tell it not in Gath /" They deny all com.
plicty with him, but applaud his motives.-
One of two things appear morally certain,
either the Republican party made John
Brown, or John Brown made the Republ-
can party. Take which horn of the dilem.
ma you please, Republican friends.
PORTAGE.
----ASssA--
10 the Public.
WASHINGTON, Feb. l8.