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United States armory and arsenal, in which were always stored many thousand stands of arms without sufficient guard to protect them.

His plan was to make the Blue Ridge Mountains his base of operations and, descending from them at night with his armed marauders, to attack the unprotected villages and isolated farm houses within his reach. The slaves were to be induced to abandon their homes, to be armed and drilled, and, by recruiting his forces in this way, he expected soon to raise a large body of blacks, reinforced by such white men as he could enlist, with which he believed he could maintain himself successfully in the moutains and, by a predatory war, so harass and paralyze the people along the Blue Ridge, that the whole South would become alarmed and slavery be made so insecure that the slaveholders themselves, for their own safety and that of their families, would be compelled to emancipate their negroes. It was, also, a part of his plan to seize the prominent slave owners and hold them prisoners either for the purposes of retaliation or as hostages for the safety of himself and his band, to be ransomed only upon the surrender of a specified number of their slaves, who were to be given their freedom in exchange for that of their masters.

When Brown's party arrived opposite the Ferry at the entrance to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad bridge over the Potomac, two of the number (Cook and Tidd) were detailed to tear down the telegraph wires, while two more (Kagi and Stevens), crossing the bridge in advance of the others, captured the night watchman. Leaving Watson Brown and

wounded, in the river, and died the same night. Copeland was hanged and Newby was shot, in the armory yard. Of the four that escaped Tidd died of fever a little over two years later, while on a transport going to the seat of war with a Massachusetts regiment as a sergeant; Barclay Coppoc became an officer in a Kansas regiment and was killed in September, 1861, by the fall of a train into the Platte River from a bridge whose supports had been burned away by the Confederates. Meriam died in New York City in November, 1865, after having served under Grant as a captain in a colored regiment, and Osborn Anderson died of consumption in Washington in December, 1872.

Stewart Taylor as guard at the Virginia end of the bridge, and taking old Williams, the watchman, with them, the rest of the company proceeded with Brown and his one-horse wagon to the gate of the United States armory, which was not more than sixty yards distant from the bridge. Finding it locked, they peremptorily ordered the armory watchman, Daniel Whelan, who was on the inner side of the gate, to open it, which he peremptorily refused to do.

Edwin Coppoc and Hazlett were next sent across the street to break into the United States arsenal, which stood within another inclosure and where there was no guard whatever; while, at the same time, Oliver Brown and William Thompson occupied the bridge over the Shenandoah near the arsenal, and Kagi, with Copeland, went up the Shenandoah to the Government rifle works, about half a mile above, where there was another superannuated and unarmed watchman to encounter, whom they likewise captured and took possession of the works.

It was now near midnight. Brown's next step was to dispatch Stevens, Cook and others, six in all, to the country to capture Colonel Lewis W. Washington, a descendant of the family of George Washington, and also to kidnap his negroes. In capturing Colonel Washington, they also seized the historic sword which had been given by Frederick the Great to George Washington, with the memorable words: "From the oldest soldier to the greatest," together with one of a pair of pistols presented by La Fayette to General Washington, and some other valuable arms. They brought Colonel Washington to Harper's Ferry in his own carriage, and his negroes in his four-horse farm wagon-stopping on their way at the house of another farmer, Mr. Allstadt," whom they likewise took prisoner, together with his son and men-servants, all of whom were taken under guard to Brown at the armory, arriving there before daylight.

5

In the meantime, the eastern bound passenger train on the

* Daniel Whalen, p. 752.

5 Col. Lewis W. Washington, p. 749.

John H. Allstadt, p. 757.

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad arrived at the Ferry after midnight, and was detained there until daylight by Brown's orders, his son Watson stopping the train as it approached the station. The passengers were at a loss to comprehend the cause of the delay, supposing it to be a strike of railroad hands. Shephard Hayward, one of the most respectable free negroes in the county, the regular railroad porter, employed to look after the luggage of passengers, went out to call the night watchman, Williams, whose post of duty was on the bridge. Getting no response, he walked out upon the bridge; but he had gotten only a short distance from the entrance when he was confronted by two strange men, who, pointing their guns at him, commanded him to halt. The poor fellow was naturally frightened, and either mistaking the order, or else confused by the suddenness of the summons, turned around to go back to the railroad office, when he was fired upon by Watson Brown and Stewart Taylor, one of their balls inflicting a mortal wound. This was the first victim of the foray and this firing was the first intimation that any of the citizens of the Ferry had-except, of course, the captured watchmen-that there was an enemy in their midst. Several persons living near the bridge were awakened by it, some of them got up and looked out of their windows to ascertain the cause. But as they heard nothing more, and it was too dark to distinguish objects a few feet from them, they concluded that the noise had been occasioned by midnight revelers shooting off their pistols in sport, and they returned to their beds.

