I became acquainted with Dr. Thomas Hamelton, in 1847. He was an eminent Physician. As a Physician and scholar he stood far above the average of his class. His sons were:

Dr. Hamelton, the father, died in Rome, Georgia, in 1857.

In 1854 Milt McGee, of Kansas City, came to Georgia soliciting money to make Kansas a slave State. He made a speech at Cassville. Dr. Thomas Hamelton gave him his check for $1,000.00.

Chas. A. Hamelton was a Planter (as they were called).

George P. read medicine.

Algernon never followed any special pursuit.

Capt. Charles A. and George Peter came to Kansas to carry out the Dr.'s sentiments (I do not remember exact date), I guess about 1855 - What they did in Kansas you know better than I do.

They left Kansas & returned to Georgia in fall or winter 1857 & 8 I think. I was practising law in Rome, Georgia, in 1858, and at Sept. term of court in 1858 Capt. Chas. A. Hamelton came to me and said he was bankrupt, insolvent, and under arrest, then for debt. (Imprisonment for debt was in vogue then) and, we had a State Insolvent law, similar to the last Nat. Bankrupt law. Under certain circumstances the Debtor could file a schedule of property and take an oath that released him from arrest.

I filed proceedings for him - filed his schedule - as well as I remember now contained one item, a watch. And the court on my motion ordered the oath administered and Hamelton released. When done, he says to me. "I will see you at your office directly after dinner (not a word had been said about the fee). About one o'clock he came into my office, and said: "General, you did me a great favor, and I am free, and now I start again in the world (and he shed tears freely); here is all I can give you as compensation for your trouble. (And he threw down on my table four $20 gold pieces.) I am going to Texas, start in an hour, goodbye." That is the last I ever saw or heard from him, except from hear say. He, however, went to Waco, Texas; lived there until 1861. Raised a Regiment and joined Lee in Va. Lived through the War - returned to Texas; lived there till about 1878, when he returned to Georgia. Lived in Jones county, where the old Dr., his father, was born, and died about 1881 of appoplexy. He stood 5 feet 10 inches - weighed about 180 pounds - of a florid complexion. Was intellectually and physically an active man and one of the handsomest men I have ever seen.

George Peter Hamelton, on returning from Kansas, went to Mississippi, where he practiced medicine and died there (so I have heard).

Algernon S. Hamelton went into the Confederate Army and was killed in one of the Va. battles.

Old Dr. Hamelton was my father-in-law's family physician, and I knew them all well.

They were a very "high strung" family, aristocratic, rich, haughty, and domineering.

TRADING POST, KANSAS, JANY. - , 1859.

Gents: You will greatly oblige a humble friend by allowing me the use of your columns while I briefly state Two parallels in my poor way. Not One year ago Eleven quiet citizens of this neighborhood (Viz.) Wm. Robertson, Wm. Colpetzer, Amos Hall, Austin Hall, John Campbell, Asa Snyder, Thos. Stilwell, Wm. Hairgrove, Asa Hairgrove, Patrick Rossi, and B. L. Reed, were gathered up from their work, & their homes by an armed force (under One Hamilton) & without trial; or opportunity to speak in their own defense, were formed into a line & all but one shot, Five killed & Five wounded. One fell unharmed, pretending to be dead. All were left for dead. Now I inquire what action has ever since (the occasion in May last) been taken by either the President of the United States; the Governor of Missouri; the Governor of Kansas or any of their tools; or by any proslavery or administration man?

Now for the other parallel. On Sunday, the 19th of December, a Negro man called Jim came over to the Osage settlement from Missouri & stated that he, together with his Wife, Two Children, & another Negro man were to be sold within a day or Two & beged for help to get away. On Monday night of the following day Two small companies were made up to go to Missouri & forcibly liberate the Five slaves, together with other slaves. One of those companies I assumed to direct. We proceeded to the place, surrounded the buildings, liberated the slaves; & also took certain other property supposed to belong to the Estate. We however learned before leaving that a portion of the articles we had taken belonged to a man living on the plantation as a tenant & who was supposed to have no interest in the Estate. We promptly restored to him all we had taken so far I believe. We then went to another where we freed Five more slaves, took some property; & Two white men. We moved all slowly away into the territory for some distance & then sent the White men back, telling them to follow us as soon as they chose to do so. The other company freed One female slave, took some property; & as I am informed killed One White man (the master) who fought against the liberation.

