Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1861-03-23

A Hs-BRowN.PIrn. Iysux.xc.
i TioN-PLoT-SENsArfoN-SroR CRUELTY UPsRg-
A SECESSION PAPER TERRIBLY SoLD.-The Alex
andria (Ve) Sentinel, as our readers are aware il
| a rampant secession paper, and very much dis
gusted that the people Of Virginia have declined
to look at the matter through its spectac That
| something must be did right speedily to bring
them to their milk was apparent, and yesterday
the Sentinel folks evidently thought they had pot
hold OF the identical thing to do the business
nothing less than the discovery Of regular John
Brown-insurrection-plot- and all-in Fair
TAX county. The Sentinel fairly blazed with the
discovery, which was at once to revolutionize the
public sentiment of Virginia, announcing Ii In a
aouole-leader, with capitalized headings and all
the extras. Its astounding story ran thus
"Discocsry of Seeyetsd Arms-Ttco Hundred
Iotndhdtcks IN the Woods.-We have in our DOS
session several samples Of murderous instrument
some OF large number, Of which the following
city who has them for sale. He says they were
brough BIT to him by man Of the name Of Bailey
VINO lives somewhere in Fairfax county, with in
structions to sell them. He says Bailey informed
him that he found them secreted under pile of
leaves In the woods or In some out-building.
There were about two hundred Of them In ALL
nearly hundred and fifty were deposited for sale
The weapon itself is in form like tomahawk.
except that the part opposite the blade is beaten
into a strong spike or spear, slightly curved in
ward, and terminating In sharp point; the blade
stout handle Of ash wood, two feet long, is yery
strongly inserted and secured by jaws six and
half inches long. The handle has a rim around
the end to prevent Its being drawn through the
hands Of the holder. The metal is considerably
rusted by the exposure.
Altogether these are fearful weapons for hand
to-hand encounter. Their Numbers and their Sc
crenon, and the weapon itself, indicate an extern
tensive scale of murderous purpose and point to
the agents expected to be employed
Whether there are other military repositories
we know not But circumstances have been men
toned to us which will justify distrust Myste-
rious and suspicious looking boxes have been
received here from the North, and taken into
the Interior. Inquiry is already on the track Of
some OF these. But the discovery Of such deadly
weapons under such circumstances and I'm such
numbers as above stated, is Of itself sufficient to
awake the utmost vigilance Of our people. Who
are these, that while good men sleep, are collect
Ing In our forests, and by hundreds, the instru-
ments Of wholesale murder?
soldier who served at Harper's Ferry and be-
came familiar with the weapons captured at John
Browns mountain depot says that the appear
ance and the finish Of these battleaxes and OF the
handles to them, are precisely similar to those of
Browns pixies. Like them, also, these do not
contain the name of the atrocious manufacturer
we have deemed it due to the public to make
known these facts, az revealing the necessity for a
greater vigilance than we have as vet dsplayed
and for an adequate military preparation. When
the subject"
Now 1t is cruel to nil the Sentinsps promising
seHsduon achievement IN the bud, but truth is
mighty and must Idrit, and really the tfacts in
the csse' are too rich not to gain hearing
III seems that some years ago the Government
contracted with William jerks, (since deceased)
OF Alexandria county, Va inventor Of the enk's
caIDlne, for these instruments, which are nothing
more or less than common navy ''boardinp pixies
Ihey were however rejected by Government and
thrown upon jerks hands on account of defec-
tveness OF material. They hung on hand for a
long Time, and finally about a year ago. Mrs
jerks, widow # the contractor, hoping to realize
something from the lot, sent part of them to this
city by Harvie Bailey, son of Lewis Bailey, ESQ
who negotiated a sale for them at ten cents aniece
with Mr.. J. p. Bartholow, the well known dealer
In agricultural implements, on Seventh street
Mr b. made occasional sales Of them at IS cents
apiece, and sometime since bought another lot of
one nundred OF the pixies Of Mr.. Bailey, on which
occasion Bailey said be had large lot Ieft which
ne would sell at the same price, 90 cents
A Few OF these pixies found their way to Alex
andrla and by some means 1t was whisp ered about
there that they were Of the veritable John Brown
order. The demand for them riz instanter and
one enterprising fancy dealer In Alexandria Sc
cured all he could obtain, and sold them at remu-
nerative prices, as weapons furnished the negroes
Tor lnsurrectionary purposes, and found secreted
In large numbers at Bayley's Cross Roads in
Alexandria county Quite number were pur-
chased to be sent to the members of the Virginia
Convention, q la Rufin and the John Brown
pixies, and the effect was expected to be decisive
The Alexandrians at last accounts were f,purino
out which was the greatest sale-that of the pixies
or Of the Sentinel