2. Joseph Baker, Slavery and Civil War; or, the Harper’s Ferry Insurrection, with a Review of Discourses on the Subject by Rev. W. H. Furness, Hon. J. R. Giddings & Wendell Phillips, Esq. (N.p., ca. 1859). (24 p.)


Critique by a spiritualist of three reactions to John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry in October 1859. The writer attempts to chart a course that falls between extreme views voiced in the North and the South. “I would say to the South,” he concludes, “’Forget the sayings and doings of the North; at least suppress any violent emotions they may have raised in your minds, and ponder calmly and seriously the question of Slavery for yourselves.’” An to the North, he advises, “’Look at home. You are great physicians; heal yourselves. You are great reformers: reform yourselves. You have an immense amount of charity; let it begin its work of blessing at home.’”