The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-08-21

cavalry, and he returned to the house,
hiding in the cellar behind a mound of
dirt on the bank where we boys had
thrown it in digging a small place for
keeping milk and vegetables.
Rebels Spared the Boys.
THE rebels overlook US quickly and
Mrs. Solomon asked one of the men II
they would shoot any of the boys ana
he replied No, not Intentionally.
Well said she, my son with another
boy is in hiding in those bushes and
he advised her to call us out that we
might not be mistaken for men, and
we gladly responded, and you may rest
assured We stayed closely to Mrs. Sol
ONION that forenoon.
In a few moments they were shoot
ing men and boys as they rushed up
the hill and among the number killed
was a schoolmate of mine, Bobbie Mar
tin, who plead for his life, but they
shot him down like a dog. Tears and
entratieS and prayers aValled nothing
As we looked down over the town, we
could see the fire and smoke rolling
up from the many homes and business
houses and during this memorable
forenoon 154 of the best business houses
and dwellings, of the town of Law
renee were burned to the ground ana
two-thirds of the people were home
less. Many of them had not suit
of clothing left and but few had
dollar in money.
THAT night nearly 100 widows ana
200 fatherless children sat weeping ana
mourning in the homes of their friends.
l have in my office the names of IA
men who We're killed that memorable
day, Mrs. Sarah Elizabeth Lawton
was also shot that day but not killed
Her left arm was very badly injured
and in 1891 she sent US letter in winch
she said that the bone was decaying
oil he oil Euh q
tered.
After viewing the burning of the
town from Mount Dread, Mrs. Solomon
conducted us down on the southeast
slope to the bottom land where the
family had built a nice new home, haV-
ing it completely built and painted and
the plaster ran off in an old-fashioned
mortar bed for the purpose of putting
the plaster coat on the walls. In the
parlor or front room of this house
stood the work bench of the carpenters,
the floor being covered with ShaVings-
and as Quantrells men filed past us in
the road leading southwest towards the
WakaruSa, two men diSmounted from
their horses which were decorated with
torn strips of the American flag, two
large portions of the flags being tied
to the horses tails and Mrs. Solomon
begged these men not to set fire to the
house, but they pushed her aside and
while one forcibly held her, the other
entered the house and set fire to the
shavings and the building was soon in
smouldering ruins.
PIundered the City.
LAS these men drove out from the
city, we noticed that they had taken
fresh horses from the livery stables
and had several cabs loaded with
pIunder and great many of the men
who were riding horseback had great
bundles of ladies' hosiery reaching
the their
their chins, in many instances, and
had all manner Of dry goods, clothing
and blankets and other articles which
were exhibited to our view.
I'm counting them as they rode past
u.s. two and two, we found the number
OF this murderous band to be 315, one
of them having been shot in the east
ern part of town during that forenoon,
making the total, 1 now remember
II, S16 of Quantrelfs men.
when I returned home that even
ing, l found our house in ruins with
the exception of the kitchen. which
my mother had saved by her heroic
efforts by carrying water from the
well at the corner of the house and
kitchen wall, mounted them and on
the flat roof stood and pushed the
burning window frames into the build
ing and dashed water on the cornice
that dropped from the roof of the
brick house and threw the charred
boards to the ground below.
Hidden Under Crumb Cloth.
MY father was in the cellar and
it was with the greatest difficulty my
mother got him out and up the stair
way into this kitchen, and then on his
hands and knees, he crawled under a
crumb cloth (then known, but would
now be called a rug. This she carried
at one end in tent shape while follow
ed by Mrs. Shurgro, neighbor, to
stake in the garden wherein grew u
small grape vine and they rushed
back and threw chairs and other arti-
cies on this little tent under which my
father was concealed while two of the
ruffians with reVOlvers in hand sat on
their horses eighteen feet away ready
to shoot, expecting to see him run out
of the burning building. At the same
time two other men were on the op-
Posite side of the lot ready also to
shoot, but his life was proVidentially
spared. That night we all slept in the
loft of our barn on the back end of the
lot facing Kentucky street.
1.-The terrible scenes of that day
have never been effaced from my
memory and they are as vivid to me
today as they were fifty years ago.
and / can see Mr.. Solomon as he
rushed around the corner of our house
urging my father to run, and believe
that had we stood our ground, as we
originally intended doing, we would
have saved our property because of
the fact of its having been n brick
house and blinds or shutters on every
window, and these men not only