Page:The History of Slavery and the Slave Trade.djvu/876

 named Shields Green, was also arrested. Four or five other negroes were also taken out of the engine house, who were known to be slaves belonging to the neighborhood, and supposed to have been forcibly detained. Several of the insurgents had been killed in the assault by the marines, and the most painful and exciting act of the tragedy was the bringing out of the dead bodies. Five of them lay upon the grass, one of them named J. C. Anderson, in the last agonies of dissolution; another, the leader, the old man Brown, with a heavy gush upon his forehead, and three other wounds upon his body, supposed to be mortal, but still calm and collected, and [sic]couversing intelligently without an indication or emotion of pain, and answering all the questions of the crowd about him.

Another son of the leader was taken out stark and cold, he having been killed the day previous: Stewart Tyler, also killed instantly by a ball through his head and one through his body, and Albert Hazlett, killed instantly. The wounds were shocking to behold, and all were weltering in blood. After a short time the wounded were removed to the Hospital.

During the struggle some of the insurgents made desperate attempts to escape. One of them rushed to the river bank and plunged in, using his best efforts to reach the Maryland shore; he was fired at from all sides and was soon riddled with balls, and left dead in the stream. Another named Thompson, a son-in-law of Brown, had been wounded and taken prisoner; he was for the time being confined in the hotel near the bridge. Mr. Bickham, the mayor of the city, while engaged in devising means to suppress the outbreak, was shot dead. Being well known and much respected, the event created the most intense feeling. The people were determined to put to death at once all the insurgents that were in their power. As an illustration of the terrible scene on that occasion, we copy a statement of the circumstances attending the death of Thompson, as testified to by young Hunter, the son of Andrew Hunter, the prominent lawyer of that section of the State.

Question—Did you witness the death of this man Thompson?

Answer.—I witnessed the death of one whose name I have been informed was Thompson.

Question.—Well, sir, what were the circumstances attending it?

Answer.—There was a prisoner confined in the parlor of the hotel, and after Mr. Bickham's death, he was shot down by a number of us there, belonging to this sharp-shooting band.

Mr. Andrew Hunter.—Will you allow him to state before [sic]proceedieg further how he was connected with Mr. Bickham?

Mr. Green.—Certainly, sir.

Witness.—"He was my grand-uncle, and my special friend—a man I loved above all others. After he was killed, Mr. Chambers and myself moved forward to the hotel for the purpose of taking the prisoner out and hanging him; we were joined by a number of other persons who cheered us on in that work