Pioneer days in Kansas

I ONE E\r~~UAYS

-..- IN RAN S AS
ICHARD CORD LEY

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JHE NEW YORK

'PUBLIC LIBfiAf,

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RICHARD CORDLEY. D.D.

Pioneer Days
in Kansas

By
RICHARD CORDLEY, D.D. j^.

6

Ube iptl^rim press

NEW YORK BOSTON CHICAGO

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THE NEW Yir.X

PUBLIC LURAKY

Copyright, 1903

By RiCHAKD CORDLEY

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Preface

This book is not a continuous story, as the
reader will see. It is, rather, a series of sketches,
illustrating early times in Kansas. The begin-
nings of Kansas were unique. It was settled
under peculiar circumstances, and passed through
peculiar experiences. Something of these unique
conditions will appear in these sketches. While
no attempt is made to give a continuous story,
the sketches for the most part follow the order
of time, and the course of events in a general
way can be traced out through them. It would
be interesting to follow some of the scenes and
some of the characters into the later years, but
this would involve an entire change of plan. At
the close of the war of the Kebellion, in 1865,
Kansas entered a new era, and this book belongs
to the Old Order.

Several of the chapters were prepared at
various times for special occasions. The chapters
on the Lawrence Massacre, for instance, were

3

4 Preface

written, in substance, immediately after the
event. They were written while the events
were fresh and vivid and from information ob-
tained at first hand.

This book has been written at odd hours,
snatched from the rush of a busy pastorate, and
therefore lacks the smoothness and finish which
only a continuous application could give it.

E. C.

Contents

CHAPTER I
The Kansas Andovee Band 7

CHAPTER II
The Joueney to Kansas 31

CHAPTER III
FiEST Expebiences and Impeessions 55

CHAPTER IV
Eaely Days in Plymouth Chuech 67

CHAPTER V
Our First Home 84

CHAPTER VI
Fellowship on the Feontiee 92

CHAPTER VII
Lizzie, and the Underground Railroad 122

CHAPTER VIII

The Conteabands 137

5

6 Contents

CHAPTER IX
Kansas in the Civil Wae 152

CHAPTER X
Coming Events Casting Their Shadows Before . 165

CHAPTER XI
The Lawrence Raid 178

CHAPTER XII
Incidents of the Raid 190

CHAPTER XIII
Recovery and Restoration 214

CHAPTER XIV
Price's Invasion 236

CHAPTER XV
The Benign Influences of Peace 264

Pioneer Days in Kansas

CHAPTEK I

THE KANSAS ANDOVER BAND

An effective form of modern missionary work
is that of bands of students going together on
graduation to some region where they can com-
bine their efforts and cooperate with each other.
It was a band of students in Amherst College
who gave the first impulse to modern missions.
The celebrated haystack, beside which they met
to pray and plan, is now the site of an appro-
priate monument. In 1842 a band of twelve
students went out from Andover Theological
Seminary to Iowa. They located in different
parts of the territory, and by keeping in touch
with each other, they exerted a large influence
on the moral and religious development of the

state.

7

8 Pioneer Days in Kansas

•

In the summer of 1856 a Kansas Band was
formed in Andover Seminary. It consisted orig-
inally of four members of the Middle Class, Syl-
vester Dana Storrs, Grovesnor C. Morse, Koswell
Davenport Parker and Kichard Cordley. These
four agreed to go to Kansas after graduation and
make that territory their field of labor. The
band owed its existence to the heart and brain
of Sylvester D. Storrs, who first suggested it and
worked persistently for its success. Its first in-
spiration was due to the Kansas troubles which
were then at their height, but the chief thought
was to help to develop a Christian State in the
center of the continent.

The band met weekly in Mr. Storrs' room and
held a Kansas prayer-meeting. After the prayer-
meeting an hour was spent in studying the Kan-
sas situation, reading letters from friends in the
territory, and interchanging views. As the con-
dition in Kansas became more serious the interest
in the band widened. The Kansas prayer-meet-
ing was one of the events of the week. Often
the room was full. The band grew to a mem-
bership of sixteen, and all the classes in the
seminary were represented. Sometimes a friend
fresh from Kansas would stop off and spend the

The Kansas Andover Band 9

evening with us, and we would learn by word
of mouth the things we wanted to know. Rev.
Louis Bod well, the pastor at Topeka, visited
Andover in the spring of 1857, and spent several
days with us. He had taken much interest in
the band from the first, and his counsel was of
great value to us. He was full of enthusiasm
and well informed, and his presence gave a
sense of reality to the whole scheme.

At these meetings we talked over our plans
and exchanged ideas of work. "We did not say
much about location. Things were too indefinite
even to guess where we each might be. We
were simply going to Kansas. That was as far
as we cared to look, in fact as far as we could
look. But we discussed our work, and talked of
the things which ought to be done. Among
other things we talked of the Christian college
which Congregationalists had been in the habit
of planting wherever they went. Of course we
should plant a college in Kansas. Later on we
were delighted to learn that the brethren on the
field were discussing the same thing. We should
be glad to cooperate with them. One evening
we had with us a missionary from the region of
the Euphrates — a Dr. Williams. He gave a

10 Pioneer Days in Kansas

very charming account of the excavations at
Kineveh, and of the wonderful slabs of marble
which were being taken from the ruins. These
slabs were covered with hieroglyphics which
were supposed to be of great historic value.
Before leaving he promised to send us two of
these slabs for the collection in the Kansas col-
lege. He returned to his field in about a year,
and soon after shipped to us two of the finest
slabs ever taken from I^ineveh ruins. But when
the slabs arrived in Andover, we were on our
fields in Kansas, and we did not find it easy to
spare the money for a big freight bill on stones
from across the sea. We found no interest in
the matter among the churches, and were com-
pelled to leave them to be sold for the freight.
Andover Seminary paid the charges, and became
possessed of two of the finest Xineveh slabs ever
brought to this country.

About May, 1857, Dr. Milton Badger, senior
secretary of the American Home Missionary
Society, visited us to arrange the terms for our
going out. He was greatly interested in our
projectj and assured us that the societ}' would do
everything possible to aid us. It was arranged
that we should go out under commission of the

The Kansas Andover Band ii

society and find our special fields of labor after
reaching the territory. We were therefore not
assigned to any field, but simply charged " to
proclaim the gospel in Kansas." For this they
pledged to each of us a salary of $600. By this
time affairs in Kansas had become more quiet,
and interest in our band had become more con-
tracted. Only the four original members re-
mained. In July we graduated, and each went
his own way. As we parted it was understood
that we were to make our way to Kansas in the
autumn. In this matter each one sought his
own convenience, and we reached our fields one
by one as best we could. During the summer
there came to be an understanding as to our
locations, and we lost no time in finding our
work. Storrs went to Quindaro, Morse to
Emporia, Cordley to Lawrence, and Parker to
Leavenworth. All this came about almost by
chance, and yet we could hardly have chosen
better locations either for service or cooperation.
Sylvester D. Storrs was the first to go, reach-
ing Kansas in early autumn. Mr. Storrs had
commenced his preparations for the ministry
after being in business for himself. Having
decided upon the ministry, he worked his way

12 Pioneer Days in Kansas

through the academy and through Dartmouth
College and Andover Seminary. He was a man
of rare business gifts and tireless energy. On en-
tering Andover Seminary he rented a piece of
ground and planted it with choice nursery stock.
Before he left Andover, three years later, he
had thirty thousand young fruit-trees of the
finest varieties to sell. He was an expert in
grafting, and the farmers for miles around used
to engage him to graft their large orchards with
his choice fruit. In laying out grounds he was
a genius, and any citizen of Andover thought
himself fortunate if he could induce Brother
Storrs to take the oversight of his garden and
grounds. He knew just where the best potatoes
grew in that paradise of the potato, Northern
New England. If any of the faculty found the
" Commontaters " disagreeing with him, he only
had to whisper it to Brother Storrs, and in a few
days he would fill his cellar with the choicest
peachblows. He taught classes in two Sunday-
schools, and held mission services in out-of-the-
way neighborhoods almost every Sunday. In
Andover he found a moribund temperance society
which he resuscitated and enlarged. He made
it a literary and social club for mill hands

The Kansas Andover Band 13

and working people in Andover, and a benevo-
lent society to look after the poor and the sick.
He carried on more business out of school hours
than one in a thousand could manage with all
his time. He had such a remarkable facility for
making everything move which he touched, that
he was able to do all these divers things without
infringing on his hours of recitation or study.
All the people for miles around knew him, and
years after they would inquire about "Brother
Storrs " when the rest of the class had been for-
gotten.

At this time Quindaro was being advertised in
Free State papers as the " Future Great " of the
West. It was to be the " port of entry " for
Kansas. It was preeminently the " Free State
town." We all therefore shipped our books and
goods to Quindaro, and in due time followed our-
selves. Brother Storrs being the first to arrive
in the autumn of 1857, he was captured by the
enterprising colony and chosen as its pastor. In
a few months he organized a church and com-
pleted the house of worship which he found
already begun. He also supplied the " neighbor-
ing village " of Wyandotte as an " out-station."
The following summer he founded a church there

14 Pioneer Days in Kansas

also, which is now the " First Church of Kansas
City, Kansas." He reached out to Olathe,
"twenty miles away," and the church there
began in his labors. After five years at Quin-
daro he resigned to accept a call to Atchison.
At Atchison he found the church worshiping in
the basement of an unfinished building. There
were neither sidewalks nor steps. They had
but few members and a small congregation, and
were known in the city, where the flavor of
border ruflBanism still lingered, as the " nigger
church." They were indeed "a feeble folk."
Here he labored five years. When he resigned
he left the church self-supporting, with a fine
building finished and accessible, and furnished
with organ and bell. For twelve years he
served the American Home Missionary Society
as Superintendent of Missions. When he ac-
cepted the ofiice, in 1872, there were only
seventy-eight Congregational churches in the
state. When he left, in 1884, there were one
hundred and eighty-nine.

The second man to reach the territory was
Grovesnor C. Morse. He was a native of Xew
Hampshire and had graduated at Dartmouth
College and Andover Seminary. He had come

The Kansas Andover Band 15

to find the frontier, so he kept on westward
until he came to the Neosho Eiver. Here he
found men staking out a new town. The town
was only a few weeks old, and consisted of some
tents and shanties. He thought this was suffi-
ciently new, and he cast in his lot with Emporia.
He secured a fine claim near by. Soon he organ-
ized a church and built a house of worship. He
had been a teacher in his youth and was pro-
foundly interested in education. A few years
after coming to Kansas he was chosen Superin-
tendent of Schools for what is now Lyon County.
He used to lecture in various neighborhoods,
stirring the people up in regard to the establish-
ment of schools. To this day there are those all
over the county who remember with interest his
visits and lectures.

He took great interest in the opening and
development of the State Normal School, and
probably gave that institution more gratuitous
labor than any other man. In December, 1864,
he was chosen secretary of the Board of Direc-
tors, and commissioned by the Board to secure a
competent man for president. The legislature,
in locating the school at Emporia, appropriated
the sum of $1,000 for its support. The appro-

i6 Pioneer Days in Kansas

priation was so absurdl}^ small that it is doubtful
if an3^thing would have been done but for the
faith and enthusiasm of Brother Morse. He
started at once to find a president. The nearest
railway station was Leavenworth, three days'
journey, which was made on horseback. At the
close of one dreary winter day we w^ere just
drawing around *'the fire on the hearth" for
the evening in our home at Lawrence. A driz-
zling rain was falling and freezing as it fell.
There came a rap at the door. Wondering what
errand could bring any one out on such a pitiless
night, I opened the door. There stood Brother
Morse, cased in ice from head to foot. "We got
him out of his casement as soon as possible, and
seated him by the fire to thaw him out, while I
took care of the pony. After he had eaten sup-
per I asked him to explain his mission. He
was on his way to Chicago to find a man to take
charge of the State formal School. He had
been already two days in the saddle, and must
ride one day more. Then he would leave his
pony at Leavenworth, and go by rail to Chicago.
He was full of his plans for opening the school,
and had no more doubt of his success than if he
had ten thousand dollars instead of one. The

The Kansas Andover Band 17

next morning early he went on his journey. At
Chicago he failed to secure the man he had in
mind, and posted off at once to Bloomington,
where he found a young man who was willing to
take his chances and go to Emporia and open the
Kansas State Normal School with $1,000. That
young man was Lyman B. Kellogg, first presi-
dent of the Kansas State Normal School, and
more recently Attorney-General of the State of
Kansas.

