Answer:
By raiding Harper's Ferry, John Brown was hoping to provide arms to the slaves.
Explanation:
John Brown was an avid abolitionist who believed that the only way to overthrow slavery was by armed insurrection. After bleeding Kansas and the Dred Scott case, in 1856 Brown attacked Pottawatomie (Franklin County), where he killed five alleged slaveholders. He was then considered a criminal, but abolitionists considered him a hero. He decided to hide from the justice system and develop a plan of further action.
On October 16, 1859, with the support of about twenty people, he invaded the town of Harper’s Ferry. Brown's unit reached the town, killed the mayor and captured the weapons magazine located there. Slaves, however, did not support the uprising, while the state police and marines detached the warehouse easily and suppressed the rebellion. Some of the attackers were killed, while the rest were arrested and brought to court. Brown and his colleagues were accused of treason, plotting and murders, and the court sentenced them to death.
