The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1879-12-19

whom he proposed TO put to death. i
positively refused to do il, and ON ac-
count of my refusal we remained in
camp all of the night upon which the al
tack was first intended 10 be made, and
the next day. told him l was willing
to go with him to Lecompton and attack
the leaders, or fight the enemy in open
field anywhere, but l did not want to en-
gage in killing these men. That night
and the acts then perpetrated are vivid
ly fixed in my memory, and / have
thought ofthem many times since.
then thought that the transaction was
terrible, and have mentioned il to but
few persons since. In after time, how
ever, / became satisfied that il resulted
in good 10 the free state cause, and was
especially beneficial Ia free state set
tiers on POttawatomie creek The pro
slavery men ecere dreadfrIty terrified.
and large numbers of them soon left tire
territory. Ii was afterward said that one
free state man could scare Il COMPANY
of them. | always understood that Geo.
! w. Grant came to our camp on Ottawa
creek, near Captain Shores, with a mes
sage from his father, John T. Grant, to
John Brown, asking for protection from
threatened assaults of the Shermans and
I other pro-slavcry ruffians. But ! did
not know Geo. w. Grant at the time and
do not remember of seeing him. | fire.
guently heard the circumstances men
toned as a fact
After the killing of William Sherman,
sometime after saidnight, we all went
back 10 camp. about one mile distant,
where we had left my team and other
things We remained in camp until
after noon of the following day, and then
started to again join the Poitawatomie
/ company under captain John Brown, Jr.
! When we reached Ottawa Jones', about
midnight, we found them IN camp at
| that place.
The next morning the company was
called together just after breakfast, and
John Brown, Jr., announced his resig-
nation, and requested the company TO
elect another captain in his place. The
name of ii. III. Williams, now of Ossa-
watomie, and my own were presented
and IA vote taken, which resulted in the
election of Williams. The company
then broke camp and started for home.
After crossing Middle creek at Mount
| Vernon, John Brown, with the rest of
the party who accompanied him on the
| Pottawatomie expedition, fell back from
the balance of the company and struck
off to the lett of the main Pottawatomie
road III the direction IF the cabins of
John Brown, Jr.,and Jason Brown. That
| night we staid mt the former, keeping up
a guard all night. The next night we
went to Jason Browns, about one mile |
and Il half away. Here we remained
several days, all the time on the watch.
While We remained here August Bundy, |
and think Benjamin l.. Cochran,
joined us
After several days, as l now remem-
Der, a young man by the name of Car
pcnter came to US from Prairie City and |
gave the information that captain Pate |
was in the vicinity in search of Brown.
That evening we all took horses and |
started for Prairie City, where we arriv- |
ed the next morning about daylight and |
camped in the timber on Ottawa creek, |
near captain Shores. While John Brown |
| was cooking breakfast for the company, |
James Redpath came into the our camp |
and had some conversation with captain |
Brown.
saw Redpath again after the battle |
of Black Jack. near Blue Mound, and / |
desire to say, i'll this connection, that |
never told Redpath at any time that |
John Brown WAS not present at the Pot /
tawatOmie tragedy. His statement, |
which has been read to me- to the |
effect that 1.-TWO squatters, who aided in |
the execution" gave him such Informa-
ton, is totally false, so far rs am con-
cerned. As Winner and myself were the |
only settlers in the neighborhood, not |
vi DIOWH ldulll1, WHO were
present at the tragedy, I can only con-
clude he referred to us In the after
noon, after we camped in the timber near
captain Shores, we moved up into Prai-
RTE City. We picketed out our horses and
laid down not over Il hundred yards from
the store. About the middle of the after
noon six of Pate's men came riding into
town, four of which we captured and
held as prisoners
During the afternoon Captain Shore
raised Il company of about thirty men
and in the evening we started in pursuit
of Pate. The next morning before day
light we obtained information that he
was camped at Black Jack Point, and
we moved forwards with about twenty
four men to attack him. When within
mile of Pate's forces we all dismount-
ed, left seven men in charge of the horses,
and with seventeen men made the at
tack. In about fifteen minutes we drove
them into the rIvine. The fight con
tinued about three hours, when Pate sur
rendered. About the time we got the
captured arms loaded into the wagons
ready to move, Maj. Abbotrs company
came up and we all marched back to
Prairie City with the prisoners. Here
we remained until Col. Sumner released !
them.
At this time left John Brown, and
in company with Charley Lenhart and
some other Lawrence parties camped in
the timber near Ottawa Jones'. A day
or two after we went to Blue Mound, IA
few miles south of Lawrence. Here |
again met Winer, Bundy, and also saw
Redpath as before stated. Winer,
from this point, went to LeavenwOrth,
and thence to st. Louis, as | have
been informed. | went on TO Law
renee, and from there to Topeka,
where | stayed one night and then re-
turned to Lawrence, which place | made
sort of headquarters for several weeks.
was acquainted with Martin F. Con.
way and his brother Jefferson, and saw
them frequently while | was there. |
knew the Conways in Maryland, and
they were the first persons of my ac-
quaintance that l met after came to the
territory. l visited my cabin on the
POttawatomie occasionally, but not to
stay any length of time, and in July | |
went to Birmingham, Iowa, to get work
l was taken sick on the way with the
ague, and was unable to do much of any
thing for weeks. In the latter part of
the season, Col. s. w. Eldridge passed
through Iowa with IA company for Law
renee. l Joined them at Oskaloosa,
Iowa, and accompanied them to Topeka.
From Topeka went home to the Potta-
watOmie, passing through Lawrence
again on my way. On my return from
Iowa met John Brown in Nebraska,
on his way east. l talked with him, and
he advised me not to return. This was
the last time ever saw HIM.
There is an error in the published
statement of Mr.. johnson Clark, fixing
the time of the killing of the Doyles,
Wilkinson, and Sherman on the night
of the day we left the camp of John
Brown, Jr., at Ottawa creek Mr.. Clark
must have misunderstood me. l certain
ly did not understand his statement as it
now reads. 1t was Immediately or soon
after we camped that night that refused
to go any farther, because Brown reQuir-
ed me TO take them into a neighborhood
where lived to commence operations,
and hence nothing was done until the
heXt night
l make this statement at the urgent re-
quest of my friends and neighbors,
Judge James Hanway, and Hon. John
son Clarke, who have been present dur
ing all the time occupied in writing it
out and in whose hearing it has been
several times read before signing.
JAMES TowNsLEY.
LANE, Kansas, Dec. 6, 1879.
WOULD LIKE To STAY.-Even when
convicted murderer is sure of going right
up To heaven the very moment he is
hanged, he would rather have pardon
from the governor.
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