Mr. Morse continued as pastor of the Emporia
church for more than ten years. He considered
the whole surrounding country his parish, how-
ever. He preached for a time at Council Grove,
twenty-four miles northwest, and founded the
church there. He also preached occasionally at
Eureka, fifty miles south. In 1869 he lost his
life by an accident. The whole city was in
mourning. The citizens of Emporia without
distinction erected a monument to his memory.
But the most enduring monuments are the Con-
gregational Church of Emporia and the State
Normal School. He did not live to see the full
result of his work, either in the church or in the
school; but like God's worthies in other ages,
^* he obtained a good report," though he received

i8 Pioneer Days in Kansas

not the promise, God having provided some bet-
ter thing for him.

The third member of the band to reach
Kansas was Eoswell Davenport Parker. He
was a native of New York, though brought up
in Michigan. He graduated at the Michigan
State University in 1864. On graduating at
Andover Seminary in 1857, he came at once to
Kansas. After consultation, he concluded to go
to Leavenworth. This was the largest town in
the territory and was growing very rapidly.
Buildings were going up in all directions and
people were coming from all quarters. Large
warehouses were begun and immense stocks
of goods were being brought in. Real estate
was high and rising, and real estate speculation
wild. The place had the air and promise of a
great metropolis. Mr. Parker came into this
whirl of business to preach the gospel. He had
nothing to guide him except the assurance that
among so many people there must surely be some
who had come from Congregational churches.
He secured a room for his services on the busi-
ness street and advertised them in the daily
papers. Whether he would find his room full or
empty the next Sabbath morning was one of the

The Kansas Andover Band 19

things that he must wait to know. He did find
a considerable congregation of attentive hearers.
In a short time he gathered a good number of
those who were interested in his movement.
They were all strangers to each other, as they
were strangers to him, each thinking himself
alone. A little later, when brought together in
a sociable, they were all surprised that there
was so large a number of them, and delighted
to find themselves in such good company. Mr.
Parker at once set in operation all the services
of a church, preaching twice every Sabbath, or-
ganizing a Sunday-school, and starting a prayer-
meeting. He himself acted in the capacity of
pastor, deacon, trustee, sexton and clerk. When
the church came to be organized in the March
following, there were found to be seven different
denominations represented in the membership.
It was a goodly fellowship. They were mostly
young people just entering upon their life career.
After two years' services at Leavenworth, Mr.
Parker accepted a call from the church at Wyan-
dotte, now Kansas City, Kansas. Here he re-
mained eight years, building and equipping a
house of worship, bringing the church to self-
support and a good degree of strength. He was

20 Pioneer Days in Kansas

there during the most critical period of Kansas
history. During the war Wyandotte was in
constant peril. Three miles away began the
thickets and ravines among Avhich the bush-
whackers had their homes. These thickets
extended almost without interruption around
Kansas City for twenty miles to the hills and
ravines of the Sni and the Blue Eivers. It was
nature's own hiding-place. The bushwhackers
could come within an hour's ride of Wyandotte
without .being seen or suspected. The whole
country was alive with them. Xearly every
night the heavens were lighted by some burning
house in the region, sometimes ten miles away,
sometimes only three or four. The people of
Wyandotte had to be continually on guard. Mr.
Parker took his place Avith the rest, shouldering
his musket, or standing guard at night, as the
order might be. Every few nights some alarm
would call him from his bed to the place of
rendezvous. His church bell was rung as the
signal of danger, and his church was used by the
citizens in assemblies for defense. Several times
the town was used as a hospital, and wounded
soldiers from the battle-fields of Southwest
Missouri and Arkansas, and the sick from the

The Kansas Andover Band 21

camps, were sent there to be cared for. In these
extemporized hospitals Mr. Parker did the work,
without the name or pay of a chaplain.

The last member of the band to reach Kansas
was the writer of these sketches. I was born in
E^ottingham, England, September 6, 1829. In
1833, when I was four years old, my parents
emigrated to America. They sailed from Hull
to Quebec, and thence up the St. Lawrence to
Montreal, and over Lake Champlain to Troy,
then an important center. There they found
everybody going west, to Michigan. They took
passage therefore on a canal boat on the Erie
Canal, and in two weeks were landed in Buffalo.
A wheezy old steamboat took them across Lake
Erie, and landed them in Detroit. Here they
bought an ox-team and an outfit for the new life in
the woods. They were three days reaching Ann
Arbor, thirty-seven miles, over corduroy roads,
and wallowing through swamps that seemed bot-
tomless and endless. My father found a piece
of land that suited him some fifteen miles south-
west from Ann Arbor. He was a great lover of
the beautiful, and chose the place on account of a
lovely little lake, which was set like a gem in the
woods. We began to build our cabin, and had it

22 Pioneer Days in Kansas

only partially completed when winter overtook
us. Our nearest neighbor was three miles away,
where they were building a cabin, as we were.
We found our way by " blazed " trees. It was a
long, hard struggle, clearing away the forest and
subduing the soil. For several years it was
" nip and tuck," with the wolf at the door. For
five years there were no schools, and I was nine
years old before I saw the inside of a school-
house. I do not think I lost much, however.
My mother was a cultivated woman, and taught
me herself, and I could read quite well before I
knew what a school was. I do not know how
she found time to do this. She had been tenderly
brought up, and had never known hardship or
hard work. But she did all the work for a
family of eight, cooking, washing and ironing,
making and mending the clothing, and some-
times spinning the wool from which the cloth
was woven. Yet somehow she found time to
teach her children, read her Bible, scrupulously
observe the Sabbath, and attend religious services
whenever there were any in the neighborhood.
She was never strong, and it has always been a
wonder to me how she endured so and never
neglected anything that depended on her for

The Kansas Andover Band 23

care. In 1838, largely through my father's in-
fluence, a school district was organized, and a log
schoolhouse was built. It was a very primitive
affair, and the winter winds found many an
opening between the small tamarack logs, and so
found us little fellows as we dangled our feet
from the rude benches and shivered. Our
teacher, — the first I ever knew, — was named
Hand, a farmer in summer and a teacher in
winter. He was a schoolmaster of the older
type. He doubtless had lots of love in his heart
somewhere, but he did not rule by it. For this
he had a different sort of a ruler — a round one,
made of heavy, hard wood. It was very hard
wood, we boys thought. Out of school he was
the most genial of men, and we counted it a
happy day when he went home with us to board
out his portion at our house. After a few years
my father arranged for me to attend school at
Ann Arbor every winter. In this way I pre-
pared for college, and graduated from Michigan
University in 1854, and from Andover Theolog-
ical Seminary in 1857. What occurred after this
will sufficiently appear in the sketches which
follow.

This synopsis of the Andover Band would

24 Pioneer Days in Kansas

hardly be complete without a notice of another
person who was never a member of the band,
but was closel}^ associated with them in all their
work and in all their history. This was Eev.
Louis Bodwell. He was in Kansas a year before
they came, and kept them informed of the con-
dition of affairs. He was their most reliable
correspondent. When they arrived in Kansas
he rendered inestimable service, and in all the
years after, he was associated with them as
friend and counselor in every movement and
effort.

Louis Bodwell was born in New Haven, Con-
necticut, September, 1827. He was of genuine
Puritan stock, one of his ancestors having been
chaplain of the parliamentary committee which
treated with Charles I of England, who lost his
throne and his head in consequence of Crom-
well's victory at Xaseby. Those who knew Mr.
Bodwell will not hesitate to affirm that he re-
tained all the force and firmness of his Puritan
ancestry. At the age of twenty he was con-
verted to Christ, and two years later gave him-
self to the gospel ministry. He undertook to
prepare himself for this work by alternately
studying and teaching. His health gave way

RICHARD CORDLEY S. D. STORRS

LEWIS BODWELL R. D. PARKER

The Kansas Andover Band 25

under the double strain, and he was never able
to complete the course he had marked out for
hhnself. But he was an incessant student all his
life, and in many lines he was a very thorough
scholar. In 1855 he became pastor of the Pres-
byterian Church in Truxton, J^ew York. A year
later, however, the Kansas excitement came to
its height, and the question at issue took a pro-
found hold on Mr. Bod well.

The Kansas conflict had come to its climax.
The Missouri Kiver had been blockaded by the
Missourians, and all Free State men coming up
on steamboats were turned back. The highways
through Missouri were also guarded at every
point. But where there is a will there is a way,
and in this case there was a tremendous will, and
a way was found through Iowa and Nebraska.
Mr. Bodwell and his brother Sherman overtook
a company of emigrants at Iowa City, and pro-
ceeded with them. When they reached Tabor,
Iowa, they stopped for several days and rested.
On Sunday Mr. Bodwell preached on the village
green, from the text : " In your patience possess
ye your souls." On Monday they moved on, cross-
ing the Missouri Eiver into Nebraska. Then they
turned south, and on the 10th day of October

26 Pioneer Days in Kansas

reached the Kansas line. They were met here
by the United States marshal and three hun-
dred United States cavalry, and put under arrest.
The following day they were marched twenty-
seven miles under a strong military guard. The
next da}", October 12th, was Sunday, and they
were marched fifteen miles to Straight Creek,
where they encamped. There in the evening by
the camp-fire, Mr. Bodwell, a "prisoner of the
Lord," like Paul, preached to his fellow prisoners
his first sermon in Kansas. His text was " Lo, I
am with you alway." The sermon has not been
handed down to us, but it would be safe to ven-
ture the assertion that it had the Puritanic ring.
No painting has been made of that " night
scene" on Straight Creek. They were making
material for the historian and scenes for the
painter ; but it has often been noticed that the
historian and the painter seldom happen around
on such occasions.

On Monday they moved on, still under guard,
and on Tuesday they reached the ferry over the
Kansas Kiver near Topeka. Here Governor
Geary met them, and becoming satisfied in re-
gard to their peaceable intentions, released them
from custody, and let them go their several ways.

The Kansas Andover Band 27

Mr. Bod well pushed on to Topeka, and on Oc-
tober 26 he preached his first sermon in his new
" parish." He had an audience of about thirty,
sitting on boxes and slab benches in ^' Consti-
tution Hall." JSTovember 1 he gave the "Pre-
paratory Lecture" in the same hall to three
hearers, increased to six before the close of the
service. The next Sunday he administered the
communion, the first time it had been adminis-
tered in the State capital. Of the nine members
of his church, two were absent from the terri-
tory ; one was lying very ill ; two were in prison
at Lecompton; and three only were present.
But there were others who joined with them,
strangers and members of other churches.
"They had a very precious season," the record
says.

Mr. Bodwell was one of those unique charac-
ters who leave their mark wherever they go.
He was full of vigor and energy, and true as
steel to his principles and friends. He was a
stalwart of the stalwarts, a radical of the radi-
cals, yet clear in judgment and safe in counsel.
He was ready for an emergency, and " brave as
any soldier bearded like a pard." Yet he was
gentle as a woman, full of tender sympathies

28 Pioneer Days in Kansas

and quick to respond to any call of need or sor-
row. He could be in more places in a given
time, and push more things along, than almost
any man I ever saw. He worked with an
energy that never flagged, and with an enthusi-
asm that never cooled. He never flinched from
any responsibility. If there was a bold thing
that ought to be said, he said it. If there was a
daring thing that ought to be done, he did it.
When John Brown led his last company of
slaves toward the Korth Star, Mr. Bodwell was
one of the few who volunteered to see him safely
over the Nebraska line. Whenever men were
needed for defense, he was among the first to
mount his pony and hasten to the post of danger.
I can give a pen picture of Mr. Bodwell as he
appeared about this time. It was my good for-
tune to be along in December, 1857, when the
Free State tribes gathered for the first time at
Lecompton. They came to take possession of
that stronghold of border ruffianism ; they came
prepared for emergencies ; they came in squads
and companies ; they came from all quarters.
From the west came the Topeka company, and
with them Brother Bodwell. He was riding his
faithful pony "Major," whom all old Kansas

The Kansas Andover Band 29

ministers will remember almost as well as they
do Brother Bod well himself. I did not see his
Bible, but if you had searched him, I have no
doubt you would have found, in his right-hand
coat-pocket, a well thumbed Greek Testament,
which he always carried with him, and used in
leisure moments. He was wont to lament that
he had not been able to complete his college
course, but no man in the Kansas ministry was
as familiar with the Greek Testament as he was.
Mr. Bodwell was twice pastor of the Topeka
Church, his two pastorates being separated by
some several years of service as Superintendent
of Missions for Kansas. His first pastorate ex-
tended from the forming of the church until
about 1861, and involved the various and mani-
fold labors which a new enterprise on the fron-
tier always involves, and to which Mr. Bodwell
devoted himself with rare fidelity. Besides
preaching, holding prayer-meetings, visiting the
sick, and burying the dead, he took a vigorous
hold of the work of church erection. He was
collector and treasurer, architect, " boss carpen-
ter," head mason and laborer; in the woods
cutting and hauling timber, in the quarry get-
ting out stone, at the kiln hauling lime, at the

30 Pioneer Days in Kansas

building superintending the work, around the
parish collecting subscriptions, at the East rais-
ing funds, his labors were as various and appar-
ently conflicting as often falls to the lot of man.
Twice he saw the walls of the church blown
down, and twice he rallied his people to rebuild
them. In 1860 he resigned his pastorate and
accepted the agency of the American Home
Missionary Society. After several years in this
service he was recalled to the pastorate of the
church at Topeka, in which he continued until
the health of his family compelled him to resign.

