OSAWATOMIE

Do men gather grapes of thorn or figs of thistles?
—Matthew 6:16

At Nebraska City Brown met some distinguished persons: General Lane, Colonel Samuel Walker, and Aaron D. Stevens. These men were commanders in the Free-State army; they received him into their confidence, and related to him their plans concerning the pending military operations; the object of which was to destroy the pro-slavery forces that had occupied strategic positions near Lawrence and Osawatomie, or drive them from the Territory. He knew that the execution of these undertakings would result in important events and decided to return to Kansas. It was evident there was to be real fighting; fighting at close quarters; in fact the fighting had already begun. August 5th, Captain Cracklin had opened the campaign, prosperously, by a successful attack upon the pro-slavery post at New Georgia, as has been heretofore stated. Mr. Sanborn[178] claims that Brown had some share in Cracklin's victory, but of course, he could not be simultaneously at both of these places. News of this victory was received at Nebraska City in a message that came to Walker; whereupon the party, except Brown, "proceeded to Lawrence as fast as humanly possible." They all left Nebraska City August 9th: thirty hours later, Lane arrived at Lawrence, Walker arriving shortly afterward. But Brown stopped at Topeka on the 10th, where no fighting was in contemplation; and his "whereabouts," from that date until the 17th, is reported as being "unknown."[179]

August 12th, Captain Bickerton defeated Major Buford's company of Georgians, at Franklin; stormed and burned the block-house; captured some arms and provisions, and recaptured the six-pounder brass cannon, that Buford had taken possession of at Lawrence, May 21st. Buford wrote: "Our money, books, papers, clothing, surveying instruments, and many precious memorials of kindness and friends far away, were all consumed by the incendiary villains who hold sway.... We are now destitute of everything except our muskets, and an unflinching determination to be avenged..." Bickerton lost one man killed and six wounded. Buford's loss was four men wounded—one mortally.[180] But Brown was not present when Bickerton pressed to close quarters at Franklin; Lane was there, and Sanborn says that Brown was there:[181] "Returning about the 10th of August," he says, "with General Lane, he proceeded with him to Lawrence and to Franklin where there was some skirmishing." "On the 15th the Free-State men assailed Fort Saunders, a strong log house on Washington Creek, about twelve miles southwest of Lawrence. After the customary fusillade, the pro-slavery men retreated without blood shed on either side."[182] Still, no Brown. The following appeal, by General Lane, was sent to him, from Topeka, on August 12th:

It seems from this that Brown was somewhere near Topeka, on the 12th, and not at Franklin.

On the 16th the attack was made on Fort Titus. Of this Mr. Villard says:

Again this question comes up: Where was Brown when this fighting was taking place? Was he in this very creditable engagement? Continuing his narrative, Mr. Villard says, on page 232:

But John Brown did leave a statement bearing directly upon the question as to whether, or not, he was present at any of these engagements. In the interview which he gave out after his capture at Harper's Ferry, in answer to the question: "Did you know Sherrod in Kansas? I understand you killed him?" Brown replied: "I killed no man except in fair fight. I fought at Black Jack, and at Osawatomie, and if I killed anybody it was at one of these places."[184] Brown, therefore, was not present at any of these battles. He was at Lawrence, however, on August 17th, after the fighting was over. Mr. Villard says on page 233: "That Brown was at Lawrence, when Walker arrived with his prisoners, admits of no doubt. Again his voice was raised for the extreme penalty; again he asked a sacrifice of blood." It appears, therefore, that Brown "terminated" a seven days "life in the bush" on the 17th, and became active in public affairs, for twenty-four hours. Referring to a concurrent incident Colonel Walker says:

This is a part of the record of these heroic days—days of strenuous effort and of heroic achievement. The Free-State men were engaged in a supreme effort to drive from the Territory the armed pro-slavery bands that had been organized in the South to intimidate and subdue them. They had fought a splendidly aggressive campaign, dislodging their foes from all their positions, burning their forts, and capturing their supplies. There was, as has been said, real fighting, fighting at close quarters, and plenty of it. And now, in view of it, what is to be said about Brown, the hypothetical Kansas hero, the "Fighting Leader of the Free-State Cause?" Lane was in evidence; and Colonel Walker, and Bickerton, and Grover, and the gallant Shombre, were in the thick of it; but what part did Brown perform in these undertakings? What contribution did he make to the winning of these victories? Nothing! Absolutely nothing. He came out of the "brush" after the fighting was over, and endeavored to incite a mob to hang a prisoner who was severely wounded.

