i t w as stopped by legal process; w h a t e v e r danger it threatened, i f any, w a s p a s t ; it had b ecome i nert matter, i n capable of moral or Jegal w r o n g ; and even i f it h a d not, t he c o m m o n w e a l t h only w a s responsible for its influence, w h e t h e r g ood or bad, upon the safety of the community, w h i c h t hese m e n affected to believe endangered, but of w h i c h , i n reality, they themselves w e r e the only enemies. O n t he 18th day of A u g u s t then were the constitutional l iberties o f K e n t u c k y forcibly overthrown, and an irresponsible oligarchy of slaveholders established on their ruins. T h e y may a l l o w Governor O w s l e y to retain his seat at t he head of the executive d e p a r t m e n t     t h e y may permit t he legislature to pass such l a w s as suit t h e m     t h e y m a y i n a w o r d suffer the forms and m a c h i n e r y of a free g overnment to go o n     b u t be assured, men of K e n t u c k y , y ou are nevertheless slaves. B e a ssured that you live under an anarchial despotism. T h e same m e n who robbed me o f m y press, sat as a j u r y a n d justified the deed, and declared there w a s n o o ffence a gainst the laws ! W h a t care they who plot m urder, for violated oaths ? T h e respectable slave-holdi n g m ob of the 18th, sat i n j u d g m e n t upon the " nngentlem a n l y " m ob of the 19th, b y arms and force, c l a i m i n g for t hemselves o lone s upreme irresponsible power. T h e " c a n a i l l e " o f the 19th w e r e d r a w n up b efore t he courts and p u n i s h e d     t h e respectable gentlemen of the 18th, b e y o n d a l l h u m a n computation more guilty, w e n t u n w h i p t of j u s tice ; surely the k i n g c an do no w r o n g ! W h i l s t I speak t here are n o w ordered s ome h undreds of a r m e d m e n , b y t he Governor, into C l a y c ounty, to preserve w h a t l ittle r emnant of c i v i l a uthority and the old form of government, m a y yet remain. W h a t w i l l t his c ome to ? W h e r e d oes i t a l l lead ? It requires no prophetic eye to see blood flowi n g k nee d eep e re this damnable usurpation c ome to the s till' g rave of unresisted and hopeless despotism. Did t hey say to Stevenson of Georgetown, print no more upon t he subject of s l a v e r y ? H a s the L o u i s v i l l e J ournal b een silenced? In L i n c o l n , a nd Jefferson, and N e l s o n , w i l l a p eaceable c i t i z e n be d r a w n from his bed at midnight and b e hung to a l i m b , or shot d o w n l i k e a d og i n the day, i f h e venture to read o n e - h a l f of the newspapers of A m e r i -