Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-12-11

~ wounded by one of the sentries
posted by the invaders.
a little before daylight, the first
Harpers Ferry residents began to ap-
pear on the streets. AS fast as they
came out of their houses, they were
halted by armed men and marched
to the armory. The work day started
early with the gun makers. The sun
was only little way up the sky when
the ma jority of them were imprisoned
in the factory.
Breakfast time came. The raiders
were hungry after a hard night s
work. The bearded leader released
on parole one of his prisoners. Wat
son Kemp, on his promise to obtain
20 breakfasts from Fouke's Hotel,
where he was employed as bartender,
He made good and the raider kept
his word.
Up to this time not even the prison
ers knew the identity of their captors.
Outside the arsenal the affair was
still more of a mystery. But from the
conversation of their guards the
prisoners learned during the morning
that the venerable "Mr. Smith," whom
they had seen wandering about the
hills all Summer, was none other
than the celebrated "Ossa attOmie
Brown" the leading figure in the
Kansas free-soil war of a few years
before. They were able in some way
to inform the people outside, now in
a state of intense excitement which
can well be ina gined.
II get my authority from the Great
JehoVa," Brown yelled, when the
prisoners questioned him.
BY 9 o'clock the people outside had
recovered sufficiently from their ex.
element to get their guns and at.
tempt to recapture the armory. They
formed into two small companies. one
commanded by a Capt. Medler and the
other by a Capt. Roderick. local mi
litia officers. Later in the day. third
company was organized under a Capt.
Moore. The first company crossed the
Shenandoah and took up their pc.
sition OH Loudoun Heights. overlook.
ing the rifle factory. The second was
stationed on the b & O. Railroad en-
bankment opposite the arsenal. The
third crossed the Potomac about
mile above Harpers Ferry. marched
down the river bank, and recaptured
the railroad bridge.
r 4 X
THE little band of Browns men
which had captured the rifle fac.
tory was driven out by Medler's fire
and showed into the Shenandoah.
where they all persisted either from
drowning or bullets. Other citizen
bands drove the scattered couples of
armed raiders off the streets, where
they had been capturing citizens, and
into the armory.
At the armory. where Brown com.
manded in person. a determined re-
sistance was made. He told the
prisoners that he expected heavy re.
Inducements soon. Perhaps he really
did expect them. Where they were to
come from nobody knows. Possibly
the leader believed that as soon as
word Of his exploit got abroad, there
would be a great uprising of slaves
under white leadership, particularly in
Loudoun County, where there was
strong aboltionist sentiment
But as the forenoon wore on, the
citizens of Harpers Ferry all the time
keeping up steady fire at the arse.
nal. Brown began to realize that his
cause was hopeless He sent out two
prisoners. Archibald kitsmuller and
Resin Cross. to trca for terms He
wanted an agreement which would
permit him to Vacate the place with
his surviving men without molesta-
ton. The peace ENJOYS were not
recognized by their fellow citizens
Both were fired upon from an up
stairs window of a nearby house as