CHAPTEK II

THE JOURNEY TO KANSAS

When I came to Kansas in the autumn of
1857, there was no raih'oad nearer than Jefferson
City, about two hundred miles from the border.
The only regular means of transportation was
by steamboats on the Missouri River.

It was a beautiful afternoon when I reached
Jefferson City, IS^ovember 18, 1857. The boat,
F. X. Aubrey, was waiting at the levee, and had
been waiting for three days. This being the
last trip of the season she wanted to make it a
good one. She had " taken in," in more senses
than one, the passengers of three days' trains.
The early arrivals were out of humor from the
delay, and the later arrivals were out of humor
because the boat was more than full before their
coming. But a Missouri River boat is never full
as long as there is room to store a man in hold,
or cabin, or on deck. The officers were more
short and crusty than such officers usually are.
" We could take what they had to give, or we

31

32 Pioneer Days in Kansas

could wait for the next boat." As the next boat
would be the next spring, we took what they
could give us. We grumbled a good deal, but
that only made us more uncomfortable, and did
not disturb these lordlv officials in the least.
Neither did it secure us any better accommoda-
tions.

What they had to give was a cot on the cabin
floor, where we could prepare ourselves for the
discomforts of pioneer life which were awaiting
us. At bedtime the}^ put down about one hun-
dred and fifty of these cots, covering the cabin
from end to end. They were about as big as
door-mats and a trifle thicker. Over them they
spread what they called quilts, each quilt about
three feet wide and five feet long. We realized
what the Scriptures say about the bed too short
for a man to stretch himself upon it, and the
cover too narrow to wrap himself in it. They
also gave each a pillow which we could easily
have carried off in our pockets.

The cabin was covered with as motley a crowd
as could well be found. In this crowd on the
cabin floor there was not a soul I knew or a face
I had ever seen. Kev. S. D. Storrs, my class-
mate, was aboard the boat, but he and his wife

The Journey to Kansas 33

had come the day before and had secured a state-
room. So the company in the cabin were all
strangers to me and seemingly to each other.

The early part of the night was quite warm
and the lack of bedding was not felt. But a
little after midnight we were awakened by one
of the wildest storms I ever knew, a regular
northwester, a blizzard of the bitterest kind, one
of the coldest and fiercest I ever experienced.
The boat was still lashed to the shore, but she
creaked and tossed about as if she would be
thrown from the water. The intense cold
pierced the thin sides of the cabin, and our
little quilts seemed to shrivel up like cabbage
leaves under an August sun. We endured it as
long as we could, then one by one we rose,
"wrapped the drapery of our couch about us,"
and went to the stove. In an hour after the
storm began, the whole one hundred and fifty
were trying to crowd around that little stove in
the fore part of the cabin. If you have never
struggled for a chance at the stove with a crowd
of Missouri bushwhackers you do not know what
it is to seek warmth under difliculties. Some-
how we endured till morning, and then the light-
ing of other fires relieved the situation somewhat.

34 Pioneer Days in Kansas

About daylight the boat started and made her
way slowly up the river. The storm continued
all day, growing colder and fiercer all the time.
The sky was leaden, the wind wild and beating,
ice floated thick and thicker on the stream and an
occasional snowflake floated in the air. Every
splash of spray froze on the boat, covering
rigging and deck and all hands with ice. We
made but little headway that day. It was all
the engines could do to hold the boat against the
storm, and two or three times the wind caught
her and hurled her violently against the shore.
At night we were less than twenty miles from
our starting-point, and the channel was too un-
certain to admit of night travel.

The second dav the wind had subsided, but the
cold continued. The floating ice made our prog-
ress very difiicult. The water was low and we
had to feel our way along with the sounding-line
a good portion of the time. The cry of " three
feet — three and a half — four feet — no bottom,"
was constantly in our ears. We were aground
almost as much as we were afloat, and I spent
many a weary hour watching the crew placing
and replacing the spars, and so lifting the boat
off the sand. We came to the conclusion that

The Journey to Kansas 35

the old geographies which spoke of the Missouri
Kiver as a navigable stream were first-class
fiction. We sympathized with that member of
Congress who proposed an amendment to the
River and Harbor Bill, "to pave the bed of
some of the western rivers." As Senator John
J. Ingalls says, " The Missouri River may be
splendid sporting ground for catfish and wild
geese, but it is too dry for navigation and too
wet for agriculture."

I can hardly look back to the three days I
spent on that boat as blessed days, but they were
not a blank. It was a curious and varied crowd
that filled that cabin and covered that deck.
One will hardly see as much human nature in a
year as was condensed into that compact com-
pany. The captain was an easy, good-natured
soul, who seemed to care for little as long as he
was comfortable and got his meals on time.
The clerk was a little wiry fellow with black
hair and black eyes and an exceedingly vicious
look. He stood in his little box of an office with
his elbows on the desk, looking out as a spider
might look out from his web. There was a tradi-
tion afloat on board that he had recently shot a
man from his office window for annoying him with

36 Pioneer Days in Kansas

too many questions. "We did not trouble him there-
fore T\'ith any unnecessary questions. There were
several ladies on board, evidently Southern, and
of the same type and temper as those who after-
wards gave to the rebellion so much of its bitter-
ness and venom. The usual escort of these
ladies, in their promenades about the boat and in
their excursions on shore when the boat stopped,
was a man about thirty years of age, whose
appearance and bearing would mark him any-
where. He was quite tall and slim, and rather
dangling in his make-up. He wore a dark
military cloak, his long black hair flowing
over his shoulders. He had a sort of aquiline
nose and small, round, keen black eyes. His
lip wore a perpetual sneer, and his eyes flashed
perpetual scorn. He was well-informed, easy
and polished in his manners, very entertain-
ing in conversation, yet he was undoubtedly one
of the desperate characters of the border. He
was a good specimen of that remarkable, duplex
character which then flourished in that region.
These men, mounted and booted and spurred,

-e

could lead the cutthroats of the border in the
most bloody deeds, and then could put on their
broadcloth and beavers, and pass for cultured

The Journey to Kansas 37

gentlemen in the drawing-rooms of Washington,
and make themselves heard in the councils of the
nation. It was this class of men, capable of play-
ing two characters, the ruffian on the border and
the gentleman and scholar at Washington, who
did more than all else to blind the eyes of the
authorities at the Capital to the real nature of
the struggle in Kansas.

Three days of this sort of travel brought us
only eighty miles from Jefferson City, about as
far as a man could comfortably walk. The
weather moderated, but the water continued to
fall ; the sand-bars continued to enlarge and our
progress became more and more labored and
slow. We were aground for hours together, and
it was more and more difficult to keep the chan-
nel. On the third day, about noon, the captain
refused to go any farther. He accordingly put
us ashore, and turned back toward St. Louis, de-
liberately cheating us out of our fare, and leaving
us to go on as best we could. They beached us
in the woods, some two miles from anywhere.
During the afternoon another boat took us up to
the village of Glascow two miles above. Here
we remained over the Sabbath, it being now Sat-
urday afternoon.

38 Pioneer Days in Kansas

There was no public conveyance from here,
and we were still one hundred and twentv-five
miles from the Kansas border, through what we
Eastern people had been taught to regard as the
" enemies' country." We found there were seven
of us bound for the same point. Four of us, Mr.
and Mrs. Storrs, myself and another gentleman,
clubbed together and hired a hack to take us
through. It was an old, rickety, clumsy affair,
drawn by two very awkward mules. These
mules were driven by a man who combined the
clumsiness of the hack and the stupidity of the
mules. It was bitterly cold when we started
Monday morning. The road was slippery with
snow and ice. The hack was very heavy, the
mules were very small, and their feet were very
smooth, and the driver very dull. Our first hill
came near being our last. We had just crossed
a narrow bridge over a deep ravine, and were
going up the hill on the other side. Looking out
of the window we noticed that instead of the
mules drawing the hack up the hill, the hack was
drawing the mules down the hill, their smooth
shoes acting like skates on the slippery hillside.
We were backing rapidly toward a precipice
forty feet deep beside the bridge we had just

The Journey to Kansas 39

crossed. We were all out of the hack in a very-
short time, and did not stand on the order of
our getting out, but just got out at once. From
that on our sympathy with those mules was
something very touching. We all got out when
we came to a hill, and if it were unusually steep
we " lent a hand " at the wheels. By walking
part of the time, now encouraging the driver, now
helping the mules, lending a hand whenever
called for, we kept moving and made progress.
It was slow but we were getting on. After the
first day the cold relaxed, and we had delightful
weather until Thursday, when it began to rain.
It rained all that day and all day Friday. It was
still raining Saturday morning, but ceased about
noon. As we had not stopped for cold, we did
not stop for wet. Our progress was very slow,
but each day brought us " a day's march nearer
home." At night we usually put up at some farm-
house, our driver being acquainted all along the
road. We found the farmers all very hospitable
and kind, and we had no reason to complain
either of the fare or the charges. It was the
wild goose season, and thousands of these birds
were " pasturing " on the river. At several places
wild goose was set before us and we found it a

40 Pioneer Days in Kansas

very palatable dish. It is better flavored and
far less gross than the tame goose. About noon
on Saturday we reached a " point on the Missouri
Kiver opposite Quindaro," where our contract
said the mules were to leave us. We therefore
dismissed our driver and took the ferry for the
other side of the flood. Here in Quindaro we
found very good accommodations at the hotel
and spent a very pleasant Sabbath.

Quindaro was a new town, one of the dozen
competitors for the position of "Metropolis of
the Missouri Yalley." It was the latest born of
the whole family, having been begun only in the
spring before. Its great distinction was its " rock
landing," which the shifting floods of the river
could never wash away. It was laid out by a
company which comprised many of the most
prominent men of the territory. They were men
of large resources, infinite energy and wide ac-
quaintance and influence. They had thrown
themselves into the enterprise with a vigor and
determination and shrewdness which in anything
attainable would have insured success. They
left no stone unturned to compass their end, and
were so confident of the outcome that most of
them ventured their all in the undertaking. The

The Journey to Kansas 41

members of the company gave the enterprise
their personal attention and their personal influ-
ence, taking their own chances with the town to
which they invited their friends and for which
they solicited capital.

Many and various were the ways which these
managers devised to bring the attractions of
their city before the public. Correspondents of
Eastern papers, who were continually traveling
over the territory at that time, were all sure to
be taken to Quindaro. While there they w^ere
treated like princes, were shown all the fine
points of the town, and the brilliant plans con-
cerning it. They naturally filled their letters
with Quindaro. Versatile and many-sided were
these men of Quindaro. They had a political
side and appealed effectively to the rising anti-
slavery sentiment of the country. Were not
Kansas City, Leavenworth and Atchison pro-
slavery towns, controlled by border ruffian min-
ions ? Were not the Free State men entitled to a
port of entry of their own, where their friends
could land without being insulted, and where
they could depend upon fair dealing, and not be
at the mercy of proslavery land-sharks and spec-
ulators ?

42 Pioneer Days in Kansas

Then the members of the town company had a
religious side. They were concerned for the wel-
fare of Zion. Like David they wanted to pro-
vide a place for the ark. The Independent, The
Congregationalist and other great religious
papers contained frequent correspondence, and
long and well written articles, showing how all
the great trade lines from the West converged at
this point. What a center of religious influence
it would be ! How it might be made the very ful-
crum on which the moral lever must be set to
lift the West ; the very " Pou Sto," so to speak,
of Western evangelism ! The first Minutes of the
Congregational Association contained the follow-
ing statement in its Narrative of the State of
Eeligion ; " There is a vigorous colony of Con-
gregationalists at Quindaro, possessed of ample
means to put in operation the ordinances of the
gospel. They have appropriated $10,000 to build
a church, and offer a liberal support to a min-
ister."

