the leader exercised remarkable deliberation. When August
arrived, it found him only as far as Tabor, Iowa, where a considerable
quantity of arms had been previously assembled. Here he was joined by
Colonel Forbes, and together they organized a school of military tactics
with Forbes as instructor. But as Forbes could find no one but Brown and
his son to drill, he soon returned to the East, still trusted by Brown
as a co-worker. It would seem that Forbes himself wished to play the
chief part in the liberation of America.

While he was at Tabor, Brown was urged by Lane and other former
associates of his in Kansas to come to their relief with all his forces.
There had, indeed, been a full year of peace since Geary's arrival,
but early in October there was to occur the election of a territorial
Legislature in which the free-state forces had agreed to participate,
and Lane feared an invasion from Missouri. But although the appeal was
not effective, the election proved a complete triumph for the North.
Late in October, after the signal victory of the law-and-order party
at the election, Brown was again urged with even greater insistence to
muster all his forces and come to Kansas, and there were hints in Lane's
letter that an aggressive campaign was afoot to rid the Territory of
the enemy. Instead of going in force, however, Brown stole into the
Territory alone. On his arrival, two days after the date set for a
decisive council of the revolutionary faction, he did not make himself
known to Governor Robinson or to any of his party but persuaded several
of his former associates to join his "school" in Iowa. From Tabor
he subsequently transferred the school to Springdale, a quiet Quaker
community in Cedar County, Iowa, seven miles from any railway station.
Here the company went into winter quarters and spent the time in rigid
drill in preparation for the campaign of liberation which they expected
to undertake the following season.

While he was at Tabor, Brown began to intimate to his Eastern friends
that he had other and different plans for the promotion of the general
cause. In January, 1858, he went East with the definite intention of
obtaining additional support for the greater scheme. On February 22,
1858, at the home of Gerrit Smith in New York, there was held a council
at which Brown definitely outlined his purpose to begin operations at
some point in the mountains of Virginia. Smith and Sanborn at first
tried to dissuad