rence, was deputed to visit Marshal Donaldson to see if some arrangements might not be made to remove the necessity for bringing his posse into the town. Mr. Donaldson replied: "The three following demands must be complied with before I shall consent not to enter Lawrence with all my force: First, That every man, against whom a warrant is issued, shall be surrendered up. Second, All munitions. of war in Lawrence, shall be delivered up. Third, That the citizens of Lawrence pledge themselves implicitly to obey the present enactments of Kansas-test oaths, taxes and all."

On the reception of this answer, the people of Lawrence assembled in council, which gave rise to the following letter:

"LAWRENCE, May 14, 1856. "J. B. DONALDSON, United States Marshal, for Kansas Territory:

"DEAR SIR: We have seen a proclamation issued by yourself, dated 11th of May, inst., and also have reliable information this morning, that large bodies of armed men, in pursuance of your proclamation, have assembled in the vicinity of Lawrence.

"That there may be no misunderstanding, we beg leave to ask respectfully, that we may be reliably informed what are the demands against us. We desire to state most truthfully and earnestly, that no opposition will now or at any future time, be offered to the execution of any legal process by yourself or any person acting for you. We also pledge ourselves to assist you, if called upon, in the execution of any legal process.

We declare ourselves to be order-loving and law-abiding citizens, and only await an opportunity to test our fidelity to the laws of the country, the Constitution and the Union.

"We are informed also, that these men collecting about Lawrence openly declare that their intention is to destroy the town, and drive off the citizens. Of course we do not believe that you would give any countenance to such threats, but, in view of the excited state of the public mind, we ask protection of the constituted authorities of the Government,

his men in the vicinity of their city, to which no reply was given. Every thing was done to avert the calamity, of which peaceable measures would admit. Deputation after deputation visited the Governor, and invoked his influence and authority to stay the madness and lawlessness of the mob; they visited the Marshal also, and plead with him the cause of humanity and justice; but they were met only with rebuke, and were frequently taken prisoners, robbed, tried, and otherwise mistreated. Messengers passed between Lawrence and Leavenworth night and day, endeavoring to secure the interposition or protection of the United States troops. The influence of the Congressional Committee was invoked and the humane feelings of Colonel Sumner touched; but in vain, the troops could not move without orders.

One effort seemed to furnish for a season a prospect of success. On the 18th of May Messrs. S. W. and T. B. Eldridge undertook the embassy to the encampment of the sons of the South. They had just removed from Kansas City to Lawrence, and opened their nicely finished and richly furnished hotel. They were not, therefore, personally obnoxious to pro-slavery men, and on this account were chosen for this work. They carried a letter from the Committee proffering that if Governor Shannon would order Colonel Sumner with his force to encamp in the vicinity of Lawrence, the arms in the town should be given up and deposited with him for safe keeping, while the Marshal should come in and make his arrests, the arms to be returned when the troops left. This proposition, supported by the influence of the two gentlemen, seemed to meet with favor, and they were invited to return the following day, when it was thought every thing could be satisfactorily adjusted.

But the hopes thus inspired were doomed to disappointment. They returned to Lecompton the next day after being detained as prisoners in Colonel Stringfellow's camp for

"Your declaration that you will truthfully and earnestly offer now, or at any future time, no opposition to the execution of any legal process, &c., is indeed difficult to understand. May I ask, gentlemen, what has produced this wonderful change in the minds of the people of Lawrence? Have their eyes been suddenly opened, so that they are now able to see that there are laws in Kansas Territory which should be obeyed? Or is it that just now, those for whom I have writs have sought refuge elsewhere? Or it may possibly be that you now, as heretofore, expect to screen yourselves behind the word 'legal,' so significantly used by you. How am I to rely on your pledges when I am well aware that the whole population of Lawrence is armed and drilled, and the town fortified-when, too, I recollect, the meetings and resolutions adopted in Lawrence and elsewhere in the Territory, openly defying the laws and the officers thereof, and threatening to resist the same to a bloody issue, as recently verified in the attempted assassination of Sheriff Jones, while in the discharge of his official duties in Lawrence. Are you strangers to all these things? Surely you must be strangers at Lawrence. If no outrages have been committed by the citizens of Lawrence against the laws of the land, they need not fear any posse of mine. But I must take the liberty of executing all processes in my hands as the United States Marshal, in my own time and manner, and shall only use such power as is authorized by law. You say you call upon the constituted authorities of the Government for protection. This, indeed, sounds strange, coming from a large body of men, armed with Sharp's rifles, and other implements of war, bound together by oaths and pledges, to resist the laws of the Government they call on for protection. All persons in Kansas Territory, without regard to location, who honestly submit to the constituted authorities, will ever find me ready to aid in protecting them; and who seek to resist the laws of the land and turn traitors to their country, will find me aiding in enforcing the laws, if not as an officer, as a citizen. "Respectfully yours,