All this and much more we had read before
coming. The first feeling on landing was one of
disappointment. But the people soon brushed
this feeling away. They were all so enthusiastic
and so confident that one soon began to feel

The Journey to Kansas 43

ashamed of any such thing as doubt. Every-
body knew so well the ground on which the
future of the town rested that all your questions
were quieted and all your objections dissipated.
They would point confidently to what had al-
ready been done. " Here are stone warehouses,
graded streets, dwelling-houses scattered over
the bluffs, and hundreds of people. All this has
been done in six months. Now take your pencil
and figure up what six years will do. Multiply
the present by six, and then multiply that by
two. Besides that we are accumulating resources
all the while, and to-morrow will not only be as
to-day, but more abundant."

At first the stranger was inclined to smile at
their enthusiasm, but after a little he caught the
contagion and was very likely to be the wildest
man in the lot. In a few weeks he would be
writing to his friends to ask them to lend him
money to invest in Quindaro. So it happened
that many a man who was accounted a safe and
careful business man at home invested all the
money he could raise or borrow in Quindaro real
estate and felt himself rich in the purchase. In
five years from that time he could not have sold
his lots for the taxes assessed against them.

44 Pioneer Days in Kansas

These were not unseasoned " tenderfeet " that
were thus deceived, but men of business sagacity
and large experience.

There is nothing in human experience like
this town building madness. It is more conta-
gious than yellow fever and more fatal than the
Asiatic cholera. It attacks all sorts and condi-
tions of men, and is no respecter of persons.
Good sense and simplicity are alike before it,
business shrewdness and rural innocence are
equally exposed to it. In this case of Quindaro,
shrewd and cautious men caught the contagious
madness, " the delicious delirium," and rushed
wildly into what seems now to have been the
most patent folly.

It is quite common to blame the town com-
panies for fostering such a spirit for their own
profit. But they were as much deluded as their
victims, and often suffered as heavily. When
we remember, too, that Kansas City is only three
miles from Quindaro, it appears that the logic of
these men was not far astray after all. They
only lived before their time and three miles up
the river.

As was said before, Quindaro was not alone in
this competition. She was one of many towns

The Journey to Kansas 45

striving for the same prize. All along the banks
of the Missouri Kiver deserted towns are scat-
tered like "Castles on the Ehine." The old
Latins used to say, " Poeta nascitur non fit " ;
the poet is born, not made. Of every real city
it may be said, as was said of Topsy, " it growed,
sure." Great efforts were made to build a great
metropolis at Michigan City, Indiana, but it
failed, while Chicago grew up out of the swamp.
The whole power of the state of Illinois was di-
rected to building up Alton, while Missouri left
St. Louis to look out for herself, and her own
citizens did pretty much the same thing. It is
very common to hear it said that "enterprise
creates cities." It would be much nearer the
truth to say that cities create and attract enter-
prise. The founders of Kansas City were a set
of indifferent dolts compared with the men who
founded Quindaro. But Kansas City was born
to be great, and she has therefore drawn around
herself the enterprise and capital which great-
ness always attracts. The men who have be-
come rich in the growth of successful cities are
considered "shrewd financiers," while those
who lose money in failing towns are counted
simpletons. But some of the shrewdest men

46 Pioneer Days in Kansas

have been caught in collapsing booms, while dull
and stupid men have acquired wealth by simply
sitting still on real estate in the midst of a grow-
ing city. It is not a sign of shrewdness or of
stupidity because a man wins or loses in the
blind game of town speculations. In many
cases the wisest have lost and the simplest have
won.

To this rising young city of the "West, de-
scribed in our circulars as " the chief port of
entry for Kansas," we had some months before
consigned our goods, and then we had consigned
ourselves. Kow we were there. It had been
raining three days when we arrived. The mud
surged from one side of the street to the other,
and it was not easy to tell where the river ended
and the street began. The water in the river
and the mud in the street were of about the
same color, and not very far from the same
depth. The next morning when I arose, I heard
a familiar voice. Opening the window and look-
ing out, I saw one of our traveling companions
of the dav before makino^ his way down the
street in high boots. At every step he was cry-
ing : " Three feet ; three and a half ; four feet."
Just as he came opposite the hotel he plunged

The Journey to Kansas 47

into a hole and cried out, " ]^o bottom." The
town had a bedraggled appearance. There were
no sidewalks, of course, and the streets were
nearly torn up where they were marked at all.
The houses were scattered " helter-skelter " about
the place wherever a break in the hill or an
opening in the bluffs gave room for one. They
were all hastily built wooden structures, stand-
ing on stilts, and seeming ready to walk off at a
moment's notice. There was quite a large hotel
and a few substantial business houses near the
river. The rest seemed as if ready to move
should the word be given.

I remained in Quindaro over the Sabbath.
Mr. Storrs, my classmate, was to make this his
home. He had come early in the autumn and
looked the ground over, so it was not altogether
new ground to him. He had arranged to hold
religious services in the church which had just
been built on the bluff. But between the hotel
and the church there was a great gulf of mud
fixed, and "they that would pass from us to
them could not, neither could they pass to us."
It was finally agreed that I should preach in the
hotel parlor while Mr. Storrs should preach at
the church. I had the larger congregation, for

48 Pioneer Days in Kansas

my congregation could not go away, and his con-
gregation could not come. The hotel parlor was
well filled, and the people on the hill made their
way to the church.

The first thing on Monday was to find some
way to get over to Lawrence. There had been
a stage line during the summer, but at the close
of navigation it had been taken off. It was not
easy to procure any private means of transporta-
tion. At last we found a colored teamster who
agreed, for ten dollars, to take me and my goods
over. "We started Tuesday morning and traveled
all day. About noon we came to the Baptist
Mission among the Delaware Indians, and the
family of good Brother Pratt prepared us an ex-
cellent dinner. Mr. Pratt had been a missionary
among these Delawares for about twenty years,
and many of the tribe had been converted and
were members of his church. Leaving the mis-
sion we plunged into the Delaware Reservation.
"We did not see a human habitation or a human
face all day. We had hoped to reach Lawrence
that night. My teamster was very confident of
this when he was employed. But once on the
way he took his time, and his horses were of
the same mind with himself. It was forty miles

The Journey to Kansas 49

from Quindaro to Lawrence, and the roads were
rough with recent rains, and we moved along
very slowly. As the day wore on it became evi-
dent that we must spend the night among the
Indians. My teamster had lived among the
Delawares, and was acquainted with many of
them, so it was all the same to him. We had
not seen even an Indian hut in all the afternoon,
and I began to wonder where we should find
shelter. It was the first day of December and
rather cold to lie out on the prairie with no
cover and without supper. As night came on,
however, my driver turned out of the main road
and drove down toward a little creek, and there
was an Indian hut where he was evidently well
known. He soon made our situation understood
and we were taken in, though the hut seemed
more than full already. The old squaw busied
herself getting supper for us. She cooked a
chicken in an iron kettle on the open hearth.
The fireplace consisted of a few stones piled
around by a wall, and an opening at the roof
through which most of the smoke found its way.
At last we sat down to supper and I tried to eat.
The chicken was just warmed through and was
as raw as when first put over the fireplace. I

50 Pioneer Days in Kansas

tried hard to swallow the first mouthful I had
taken but it was out of the question. I w^atched
my opportunity to throw it under the table. It
was a mud floor and dirty at that, so the morsel
I threw down would never be noticed. I made
my supper on a few crackers. " Not any more
chicken, thank you," w^as my reply to the kind
offer to serve me with a second portion.

After supper we sat down in front of the fire
on a bench. Soon a company of young fellows
came in, ornamented with feathers and paint,
and evidently bent on a good time. They made
themselves entirely at home, and rollicked about,
scuffling and wrestling and shouting like wild
men. I had an impression that they were drunk.
Our host and his family did not join nor did
they check them, but looked stolidly on as
though it were an every-day affair. In one of
their scuffles, a great big fellow was pitched over
me and nearly knocked me off the bench. He
fell entirely over me and came down in a heap
on the other side. The nearest approach to any
apology was a rough laugh, and a " ugh " from
the victor who had thus pitched his competitor
over me. The fun, as I suppose they called it,
grew wilder and the shouts louder, and I began

The Journey to Kansas 51

to wish myself out of it. I carefully scanned
the face of my driver, who sat in the corner, to
see how he took it. He knew the people and
knew what it all meant. He seemed entirely
unconcerned, so I concluded it was only a little
frolic they were having. In about an hour the
company went out as they had come, mounted
their ponies and galloped away, yelling like
*' wild Indians " as they went.

Soon after, the father of the family showed
me to bed. I paid my bill and told my driver
we must start at the first sign of day and reach
Lawrence by breakfast time. My bed was a
shelf on the side of the cabin supported by pins
driven into the logs. There were several such
shelves around the walls on which the rest were
to sleep. My shelf looked neater and cleaner
than the others and was evidently the spare bed
of the house. It was about a foot and a half
wide and four feet and a half from the floor, and
had some sort of a blanket on it. I climbed up
to my place and laid me down. But I did not
sleep much. It was a novel situation for me. I
was one thousand miles from home and twenty
miles from a white man. I had never been
among Indians before in my life and had never

52 Pioneer Days in Kansas

seen one since my childhood days in the back-
woods of Michigan. In those early days we
used to sit by the old fireplace winter nights for
hours and listen to stories of Pontiac and Te-
cumseh, and Fort Wayne and Machinac. All the
Indian stories I had ever heard or read came up
with wonderful vividness as I lay on my shelf.
I knew the Delawares were friendly Indians and
that I was in no danger. Still the situation had
its suggestions and no effort of will could put
them aside. The cabin was about fifteen feet
square and of very simple construction. There
was no chinking between the logs and I could al-
most roll through the openings into the yard. I
could look out and see the ponies and the pigs
and the cattle, and could hear the chickens talk-
ing in their sleep. Now and then I could hear
the bark of a prairie wolf, or the screech of an
owl in the woods, or the yell of an Indian who
was late getting home. All round the cabin the
family lay on their shelves, and were snoring in
that peculiar piping key which none but an
Indian larynx can produce. This music of the
night was made all the more impressive by the
deep bass snoring of my negro driver. As to
myself I gave "neither sleep to my eyes, nor

The Journey to Kansas 53

slumber to my eyelids." The night dragged its
weary length along and seemed as if it never
would end. At last, looking out between the
logs I fancied I saw a streak of light in the east
and thought day was coming. I arose and
awakened my driver. He soon had his team
ready and we moved on, leaving the family in
the midst of their slumbers. The light I fancied
was daybreak proved to be a delusion, and we
stopped in a sheltered ravine, and waited still a
long time for the morning. A little after sun-
rise we came to the home of Sicoxie, an Indian
chief, some six miles east of Lawrence. Sicoxie
was a superior Indian, and the family prepared
us an excellent breakfast.

We reached Lawrence about eleven o'clock.
Lawrence had been the center of my thoughts for
many a month. During the summer the Home
Missionary Society had written me that Law-
rence was to be my field, " if we proved satis-
factory to each other." It was the Jerusalem of
my hopes, and all along the weary way my heart
kept singing,

" When will my jonmey have an end
In joy and peace in thee ? "

54 Pioneer Days in Kansas

Like the first baby in the house, so is a minister's
first parish in his thoughts. I wondered how the
town would look, how the people would act, and
what the end would be.