Now for a comparison. Eleven persons are forcibly restored to their natural & unalienable rights with but one man killed; & all "Hell is stirred from beneath." It is currently reported that the Governor of Missouri has made a requisition upon the Governor of Kansas for the delivery of all such as were concerned in the last named "dreadful outrage;" the Marshall of Kansas is said to be collecting a posse of Missouri (not Kansas men) at West Point in Missouri, a little town about Ten Miles distant, to "enforce the laws," & and all proslavery conservative Free State dough faced men & administration tools are filled with holy horror. Respectfully Yours,

Charles Crystal Hadsall, who became an associate of old John Brown a few days after the massacre, was born in Northmoreland, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, April 14, 1825. He is of Dutch ancestry. He removed to Illinois in 1846, made a trip to California in 1852 and came to Kansas in May, 1858.

Hadsall came down through Bates County, Missouri, where he fell in with one of the assessors named "Bushon," who told Hadsall if he would help him write out his report he would assist him in the selection of a claim which Hadsall was looking for, so that after a day or two they were riding around over the country together. At one place they met a fellow named "Matlock," who was boasting about how he and some friends had "killed a lot of abolitionists" a few days previous over in Kansas. The fellow's details of the crime were revolting to Hadsall and he made notes of what he heard.

The next day they were at the house of Thomas Francis, where they met Captain Weaver and Eli Snyder, the blacksmith. Assessor Bushon was visibly excited at meeting Snyder and soon left. Hadsall then told Captain Weaver about Matlock and where he could be found, but Weaver paid no attention to him, but on leaving invited Hadsall to accompany him over in Kansas, and on the way told Hadsall he had already sent men after Matlock and sure enough they had him a prisoner at the Snyder place when they arrived. Mr. Hadsall cannot tell the exact date but distinctly remembers that the ground was still red with the blood of the victims. It is reliably fixed at about the last week in June. He says that John Brown had already begun the erection of the fort and had purchased the claim from Snyder. Brown had a company organized and had the place maintained in regular military order. From that on Hadsall became a daily associate of Brown, and had every opportunity to learn of his doings. Above all he admires Brown's military genius, as in fact do all those who were with him in those days. He showed great skill in the construction of the fort, and at the expense of tediousness his description is related. The site of it was in front of where Snyder had his shop. It was in a little cove in the south end of the mound which extended back about a hundred yards from the road at the base of the mound. At the head of this was a spring of good water and all around rather steep slopes. About fifty feet from the east, north and west wall of the little enclosed valley Brown built out of hewed logs a two-story house, 18 by 20 feet square, with a flat roof. There were numerous port holes on each floor which made it easy to observe the approach of anything from any direction. To the height of a man's shoulder on the outside a stone wall three feet thick had been constructed and the water from the spring ran through the house and into a pit three feet deep at the southwest corner on the outside, at the foot of a fine oak tree. Brown usually took water from this place and was proud of the arrangement. At the east end of the fort was another handsome spreading oak under which, during the summer he cooked and ate and carried on the business devolving upon him as commander. Nearly all of his followers were there at first, among them John H. Kagi, Stevens, Tidd, Leeman Anderson, several of whom were afterward with him and died with him at Harper's Ferry. So far as the claim and the fort could belong to any one it belonged to old John Brown individually by purchase from Eli Snyder, several eminent historians to the contrary notwithstanding. Brown busied himself with the preparations of manuscripts and as Hadsall sat and talked with him he asked Brown what his plans for the future were. For answer Brown passed over to him the manuscripts and upon perusal Hadsall found them to be an exhaustive treatise on military science and rules of war. It was a high moral code in its provision as to the treatment of conquerors enemies and required soldiers to abstain from pilfering and robbery, but permitting them to take their sustenance from the enemy during active war. Beyond allowing Hadsall to read his writings Brown never communicated his plans to him. At times he would entertain them with descriptions of great battles of the world and the strategies used by successful commanders. Brown seldom had more than a half dozen men with him at the fort, but all along the Missouri line sentries were posted and men reported to him at various hours. No man was permitted to enter the territory without satisfactory evidence of good intentions. Frequently prisoners were brought in and a court martial assembled at which old John Brown sat as President. If the prisoner was adjudged all right he was released, but if there was a doubt about him he was marched to the Missouri line and told to travel east. At one time an ignorant squatter from Missouri was brought in and after it was decided he was harmless Brown invited him to dine with them and asked him if he would have a glass of "abolition milk," which the fellow said he would, but showed that he was suspicious by the way he tasted it, and remarked, "Why, that 'ere tastes like cow's milk." Brown laughed and told him it was cow's milk from James Montgomery's cows.

