old hero by his
most embittered foe. A truer estimate of John Brown cannot be had.

South Carolina, Missouri, and Kentucky sent a rope to hang him, but,
the first two lacking strength, Kentucky had the everlasting disgrace
of furnishing the rope to strangle the noblest man that ever lived in
any age.

The last letter he ever wrote was written to Mrs. Geo. L. Stearns, and
she shall give its history:

This letter requires the history which attaches to it, and
illustrates the consideration which the brave martyr had for
those in any way connected with him. It was written on a half
sheet of paper, the exact size of the pages of a book into which
he carefully inserted it, and tied up in a handkerchief with
other books and papers, which he asked his jailer (Mr. Avis) to
be allowed to go with his body to North Elba, and which Mrs.
Brown took with her from the Charlestown prison. Her statement to
me about it is this: She had been at home some two weeks, had
looked over the contents of the handkerchief many times, when one
day in turning the leaves of that particular book, she came upon
this letter, on which she said she found two or three blistered
spots, the only _tear drops_ she had seen among his papers. They
are now yellow with time. On the back of the half sheet was
written: "Please mail this to her," which she did, and so it
reached my hand; seeming as if from the world to which his spirit
had fled. It quite overwhelmed my husband. Presently he said:
"See, dear, how careful the old man has been, he would not even
direct it with your name to go from Virginia to Boston through
the post-offices; and altho' it contains no message to me, one of
those '_farewells_!' is intended for me, and also the 'Love to
_All_ who love their neighbors.'"

"CHARLESTOWN, JEFFERSON CO VA. 29th Nov. 1859.

"MRS. GEORGE L. STEARNS
"Boston, Mass.

"My Dear Friend:--No letter I have received since my imprisonment
here, has given me more satisfaction, or comfort, than yours of
the 8th inst. I am quite cheerful: and never more happy. Have
only time to write you a word. May God forever reward you _and
all yours_.

"_My love to_ ALL who love their neighbors. I have asked to be
_spared_ from having any _mock, or hypocritical prayers made over
me_ when