CHAPTER III

FIRST EXPERIENCES AND IMPRESSIONS

The day I entered Lawrence I found the town
very full of people. They jostled each other on
the street, and stood in knots on the corners. At
the hotel, where I went for dinner, the corridors
were all crowded, and it was an hour before I
could get a chance at the table. I began to
think Lawrence a pretty lively place. But I
soon learned that a great Free State Convention
was in session. I had not seen a newspaper since
leaving Jefferson City, two weeks before, and
events had moved on apace since then. The
Free State men had secured the control of the
Territorial Legislature in the October election,
and thought the contest for freedom to Kansas
was settled. But now the administration at
Washington proposed to force on them the hated
Lecompton Constitution. This would undo all
they had done. This convention was called to
consult as to what they should do in the new
situation which had been forced upon them. It

55

56 Pioneer Days in Kansas

was the great convention of December 2d,
famous in all the annals of the Free State
contest. It was one of many such conventions
held by the Free State men, to consult as to the
wisest course to pursue in the difficult and
delicate situations in which they so often found
themselves. This w^as the largest and ablest of
them all, and great interest centered in it.
There were one hundred and thirty members,
and every part of the Territory was represented.
All the Free State leaders were there, and it
gave me a fine opportunity to see and hear the
men whose names had been like household words
to me for many months. As I sat and watched
them all the afternoon, I listened for each name as
if they were calling the roll of the heroes of the
Revolution. The spirit of the convention was
very earnest, and many of the speeches were
very eloquent and high-toned. One could almost
fancv he had been carried back to the sessions of
the Continental Congress, and was listening to
Patrick Henry or Hancock or Adams. There
was not much they could do beyond making
speeches and passing resolutions. The Lecomp-
ton Constitution was before Congress, and be-
yond their reach. But they had learned that

First Experiences and Impressions 57

resolutions which came from the people had
their effect even in halls of legislation. They
therefore passed some forcible resolutions, pro-
testing against the outrage of having a consti-
tution imposed upon them which had never been
submitted to their vote. " Appealing to the God
of Justice, and to humanity, we do solemnly
enter into league and covenant with each other,
that we will never, under any circumstances,
permit the said constitution to become the
organic law of the State of Kansas ; and we do
pledge our lives, our fortunes and our sacred
honor, to ceaseless opposition to the same."

The convention was all the more interesting to
me because it was held in the unfinished Con-
gregational church. The room was crowded to
the door, and it was not easy to find more than
standing-room. In the crowd in the church I
found my old friend, Bodwell, who was one of
the members of the convention, and Mr. Lum, my
predecessor in the Lawrence church, who was
a deeply interested spectator. After meeting
them, the mists began to clear away, and I
understood something of the situation into
which I had been so suddenly thrown. Dur-
ing the afternoon I met some of our church

58 Pioneer Days in Kansas

people, and Lawrence began to seem like a part
of the same world I had lived in all the rest of my
Ufe.

After this convention adjourned I had an op-
portunity to look over the town itself. It seemed
to shrivel after the strangers went away, and its
importance declined as it returned to its own
normal condition. The town seemed smaller
than I had expected to find it, and had a more
unfinished look. There were not only no side-
walks, but no streets, except in name and on the
map. The roads ran here and there, across lots
and between houses, as each driver took a fancy.
This gave a scattered appearance to the town,
and the houses seemed to be straggling around
on the prairie as if they had lost their way.
There were scarcely any fences or dooryards,
and gardens were almost unknown. There had
been hardly a tree or bush planted on the town
site. There was an exaggeration of that " all out-
of-doors " sort of a look which is characteristic of
new prairie towns. All this was strange to me
and gave a lonesome, desolate impression. That
I had no home, and had to wait three weeks be-
fore I could have a room of my own, no doubt
added to the sense of loneliness.

First Experiences and Impressions 59

But this first impression soon wore off as the
inner life of the place began to reveal itself. The
first thought was that there could not be more
than a thousand people in the town, while the
reports had said that there were three or four
thousand. But I soon found that the Eastern
method of computing population by the number
of houses would not apply to one of these West-
ern towns. Everything was full beyond all com-
putation. As I said, I was not able to secure a
room for three weeks, until one was prepared for
me. An officer of the church kindly took me in
for these three weeks. He was living in the
kitchen of his unfinished house. A cot in the
open garret served me for a bed, and some sort
of a stand in the unfinished parlor, where three
carpenters were at work, had to serve me for a
study table. My first sermon was prepared with
three carpenters pounding away in the same
room. But this was only a specimen of the whole
town, except that this house was much better
than most. Every tenement and shanty, every
sod cabin and tent fairly swarmed with occu-
pants. There would be two or three families in
a house, and each family keeping boarders. I do
not know what the actual population was, but

6o Pioneer Days in Kansas

there were not far from three thousand people
sojourning in the town that winter. Many of
them left in the spring, and more left as the sea-
son advanced. But strangers were coming and
going all the while, so that the activity of the
place w^as sustained.

And these were not the traditional roughs of
the frontier. They were people of culture and
character w^ho had come to make Kansas a free
state. They had come in many cases without
any definite idea as to what they were to do or
how they were to make a living. That was en-
tirely a secondary consideration. They w^ere
ready to do anything that offered, their main
purpose being to take part in settling the great
question of freedom for Kansas. It was no un-
common thing to find a college graduate driving
an ox-team through the street, or chopping wood
by the river, or living in some " shake shanty "
far out upon the prairie. For it is worth w^hile
to note that this class of people was not confined
to the town. The people living on claims, all
over the prairie, were of the same quality. You
might call at the loneliest cabin in the most out-
of-the-way place, and find a man who could talk
with you intelligently on the latest scientific

First Experiences and Impressions 6l

theory, or discuss the latest novel. You would
find on the table the best Eastern papers, and the
brightest magazines. The table might be only a
dry-goods box, but the papers would be there
just the same. These people had not come as ad-
venturers to see how they would like it. They
had come to stay and see the thing done.
Whether they made a farm or not, and whether
they made a living or not, they proposed to make
Kansas free. They came possessed of the idea
and intended to make that idea effective.

Beside these solid men of solid purpose, the
country was full of the curious who came to see
what was going on ; of adventurers who came to
join in the fray ; of speculators who came to
profit by the occasion. The eyes of the whole
country were upon Kansas, and people from the
whole country were here. For three years there
had been a condition bordering on civil war.
There had been a conflict of authority, and a con-
flict of law, and each party had marshaled its
forces. There had been marchings to and fro of
opposing bands ; stray shots here and there ;
murders by the wayside and outrages on lonely
farms and public thoroughfares ; the sacking of
villages and plundering of cabins. In a small

62 Pioneer Days in Kansas

way there had been encounters and skirmishes
and battles between the opposing forces. That
there had been nothing more disastrous, was due
to the skill and patience of the Free State leaders.
Lawrence herself had been three times assaulted,
and twice had been sacked. In 1855 she had
been in a state of siege for more than a week,
and had been threatened daily ^vith destruction.
May 21, 1856, she was entered by a gang of ruf-
fians under legal orders, and her hotels and print-
ing offices and several other buildings burned.

All this confusion and insecurity were main-
tained largely to keep away northern men from
Kansas, and to drive away those already here.
At one time the Missourians went so far as to
blockade the Missouri Kiver, and take Free State
men off from the steamboats and send them back
home. But instead of stopping the stream of
northern immigration these things only increased
it. They came faster than ever, and each new
outrage brought a new instalment of people.
When the river route was closed, large bands of
men came round by Iowa and Nebraska and en-
tered Kansas from the north. When it was no
longer safe for small companies to come, three or
four hundred came in a body and defied opposi-

First Experiences and Impressions 63

tion. The spirit of the North was aroused and
the old-time heroism reappeared. They did not
come simply to vote and go back, but they came
to build a great state after the ISTew England
pattern, and they did not propose to be thwarted
by any threats or any peril. Whittier, the poet
of liberty, gave voice to their spirit in his well-
known poem, " The Kansas Emigrant " :

*' They crossed the prairie, as of old

The fathers crossed the sea,
To make the West, as they the East

The homestead of the free.
They came to rear a wall of men

On freedom's northern line,
And plant beside the cotton tree

The rugged northern pine.
They came to plant the common school

On distant prairie swells
And give the Sabbaths of the wild

The music of her bells."

All this made lively times for Kansas. Some
of the time the situation was serious, and a mis-
take might have plunged the whole country into
war. But after Geary became governor in the
autumn of 1856, and insisted on fairness to all
parties, the danger was over, and the question
was practically settled. Give the Free State
men protection, and it was simply a question of

64 Pioneer Days in Kansas

time when they would control the territory, in
spite of violence or fraud or technical advantage.
The centering of all these interests and the com-
ing of all these classes, made a time of " unex-
ampled prosperity." People were coming con-
tinually by every available route. The highways
were thronged with travel ; the hotels were
crowded with guests ; every available tenement,
log cabin, shake shanty, or sod hut was occupied
to its utmost capacity. The newcomers all
brought money. Some of them came to make
money. As a rule they failed in this. But they
all had to spend money. Most of them wanted
to " invest " as they were pleased to call it.
They wanted to own at least a little of the
" sacred soil " of Kansas. It made little differ-
ence what they bought, so long as they could
" invest." And in the final outcome it did not
make much difference, as pretty nearly every-
thing fared alike. Prices of land advanced be-
yond all reason. Bare prairie rated as high as
cultivated farms have since. Town lots, which
only the surveyor could find, rated as high as
lots in cities of ten thousand people. To supply
the demand for town lots, " cities " were laid out
in all directions. There were beautifully litho-

First Experiences and Impressions 65

graphed maps of towns which showed no visible
sign on the prairie. A land dealer would often
double his money in a month. Everybody ran
wild with the craze for land and speculation.
Money loaned as high as three, and five, and even
ten per cent, a month.

This was the condition of things in 1856, but
more especially in the early part of 1857. In
the autumn of 1857, when I arrived, there was a
lull in affairs. The season's immigration had
ceased and the land market was dull. But every-
body thought it was only a temporary suspen-
sion. The season was over, they said, but every-
thing would start up again in the spring. Spring
immigration would set things afloat once more.
They reasoned that if there had been such a rush
for Kansas when affairs were so unsettled, the
rush would be many fold greater now that
everything was quiet and peaceful. But in this
they were mistaken. When the conflict was
over the interest was over. So when spring
came there was no immigrant. Land agents sat
in their offices with their diagrams and maps,
but no one came to inquire the price of lots.
The expected immigrant did not come. Property
was still high but there were no buyers. Money

66 Pioneer Days in Kansas

was still held at enormous rates, but nobody
wanted to borrow. There were people all about
who were rich in city lots and country lands, but
had not money to pay their board. Business was
dull, and money was scarce, and everything
moved heavily. The people did not realize the
change, as they never do. '' It was only a panic
that would soon pass over — a temporary loss of
confidence that would soon be restored." On
the sea beach after a great wave has receded, the
little fishes are seen lying on the sand and in the
little pools, waiting for the next wave. So
when this great wave of speculation had receded
there were both gudgeons and land-sharks in all
directions, waiting for the next wave to float
them off. But the waters did not rise again, and
the beach became very dry. The three years
that followed were very dull years. All growth
had ceased, all business was depressed, and times
were quiet enough for a hermit.

CHAPTEE TV

EARLY DAYS IN PLYMOUTH CHURCH

Plymouth Church, Lawrence, was the first
church of any name formed in Kansas, except
among Indians. As soon as the settlement com-
menced the American Home Missionary Society
commissioned Eev. Samuel Y. Lum, of Middle-
town, New York, to labor in Kansas. He
arrived in Lawrence the last of September, 1854.
He came about the same time as the second
party of Boston immigrants. His first service
was held the first day of October. There had
been religious services before this, but they
had been conducted by laymen, and consisted of
devotional exercises and the reading of a sermon.
Mr. Lum had been pastor of the church in
Middletown, ]^ew York, where he had a de-
lightful parish, and where he was very highly
esteemed. His wife was the daughter of a New
York merchant, whose home was in one of the
beautiful New Jersey suburbs. She had never
known anything of the trials and roughness of

67

68 Pioneer Days in Kansas

pioneer life. But they were enthusiastic over
the idea of Free Kansas. He was the first
minister on the ground, preached the first
sermon, organized the first church, and built
the first dwelling-house in Lawrence. The
house was roofed and sided with "shakes," a
sort of board split from logs — each board about
four inches wide and about two feet and a half
long. The house w^as well ventilated, but was
not blizzard-proof. A blanket of snow on the
bed, and a carpet of snow on the floor, were no
unusual greeting in the morning as they arose.
They wore their w^inter wraps while cooking
over a red-hot stove, and water often froze on
their clothing while their faces tingled w4th the^
heat of the fire. But it was "like priest like
people." They all fared alike and there was no
murmuring. The discomforts of pioneer life
were borne with fortitude. In the troubles of
1855 and 1856, Mr. Lum took his place with the
rest in the defense of the town, bearing his
portion of the burden and the loss. His horses
were stolen by the border ru£Qans, and once he
was threatened with personal violence, but was
finally released w^ithout harm.

The first services were held in what was called

REV. S. Y. LUM

THE 1^

Lyo.nf

Early Days in Plymouth Church 69

the '• Pioneer Boarding House." This was a
sort of hay tent. It was built by setting up
two rows of poles about twenty feet apart, the
rows inclining toward each other, and coming
together at the top. The sides were thatched
with prairie hay. The ends were filled up with
sod after the manner of a sod house. The door
was at the end, through the wall of sod. This
gave a room some fifty feet long and twenty feet
wide. The ends were all gable and the sides
were all roof. This served as the principal hotel
of the town. On Sunday it was put in order for
religious services. Three trunks set one on the
other served as a pulpit, and the congregation
seated themselves on the beds and boxes and
baggage of the boarders. There was always
a good congregation, as everybody attended
church.

