xt7g4f1mh30s https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7g4f1mh30s/data/mets.xml Shipherd, Jacob R. 1859  books b92326sh642009 English J. P. Jewett and company : Boston, Mass. Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. United States. Fugitive slave law (1850). Oberlin-Wellington Rescue, 1858. Fugitive slaves --United States. History of the Oberlin-Wellington rescue... With an introduction by Prof. Henry E. Peck and Hon. Ralph Plumb. text History of the Oberlin-Wellington rescue... With an introduction by Prof. Henry E. Peck and Hon. Ralph Plumb. 1859 2009 true xt7g4f1mh30s section xt7g4f1mh30s 
  
  
  
  
  
  
H IST OE
JOF T H E

Y

OBERLIN-WELLINGTON

RESCUE.

V I E W O P T H E J A I L A T C L E V E L A N D , OHIO,

W H E R E T H E PRISONERS

WERE

CONFINED.

COMPILED

B

Y

JA.OOB

H.
WITH

SHIPHEED.

AN INTRODUCTION B T PLUMB.

PROF.

HENRY

E . P E C K , A N D H O N .R A L P H

BOSTON: PUBLISHED B Y JOHN
HENRY P.
NEW SHELDON

P. J E W E T T
OHIO:

AND

COMPANY

CLEVELAND,

B.
TORK:

JEWETT.

AND

COMPANY.

1 8 5 9.

  
E ntered according to Act JOHN I n the Clerk's Office of

of Congress, AND

in the year 1859, COMPANY,

by

P. J E W E T T the

District Court for the District of

Massachusetts.

CAMBRIDGE! A N D F A R N H A M , E L E C T R OT Y P K R S A N D P R I N T E R S .

  
THIRTY-SEVEN
Mu tn
nil

IFDICTED,

WHO

WITH

THEM

BELIEVE OF

IN

THE

DOCTRINES

OF

THE

DECLARATION

AMERICAN

INDEPENDENCE,

. C I] i s
IS

0 a I it m

t

AFFECTIONATELY

INSCRIBED,

  
TABLE

OF

CONTENTS

PAdE INTRODUCTION. FIRST WORDS . . . . . , .-..      . . .     .     . . -    .\    > r     .     7 S L     S l J L     " ^ . .     l'' ,*" .~^
: sr v i i

.   . ., .

   

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is 1

HISTORY OF T H E OBERLIN-WELLINGTON RESCUE

n

CHAPTER

FIRST.

W ellington     Oberlin     The Rescue     T h e Grand J u r y     T h e A rrests     Appearance in C o u r t     C a s e s continued     " T h e C ummings jury ...     Felons' . >. F e a s t "     The             Arrest         of Lincoln   Winsor's voluntary            . *^ i f - M appearance    "struck" '
1 1 8

arrested     S i x s till at large    Cases

continued from March to A p r i l     T h e

CHAPTER T rial o f Bushnell begun     L o w e nings's testimony T estimony Wack; nesses

SECOND.

arrested for kidnapping   The traverse j u r y     The indictment     The of Bacon; of Cochran; o f Jennings.     Seconal Day     J e n Day    of of of

l aw     The Constitution     Testimony of Wheeler; of

continued     Testimony of Bartholomew; of Halbert; of W o o d .     Third

Mitchell; of Irish; of F a r r ; of Meacham; of D . L . Wadsworth; of Kinney; of Marks; Day     T estimony of Worden; of W h i t n e y     B a c o n Shakespeare

B ennett.     Fourth Day     T estimony of Bennett continued     Testimony of 0. for S. Wadsworth; defence     L . the D . Boynton;

recalled     Prosecution rest     W itcon-

Boynton.     Fifth

P rof. P e c k ; of P l u m b ; of F i t c h ; of o f Pelton; of Brokaw; of E lliott; of

Dickson; of Beeeher; of

Patton.     Sixth Day     P atton's testimony

t i n u e d     A n officer of the Court on the j u r y     Testimony of Howk; of Butler; of C o x ; of W eed; Bunco; of Johnson; of Wall     Defence rest.    witnesses     W ood recalled     Testimony of Seventh Day     Prosecution resume the examination of

G aston     Worden recalled     Testimony of E . A . Munson; of E . P. Dodge     Marks recalled     M itchell r ecalled     Jennings recalled     Testimony of Pierce; of II. Dodge; of Kellogg; of Dewey; of E . F . M unson; of J . S. D o d g e     W a c k ment of J udge Willson's of jail recalled    Testimony closed     A rgument of Judge Bliss     A r g u Judge Spalding   Argument of District-Attorney Bclden     M r . Riddle     Argument of

charge to the jury     Special charges     The Verdict     T he " struck " j u r y to try Peck's . Sermon     " A Voice from the Jug"    Why t hey were sent to 18-94

each of the Thirty-seven     Twenty ordered to jail for taking exceptions to such a j u r y     Insido view prison life     P r o f . . . . . .

