James Townsley at Pottawatomie
Aug 15, 03 | 1:20 am by John T. KennedyAfter supper, John Brown first revealed to me the purpose of the expedition. He said it was to sweep the Pottawatomie of all Pro-slavery men living on it. To this end, he desired me to guide the company some five or six miles up to the forks of the creek, into the neighborhood where I lived, and point out to him on the way up, the residences of all the Pro-slavery men, so that on the way down, he might carry out his designs. Horrified at his purpose, I positively refused to comply with his request, saying that I could not take men out of their beds and kill them in that way. Brown said, Why don’t you fight your enemies. To which I replied, I have no enemies I can kill in that way.
- Clyaton Cramer and Paul Finkelman explore similarities and differences between Brown and McVeigh.
