The Kansas herald of freedom., 1855-01-20
Letter from q southerner,

The following letter from the Baltimore
Sun, was written by citizen of Mary.
land, and is believed to be in every par.
ticular faithful description of the late
outrage in this Territory, practiced by
Missourians, under the direction and ad-
visement of Senator 1tehison. The sub
ject has already been discussed at consid-
erable length, and yet the enormity of the
transaction justifes the saying of much
more. Political demagogues talk about
popular sovereignty" and then resort
to the basest of practices to destroy it:
LEAvENwoRrH, KANSAS T., Dec. 6, '54.
The election here on the 99th ult., for
a Delegate to Congress, occasioned high
degree of excitement. Gen. Whitfield,
the pro-slavery candidate, is said to have
been elected. You have no doubt been
so informed. So far as the number of
votes cast in his favor may go to give him
the election, he has it; but if the charac-
ter of those votes has anything to do with
the result, he has it not. He was not
elected by the people of Kansas. He is
not their Delegate. He was put on the
track by people in the State of Missouri,
and put through the ballot-box in Kansas
BY the people of that State. Before the
near approach of the time of election no
sign could be discerned BY the most OBJ
servant indicating anything else than the
success of the anti-slavery party.
The Governor of the Territory, and all
his personal and political friends, were on
that side. together with two out of every
three persons in all parts of the Territory.
But within day or two of the election,
the country began to swarm with Mis-
sourians. They came over in crowds
some In wagons, others on horseback, and
others vet on foot. They were, for the
greater part, most unseemly and reck-
Tess set of men. They crossed the river
in separate detachments at different places
along the border. They seemed TO be
organized in separate parties, under the
command of particular leaders, each party
designed to operate at specific localities.
Thus. the polls in every district, except
at Lawrence, and far up toward Fort Riley,
were surrounded and taken possession OF
the moment they were opened, BY these
insolent invaders. They threatened and
intimidated the judges /; crowded out and
violently drove off all those who were sus-
pected of being in favor of any other can
didate than their own, and put their own
votes into the ballot-bo at the point of the
revolver.
was, myself, present all day at the
Leavenworth polls, and can, therefore,
speak of the proceedings at that point
from personal knowledge. They were
perfectly outrageous. The crowd OF
Missourians assembled early in the morn
ing. and commenced operations by insist
ing on filing temporary vacancy which
had occurred In the board of Judges, By
eIeeting man named Burgess, resident
of Platte county, Missouri. The other
Judges protested against the proposition
but yielded Immediately TO the Storm
which their resistance in q moment pro-
voked. They felt themselves ID danger
Of being ruthIcssIy murdered by the
crowd. This man from Missouri accord
ingiy served, from beginning 10 end, as
one of the judges OF the election in Kan
sas Territory
During the entire day, persons were
seen coming over in boats from the Mis-.