well he may succeed; but I think he may find his hands full before it is all over." Brown had at times in his life—very few the times were, as must be admitted—expressed some veneration for the Constitution and the fiag; but, when these got in the way of his purpose and his conscience, the President became "Frank Pierce" and nothing more, and the flag had little respect from him. He certainly did his best in Kansas to bring on a clash with the federal arms; and it is worth noting that in March, 1866, the abolitionist Congressman from Ohio, John R. Giddings, wrote to him urging that such a clash be brought about, and asserting that it "would light up the fires of civil war throughout the North." There is reason to believe that this was what Brown had already desired, believing firmly that nothing would bring about negro emancipation but an armed conflict. There was a conservative party among the Free State men in Kansas;