CHAPTER

THIRD.

I ntroductory     T rial o f Lnngston begun     The J ournal entry of A pril 15th, and the discussion upon it     T h e order for Bushnell's c o m m i t m e n t     A new jury ordered; Court of a new opinion     The new of Bacon continued     j u r y     The Indictment     Testimony of Bncon.     Second Day   Testimony

T estimony of Cochran; of Jennings.    Third Day    T estimony of Jennings continued     Testimony of Mitchell     The kidnappers protected by the Federal authorities     Testimony of W a c k ; of E l l s ; (iv)

  
TABLE

OF CONTENTS.

V of K elley; of

Of 'Wood.     Fourth Day     T estimony of W ood continued     T estimony o f W orden; Wheeler.     Fifth Day   Testimony

of Wheeler continued     T estimony of C. W adsworth; of E . S.

L y m a n ; o f G aston    Kidnajtping of Bushnell    Testimony of H albert     T he first application for a w rit of Habeas Corjnis     A rguments pro and con     D ecision of the C ourt.     Sixth Day     Indictments against Wall and Shepard nolled   Reasons why.     Seventh Day.     Eighth Day   District-Attorney B clden goes home to rest.     Ninth Day     T estimony o f B arber; of S ciples; of B onuey; of T hayer; of Reynolds; of L o w e .     Tenth Day     T estimony of L owe continued     J ennings's affidavit and the Commissioner's warrant issued upon i t     Testimony of Chittenden     'enninga. recalled     T estimony of Davis     Prosecution rest     Witnesses for the Defence     E . o f Patton; of S tevens; worth; of W a t s o n .     Twelfth Day   Mandeville, S. K inney; Dickson; Bennett.    Eleventh Day     T estimony of Bennett continued   Testimony of H owk; o f M eacharn; of C owles; Niles, Williams, a nd C ummings plead nolle contendere     T estimony of S exton; o f E lliott; of J ohnson; of H . E vans; of J . L . W adsof B iyce     P atton recalled     Cowles recalled     Defence rest with privilege of renewal     i n r ebuttal recall Sciples; Wheeler; Lowe; Jennings     Defence recall Bennett; Gillett; W adsworth    Testimony closed   Argument of M r. Backus.     Fifteenth Day   Argument o f D istrict-AttorP rosecution

M eacharn; Watson     Swear Fourteenth Day   Argument o f the C o u r t     The Verdict

ney Belden.    Thirteenth Day     S ir. Beldcn's argument continued     M r. Griswold's argument.    o f J udge B l i s s     C h a r g e . . ". U4-169

CHAPTER

FOURTH.

B ushnell sentenced     T ho other cases c ontinued to the J u l y term     D iscussion on the J ournal entry o f A pril 15th     Langston's Sjieech     H is Sentence     D o Wolfe, Loveland, and Wadsworth plead nolle contendere     J udge Andrews' Speech     Statement of the O berlin Prisoners i n J ail     F ather Gillett sent home     S econd Application for Habeas Corpus,    Copy of the W rit     T ho Marshal concludes not to do his d uty     Before the S upreme Court     M r. Riddle's Argument     M r . Swayue's B r i e f     A r g u ment of Attorney-General Wolcolt     J udge Swan's Opinion   Judgo Scott's     J udge Peck's     J udge B rinkerhofPs   Judge S utliffs     C onstructive Jail-breaking 170-231

CHAPTER

FIFTH.