The forming of a church was one of the things
talked of from the first — even before the coming
of Mr. Lum. They all wanted a church — some
because they loved the church, and some because
a church was the proper thing.

October 15th a meeting was held to form a
church. It was not large, but it was harmonious.
Mr. O. A. Hanscom was a member of the Mount

7© Pioneer Days in Kansas

Yernon Church, Boston, and had with him a copy
of the manual of that church. This was used as
a guide in drawing up the rules and covenant for
the new church. The brethren gathered in a
group near the center of the room. Samuel
C. Pomeroy, afterward United States Senator,
acted as scribe, and wrote on the crown of his
beaver hat. Joseph Savage held the candle as
Mr. Pomeroy wrote, and O. A. Hanscom held
the inkstand. When it came to the question,
What shall we call it? ''Plymouth Church"
Avas the unanimous response. They said their
circumstances and their purposes corresponded
with those of the Plymouth pilgrims.

There were ten original members of the
church, though probably twice that number par-
ticipated in the meeting. The others, not yet
having their letters, united at a later date. Of
these members Mr. Lum says in The Home
Missionary : " Those who have as yet united
in our church movement are, for the most part,
prominent members of New England churches.
They are men who have been influenced to come
here, not by the desire for wealth, but to plant
the standard of the cross, and to secure all of its
attendant blessings. Our ordinary congregations

FRANKLIN HASKELL,
Who made the first prayer on the site of Lawrence

>>

Early Days in Plymouth Church 71

number about a hundred. It has been over this
at times."

As soon as they had the church, they wanted a
Sunday-school. One difficulty confronted them
at the outset. There were no children. But
this they did not consider material. The people
remained after the service for Bible study, and so
kept up the old memories. The first Sunday in
January, 1855, a Sunday-school was regularly
organized by Mr. S. K. Simpson, who was
chosen the first superintendent of the first Sunday-
school in Kansas. Some families had now arrived
and there were a few children. The school met in
a little building on Massachusetts Street, twelve
by fourteen. It was a frame building, boarded
up and down, and intended for battens, but the
battens had been omitted, and the cracks sup-
plied their place. Twenty or thirty scholars
met here every Sunday. Later on, as the
troubles increased, it was not easy to maintain
either Sabbath-school or Sabbath worship. Dur-
ing the following year the people were subject to
constant alarms, and the school was not held
regularly, but called together from Sabbath to
Sabbath. If on Sabbath morning the danger
was not too close, and military duty not too ^

72 Pioneer Days in Kansas

pressing, a bright boy would run round and
notify the children that " there would be Sunday-
school that day." The children were always
ready, waiting for the call, and would come
from all quarters. "When the exercises were
over they would disperse and wait for another
call. They all became so accustomed to this
state of things that any Sunday they could get
the school together in an hour. The citizen
soldiers would come in, hang up their rifles, and
sit down to study the Word of God.

During the years 1855-6 there were turbulent
times. The whole country was in a ferment all
that summer. Bands of ruflBans were passing
here and there constantly. Murders were fre-
quent on the highways, and there was a general
state of unrest and insecurity. The public serv-
ices of the church were often interrupted by a
call for the men to rally against some threatened
attack. At other times, only the women and
children met, the men being away on duty. Of
this period the pastor writes : '' All the public
buildings are turned into barracks, the preaching
hall with the rest, and nothing is thought of but
the best means of defense."

During this time Plymouth Church was liter-

Early Days in Plymouth Church 73

ally a " church militant." The men were in the
" army " and the women at home prepared
ammunition and supplies. Often the men were
out on duty all day Sunday, and at other times
they were called out from service to rally for
defense.

During this time the church was planning for
a building. In the autumn and winter of 1855,
Mr. Lum, and after him, Mr. S. N. Simpson,
visited Eastern churches to ask aid in erecting a
suitable house of worship. They met with a
very liberal response, but also had some unique
experiences. Nearly $4,000 were secured from
first to last. Amos A. Lawrence, of Boston, an
Episcopalian, after whom the town was named,
gave $1,000, and was among the first to give en-
couragement. The rest was from all over New
England, and from New York and Brooklyn.

As usual the committee began to build a
church which would cost double the money they
had in hand. The result was that the money
was gone before the house was anywhere near
completion.

In the spring of 1857, Mr. Lum resigned on
account of ill health, and the church was vacant
for several months. In December of the same

74 Pioneer Days in Kansas

year the writer of this came to Lawrence and
became pastor of the church. I arrived TVednes-
day, December 2, 1857.

Plymouth Church was then three years old,
and had about twenty-two resident members.
They had begun to build a house of worship. It
was of stone, substantial and well built, and of
good size. They had enclosed the building and
laid the floor, and then had been compelled to
stop for want of funds. In fact the funds had
been exhausted some tune before, and thev had
borrowed nearly $2,000. The windows had been
put in without casings, the walls and ceilings
were without plaster, and the doorway was
boarded up with rough boards, one board being
left to swing for an entrance. The winter
winds used to laugh at these loose boards, and
run in through the cracks, and cool the ardor of
the congregation. The roof was said to be a
good one, but in spite of this the snow would
sift through and powder our heads as we
worshiped. The seats were rough benches, and
along the sides by the wall a row of seats had
been made by placing boards on nail kegs and
boxes. The pulpit platform was simply a pile of
rough lumber, which was forever threatening to

Early Days in Plymouth Church 75

tip over and spill the preacher out. It required
careful balancing to keep one's poise on such a
foundation. If the speaker had once forgotten
the ground he was on, there is no knowing what
might have happened. The rough limestone
walls without plaster, the uncased windows and
the open joists overhead gave abundant venti-
lation, but not much comfort. The winter winds
found all the openings, and it was a dismal place
on a cold day. Two large stoves doing their
best made little headway against the cold winds
of a winter morning. On cold days the con-
gregation would gather around the stove and the
pulpit was moved down to them. The expenses
of the church were not large. A good portion of
my salary was paid by the Home Missionary
Society. The fuel was partly donated by per-
sons having woodlands. The sexton's work was
done by members of the congregation in ro-
tation— a rotation that did not always rotate.

The church, however, was as good as the
houses the people lived in, and nobody com-
plained of it, or absented themselves on account
of it. The congregations were good and very
inspiring. It was a wide-awake lot of people
that found their way to Kansas at that time, and

76 Pioneer Days in Kansas

they were as wide awake in church as anywhere
else. In that congregation, at different times,
there were young men who have since made
their mark on the state and nation. Lawrence
was then the political and social center of the
territory and everybody who came to Kansas
came to Lawrence as a matter of course. There
were always many strangers present. One Sun-
day— my second Sunday, I think — there was a
young man in the center of the room who at-
tracted my attention in an unusual degree.
There was such a bright glow on his face, and
such a peculiar twinkle in his eye, that I noticed
him at once. And he seemed to listen with such
interest that every time I glanced up I found my-
self unconsciously looking at him. I inquired
about him after service, and found that he was
the editor of the Quindaro paper, The Chin-
dowan. His name was Walden, and he had
gained some distinction already in the discussion
of public questions. I do not think I had ever
met him, but his features and expression that
Sunday morning fastened themselves in my
mind, and to this day they are like a distinct
picture in my memory. I followed his history,
therefore, with some degree of interest, though I

Early Days in Plymouth Church 77

have never known him personally. He soon
after left Kansas and entered the Methodist
ministry, and became one of the leading bishops
of the Methodist Church, with his home at Cin-
cinnati. But this was only one of many cases
which made congregations in that bare, unfin-
ished church of rare interest. A man could feel
that he was speaking to the State that was
coming.

This rough, unfinished building probably served
the times more effectively than a better building
would have done. Its unfinished condition made
the trustees less particular about its use, and it
served many important purposes besides those
for which it was specially designed. It was the
only large room in town, and was used for nearly
all public purposes. Some of the most important
political conventions ever held in the territory
met in this building. Many other important
meetings were held in this church, and many
thrilling scenes occurred in it. One of these
very vividly comes to my mind. In the spring
of 1858, a traveling troupe of singers was giving
a concert in the old church. The church was
full and the concert very satisfactory. In the
midst of the performance a message was sent up

yS Pioneer Days in Kansas

to the platform to the effect that " a gentleman
at the door wished to make a statement to the
audience." The singers sat down, and the peo-
ple held their breath, and wondered what was
coming. In a few moments a middle-aged gen-
tleman came slowly down the aisle, supported on
either side by a friend. He seemed very feeble,
and his two friends had almost to lift him on the
platform, and then support him while he spoke.
He was introduced as Kev. Mr. Read, a Baptist
clergyman of Osawatomie. He seemed to be
well known and was listened to with intense in-
terest and full confidence. His story ran some-
what as follows : " Yesterday morning about
daybreak, a gang of mounted men rode up to
my house and ordered me to follow them. They
went to other houses in the same way, and or-
dered the men to follow until they had eleven.
I did not know who my captors were, nor why
they had taken me, nor what they proposed to
do with me. The houses were so scattered that
there was no chance for any alarm to be given,
or any relief to be obtained. They marched us
off to a secluded ravine and ordered us into line.
Then they fired upon us, and the whole eleven
fell as if dead. The ruffians remained around to

Early Days in Plymouth Church 79

make sure of their work, and one of them dis-
mounted, kicked the bodies about and shot one
or two a second time. After a while they rode
off and left us. As soon as they were at a safe
distance, the living ones in the ravine began to
stir. It was found that five were dead, five
more wounded and one unharmed. I was
wounded badly, and was very weak, but was
able to crawl out on the prairie, where our
friends soon found us and we were all cared
for. Now I have come to Lawrence to ask you
to send help to your wounded comrades, and to
the families of the dead." He told his story in
a calm, simple way which left no question as to
its thorough truthfulness. The whole bearing of
the man was such as to assure every one that he
never could have given occasion for such treat-
ment. His whole air was that of a candid,
kindly, Christian man. His voice gave evidence
of weakness, and we could all see that he was
suffering severe pain. The moment he sat down,
the concert troupe sprang to their feet and sang
the Marseillaise hymn. The effect was thrilling.
When they came to the words, "To arms! to
arms ! " men all over the house instinctively put
their hands on their revolvers. When the audi-

8o Pioneer Days in Kansas

ence broke up it did not take long to organize a
company to ride down to the border to chastise
the villains who had committed such an outrage.
This was our first knowledge of what has since
been known as the " Marais des Cygnes Massacre.'*
The affair produced a tremendous excitement, and
there was a hot pursuit. But the assassins made
good their escape and were never brought to
justice.

The period from 1857 to 1860 was a depressing
time. The question of a free state was settled
and the rush of immigration had ceased. A
great many people left the territory, some going
back East — and still more going "West to the new
gold and silver fields of Colorado. They who
remained could do little more than hold on and
wait till the tide should turn. Plymouth Church
held on with the rest. There was but little prog-
ress made during these years, and that little was
only made by steady work and slow degrees.

We completed our house of worship by piece-
meal— a little at a time as we could. Our first
movement was to put in the outside doors. . This
was our worst opening to the weather. About
Christmas, 1857, a few energetic ladies undertook
the task of raising the money, about thirty dol-

Early Days in Plymouth Church 81

lars. They found it no small task. It required
a thorough canvas of the entire congregation, and
involved many a cold ride out on the prairie.
But they succeeded, and the doors were put in
and our worst draught stopped. It still needed
some $2,000 to complete the building. As the
summer of 1858 wore away, we felt we must
plaster the walls before another winter. We
bent all our efforts to this end, and in the autumn
the work was done. The church was now com-
fortable and we could wait for the rest.

The plan was to finish off the interior with
walnut, as this was the commonest and cheapest
lumber to be had. The forests along the river
were largely of walnut, and walnut was used for
everything, for boards, siding and shingles in
building, for fences on the farm, and fires in the
house. But there was no seasoned walnut to be
had. The lumber was taken as fast as it could
be sawed and used green. How to get some
seasoned wood was a puzzle. The only way
seemed to be to buy some lumber green and stack
it up and let it dry. But how to get money to
buy lumber a year in advance of its use was not
an easy question. One day in my rounds I came
across an immense walnut log lying in a swampy

82 Pioneer Days in Kansas

place. The team hauling it had evidently been
stalled and the log had been rolled off. It was
the finest walnut log I had ever seen, and I stood
looking at it and wondering if I could find the
owner and buy it for the church.

