Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1856-07-16
REPORT
OF the Kansas Investigating Committee.

|
gress. Mr.. Oliver, the other member of the
Committee, and who is proved to have acted
with the Border Ruffians in invading Kansas,
has not yet made his report. The Committee
set out with the declaration, that all the cir
cumstances connected with the history of the
Territory, go to show that if the Compromise
had not been repealed, the settlement of it
would have proceeded gradually and quietly,
until the people would have made application
for admission into the Union. Such applica-
tion would have been made only on a Free
State basis. When the Missouri restriction
was removed, agitation at once began, and the
peace begotton by the act Of 1920, was gone
| forever.
| The Committee reviewed the first acts of the
Missourans in regard to the question Of the
Introduction of slavery into the Territory
These acts in point of time, were Immediate
| ly subsequent to the passage of the Douglas
Bill, and anterior to the setting-in of the tide
of emigration. They exhibit these facts ,show-
! ing that deliberate, systematic effort was
made to keep emgrants opposed to the intro
duction of slavery into the Territory from en-
| igrating thither, ere any number of them had
|
officer in the Territory, from Congressman
down to constables, had been elected by peo-
| pie who did not live in the Territory. No ac-
tual political power has ever yet been exercis-
ed by the citizens of Kansas.
The committee declare that, in October,
| 1854, and before any election was Or could be
| held in the Territory, secret political society
was formed in Missouri a. 1t was known
| by different names, such as ssSocial Band,''
'sFriend's Society,"" ssBlue LODGE s'The
| Sons Of the SOuth.'' Its members were bound
| together by secret oaths; and they had pass
words, signs and grips by which they were
known to each other. Penalties were impos-
ed for violating the rules and secrets OF the
I Order. " rltten minutes were kept of the pro-
ceedings of the Lodges, and the different
Lodges were connected together by effec-
tive organization. 1t embraced great numbers
Of the citizens of Missouri, and was extend
ed into other slave States and into the Terri
tory. Its avowed purpose was not only to ex-
| tend slavery into Kansas, but also into other
territory of the United States, and to form
! union of ell the friends of that institution
Its plan of operating was to organize and send
| men to vote at the elections in the Territory,
to collect money to pay their expenses, and if
necessary to protect them in voting. 1t also
| proposed to induce pro-Slavery men to emf
CRATE into the Territory, to aid and sustain
them while there, and to elect none to Office
but those friendly to their views. This secret
society was controlled by men who avOwed
| their purpose to extend slavery into the Terri
| tory at all hazards, and was altogether the
most effective instrument in organizing the
subsequent armed inyasions and forays. In
its Lodges in Missouri the affairs Of Kansas
were discussed, the force necessary to. control
| the elections was divided into bands, the lead
erS selected, means were collected, and signs
and badges were agreed upon. While the
| great body of The actual settlers Of the Terri
| tory were relying upon the rights secured to
! them by the organic law, and had formed no
organization combination whatever, even of
party character, this conspiracy against their
rights was gathering strength in a neighboring
State, and would have been sufficient at their
first election to have overpowered the settlers
if they had been united to a man.
Concerning the election of 1855, when Whit
field was first elected to Congress, they state
that there was little or no fraudulent voting
was done in the First, Third, Eighth, Ninth,
Tenth, Twelfth, Thirteenth or Seventeen nth
districts. They say however of the Second
District, that out of 261 votes cast, So were
thrown by citizens of the Territory and 226 by
those who were not. In the Fourth ,out of 161
cast. only about 80 were deposited by citizens.
Out of 50 voters in the Fifth, between 20 and
80 were entitled to vote the others who vo-
ted were Missourians. In the Sixth, los votes
were given, and so of these were cast by the
| invaders. In the Seventh District, GOA votes
were cast, yet fsthe census shows there were
but 53 residents therein, taken three months
after.'' The Committee found but II names,
who were voters when the census was taken,
and they declare that not more than twenty
legal votes could have been polled altogether.
This was most glaring and terrible fraud
There were 5S4 illegal votes polled. In the
| Eleventh District, out OF 245 votes cast, 23S
of these were polled by Missourians. In the
Fourteenth, out of los cast, so were fraudu-
lent. In the Fifteenth, not more than 100 were
legal out of 500 thrown. In the Sixteenth, or
Leavenworth District, there were 312 votes
deposited, and not more than 140 were enti-
tied to be given.
The following is resume of the election
and census of 1854
Legal votes, Lila
Illegal votes, 1,720
Thus your Committee find that in this the
first election in the Territory very large ma
jority Of the votes werecast by citizens OF the