Читать книгу American Civil War For Dummies - Keith D. Dickson - Страница 55

Tensions between North and South in 1859 were very great; for years, emotions never seemed to reach a peak. Every new incident drove emotions to new heights, but there never seemed to be a limit to how high they could go, or where they would take the antagonists. In this overwrought atmosphere of crisis and tension, John Brown reenters our story.

As mentioned earlier in this chapter, John Brown and his followers had murdered several suspected pro-slavery Kansas settlers. After this attack, Brown and his group spent some time in Canada until the heat was off. By 1859, he had concocted a new and more ambitious scheme than simple nighttime murder and terror. He had become impatient with the lack of action in the country over slavery. What was needed, he kept saying, was action — do something, once and for all, to bring about the destruction of slavery in fire and blood.

His fanatic dedication to ending slavery led him to believe that he could be a one-man instrument of its destruction. His plan to do this called for nothing less than instigating and leading a nationwide slave revolt and race war. Supported with money and arms from wealthy antislavery sponsors who wished to remain anonymous, Brown prepared to carry out his plan.