Kagi was ready. Brown knelt on the ground, and Kagi spread a wide sheet in front of him. He brought the torch near and knelt holding it, while Brown traced the lines with his finger. “Here is the long line of our mountain fortress,” he said tersely. “Right here east of the Shenandoah, the mountains rise to a height of two thousand feet or more. This natural defense is right at the entrance to the mountain passage. See! An hour’s climb from this point and a hundred men could be inside an inaccessible fastness. Here attacks could be repelled with little difficulty. Here are Loudon Heights--then beyond the passage plunges straight into the heart of the thickest slave districts. The slaves can get to us without difficulty, after we have made our way through here.” His finger had stopped. Douglass leaned forward. He was holding his breath. He could feel Brown’s eyes upon him. “But that--that is Harper’s Ferry!” Douglass said, and his voice faltered. He could feel the surge of strength in the other man. “Yes,” he said, “Harper’s Ferry is the safest natural entrance to our mountain passage. We shall go through Harper’s Ferry, and there we’ll take whatever arms we need.” So little children speak, and fools, and gods! For a moment there was silence in the cave. Then Douglass got up, striking his head against the low wall. He did not heed the blow, but took John Brown by the arm. “Come outside, Captain Brown,” he said. “Let’s talk outside. I--I can’t breathe in here!” And so they faced each other in the open. Night in the mountains, stars over their heads, and stark, jagged rocks white in the shadows. “You can’t do it, John Brown!” Douglass’ voice was strained. “You would be attacking an arsenal of the United States--This is war against the federal government. The whole country would be arrayed against us!” “You do not understand, Douglass. We’re not going to kill anybody. There are only a handful of soldiers guarding that ferry. We’ll merely make them prisoners, hold them until we take the arms and get up into the mountains. Of course, there’ll be a great outcry. But all the better. The slaves will hear of it. They’ll know we’re in the mountains, and they’ll flock to us.” “Do you really believe this, John Brown? Do you really believe you can take a fort so easily?” A hard note had come again into the old man’s voice. “Am I concerned with ease, Frederick Douglass? What is this you are saying? Our mission is to free the slaves! This is the plan!” “There was no such plan,” Douglass interposed hotly. “You said that fighting would only be in self-defense. This is an attack!” John Brown’s passion matched his. “And when I rode down into the marshes of Kansas it was an attack! You did not condemn then! Here we merely force our way through a passage!” “This is treason! This is insurrection! This is war! I am not with you!” The old man’s voice cut like a whip.