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64
was his due. Hence his outcry about false imprison
ment, and the studied care with which, in his ac
count (No. VII.), he strives to exhibit his own con
duct as remarkably calm, while that of the Mayor is
described as weak. He further tries to speak as
lightly as may be of the Mayor s part in the rescue ;
indeed, when he says (page 37) that a tremendous
rush was made to
"
prevent his entering the hall,"
one would infer that he was then rescuing him-
self.
_
It is not easy to prove the mental condition of a
man at any particular moment; nevertheless, there
is documentary evidence sufficient to show us what
were his real sentiments during, and directly after,
the riot. The Mayor, whose testimony is as admis
sible as that of Mr. Garrison, says (page 23),
" The
usual law paper was made out, and Garrison agreed
to go to jail on the condition (as I was informed by
Parkman) that he should not be subject to any ex
"
pense ; and again (page 24),
"
Throughout the
whole of this riot Garrison acceded cheerfully and
readily to the measures proposed for his security
and protection."
Mr. Sewall (page 30) says, "I believe Mr. Garri
son went voluntarily to the jail."
Mr. Garrison him
self writes in the Liberator (December 12, 1835),
"It is true that I made no objection to leaving his
[the Mayor s] office
"
office
"
; and, inasmuch as he "
left his
for no other possible purpose than to go direct
to the jail, we may accept
this as a sort of Celtic
euphuism, to be translated thus,
"
I went to jail,
and was glad of the chance." As a commentary on