This disreputable action is evidence that Brown was not in harmony with the best thought of the occasion; that he mingled with the lawless element—with the "Buckskin" class, that "fired over the guard's shoulders, at the wounded man, as he lay on his cot." Brown was not interested in these important public matters; he was not coÖperating with the Free-State men; his motives for returning to the Territory did not relate to Territorial affairs. His plans had to do with something else. They were of a personal character; and his presence at Lawrence on the 17th, was simply an incident of his trip from Nebraska City to Osawatomie, where he arrived, according to Bondi, "about the 20th, well supplied with money," and with a "spick and span four mule team, the wagon loaded with provisions,"[185] to make a coup in horses and cattle. Brown had outfitted this four mule team at or near Topeka, and the presence of it at Osawatomie on the 20th, with its stock of provisions, is the best evidence of what he had been thinking about, and of what he was doing, while the Free-State men were fighting the battles around Lawrence.

Leaving Nebraska City on the 9th, Brown stopped at Topeka on the 10th. Later developments show that he had planned a scheme of robbery upon a larger scale than anything he had theretofore undertaken. As to the Free-State campaign, the battles "at close quarters," the victories, the rejoicings, the planning for future operations, he was indifferent, except as they served his personal purposes.

Brown's arrival at Osawatomie was his first appearance there after the Pottawatomie murders. By the 24th he had "enlisted" nine men: Wm. Partridge, John Salathiel, S. B. Brown, John Godell, L. T. Parsons, N. B. Phelps, Wm. B. Harris, Jason Brown, and J. Benjamin.[186] He had also stolen enough horses to mount them. Of this Mr. Villard says:[187]

The example set by the Browns, during May, June, and July, brought forth many imitators. Robbery became an industry. A new Richmond was in the Osawatomie field—a Captain Cline, with a company of mounted men, every one of whose horses had been stolen. This seems to have been sufficient recommendation, for Brown joined forces with Cline, and the two commands set out, August 24th, for the south, marching eight miles, and camping on Sugar Creek, Linn County.[188] On the 26th another merger of the special interests was accomplished. Captain J. H. Holmes also had a company which was consolidated with Brown's party. Captain Shore was in the vicinity, with the Prairie City Rifles, but it seems that he was not stealing anything. The Brown combination probably represented all the plants, or commercial units, then doing "business" in that district. In promptly effecting the merger of these interests, Brown showed his capacity for affairs, and is entitled to receive for the second time the "historic title of Captain,"—Captain of Industry. The men who belonged to Holmes's Company were, Cyrus Tator, R. Reynolds, Noah Fraze (First Lieutenant), William Miller, John P. Glenn, Wm. Quick, M. D. Lane, Amos Alderman, August Bondi, Charles Kaiser, Freeman Austin, Samuel Hauser, and John W. Fay,[189] and, probably, Frederick Brown. Thus organized and equipped, the forces put into effect the purposes of their organization without delay. Mr. Villard says:[190]

That they moved promptly, worked industriously, and obtained satisfactory results without hindrance from any quarter, appears from the further statement by Mr. Villard:[191]

This last lot of cattle was probably the drove that the Quaker, Richard Mendenhall, referred to, as quoted by Sanborn on page 326:

It is not probable that it will ever be known what Brown intended to do with these cattle. Those who know what his intentions were in the premises, have not revealed them. He was going East, later on, to work out a scheme which he then had in his mind, to raise money. He also had a fancy for fine animals and for the stock business. It is therefore probable that he intended to establish a stock ranch at some point in Kansas, further west, and put his son Frederick in charge of it; and that the cattle which he was then collecting, and the four mule team that he had bought, and the load of provisions, were to be used in starting the enterprise. Mr. Villard quotes Holmes's estimate of Brown as follows:[192]