Things went on this way till July 25, when Snyder proposed to Hadsall that he purchase the place from him and say nothing to Brown about it. Hadsall expressed some surprise and told Snyder he would do nothing of the kind, and soon after told Brown of Snyder's proposition to him. On that occasion Brown showed the only anger that Hadsall had ever witnessed, but walked away without saying much. Shortly after he told Hadsall that he was content for him to have the place, but Brown wanted to reserve all privileges of military occupation at his pleasure. It seemed that Brown had not made all his payments to Snyder, who in a way not unusual to him was trying to get some money from Hadsall. That day Brown wrote out and signed the bill of sale to Hadsall, and signed it in his own name, and Snyder, after turning over to Hadsall his three yoke of oxen, cows, wagons and plows, received six hundred dollars from Hadsall and added his quit claim to the bill of sale. Hadsall lost his precious bit of paper during the war.

Along the latter part of the summer of 1858 Brown's sentinels were withdrawn and his company returned to their homes. Brown then was at the place only at intervals, but Mr. Hadsall remembers he was often there after cold weather. During his absence he was at Montgomery's fort and in December was down on the Osage in Bourbon County.

During Brown's stay at the Snyder place Hadsall was impressed with the utter absence of selfishness or egotism or vain-gloriousness in Brown. He was modest and unassuming. All his orders were more like requests and implicitly obeyed. He frequently visited Austin Hall, Dr. Massey and others, and was well known to them, much of his talk being very prophetic of subsequent events. Among strangers he generally passed by an assumed name, usually as Captain Walker, but his men addressed him as "Captain Brown." It was in Dr. Massey's house, the old Jarieu trading post, that he wrote his famous "parallels" dated January 3, 1859, as is proved by the testimony of George A. Crawford. This great character-one of the world's heroes, left a reputation here without the stain of a single act of wrong-doing.

Resolved, That a committee be appointed, consisting of five persons, to be denominated a "Committee of Vigilance," under whose authority and directions a military organization shall be had, with a view to aid when necessary the civil authorities in the execution of warrants, and any other legal process, and in the due execution of the laws; and it shall be the further duty of the committee Jo organize a night patrol for the security of our town, its citizens and their property.

¹ This is given just as Brown wrote it. The original is in the library of the Kansas Historical Society. It was first published in the New York Tribune and the Lawrence Republican. The original shows some interlineations made with pen and some made with pencil. Mr. Sanborn believes those made with pen were made by Kagi. Mr. E.P. Harris was a compositor in the Republican office when the copy was received. The changes and additions made with pencil, now to be seen on the original, in the library of the State Historical Society, and the changes in orthography, were made by Mr. Harris, as he informed me. He also changed the punctuation. These changes all appear on the original copy in the handwriting of Mr. Harris. The paper as edited by Mr. Harris has been used as the copy of this valuable communication, and may be found in most all the biographies of John Brown. By comparing one of those with this the additions will readily appear.

The original paper bears some evidence that it was contemplated that some one else, probably Kagi, should make additions to it. There are spaces left to be filled if thought necessary; one of these follows the list of victims of the Marais des Cygnes massacre. and another is at the close. The only word in the original not in the copy as printed herein is the word "party." This is the last word, and is below the space and next to the signature. There is no connection between it and what precedes it in Brown's handwriting, and it is in his handwriting. Mr. Harris made it a part of the last sentence in the copy as published generally.