Just then a voice behind me cried out : " What
do you want of my log ? " I turned about and
saw a well-known citizen, not a member of my
congregation, and I told him I was wishing I
could buy that log for our church. "Well, if
you want it for the church I will give it to you."
I thanked him both for myself and the church,
and asked him if he knew where I could get a
team to haul it to the mill. " Oh, I will haul it
for you." The next day he brought his team and
hauled the log to the sawmill. The manager of
the mill said he " would saw it for me free since
it was for the church." This gave me as fine a
lot of walnut lumber as one would care to see.
I had it stacked up to season and wait till we
were ready to use it. Whenever we were able
to do a little work on the church we had that fine
seasoned lumber always ready. First we cased
the windows ; then we finished off the gallery,
and finally put in the pews. This work was
stretched over a season of five years, and Novem-

Early Days in Plymouth Church 83

ber 16, 1862, we dedicated the completed church.
Rev. R. D. Parker, of Wyandotte, preached the
sermon from the text : " Faith is the evidence of
things not seen." The building was sixty-five
feet long by forty feet wide, with a singers' gal-
lery in the rear. It would comfortably seat three
hundred and fifty people and had cost about $8,000.
As soon as the building was finished, the church as-
sumed self-support, and thus relieved the Home
Missionary Society of any further responsibility.
There were now about seventy members, and all
departments of the church were flourishing.

CHAPTEK Y

OUR FIRST HOME

On account of the unsettled condition of the
country I came alone to Kansas in 1857, but after
about a year, I went back and brought my wife.
She was English born, and had enjoyed a de-
lightful childhood in her father's house in Not-
tingham. Her father and mother dying, she
came to America at the age of fourteen to live
with her aunt. It was a great change from her
father's English home, with all its comforts, to a
farmhouse in the back woods. But she adapted
herself to the new life with the zest of her ardent
nature. Gathering flowers and berries in the
woods, and boating on the lake, she was happy
all day long. She was educated at the seminary
at Ypsilanti, one of the best schools in that
region. When she came to Kansas, farm life in
Michigan had gathered about it all the comforts
of civilization, and she entered into the experience
of pioneering for the second time.

At first we lived in a hired house in the out-

84

Our First Home 85

skirts of the town. Then we secured a home of
our own. It was a little cottage on a gentle
slope on New York Street. It stood on the open
prairie, but we soon had some flowers and shrubs
and trees growing, and it became quite an at-
tract! v^e spot. There were only three small
rooms below, and two half-story chambers
above. Six hundred dollars a year, as prices
then were, did not allow a very large margin for
costly furniture, but the pastor's wife had a
knack for home-making, and a few dainty
touches can make simple things show to advan-
tage. A cheap but pretty paper transformed the
walls, a simple but bright carpet covered the
floor, and everything in the room seemed as if it
belonged there. It was as cozy a home as one
could find anywhere. After the custom of the
time it was painted white, with green blinds, and
looked very pretty among the growing trees.

And that little home entertained more people
than many a pretentious mansion. Lawrence
seemed to be one day's journey from every-
where. No matter where one started from, he
"would reach Lawrence the first night. Brethren,
traveling, always spent a night in our home,
usually going and returning. A barn or shed,

86 Pioneer Days in Kansas

built by myself, sheltered their horses as our
house sheltered them. Not only ministers, but
laymen in the churches, at our request, came to
our house as they passed through town. Minis-
ters coming to Kansas always came to our house
first to confer about their locations and their
fields, and very often to remain until the way
was clear for them. In many cases they would
leave their families with us, while they went to
look up their fields. In some cases this required
two or three weeks. It was a rare company of
people which gathered in that little home from
time to time, and their presence brightened up
our life wonderfully. Sometimes it threw a bur-
den on the pastor's wife, but she bore it cheer-
fully, and I can testify that the most cultured of
our visitors seemed to enjoy her dining-room
more than they did my study. Once a very
handsome team drove up with a couple of gentle-
men. They were one of our pastors and a
wealthy layman of his church. They were mak-
ing a tour of the State, and stopped to spend the
night with us. They were both charming men,
and we enjoyed their visit very much. In the
morning they lingered a while after breakfast,
and at last we reluctantly bade them good-bye.

Our First Home 87

After they were gone Mrs. Cordley began to
clear the table, and found that the lay brother
had left a dollar under his plate. She sat down
and had a good cry. She had enjoyed their
visit so much, and it spoiled it all to feel that he
thought hospitality could be bought with money.
The Superintendent of Missions, Rev. Louis
Bodwell, made our house his headquarters when
he was in Lawrence. He came at any time and
often stayed several days. But he never came
too often, and never stayed too long. He was a
most interesting man to those who knew him
well. He had a mind stored with the choicest
bits of literature and poetry, and his words al-
ways fitted the occasion. When alone in the
house he would go to the melodeon and sing some
rare and tender songs in a mood which brought
tears to those who chanced to hear. He made
no pretense to being a player or a singer, or in
any sense a poet. Yet he was all of these. To
avoid the hot summer suns, he traveled nights a
great deal, and often came to our house after
midnight. In such cases he would quietly put his
team of gray ponies in the stable, and come in
and go to his room, and be ready in the morning
for a late breakfast. At other times, my college

88 Pioneer Days in Kansas

chum, Parker, would come up and spend a few
days, and the time was never long enough to
talk over the old times in college, and the vaca-
tion tramps when we had been together. At
another time it would be Kev. J. D. Liggett, of
Leavenworth, who would come for a long confer-
ence. He was a different kind of a man. He
was a lawyer, an editor and a politician before
he was a minister, and the budget he opened was
different from the rest, but none the less stimu-
lating and inspiring. Those were rare days,
days which the changed conditions make it im-
possible to repeat.

The pastor's home was also a sort of a parish
house. Officers, committees and members often
met there to confer; the ladies met for enter-
tainments and socials and sewing; and young
people were especially made to feel at home.
Mrs. Cordley had a meeting of young ladies
nearly every week at our house to spend an
afternoon. Sometimes they sewed, sometimes
they had readings, and sometimes they had sing-
ing and prayer. Her chief aim was that the
meetings should never be tedious, and never de-
generate into frivolity. Here they planned for
picnics, socials and fairs, and other means of in-

Our First Home 89

teresting girls and helping the church. There
were usually twenty or more present, filling the
little parlor to its utmost capacity. A few years
since we found a list of some forty girls who
were wont to attend these meetings. They
were scattered all over the country, east and
west, a large number in Colorado. So far as we
could trace them, every one of them was an ef-
fective Christian wherever she might be. Thus
the daughters of Plymouth Church learned early
to do their part.

But we had then what we might call Parish
Extension. Our church building was so situated
that we could not well hold evening service in
Lawrence. We had our morning service and
Sunday-school, and then I was at liberty for the
rest of the day. I took this time to hold serv-
ices in the country, usually in the afternoon, but
sometimes in the evening. The country about
Lawrence was settled by the same high grade of
people who were found in Lawrence itself. It
was quite common to find cultured people and
college graduates on the farms and in the cabins
all about. I found groups of choice Christian
families here and there from different parts of
the country. Five miles south of Lawrence

go Pioneer Days in Kansas

there was a group of farailies from the First
Church in Groton, Massachusetts. We called it
the Dickson Neighborhood, from Deacon Charles
Dickson, who was a graduate of Yale College,
and his wife a niece of Samuel J. Mills, of Mis-
sionary Haystack fame. A few miles southwest
of this was a group from New Haven, Connecti-
cut. Still further south was a large group from
the First Church, Newark, New Jersey, who had
been special friends of Charles Beecher, the
pastor. The same was true in other directions.
I held services in these neighborhoods as I could,
sometimes in a schoolhouse, but oftener in a
private house. At different times I preached at
not less than twenty different points. We thus
formed a great many choice friendships which
we valued very highly. Whenever we could,
my wife and I would drive out into one of these
neighborhoods in the morning and spend the day
among them, returning in the evening. When
these people came to town we insisted that they
visit us. Saturday was the usual day for visits
from our country parishioners. We enjoyed
it very much, except that sometimes an incon-
venient number would hit upon the same time.
Once my wife had baked up a large batch of

Our First Home 91

mince pies for the Christmas season. With
her, making mince pies was a fine art, and
she had had unusual success this time. Just
as she was taking the last pie out of the
oven, one of our country families, whom we
esteemed very highly, came in. Mrs. Cordley
could not resist the temptation of having them
sample her pies. So one of the pies was cut, and
very soon disposed of. Before they had quite
finished eating their pie, another family came in,
and a second pie was soon disposed of. And so
it kept on all the afternoon with no place where
she could break the connection. "We were
spared, therefore, any bad dreams from that
batch of pies.

We have often been told that we had no occa-
sion to take such burdens on ourselves. But as I
look back, I cannot think of any better way by
which we could have kept in touch with our
widely scattered parish. Our home was none
the less to us because we made it of some use to
others, and our own lives were surely enriched
by the varied experiences which flowed through
them.

CHAPTEK Yl

FELLOWSHIP ON THE FRONTIER

In the autumn of 1857 there were but eight
Congregational churches in the territory of Kan-
sas. Each of these had grown up by itself to
meet a local need. Thev were scattered over
a distance of one hundred and twenty miles.
Long stretches of Indian reservation lay between
many of them. The fellowship of the churches
was not an easy thing to establish, and a still
more difficult thing to maintain. Yet this scat-
tered condition made fellowship all the more
essential. If the churches were to work to-
gether with any effectiveness, they must know
one another and they must confer together.
This necessity was felt by all the churches, and
special efforts were made to overcome the diffi-
culties. All the forms of fellowship by means
of councils, associations and exchanges were
kept up with as much frequency as in more
dense communities. The result was that these
scattered churches became better known to each

92

Fellowship on the Frontier 93

other than churches in the same town in older
communities. It cost much toil and sacrifice to
maintain these forms of fellowship, but because
they cost so much they were prized the more.

The first ecclesiastical council which ever met
in Kansas was at Quindaro. It was called for
the purpose of recognizing the church at Quin-
daro, and ordaining their pastor, and also ordain-
ing the pastor-elect of the Lawrence church.
The new house of worship was also dedicated at
the same time. The council met at Quindaro,
January 28th, 1858. There were only three
members, two ministers and one lay delegate.
Only two churches were represented, — that at
Lawrence and that at Topeka. Even this small
council involved a good deal of travel. Eev.
Louis Bod well came from Topeka, seventy miles ;
Kev. S. Y. Lum and Deacon Henry F. Parker
came from Lawrence, forty miles. I rode over
with the Lawrence party as one of the candidates
for ordination. We went on horseback. It was
a beautiful day, so warm that we carried our
overcoats across our saddles all day. The coun-
cil dined in a body at Wolfe Creek, under whose
sheltering ledges many a cold lunch has been
eaten by the Pilgrims of the olden times. Our

94 Pioneer Days in Kansas

road lay across the Delaware Reserve, and this
was about halfway. We reached Quindaro in
time for supper. The next morning the council
was organized. There were just enough for an
organization. Rev. Samuel Y. Lum, agent of the
American Bible Society, was chosen moderator ;
Deacon Henry F. Parker of Lawrence, was
chosen scribe ; w^hile Rev. Louis Bod well of
Topeka was left free to make the motions. It
seemed a small council, and there was some ques-
tion as to the wisdom of proceeding w4th so
small a number, but there was no likelihood of
doing any better if we adjourned and tried again.
We must make a beginning sometime. There-
fore, after due deliberations it was voted to pro-
ceed with the business for which the council had
been called. The ordination service w^as held in
the afternoon. Mr. Lum preached the ordina-
tion sermon from the text, " Take heed unto thy-
self, and unto the doctrine." In the evening the
Quindaro church was recognized, and Mr. Bod-
w^ell preached from the text, " Lengthen thy
cords, and strengthen th}^ stakes." The fitness
of each sermon for its occasion will be readilv
seen from the texts used. The examination of
the candidates was not at all severe, and the

Fellowship on the Frontier 95

vote to approve was unanimous. The council
was small, but all the proprieties were observed,
and nothing was permitted which might bring
into doubt the regularity of this first council
held on Kansas soil. The Quindaro church had
just finished their house of worship, the first
house of worship completed in the territory.
They were consequently happy in their new
church and with their new minister. The ex-
pectations of Quindaro were a little more sober
than they were two months before, but were
still sufficiently rosy and bright.