This short narrative of Brown's operations in stealing horses and cattle, at Osawatomie, discloses the secret motive that prompted his return to Kansas from Nebraska. It gives reasonable grounds for the assumption, that when his "whereabouts were unknown," from August 10th to the 16th, inclusive, he was working out the details of the new venture; financing it; purchasing the necessary outfit; and making plans for handling the loot after it would be rounded up. It furnishes a reason why he refused to join General Lane and his associates, in the attack on Fort Saunders, and on Fort Titus; he had business engagements and appointments elsewhere, that required his personal attention. But what is of more historical importance, perhaps, than anything else, is, that it reveals the general channel in which his mind ran; the things upon which his thoughts and energies were concentrated; the occupation he was following. Also, the magnitude of the hazardous performance undertaken in this instance, and successfully executed, shows clearly, that Brown was not a novice in the business. Only a strong, bold man, of large experience, could enter such a district, and within four days collect, equip and mount, upon stolen horses, a company of ten men, himself included. Then, within two days more effect a consolidation, under his leadership, of two other similar companies; and within three more days gather up by force, two hundred and fifty head of cattle, besides horses and other plunder, and assemble the whole at the general rendezvous in Osawatomie. Only an expert in horse stealing, and in the general plunder business, could accomplish so much in so short a time.

To counteract the effect of the Free-State victories, heretofore referred to, and to restore pro-slavery supremacy, a pro-slavery army numbering more than a thousand men, led by Major General David R. Atchison, invaded the Territory. This formidable force left Westport August 23d, and on the 29th arrived at Bull Creek, thirty miles from Lawrence. To oppose it, the Free-State army was being mobilized under the command of General Lane; who sent an urgent message to Brown, and others at Osawatomie, asking them to report to him at Lawrence at once, and take part in the impending battle. The message was delivered to Brown by Alexander G. Hawse, on the evening of August 29th, as he approached Osawatomie, "in a cloud of dust and driving the motley herd" of stolen cattle "before him." Captain Shore received a similar request, and promptly responded to the urgent call. He started for Lawrence about three o'clock in the afternoon. Brown did not go. He could not be expected to abandon the horses, and the cattle, and the plunder which he had on hand; and the robber combine of which he was the head, and which was operating so successfully, and which had before it a future so promising. He was too busy. Besides, the troubles about Lawrence would be "water upon his wheel." He was doing business under cover of the distracting conditions then existing. Mr. Villard says, "After consultation, it was decided that the call should be heeded on the next day."

At the time Brown received this message, General Atchison had already detached two hundred and fifty mounted men, with one field piece, to march against Osawatomie and burn the place. The command of the expedition was given to Brigadier General John W. Reid, who had served in the war with Mexico. Reid made a night march from Bull Creek. Arriving at Osawatomie, he immediately began his attack. His official report of the fight is as follows:[193]

Hon. William Higgins of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, then fourteen years of age, drove one of the three teams that comprised Reid's means of transportation. Concerning Reid's losses in the battle, he says: "The total was three men wounded. Two of these were conveyed back to Missouri in one of the wagons, while the other wounded man was able to ride his horse. No one was killed."[194]

On the Free-State side the battle seems to have been opened by Dr. Updegraff, of Osawatomie, and Holmes. The latter was "saddling up," presumably to join Brown in another day's ride after cattle, when the presence of the enemy was announced, and rode up toward the Adairs until he sighted Reid's troopers, upon whom he fired three times from his Sharp's rifle.[195]

From Lawrence, September 7th, Brown wrote to his wife as follows:[196]

On the same day he gave out the following statement for publication:[197]

THE FIGHT OF OSAWATOMIE

In a third statement[198] Brown says: "In the battle of Osawatomie, Capt. (or Dr.) Updegraff—and two others whose names I have lost, were severely (one of them shockingly) wounded before the fight began, August 30, 1856."