"J. B. DONALDSON, "U. S. Marshal, Kansas Territory." Again the citizens of Lawrence sent a letter to the Marshal, calling his attention to the depredations committed by

his men in the vicinity of their city, to which no reply was given. Every thing was done to avert the calamity, of which peaceable measures would admit. Deputation after deputation visited the Governor, and invoked his influence and authority to stay the madness and lawlessness of the mob; they visited the Marshal also, and plead with him the cause of humanity and justice; but they were met only with rebuke, and were frequently taken prisoners, robbed, tried, and otherwise mistreated. Messengers passed between Lawrence and Leavenworth night and day, endeavoring to secure the interposition or protection of the United States troops. The influence of the Congressional Committee was invoked and the humane feelings of Colonel Sumner touched; but in vain, the troops could not move without orders.

One effort seemed to furnish for a season a prospect of success. On the 18th of May Messrs. S. W. and T. B. Eldridge undertook the embassy to the encampment of the sons of the South. They had just removed from Kansas City to Lawrence, and opened their nicely finished and richly furnished hotel. They were not, therefore, personally obnoxious to pro-slavery men, and on this account were chosen for this work. They carried a letter from the Committee proffering that if Governor Shannon would order Colonel Sumner with his force to encamp in the vicinity of Lawrence, the arms in the town should be given up and deposited with him for safe keeping, while the Marshal should come in and make his arrests, the arms to be returned when the troops left. This proposition, supported by the influence of the two gentlemen, seemed to meet with favor, and they were invited to return the following day, when it was thought every thing could be satisfactorily adjusted.

But the hopes thus inspired were doomed to disappointment. They returned to Lecompton the next day after being detained as prisoners in Colonel Stringfellow's camp for

some time. Governor Shannon now informed them that the only thing which will satisfy the South Carolinians is for the arms to be given up to him or the Marshal, instead of Colonel Sumner. The Governor was told that the people of Lawrence would never submit to this, but would fight first, whereupon he exclaimed, "War, then, by G-d," and left the room.

On the same day that these negotiations closed, a young man by the name of Jones, returning home a few miles south of Lawrence, with a bag of meal for his widowed mother, was shot in cold blood. A band from the Marshal's posse rode suddenly upon him near Blanton's Bridge, and one of them discharged his gun at the inoffensive youth, when he exclaimed, "O, God, I am shot," and fell dead. When the affair was announced at Lawrence a few resolute young men, but mere boys, started for the place where the murder happened. When they had proceeded about a mile, they were met by two men from the camp at Franklin. They were accosted, insulted, and finally fired upon by the Ruffians, and one of the number, Stewart, was killed. His comrades carried him back to Lawrence. The announcement of these two unprovoked murders and the bleeding corpse of Stewart which had been brought in, filled the town with indignation and excitement. A company was formed, composed chiefly of boys, for the fighting men had left, which set out for Franklin to attack the invaders, but was recalled by the Committee of Safety.

A proposition was made to have about four or five hundred men stationed at a convenient distance from Lawrence so that when the posse should attempt any outrage on the town they could be prepared for the rescue. But the Committee feared that this would taint their spotless policy of non-resistance and rejected it.

Another and a final attempt was made to avert the impending destruction of the city. It had been reported that Colonel Sumner had said, "in case of actual collision, he