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'John Brown's Body' Exhumed

Harpers Ferry, W.Va.

In the foyer of the John Brown Museum hangs a large-lettered quote from Stephen Vincent Benét: "You can weigh John Brown's body well enough/But how and in what balance weigh John Brown?" It's one of the first things visitors see when they walk through the entrance doors. It's also one of the last things they see when they leave. The same quote hangs in another room, beside the exit.