The arrival of Reid's forces at Osawatomie, was a complete surprise. Brown knew nothing of their coming until after the battle was on. Mr. Villard states[199] that John Brown and his party, with the exception of Holmes, who spent the night in town, crossed the Marias des Cygnes to their camp on the Crane claim (about two miles from the town), taking their cattle with them. Captain Cline and about fifteen men remained in the town. Two of Brown's men, Bondi and Benjamin, were on guard (over the cattle) on the morning of the 30th, until the firing began. Brown was preparing breakfast at the cattle camp, where a messenger is said to have arrived with the news that Frederick Brown had been killed; whereupon Brown is said to have "seized his arms" and "cried, 'Men come on!' and with Luke F. Parsons hurried down the hill to the crossing nearest the town." But the men, it seems, finished their breakfast before responding to this request and still had time to overtake their leader. Mr. Villard says that "After finishing their coffee, most of them overtook their leader before he reached the town"; and that Parsons, upon following Brown into the timber where the fighting was going on, "met Captain Cline and his company of fifteen well-mounted men retiring through the town, abandoning their cattle and their other plunder. One of his (Cline's) men, Theodore Parker Powers, was killed in the few minutes they were at the front."

From the data at hand it appears that the battle was opened by Holmes, who fired upon Reid's advance immediately upon the latter's arrival; that Dr. Updegraff, and other citizens of Osawatomie, turned out, and with Captain Cline defended the town for "an hour or more" during which time Powers, of Cline's company, was killed and Dr. Updegraff and two others were severely wounded. These were all the casualties that befell the Free-State men in the actual fighting; and Brown states that they occurred "before the fight began": by which he meant, before he arrived upon the scene, which was at the time Parsons met Cline retiring in disorder from the field. None of Brown's men was hit while fighting. One of them, Geo. W. Partridge, was killed in the retreat while crossing the river. It seems therefore, that Brown arrived late in the engagement and that he, very wisely, attempted nothing "more than to annoy, from the timber near the town, into which we were all retreated."

Comment or criticism, favorable or unfavorable, as to what John Brown did or did not do in this fight is equally unimportant. Brown's men were not a military company organized for the defense of Osawatomie. They were a gang of "rustlers," as cattle thieves are sometimes called. Such organizations are not under obligations to fight anybody; and they do not fight, except as their personal interests or advantage may seem to require at the time. In this case the prospects for defeating Reid's command of two hundred and fifty men, getting his horses, and saving their own plunder, were so unfavorable, that Brown and his men were justified in getting away from the trouble as best they could; and that is what they did, leaving the town to be pillaged and burned by Reid's army. That "they stood not upon the order of their going" is evident from the fact that Brown lost his hat while making good his escape from the trouble. Of this incident Sarah Brown says:

General Reid's estimate of the battle as quoted by Mr. Villard,[201] is perhaps more nearly the truth: "Merely the driving out of a flock of quail." And it may be truthfully said that some of the birds flew as far as Lawrence, before alighting; "indeed, Bondi, Benjamin and Hawes set off at once for Lawrence and so by himself did Holmes."[202] As for Brown, he went deep into the friendly brush and hid. To a legislative committee, February 18, 1857, he read, from a prepared address, that about the first of September he was "obliged to lie on the ground, without shelter, for a considerable time; and at times almost in a state of starvation, and dependent on the charity of a Christian Indian."

Brown's son Frederick was killed by the Rev. Martin White, who was with the patrol that was scouting the head of Reid's column as it approached Osawatomie. Frederick had come from Lawrence the day before with Hawes. The two stopped over night at the Carr cabin, adjoining his uncle Adair's place, where they had left their horses. Frederick arose early to feed them, and noticing two or three mounted men approaching, walked out to see who they were. The parson knew him, and recognized him as being one of a party that had raided his home, and his stables, on the night of August 13th, whereupon he shot him through the heart as he stood in the road. Mr. Villard treats this incident facetiously. He says:[203]

Thus on August 13th, the home of the Rev. Martin White was raided by Free-State men, among them James H. Holmes, and ten pro-slavery horses were weaned from their allegiance to a wicked and failing cause. White, a prejudiced witness, asserted that the horses were laden with plunder, but upon this point the memories of Holmes and Bondi, both participants, failed them.

Continuing he says:[204]

White pretended to recognize the boots on Brown as a pair stolen from his son in the raid upon White; but there is no evidence to show that Frederick Brown was at that time elsewhere than in Lawrence.