The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1909-10-24
JOHN BROWN "OF OSSAWA-
T0TTTE

prisoners of the guards and of several
ance. precipitated fight in which sew
cral We're killed on both sides and held
the place Tor about rwenty-four hours
but only to fall finally into the hands
of a company of United States marines
under Colonel Robert T. Lee. after
ward General Lee of the Confederate
army. and to pay the death penalty Tor
his exploit within seven weeks.
There are men and women in plenty
scattered over the United States who
recall that historymalzing raid of the
antisIavery fanatic of half-century
back and all the popular excitemtnt,
even frenzy, that il aroused from one
end Of the country 10 the other and cs-
pecially at the South and North. the
discussion that it brought about the
animositics that it created. the effects
that it had on American politics and
how directly from it sprang up the
series Of events that brought ON the
war between the States within less
than two wears To say that there
was widespread sympathy for the man
at the North only imperfecjly descri5
- the feeling prevalent in this section
Of the country-and yet his act was
clearly treason, and he did not himself
make any effort TO defend it under the
law His forces for the raid consisted
Of a band of reckless abolitionists
whom he had gathered about him and
a few free negroes; and his purpose
was To incite a general insurrectiOn Of
the slaves throughout the South and
thus to destroy the constitution cf
slavery by force Of arms and bloodshed.
1t seems almost impossible. as one
looks back on The incident from this
distance that the law-abiding and
peace-loving people of the New Eng
land and Middle Westecmfwy SIR ct
land and Middle States could ever
have felt any measure of sympathy
for man like that-but they did, and
il was not passive, buS Il militant
sympathy i'm not few instances. al
though it was tempered here and there
I by an agreement as TO the lawlessneas
of Brown 5 deed. But the very mani
ness of the man. his unquestionable
sincerity. his ingrained belief in the
thorough righteousness of his cause and
the CHRISTIAN forJtude win Whlch ne
met ms END operated TO arouse the ao
mlTatIoh even OF MS enemies. inns Is
All the more wonderful, too viewed IN
The hght OF history because ohiY Ihree
years previous 10 TINS fald Johh brown
had let secret expedition against the
pFo-SlaNefN men OF bleeding Kansas
that resulted IN hNe brutal murders
anu went GOWN III American history as
the - PottaWattomle massacre. @ 90
he was already murderer before he
committed treason and murder at Har-
per $ ferry-but u had oeeh III inc
same cause.
throughout the South, very natural
", the feeilhg was just the opposite
hot indignation and disposition TO
retallatc- during the days ana weeks
following the rand there was the most
/ intense excitement; there was that aE.-
tul thought that slave lnsurrectloh,
so long feared and so frlghttully
dreaded, had at length come or was on
the verge OF the coming, and that was
quite enough to drown out reason III
manly instances; excited lmagnaflohs
pictured the devastation OF property
and homes the namel2ss horrors 90
which women and Children would be
subjected. the destruction indeed Of iii
whole structure of southern society.
But much of this soon subsidized, for the
slaves throughout the South were lgno-
rant of the raider 5 lntentlOns-even
those in the Immediate neighborhood
of Harper 5 Ferry had remained quiet
y and contentediy on their plantations
and the whole expedition was mad
ly-coneeived, bungiagly- planned and
most miserable failure.
John brown was an a5cetic ana
fanatic OF the most extreme type. lie
had brooded long ana seriously over