T h e Kidnappers i n t rouble   Judge Carpenter's Charge to the G rand J u r y     T ho first Indictment     T he first Warrant     T he second Indictment     T ho second Warrant     T ho J ournal entry     J udge Willson i ndicted for k idnapping     J udgo Willson's opinion of tho F ugitive L aw i n 1852     Antecedents of great men     M arshal Johnson a nd his d eputy Diiytou     " O u r M a r s h a l "     S peech of H on. J . R. F rench     T ho " S o n s o f L i b e r t y "     T he Cleveland Mass Meeting     V isit o f the Sabbath School     T he F inale     " T h e Rescue "     K entucky courage     J udge McLean issues Habeas Corpus     A strange proceeding     P rudence the better part o f v alor     T he United States propose to c apitulate     T erms , agreed on     Prisoners exchanged     A l l discharged     So endeth " The First Siege of Oberlin"     T he Rescuers' Resolves     C losing Scene at the J ail     E scorted to the C ars     G raud Roception at O berlin     Reception o f B u s h n e l l     " A Song for F reedom "     T I I E E N D . . . . . . 231-280

  
INTRODUCTORY

NOTE.

N I N E y ears ago the moral sense of the hetter part of our nation, not to say of the civilized world, was shocked by the passage by Congress of the F ugitive S lave A c t . The iniquities of this new device of oppression,     Cori ts a ssault upon personal rights i n the v irtual s uspension of Habeas

jms, i ts daring invasion of States-rights, its summary and cruel process o f recaption, its arbitrary recpiirement that all citizens s hall servo the m an-hunter at his c all, a nd the vindictive penalties which i t denounced a gainst any who might be constrained by self-respect or humanity to disregard its infamous precepts,     these peculiarities made this vious pro-slavery Federal enactments. composing d raught* as " m o l t e n lead to a m i n t - j u l e p " i n comparison w ith a l l preLanguage could not describe the t error w hich this v illany f ramed into law carried to the souls of the colored people s cattered through the N orth, w ho saw that now, whether free or n ot, they might, at any moment, be spirited away under nominally-legal f orms, and consigned to hopeless slavery. N o r could words express the p rofound apprehension w ith w hich tho friends of Freedom foresaw i n this n ew and abject c oncession to the slave-holding power its f inal p redominance i n o ur country. B u t the horror w ith w hich this so-called law was very generally regarded i n the Free States was qualified, and almost, i f not quite appeased by the c onviction that so infamous an enactment would not and could not be e nforced. A las, f or the hopes b ased on this conviction! The carrying into s lavery o f several persons afterwards proved to be free, and the recaption o f one p oor f ugitive from oppression after another, soon p roved that tho c ruel s tatute was not a dead letter. ing, as well as terrible, reality.
* T h e i llustration is borrowed from a Speech, made by a celebrated Cleveland divine (vi)

It has been from its enactment a l i v -

s oon a fter the passage of the F u g i t i v e Slave A c t .

  
W hat t his ordinance, misnamed law, i s ; what its purposes, what its d emands, and what its penalties are, and what the measures by which i t enforces i tself against the c onscience a nd sense of justice which everywhere i n the North oppose i t,     a l l these points have been well illustrated i n the now celebrated Oberlin-Wellington Rescue t rials. T hese t rials occurred o n the Western Reserve     a name honorable for the reputation for l ove of Freedom which is coupled w ith i t , and may, therefore, be supposed to exhibit a f air e ncounter on a f air f ield between the despotic enactment, and tho outraged sense of right which protests against i t . to lie >r;ss

They

engaged on both sides, and at the bar of both the Federal and Supreme S tate Courts, the highest legal talent i n the State. w hat measures its enforcement requires. S uch a history is presented i n this volume. Its compiler is a young man of excellent a bility w ho has had more than common experience i n reporti n g public events, and it has been made up, as the undersigned know from c onstant communication w ith the compiler, and from a careful review of h is materials, w ith r eligious fidelity to t ruth. I n closing this Introduction, wc beg leave to urge the readers of this volume to inquire, i n the light of what is hero presented, whether the fact that the Fugitive Slave A c t can exist, and bo i n form enforced, does not prove that regard for Freedom no longer presides i n the councils of o ur Government; that the slave-holding power has smitten down tho personal rights of freemen, and trampled on the honor and rights of the S tates; and whether, i f the Free States do not speedily, by j u d i c i a l and l egislative action, assert their rights, our wholo country w i l l n ot soon, u n der tho operation of the D r c d Scott decision, be embraced i n the arms of g igantic tyranny which s hall k now vo law but its own despotic w i l l , Especially would we ask our fellow-citizens of Ohio, whether they are w illing l onger to allow arbitrary encroachments
cra

A correct history of

t hem w i l l , t herefore, show clearly what the Fugitive Slave A c t is, and

be ed i sn