Project Gutenberg's A Plea for Captain John Brown, by Henry David Thoreau

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Title: A Plea for Captain John Brown

Author: Henry David Thoreau

Posting Date: December 6, 2008 [EBook #2567]
Release Date: March, 2001

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A PLEA FOR CAPTAIN JOHN BROWN ***

Produced by Jason Filley

A PLEA FOR CAPTAIN JOHN BROWN

By Henry David Thoreau

[Read to the citizens of Concord, Mass., Sunday Evening, October 30,
1859.]

I trust that you will pardon me for being here. I do not wish to force
my thoughts upon you, but I feel forced myself. Little as I know of
Captain Brown, I would fain do my part to correct the tone and the
statements of the newspapers, and of my countrymen generally, respecting
his character and actions. It costs us nothing to be just. We can
at least express our sympathy with, and admiration of, him and his
companions, and that is what I now propose to do.

First, as to his history. I will endeavor to omit, as much as possible,
what you have already read. I need not describe his person to you, for
probably most of you have seen and will not soon forget him. I am told
that his grandfather, John Brown, was an officer in the Revolution; that
he himself was born in Connecticut about the beginning of this century,
but early went with his father to Ohio. I heard him say that his father
was a contractor who furnished beef to the army there, in the war of
1812; that he accompanied him to the camp, and assisted him in that
employment, seeing a good deal of military life,--more, perhaps, than if
he had been a soldier; for he was often present at the councils of the
officers. Especially, he learned by experience how armies are supplied
and maintained in the field,--a work which, he observed, requires at
least as much experience and skill as to lead them in battle. He said
that few persons had any conception of the cost, even the pecuniary
cost, of firing a single bullet in war. He saw enough, at any rate,
to disgust him with a military life; indeed, to excite in his a great
abhorrence of it; so much so, that though he was tempted by the offer of
some petty