The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1856-05-31
The News from Kansas.

a mass of coloring and Inconsistencies ana
coutradictio ns, that we find it impossible to
publish fraction of them as they come to
us. or to m axe anything like an Ineligible
digest of them. We shall attempt, howe
yer, to group together some of the leading
facts, promising that they come in SO many
distort, d shapes, that We cannot pretend to
vouch for all as reliable.
1t appear that after numerous failures on
the part of the L. S. marshal to arrest per-
sons indicted at the recent territorial court
held by Judge Lccompte, and particularly
after Gov. Recder had resisted such arrest,
and was sustained in it by two of the mem
hers of the congressional committee, the
party that uphold the territorial authorities in
Kansas became very much iniIaned, and a
der to Col Sumner for L. S. troops to ass,s t
the marshal Gov. Shannon refused to call
upon Col S. but directed the marshal to call
out the militia Of the territory to asst him,
upon which the marshal issued his procla-
nation, and in ans*er TO it, a large force
Hocked to his standard, consisting largely OF
the recently arrived emigrants from Georgia,
Mississippi, Carolina, &c, os well as OF
slave state men in the territory. Many OF
these, doubtless, were hard men, and in
famed as they were by many real or imagin-
airy wrongs, were soon found to be beyond
control. The men whom it was proposed to
arrest-such as had not, like Gov. Reeder,
Robinson, Conway, &c, taken to flight
had generally taken refuge in Lawrence, and
thither, accordingly, the marshal's army
was directed. Blu: Lawrence was supposed
to be strongly fortified, and the marshal was
not disposed to be preciptate in making an
attack. Meantime his troops seem TO have
been securing about the acknowledgements
" meeting with free state men, with whom
they came in collision. Thus frequent acts
Of violence and murder occurred. Occasion
ally free state man, and occasionally a
slave state man was the victim. But as the
latter outside of Lawrence were strongest
and most numerous, doubtless the free state
men were most frequently the sufferers
We have not room to recount the many out
RACES that occurred in this way. Soon it
was ascertained that-the leaders in Law
renee being mostly either arrested or having
taken to flight-the peope of the town, in
anticipation Of an attack, were leaving, and
that it would be an easy prey. y march up
on Lawrence was therefore at once deter
mined upon. The people Of Lawrence, in
the utmost alarm, appealed to Gov. Shannon
for protection. The governor stated candid
" what we have no doubt was fact, that
the militia, or mob, was beyond his control,
and advised the people of Lawrence peacea-
bly, to surrender the prisoners demanded,
when he anticipated they would receive no
further harm. But to prevent outrages, it
appears he agreed to send to Col. Sumner
for force to restrain the militia which,
however, either arrived too late, or the co.
vernon feared to send it.
Accordingly on the morning Of Ma 2Ist,
the marshal's force made their appearance on
the heights that overlook Lawrence. They
were reinforced until they amounted to about
400. The roads leading out of Lawrence
were guarded, SO that no information could
be conveyed from town to the free state men
in the country. The number OF men in
: Lawrence was less than 200. The commit
tee of safety, seeing no chance for resist
ance, sent note to the marshal assuring
, him they would make no resistance to any
writ he might wish to serve, and at the same
time asking Of him protection Of their lives
and property. Shortly after, the marshal,
with posse of ten men, made his appear
ance in the streets. He summoned four OF
the citizens of Lawrence to assist him max
ing arrests. The citizens obeyed, and two
individuals were arrested.
The marshal then left, and appears to
have turned the command over to Sheriff
Jones, who next appeared with party OF
. IS men. He made no arrests, but de-
manded the arms, both private and pub,
| lie, Of the citizens, threatening to storm the
town if they were not given up. lie finally
agreed to take the public arms only, and a
cannon and some muskcts were given up 10
him. Upon this Sheriff Jones appears to
have left, and the mob entered the town
They demanded the surrender of the free
state hotel, and that certain printing presses
should be destroyed, to which the citizens
of course not agreeing, they took to fight,
I the few that we,c left, and the mob COM
menced an attack upon the hotel first, which
was destroyed. They next destroyed the
printing Offices, and finally, it is alleged,
broke open private dwellings, robbed stores,
and committed many other excuses. We
can find no reliable accounts that any lives
were sacrificed in the melee, or that any
buildings beyond the printing offices and the
! hotel were burnt or destroyed.
The free state men appear generally to
have fed with their arms to Topeka, where,
if the mob appeared to attack them, they
were determined TO resist "to the bloody is
sue 1t appears, however, the mob soon
after the attack on Lawrence dispersed, and
the latest accounts state that Gov. Shannon
had ordered Col. Sumner to station large
force Of L. S. regulars at Lawrence, Tope-
ka, and several other points, to prevent fur
Their outrages.
There is no truth in the stories about dead
men lying in the streets of Lawrence, or
that Gen. Pomeroy or anybody else has been
hung. These are mere embellishments.
| Another notable fact is apparent: no part
or lot in this foray on Lawrence was taken
| by men from Missouri 1t was purely an
affair among the emigrants to the territory
| themselves. The "border ruffians" were
not IN it.
/ So far as the acts Of the mob in Lawrence
are concerned with the;r Sbootipp borcec