The Cleveland Daily Herald

Cleveland, April 7, 1859

The Oberlin-Wellington Rescue Case.

United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio.

                                    Willson, Judge

(Continued.)

Second Day – Afternoon Session.

      Seth W. Bartholomew. – Witness lived at Oberlin, September 15, 1858. Saw the party of “rescuers” start from Oberlin to go to Wellington, about 4 o’clock; two went first; and the rest strung along. First saw Bushnell come out James Fitch’s bookstore; he enquired of some men if they had got John; they said they had; Bushnell asked what was best to be done. He enquired this of Mr. Peck, Plumb and Fitch; one of them told him to get them ready and they would tell him; don’t know what “get them ready” meant. Bushnell started for the crowd on the corner and went into it; crowd was sixty or eighty feet distant; next saw Mr. Bushnell go to a buggy in which were two me; one had a gun; this was in a few minutes; don’t know who the men were; suppose they were students; Bushnell told the one who had no gun that he had no business with out a gun, and wanted him to get out; another man stood there with a gun; did not hear Bushnell say anything else; saw him get into Geo. Stevens’ buggy in a few minutes, after quite a number had gone; they went south towards Wellington; Mr. Wall was in the buggy with defendant; Wall’s color is “mixed”; he is called O.S.B. Wall, and he had a gun; can’t say whether Bushnell had or not; it was Stevens’ horse and buggy; Bushnell was pretty noisy; everybody was talking; the conversations was to get started as soon as possible to go to Wellington to rescue John. Witness had met the party who had John between Wellington and Oberlin; and witness was naked if it was true that they had got John; all were active. Bushnell among the number, standing in crowds; some went to Wellington in buggies; some in wood racks; some in hay racks; and some had arms.

      Cross examined. – Was in the show business at the time – showing panorama; say Jennings about Oberlin twice; had been to Pittsfield to post bills and net the party with John; also met Jennings on his way to Wellington; told Peck, Plumb and Fitch, that witness met John in a carriage, this was in the street near Carpenter’s store; Mr. Bushnell came out and wanted to know if they had got John, and was answered they had: then defendant said what shall we do, or something of that kind; there were perhaps two hundred persons in the street: could not say but the two persons in the buggy had started to go hunting, expected to see a crowd at Oberlin knowing it was the principle there when a negro was taken to re-take him if they can: witness had an arrangement with Lyman his companion by which nothing was to be said about John’s being off until the next morning; John was a poor lousy pup and witness hoped they would take him off; but when the question was asked about John, witness broke out; can’t say how many guns there were; they stuck up pretty thick; witness was brought up before John Van-vin-van-flipity-flop: witness was boarding at a hotel and stole half a cheese to keep from starving and he was put through for it and it cost him $25.

      Artemas S. Halbert sworn and testified. Resided at Oberlin about three years; was there on Sept. 13^th part of the day, let in the afternoon for Wellington; think three hundred were gathered at Oberlin; saw Bushnell a few minutes before witness left; he was talking with Mr. Wall about going to Wellington; Bushnell said he knew where he could get a gun; witness went to Wellington, and Wall and Bushnell passed witness on the road; there was a crowd at Wellington of perhaps five hundred; Bushnell was in the crowd, and advised the getting out a warrant to arrest the men who had the fugitive slave as was supposed; did not see Bushnell have any arms; the crowd was talking about the fugitive and getting him out of the house; some of the crowd went into the hotel; Anson Lyman, Wilson Evans, Lincoln, Windsor, Scott and Leary went into the house; witness was there looking at some men who went into the house, some came out on the balcony and said if more men would come in they could get the fugitive out: a good many started towards the house; did not hear Bushnell say anything at that time, and did not know where he was: heard one man say he had seen the papers the men had who had the slave in the house, and he thought they were good – this was Mr. Patten. [Defense objected to such testimony unless it could be brought home to defendant; the Court held that evidence might be introduced as to what was said to the crowd;] Witness: There was a general discussion in the crowd relative to the papers; some thought them good, and others that they were not; was there when the negro was brought out of the house, about an hour after this discussion; some of the crowd said let’s go up and bring him down; others said he must come out; think there were between two and three hundred guns, pistols, &c., in the crowd; when the negro was brought out of the hotel, Bushnell was near witness sitting down on the wagon seat; the negro was put into the wagon Bushnell was in; the negro was put in the wagon rather heels up; witness thinks Bushnell had hold the reins, he drove off towards Oberlin; before the nigger was put in, the question was asked Mr. Bushnell if that was the wagon that was to carry the nigger off, and Mr. B. said it was; the wagon was some 6 or 10 rods from the house.

      Cross Ex. – Witness is a painter at Oberlin; heard about the fugitive being taken; heard Lymen, who had just come in a buggy with Bartholomew, say so; witness had a revolver, but it was broken; heard Bushnell ask where he could get a buggy to go to Wellington, and Wall said they ought not to go without a gun; at Wellington some of the crowd thought they had better have Lowe come down and show his papers; others thought it was best to go and take the negro any how; a mulatto man in the crowd said “lets go and bring the nigger out any how;” have not talked to the officers as to what my testimony was to be, nor to any one else.

      [The cross examination of this witness was long, but consisted of dry detail as to the occurrences at Wellington, as given in the direct testimony.]

      Norris A. Wood, testified: - Resided at Oberlin last September, saw the crowd gathering about 2 o’clock: some hundred or more; don’t know that he saw Mr. Bushnell; was at Wellington that day, went down soon after the crowd commenced gathering, say 3 o’clock; might have been 5 or 6 hundred at Wellington; say Bushnell at Wellington sitting in a buggy, right in front of Wadsworth tavern; saw Bushnell also out of the buggy going towards the house: the crowd was all around; he went into it, and al of us were excited: saw some men cock their guns, some threatened to shoot when the Kentuckians came out with the negro on the balcony; a colored man snapped a gun at a white man, some said they would have the boy or tear the house down, would not leave a brick of the house; when the boy first came out on the stoop the Southerners came out and said that if any one wished to ask the boy if he wished to go back to Kentucky now was an opportunity; witness asked the boy John if he wanted to go back and John said he supposed he would have to go as they had the papers for him: some one who was in the room with the negro stuck his head out and told the crowd to come up there and not be such damned cowards: heard the cry that the crowd had got John, and could not tell whether he walked or not; there was such pulling or hauling, and Mr. Bushnell drove the buggy off. Question by Prosecution: Was there anything said by the crowd about the “higher law.” Answer: Nothing except about going to Elyria after a warrant for the southerners. – [Great laughter, promptly suppressed by the Court.]

      Cross examined: Witness and Marks brought over a ladder and put it up against the porch: this was the second ladder: witness climbed up the ladder to the porch, and the ladder was what broke the window: the men did not break it; somebody threatened to shoot witness if he went up the ladder but not withstanding that witness went up: heard a colored man on the ground call to John to jump and he would catch him.

      Adjourned to Thursday morning at nine o’clock.