Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1894-12-19

there are two molasses 6O-gallon punch.
cons lashed on the axle on the way to "the
run" for water; aud that white man
sits on one for saddle and colored boy
on the other.
Half dozen rods ahead a flock of
nearly full-grown quails Airts up from the
roadside, quartering away into the brown
field, alighting within easy gunshot while
beating the air with his barred wings,
the mocking bird sails from shrub to
roadside tree further on More than once
a stray wild pigeon runs along the wheel
ruts for few rods, before again taking
flight 10 the neighboring wheat field and
cirling above with motionless wings, the
turkey-buzzards wheel in the air and
watch the world below.
Charles Town contrasts most favorably
with Harper's Ferry in appearance, being
as neat and thrifty as the other is shabby
and down in the heel. The main street
is half a mile long, with plenty OF shade
trees, and many tasteful houses on both
sides. OF course you drive at once TO the
courthouse, which is partly the building
in which John Brown was tried that Is,
the walls cover the same space, the pillars
in front are in the same position, although
higher; and, walking through the lower
hall TO the rear you can pass over the
very space where John Browns mattress
lay, when he was called upon TO plead to
the Indictment. But all the lower floor
is now devoted to offices, and the court
room is up one flight. Standing in the
doorway was pleasant-looking gentle
man, apparently 40 years of age, smoking
in corn cob pipe, the fragrant, natural
leaf. He proved to be the clerk of the
court, aud though taking no interest in
the subject most interesting to the visitor,
he was ready to put himself to trouble
and help him on his way. Going out
through the rear door of the courthouse,
and along a plank walk across the yard
in the rear of which we came to the vii
lage harness-maker, and he was the man
we had come from Boston to see, although
we had never heard of him until we saw
the clerk of the court. Sixty-four years
of age, sergeant of the military com.
pany which marched to Harper's Ferry
October II, 1S56,-one Of the very first
to hear the message of alarm on that
Monday morning when the rider came
bareheaded into town one of the guard
that stood around the scaflold, and of the
26 who marched around the body to Har-
per's Ferry in December in fine, ma
tive Virgnian who had forgotten nothing
that he knew before the war, and learned
nothing since. He also, like the scene at
Harper's Ferry, of which Mr.. Jefferson
wrote, was worth coming across the At
lantic to see, if one could not otherwise
get to him.
What follows in quotation marks is the
substance of what was drawn from him
bv hundred questions and while there
is little pretense of reproducing the origi-
nal words, the sentiment is scrupulously
preserved -
Gust after daylight Monday morning
A. B. came running his horse into the
village, and said that hell was to pay down
to the Ferry that a gang Of men had got
Lew Washington and Allstadt prisoners
and were trying to raise the niggers. |
got him to 90 over to see Lawson Bolts
Cbrolher of John Minor, and he said the
man was drunk. But | saw that he was
as sober in the eye as you are, and being
sergeant of the company, went over to the
house of the captain. He sent a messen-
ger up to warn the colonel, who lived up
the country toward Staunton. By noon
we were on the way to the Ferry, and the
colonel gave orders that we were to 90
over on the Maryland side to stop their
retreat that way. We stayed there until
the middle of the afternoon, when the
boys got so hot for fight that they drove
Brown into the engine.house. They kill
ed two niggers on the track one was shot
in the river trying to swim across, and
two more in front Of the rife works-that
made five niggers they killed. All the
afternoon our friends inside the engine
house kept sending out word for US not to
fire in there, for we should kill them, and
Brown kept saying he would give up only
to United States troops, and not to Vir.
ginia soldiers. This was only 10 give him
time to make holes in the walls through
which to shoot.
ale was brought in a wagon to Charles
Town Jail Tuesday night, and he had a