The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1904-01-31
Ex Gov Sam Crawford An
SWers Ones Statement
STORY OF BORDER DAYS
ROaSts the MiSSourianS to a
Brown.


sourien as. follows TO the News of Bax-
ter Springs, his home;
Editor of the News: 1 notice in your
paper of December 81, a breezy commune
cation signed Border Ruffian,' wherein
he says:
..That he was q border ruffiian; that he
used to be a slave holder; that the Kan
isas aboIitionists came over to Missouri
Ito steal his negroes, mules, COWS, cloth
ing. and everything else lying around
loose; that he bought his negroes for
money and had the same right to them
that the Kansas JayhawHers had to their
cattle, and if" he continues, we occa-
5, sionally made a raid on them and re-
trieved our losses, could you blame us?"
That he still remembers, wildly, when
he made the old man Gayhawker) take
to the woods and call on John Brown,
Montgomery, and other saints to save
him; that he wants to know what has
become of those old negro and mule
lovers; and then answering his own cues
ton says, They nearly all died young;
Some went TO war and stole the Con-
federacy blind; some stayed at home,
taking stray shots a passers-by and pick
ing up stray mules and runaway ne
groes' Jim Lane" he says, killed
himself; Montgomery was killed, and
Jennison. after committing all sorts Of
crimes, finally died in Despair" Later
on" says Bor6er Ruffian. Il may dis
close a few things that will open their
eyes.
No doubt. Mr.. Editor, as an eye-opener,
> this Border Ruffian would be a bowling
success Perhaps while he is disclosing
a few things" he might tell us who made
the first raid across the border, the Free
State men or the Border Ruffians? Who
murdered Phillips. Barber, John Browns
son and many other Free State men in
Kansas territory? Who burned the cab
ins and tried to XIII almost every Free
State settler in the counties bordering
on Missouri. from Bourbon to Doniphan?
Who stole the legislature of 1870, by com
ing over from Missouri il herds and vot-
ing under assumed names at Oxford,
Kickpoo. with the view OF making Kan
saS a slave state? And while Mr.. Bor-
der Ruffian is making his disclosures, per-
haps he could tell Us who it was that in
vaded Linn county, and in the still hours
of the night. dragged Asa HairgrOve, his
father and twenty other Free State set
! tiers from their cabins. stood them up in
line. and fired volley, killing nineteen
of the twenty-five prisoners and wound
ing the other three. Perhaps he might
also tell Us who it was that came over
> and made up the poll list at oxford and
Rlckapoo from the Cincinnati directory
by reason of which pro-slavery Iegisla-
ture was declared elected.
The so-called members of that so-calIed
how cot
near the Missouri state line. and after
organizing proceeded. first. to expel every
-.ree State member who had been elected
from interior counties. ard second, to en-
act a code of laws for the territory Of
Missouri and striking out the word Mis-
souri, where il appeared. and inserting in
lieu thereof the words Kansas Territory.
thereby making a slave territory ION pa
peri until said laws were subsequently
repealed by Free State legislature
These and many other horrible atroci-
ties were committed by the Border Ruff
fiens before a Free State settler ever
crossed the line into Missouri In fact,
1T was not safe for them to do SO nor
travel by boat down the Missouri river.
Governor Reeder. an honest Democrat
who, strange as it may seem, had been
appointed by President Buchanan, tried
1t. but when MS boat reached BOonville,
he left it. and. disguised as a wood chop
per, made his away across the country
on foot 10 the Mississippi river, where
he reached a boat that carried him safely
back to civilization.
But this state Of affairs did not last
always BY and by forebearance ceased
10 be a virtue. The Free State men or
ganized under leaders brave and true as
ever wore spurs or drew swords. Jim
Lane was their captain with Jas. Mont
gomery, u. r. Anthony. Charles Robin
son. H Miles Moore. sam Walker. Frank
Dreaming, Ed. Smith, and other dauntless
heroes as first heutenauts. John Brown
was a free lance, but his lance was I'M
erring and sharp as a Damascus blade
The Free State men were armed with
Sharp's rifles. and Colts revolvers, and
they knew how 10 use their weapons.
The battles OF Hickory Point, Frank
lin. Wakarusra. and Black Jack followed
szach other III success. and the Free State
men followed the Border Ruflians until
what was left of them were lost 10 view
iu the Missouri bottoms and Snye hills.
When once headed for Missouri the mot
lev gang of butternuts, forgetting all
about the slaves they ever owned, put
their cid plantation horses and stolen
mules to speed that would have made
Nancy Hanks ashamed of herself. From
Hickory Point TO the Missouri river, and
from Black Jack To the Little Blue, the
roads were lined with squirrel rifles. flint
lock shotguns. overcoats, coon skin caps,
and butternut overooats with here and
there an exhausted horses and mule that
had been abandoned by their riders in
their Wild flight for life and liberty. 1t
was there. Mr. Editor, where your breezy
Border Rufi'an correspondent no doubt
lost his mule and other old things scat
tered around loose" because if there
was ever anything loose on the borders
of Kansas in territorial days. it was
these wild-eyed MissouTians when fee
ing from the Free State wrath that was
in red hot pursuit. Not one in fifty OF
these lawless creatures could read or
write or ever owned or expected 10 own
as much as the toe-nail Of a slave. They
came into Kansas at their masters bid
ding. carrying with them such worldly
goods as they possessed i. e, old spav-
ined horses that had been borrowed or
mules stolen from Free State settlers. old
shotguns or squirrel rifles coon skin caps.
with long streamers, Kentucky jeans
pants with patch upon patch. drab
colored shirts. worse for the wear and
somewhat odoriferous by reason Of the
nroverbial aversion OF the Border Ruff
cans TO soaD and water; bedrabbled but
tarnut overcoats. raw-hide foot gear al
-. 49,, and aunf,- bottles Of