The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-06-05


Government to cause Free State people TO be
arrested who are guilty of nothing but mere
hocus-pocus, while the notorious murderers OF
Free State people 90 about undisturbed. These
are facts which cannot by any means be dis
puted away, and we are convinced that they
will weigh heavily to the prejudice of those to
whom the guilt, either directly or indirectly,
belongs"
LATER AND MORE CONNECTED ACCOUNTS.
We are at last beginning to obtain clear
view of the outrages perpetrated in Kansas in
the name of Law and Order. writer, who
dates his letter at Leavenworth, May 10Th,
quoted by the National Lnteiligencer, says, the
first thing done was, the Indictment, under in
structions from Judge Lecompte, of the leading
Free State men, some, for high treason, some,
for constructive treason, some, for minor Of
fences. Next, as we learn from other sources,
under instructions from the same judge, indict-
ments were found against the printing Offices of
the Herald Of Freedom and the Free State, of
Lawrence, and the large hotel of Colonel ED.
ridge, as nuisances, and Sheriff Jones was d.
rected to destroy them. Then followed the
proclamation of Mr.. Donaldson, United States
Marshal, calling upon all law-abiding citizens
to aid him in making arrests.
No resistance had at any time been made to
the process of the Marshal, except in the case
of Reeder, who refused to be arrested, claiming
that he was protected by his Privilege as
delegate elected TO Congress. The People of
Lawrence again and again, in every possible
way, proclaimed their purpose not to resist any
legal process. Before this, when Sheriff Jones
had proceeded to make some arrests, Governor
Shannon had asked Colonel Sumner to place
near Lawrence a company of United States
troops. He had not made a requisition on the
Colonel to interpose to put down resistance TO
the Laws, for, in that event, Colonel Sumner
would have had full power in the premises, to
the exclusion of all other authority-so that
while enforcing the laws in Lawrence, he could
also have protected Lawrence against invasion.
Governor Shannon, unwilling to see order main
tanned in that way, merely asked and obtained
| the presence of a few soldiers to assist Sheriff
Jones' The Snders-ss.i.ae<s lnurrr,n
Law and Order Party" in other words, of the
Slavery Propaganda.
The Marshafs proclamation was the signal
for general rally of that Party. The Georgi
ans and South Carolinians, under jackson and
| Buford, who had ust been marched into the
Territory, and kept under military drill, were
at once enrolled as part of the posse comita
| tus, and furnished with United States arms
Ex-senator Atchison, at the head of seventy
men, chiefly from Missouri, supplied with a
held-piece, was also taken into service. The
People Of Lawrence protested-sent messenger
| after messenger to the Governor and the Mar
shall, declaring that they meditated no resist
ance to the laws, and Offering to aid the officers
in making the arrests; but they either received
no answers, or insulting and denunciatory
ones. They applied to Colonel Sumner-but,
his orders would not permit him to interfere.
1t was plain to all, that, even had resistance to
the laws been resolved on, the presence of
the United States troops would have su(iced
for their execution-and there would have been
no expense, no risk in employing them. Law
| and Order would have been maintained. and
all violence, from any quarter, prevented. But,
this was not the object. The People of Law
| renee were to be Inundated, the Free State
Party was to be subjugated, the Georgians,
Carolinians, and Missourians, were to be es.
| tablished supreme in the Territory. Colonel
Sumner, anxious to prevent bloodshed, visited
Governor Shannon, and desired him to make
| requistion for his troops. The Governor. now
alarmed, was anxious to do so, and had fnll
power, but, consulting with Judge Lecompte
Sbol
| did not dare to act out his own convictions.
| These officials wanted no United States troops:
their object was to obtain a triumph for the
Pro-Slavery invaders
To show the kind of men enrolled as the
posse, single instance will suffice We quote
from letter written TO us by citizen of this
place, dated Leavenworth, May 23d,) who
lately left for Kansas. He says:
81 came up the Missouri from Jefferson CITY
on the Martha Jewett, in company with band
of South Caronians and Georgians. thirty
nine in number. They were bound for Kan.
sas, armed to the teeth, with rifles, revolvers,
and knives, and breathed out threatenings and
slaughter to the Abolitionists The same boat
was freighted with two individuals who hail
from this Territory, who had been to Jefferson
City with demand from Shannon, upon the
Governor of Missouri, for the delivery of Rob-
| inson, who in the mean time was held in du
rance at Lexington. The name of the princi
pal is Captain Ciarkson, 6 citizen of this town.
evidently superior man in his way /: and his
companion is Mr.. Preston, of Virginia, whose
exterior gives token of no such superiority.
They were cheek by jowl' with the red-shirted
companies from South Carolina and Georgia.
and very soon entered into en- alliance with
them, offensive and defensive. They talked
freely, and seemed not particularly anxious to
disguise their plans. They declared their pur
pose to be to destroy Lawrence. At Lexino.
| ton, Robinson was brought on board the boat.
about ten O'clock on Sunday night, the 18th
he was escorted by Mr. jackson, or Captain
Jackson, of Georgia, end by one or two others.
They sat down in the cabin and conyersed
| with their prisoner very politely for some ten
minutes, and then conducted him to a state
room.
| But to return to my story Twas surprised
IN the morning to find that Robinson was not
on board. was told it was feared 8 reacne
would be attempted, and that the officers In
charge of the prisoner had taken him off into
the country, in order to rally some hundreds of
the Missourans as a guard. Some of the
Sontherners left the boat, and accompanied
the officers in their recruiting tour through the
western counties of Missouri The boat is ex
ceedingiy slow against the rapid current of the
river, and Clarkson was enabled to meet us the
next night at Kansas City, still in the State,