Page:Report of Senate Select Committee on the Invasion of Harper's Ferry.pdf/16

16 by the committee to divest Brown of these arms. Howe's letter to Wilson of the 15th of May, cited above, shows very clearly that he was then strongly impressed with the necessity of arresting certain measures projected by Brown, whatever they were, and of which it would appear, at the date of his previous letter to Mr. Wilson, he had not been fully aware, but which he then characterizes as "a monstrous perversion of a trust" in "the application of means raised for the defense of Kansas, to a purpose which the subscribers of the fund would disapprove and vehemently condemn." Stearns, however, as shown by his letters to Brown, in executing the orders of the committee to prevent the misuse of the arms by Brown, contented himself with reminding Brown that those arms were "to be used for the defense of Kansas," and warns him only "not to use them for any other purpose," but to hold them subject to his order as chairman; adding that a member of the committee would go to Chatham to confer with Brown as to the best mode of disposing of them. The following day, the 15th of May, he again wrote to Brown, telling him that he could find no member of the committee who could spare the time to go to Chatham, and requesting Brown to meet him in New York city sometime the following week, and that the committee would pay his expenses.

The committee cannot but remark on the feeble, and, as it resulted, the abortive effort of the chairman of the Massachusetts committee to prevent a murderous use of these arms by Brown; certainly in striking contrast with the assurance given by Dr. Howe to Mr. Wilson, that prompt measures had been taken, and would be resolutely followed, to prevent such a "monstrous perversion of the trust" connected with them. But a perusal of the testimony at large of Mr. Stearns may show that he had at best but vague and undefined opinions as to what would be a perversion of the trust spoken of by Dr. Howe.

The history of the large armament collected by Brown at Harper's Ferry is thus clearly traced. The rifled carbines, manufactured in Connecticut, intended, as would appear, to be originally used in intestine strife in Kansas, and sent there for that purpose, were voluntarily, by the Massachusetts Kansas Committee, through its chairman, placed in the hands of Brown, with vague and inexplicit instructions as to their use, about the time when it would appear that he finally conceived the purpose of exciting servile war in some of the slaveholding States. They were allowed to remain in his possession, notwithstanding his failure or refusal to give them up after that committee and its chairman had been warned of his purpose to put them to some use not warranted by those who owned them. The revolver pistols, as shown by the testimony of Stearns, chairman of that committee, was a volunteer gift from him to Brown, at about the same time the carbines were handed over to him, and whether thus beyond his control or not, were not recalled from his possession. The expedition, so atrocious in its character, would have been arrested, had even ordinary care been taken on the part of the Massachusetts committee to ascertain whether Brown was truthful in his professions. Even the modest inquiry made of him by the National Kansas committee, as stated by their secretary,