The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-12-29

E--Governor Charles T. o'Ferraii on
80. refcr-:nr TO the John Brown
letters which were publisheo III
Times of Sunday last said they reca4l.
=, h,r mind very vlvid!sa the incidents
~ ,ne Brown raid on Harpcr's Ferry, IN
October. 1853. .,,.,,. at
The Ex-Governor said: NJ! hcine
thst time was at Berkeley SpFi:.,s 40 :. -,
s;aht miles west OF Harper's Ferry. on
pa,,;-,o-e and Ohio Railroad. l was
. how and had gone TO Winchester 70
.,.s,,,. a fast horse at the Agricultural
EaIr which was to open in few DAYS.
on sfonday. the 18th of October, the peo-
80 ~ winchester were thrown INTO
toto IF excitement by news of serious
trouble ut Harper's Ferry: but me e Nae.
,.ture OF Il was not understood, e&eepe
.h.t the town was in the hands of armed
Mo, who were arrestins and killinG Peo-
pie. ,,;,;-
Thc continenta1s the splendid old mill
sary company of Winchester. was CAREY
NIT and ordered to Jarper's Ferry;
asked. and received. permission 10 60
with them. and JOSEPH, II. Sherrard Esq.
afterwards Judge Sherrard. borrowed
5ouble-bsrreIed shotgun and loaned IL
70 me. Some other citizens. also vo!un-
4eered among them Judge II T. Fauntlf'
row. late of our Court of Appeals W.
Eli proceeded by railroad train uhhI We
rea ched IIaIltown. four miles from bar
per's Ferry. There the train was stopped
and we were told that body OF NorIher.
men were in possession OF the tnlteo
States Arsenal and fighting had oeeh &C.
5nc on all day. This was about sunset.
Sye were ordered; to leave the train anc
proceed by way OF the turnpike ana
Through Bolivar 20 the Ferry.
FINGER ON TRIGGER.
We reached tho upper end of the ar
tnory grounds after dark and marcheS
Through them to the lower END and 10
th. main stree. of tho town. Judge
1Tauntleroy and wer. togcthcc and VIC
marched cautiously with ou- guns port
thumb on hammer and finger on tr1s.
ger, expecting every moment to encoun =
er tho insrrgent After going through
the grounds we learned that on the night
before Sunday the lights on the streetS
were nut out and tf,, people were arrest
ed on their way home from church ana
6le arsenal was taken possession of oy
armed men: that a faithful colored man
en- the employment of the Baltimore and
Ohio Railroad Company had been killed
Nv these men because he refused to give
them certain keys: that Mr.. Beckham,
the Mayor had also been killed: that Mr.
Allstat the Master Arn1orer, and Colo
mel Washington. who lived near Har-
per's Ferry. had been arrested and were
then prisoners We learned further that
the leader Of the party was none other
than John Brown. known as "ossawat-
tonne Brown" who hae obtained TINS
sobriquet in his notorious; anti-slaverI-
warfare IN Kansas. and that he had de-
clared his object to be TIE freeing OF
the slaves "hy the authority of God AL
mighty or "by decree OF High
Heaven
BLooDsHED COMMENCED.
The Martinsbu-s Volunteer Company
had reached the scenc about noon. L
think. of Monday, and befors we arrived
the citizens and military had killed and
wounded several of Browns party; amon2
Che latter Stevens, who was lying in the
Wager House at the depot, and had
captured Coppic and forced Brown, with
the remainder of his party and prisoners
10 take refuge in the tira-eng1ne house
OF the arrnory. which stood at the lower
end Of the reservation. opposite tho raii-
uav dcpot. The town by this time was
literally swarming with citizens from
,oi,es around. armed with all kinds OF
weanons was ZIP ali night seeing
and hearing all could and doing some
.uar1 duty. About l2 o'clock that night
a call came from the ensine-house Tor
sf1vsician TO minister to a wounded, per-
11aps dying man 1t was Browns call.
IA phn-scian wen. in. 1t was one OF
Browns sons for whom the call was
snade. I heard that the prisoners said
that during Monday Brown, having
made portholes in the engine-house by
Encclcine out 1ricks, would watch for
nm opportunity to shoot, holding his rite