But the noise of the shot that killed Hayward awakened Dr. Starry, who went to his aid and who became the Paul Revere of the day. He roused the people from their slumbers, rode out to the country and as far as the town of Charlestown, eight miles away where there was a militia company, which was soon going by train to the scene. All the morning there was desultory shooting and by noon companies of volunteers had arrived from various points. The raiders in the

7 Dr. Starry, p. 742.

iron works had been driven out and killed or captured as they attempted to cross the river and those at the armory had been driven into the engine house-afterwards to be known. as John Brown's fort-where they retreated with the most important of their prisoners and barricaded themselves. By two o'clock in the afternoon the town and hills were surrounded with militia and citizens and much firing from both sides was going on. About this time Mr. Beckham, the station. agent and Mayor of the town, was killed by a shot from the engine house, though he was not armed himself or engaging in the attack.a

Towards evening a citizen, Samuel Strider, tied a handkerchief to his umbrella and delivered a summons to surrender from Col. Baylor of the volunteers. John Brown replied in a note that if he and his men were allowed to depart safely with their arms and prisoners to the other side of the Potomac bridge, they would set the prisoners free there. To which Col. Baylor replied that under no circumstances would he consent to the removal of the citizens across the river. Later, Captain Sinn of one of the companies went close up to the engine house and being hailed from there he entered and talked with Brown, who was wearing Washington's historical sword. To Captain Sinn, Brown again stated his terms, complaining also that his men bearing flags of truce had been shot down like dogs. To this Captain Sinn replied that men who took up arms that way must expect to be shot down like dogs. John Brown's answer was that he knew what he was to undergo before he came there, he had possession of the town and could have massacred all of the inhabitants; hence, he thought he was entitled to some terms. He insisted that his followers had killed no unarmed man. When told that Mayor Beckham was without any weapons when killed, he expressed regret. They then parted.

It was not alone Dr. Starry that had brought so quickly

a See post, p. 759, 762.

8 Post, p. 772.

9 Sinn, p. 771.

all this outside assistance. At daybreak John Brown had allowed the train which had been seized in the early morning to proceed and at the very next station, Conductor Phelps10 sent a telegram to the authorities and in a few hours word of the insurrection had reached Washington, and at the order of the President a body of marines was dispatched to Harper's Ferry. The command of the Federal troops was given to Colonel Robert E. Lee,11 who was to become in a few years the great commander of the Conferedate armies. They arrived in the morning and Colonel Lee at once sent his aide, J. E. B. Stuart, 12 afterwards the distinguished cavalry leader, to demand the surrender of Brown and his men. The identity of Brown, up to this time known as Smith, was not revealed until he was recognized by Lieut. Stuart, who went to the engine house with a flag of truce. Brown refused to surrender and Lieut. Stuart told him he would come back at daylight for a final answer. The second demand received the same reply and the marines after breaking down the door with a ladder, forced their way into the fort and their leader, Lieutenant Green,12a knocked down and crippled Brown with his sword. Two of the raiders and one marine were killed, and all the raiders taken and their captives rescued.13

10 Conductor Phelps, p. 743.

11 LEE, ROBERT EDWARD. (1806-1870.) Born Stratford, Va. Son of General Harry Lee of the Revolution. The greatest General and Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the Confederacy. He surrendered to General Grant April 9, 1865. Died in Lexington, Va.

12 STUART, JAMES EWELL BROWN. (1833-1864.) Born Patrick County, Va. Was in command of all the Confederate cavalry at the battle of Bull Run, and commanded at the battle of Beverly Ford. Was made a Brigadier General in 1861, and a Major General in 1862. Was killed in battle near Richmond, May 11, 1864.

12a GREEN, ISRAEL. Entered the marine corps of the United States navy with rank of Second Lieutenant in March, 1847; in May, 1861, was dismissed, having refused to go south, and although a Vermonter, he joined the Confederate marine corps with the rank of Major and Adjutant at its organization in March, 1861, serving through the war in that position. He died in Mitchell S. D. in 1909, in his 86th year.

13 Those killed by the raiders numbered five, viz: Beckham, Boerley, Quinn, Hayward and Turner; the wounded were nine: Dorsey, Hammond, Hooper, Murphy, McCabe, Richardson, Rupert, Young and Woolet,

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