The second council met in Leavenworth in
March, 1858, to organize the church and ordain
the pastor, Mr. R. D. Parker. This was a much
larger council, as there was now a larger number
of churches to call upon. When the members
arrived, about five o'clock in the afternoon, it
was in a drenching rain. The absence of pave-
ments, or even sidewalks, made it impossible for
them to go to their places of entertainment.
The whole council, therefore, spent the night
with Brother Parker, who, as a bachelor, occu-
pied the second story of a sort of warehouse on
Cherokee Street. The room was eighty feet
long, without plaster or partitions, and had in it

96 Pioneer Days in Kansas

only the furniture used by Mr. Parker and his
roommate, the proprietor of the store below and
of the building. The}^ " divided " the bedcloth-
ing with us as long as there was anything to
divide, and the brethren " bunked " around the
great room on quilts and mattresses and blankets
as they could. Their humor was not conducive
to sleep ; at least they were never all inclined to
sleep at the same time. They repeated the ex-
perience of the British officers at Brussels the
night before the battle of Waterloo, so far as to
proclaim, " l^o sleep till morn." In the morning
the rain had ceased, the sky had cleared, and the
council organized and completed its work. The
services were held in what was called " The
Stone School House," a little building on Seneca
Street. The benches were rough and hard, the
windows low and dingy, and the walls and ceil-
ings frescoed with cobwebs and smoke. It was
the best room they could get in which to hold
their services. In such a room the Leavenworth
church, which now fills its elegant house with a
fashionable congregation, began its corporate
life. But in quality, the Leavenworth church
has never surpassed that company which met in
the old Stone School House, and one would

Fellowship on the Frontier 97

travel a long distance to find any church which
would surpass it. Among those thirty members
were David J. Brewer, now one of the justices
of the United States Supreme Court ; M. S.
Adams, several times speaker of the House of
Representatives, and a prominent candidate for
governor ; George A. Eddy, once one of the re-
ceivers of the M. K. & T. Railroad ; C. B. Brace,
a prominent business man ; H. W. Watson, one
of the early and most liberal patrons of Wash-
burn College, and others that might be named.
In that company, gathered in that obscure room,
there were men who were bound to make their
mark on the city and on the state. They were
all in the vigor of manhood, full of energy and
full of hope. In their business and in their
homes and in their church they were at the
beginning of things. But they had qualities
which made themselves felt in rapid develop-
ment and large improvement. In a few years
they gathered all the conveniences and even ele-
gancies of civilized life. They had the ability, the
character and the manhood, and all the rest
came in due time.

The General Association of Congregational
Churches of Kansas Avas organized August, 1855.

98 Pioneer Days in Kansas

This body was unique in one thing at least. It
was formed when there was but one church in
the territory. The church at Lawrence was the
only church in existence. Yet they had thought
of prophecy sutBcient to call the body " The
General Association of Churches." There were
several ministers who were preaching at various
points. At most of these points there were
members ready to be organized into churches as
soon as the conditions allowed. While, there-
fore, only one church had been actually organ-
ized, there were several groups of disciples who
worked together just as if they had been for-
mally recognized as churches. They had the
same varied needs to consider as if they had
all experienced the formality of organiza-
tion.

One of the features of these early gatherings,
which all old-timers will vividly recall, was the
long journeys they required. There were no rail-
roads in Kansas for more than ten years after the
settlement began. Attending an association or
a council or a service of dedication often required
a journey of three days each way. But all our
work had to be done in much the same way, so
we were prepared for it, and became accustomed

Fellowship on the Frontier 99

to it. An exchange of pulpits involved at least a
long day's ride each way. Yet I think we ex-
changed more frequently then than we do now.
Fellowship came high, but we had to have it.
No minister ever declined to assist in forming a
church, or in the dedication of a house of worship,
on account of the distance. We thought less then
of a trip of a hundred miles by team, than we
now think of a delay of three or four hours at a
railway junction. Neither distance nor weather
had much effect on our meetings. If the dis-
tance was greater we simply started a day or two
earlier in the week. If the weather was cold we
wrapped ourselves up the warmer; if the rain
began to fall we spread our umbrellas and kept
on. Far or near, rain or shine, we always " got
there," and got there on time. When once there
we all stayed through to the end, a practice that
might well be commended in these luxurious days
of rapid and easy travel.

The churches of that time were mostly grouped
in two clusters, one in the eastern part of the
territory and the other about Manhattan, which
we then called the western part. The Potta-
watomie Reservation lay between them. The
two groups were so nearly equal in importance

361689\

100 Pioneer Days in Kansas

that our annual meetings usually alternated be-
tween them.

In October, 1858, the meeting was at Man-
hattan, and the eastern group made the long
trip. Those from the Missouri Eiver churches
came over to Lawrence the first day, and one of
the best meetings was held at our house that
night, as we were all old friends who had not
met for several months. The second day the
Lawrence delegation joined the procession, and
we all moved on together to Topeka. Here we
took dinner, and then the Topeka brethren and
those from north and south of Topeka fell into
line. The whole caravan moved westward across
the great Pottawatomie Reservation. All old
Kansans will remember these Indian reserva-
tions, where we might travel all day and not
see a human habitation or a human face. There
were several of these reservations, and one could
hardly go in any direction without crossing one.
This Pottawatomie Reservation was thirty miles
across. It was quite late when we started from
Topeka, and we had to go about twenty miles
before we came to a house. Night came on long
before we reached our destination. There was
quite a company of us, a large covered wagon.

Fellowship on the Frontier loi

several buggies, and several men on horseback.
At first the solitude was inspiring, and we talked
and shouted and sang as each felt inclined. But
as the hours wore on we grew silent. For the
last few miles no sound was heard, except an
occasional shout from the leader warning us of
some turn in the road, or a shout from some one
in the rear uncertain of the way. About eleven
o'clock at night we reached our stopping-place, a
house on " Mill Creek," about the middle of the
reservation. Here Berkaw, a white man who
had married a squaw and joined the tribe, lived
in a very comfortable way for those times. We
first cared for our teams, and then only waited
for supper, for which we were much better pre-
pared than the people of the house were. About
midnight supper was announced, and a very
hungry set of people responded to the call. It
was a very plain supper they gave us, and the
cooking was not French, but our appetites
furnished the sauce and we did ample justice to
the meal. Everything was good and wholesome.
After supper we were most of us turned loose
into the large unfinished half -story chamber of
the cabin. Here the kind people had prepared
for our comfort by spreading around on the floor

102 Pioneer Days in Kansas

blankets and quilts and buffalo robes, and the
manjT- substitutes for beds known only to the
elastic hospitality of the frontier. But to our
weary bodies an Indian blanket and a cotton-
wood board were as good as a bed of down.

In the morning we drove out into the solitude
again, and for twenty miles more we pursued our
lonely way. About noon we came to Wabaun-
see, which was known everywhere as the home
of the 'New Haven Colony, or the Beecher Rifle
Company. To all Congregationalists it was
known still better as the home of Father Lines.
Here the people kindly received us and we re-
mained with them for dinner. Then their dele-
gation reinforced us and we moved on, and reached
Manhattan in time for a few hours' rest before
the evening service. " And the evening and the
morning were the third day."

In 1862, four years later, the meeting of the
General Association was at "Wabaunsee, and then
the returning journey was of special interest.
Our numbers had increased and we made quite a
display as we wound along over the prairie on
our journey home. At noon we came to Mill
Creek, but not at Berkaw's, as we did before.
We saw no house all day. We halted at Mill

Fellowship on the Frontier 103

Creek for lunch at noon. We lariated our horses
that they might enjoy the nice prairie grass
which was everywhere abundant. Then we gath-
ered on the beautiful green slope under a few
scattering trees which gave us a shade. My wife
and the other ladies spread the table-cloths on
the grass, and laid out the luncheon which our
thoughtful entertainers had provided for us. A
fire was built beside some stones, and coffee pre-
pared for those who wished it. After dinner we
rested, or roamed up and down the stream as
each preferred. Then we all came together
again, and one read a few verses of God's Word.
We all *' sang one of the songs of Zion," and
Father Mills of Michigan led us in a prayer that
lifted all our hearts upward. If the poet had
seen the prairie before he wrote his poem he
would have said, " The prairies were God's first
temples." We were thoroughly refreshed and
proceeded on our way. Now the process of dis-
integration began. Those living to the southeast
of Burlingarae, Emporia, etc., took the right
hand trail, while the rest of us took the left hand
trail. We moved along by almost parallel lines
for a time, but gradually our roads diverged and
our companions of the morning grew more and

104 Pioneer Days in Kansas

more distant and dim. After an hour and a half
or more we saw them for the last time, as they
appeared on the ridge some miles south of us.
We signaled each other by waving handkerchiefs,
and they passed over the ridge and we saw them
no more. We reached Topeka in good time and
the next day went toward home.

In July, 1859, two years before this, I had
made this same journey alone, while Mrs. Cord-
ley made a week's visit to her girlhood friend,
Mrs. Parker of Leavenworth. She took the
Leavenworth stage as I drove off with my pony.
I was to assist in the dedication of the new
church at Manhattan. The service Tvas to be on
Sunday. I left Topeka Friday morning quite
late. I was soon " out on the ocean, sailing," in
the midst of the dreaded reservation. At that
time I drove a black Indian pony. She was a
good pony, with occasional bad streaks. She had
a gait of her own, a slow jog-trot, and it was not
much use trying to persuade her to take any
other. But once in a while she would take a no-
tion to get frightened at something, and dart for-
ward like the " wild gazelle." She was usually
very obedient to word or bridle, and seemed al-
ways expecting to hear you say " Whoa." But

Fellowship on the Frontier 105

when she took a notion to run, bit and bridle and
voice were of no avail. You could simply guide
her and hold on to your seat. After a mile or so
she would slacken up and fall back into her old
gait, hang her head and lop her ears, and jog
along in the old way for three months more.
Another of her ways that was peculiar was stop-
ping suddenly, whirling about and dashing along
on the back track. On the day I am speaking of,
we were jogging down a long incline about the
middle of the afternoon. All at once a flock of
prairie chickens flew up just before her face. She
stopped as if she had been shot, whirled the buggy
around as if it had been on a swivel, and started
toward home on a gallop. I had become weary
with the monotony of the way and was half
asleep when the thing happened. I had no time
to recover myself. The pony literally jerked the
buggy from under me, and left me suspended in
the air. I did not remain suspended long. In an
instant 1 landed upon the hard road. Though the
sun was still high the stars were visible. I was
badly shaken up. But it was no time for dole-
ful reflections. I was in the middle of the great
reservation, twenty miles from anywhere, and
my horse was making good time for home. The

io6 Pioneer Days in Kansas

only thing to be done was to follow her. At
first I followed her "afar off." Fortunately she
was going up the incline now, and after running
for a mile or so, she slackened her pace, and then
dropped into a walk. I soon overtook her,
climbed up into the buggy from behind, turned
her about and made her expend some of her
surplus energy on the " forward march."

The day was rapidly declining, and still there
was no sign of the end of my journey. Some-
times I could see several miles ahead but there
was no sign of a house. At last it grew dark,
and I had not the faintest idea how far I must
still go. I finally determined to wait till morn-
ing and sleep under the buggy. While prepar-
ing to do this, I saw a light down the road before
me. It was evidently a cabin where I might
find shelter. I reharnessed my pony and went
on again. The cabin was farther off than I had
thought, but I reached it at last. It was a farm-
house on the outskirts of the "Wabaunsee colony.
They were newcomers and poorly fixed, but
they did the best they could.

At Manhattan I found a charming town. This
section had suffered little from political disturb-
ance and the people had had time to make im-

Fellowship on the Frontier 107

provements. Kev. C. E. Blood had come with
the starting of the town in 1854. His first
sermon was from the text, "These that have
turned the world upside down are come hither
also." He had labored incessantly, had organ-
ized a church, and had now completed a house
of worship. The building was small, but so well
built that it is still used as a part of their enlarged
house. It was to the dedication of this church
that I had come. There had been but one dedi-
cation among our churches before, so this was an
occasion of great interest. The hymn of dedica-
tion was written by Mrs. Blood, the pastor's
wife. They lived on a farm adjoining the town,
and Mrs. Blood took charge of the dairy. She
said, " I wrote the hymn while I was churning
the butter, holding my pen in one hand and the
churn dasher in the other."

But if our early gatherings cost us more
time and toil, they more than rewarded tis
by their closer fellowship. There were not
many of us and we all knew each other.
"We did not often meet, but we kept ourselves
in close touch. We were interested in the
whole field, and watched the progress of all
the churches. When we came together it was

io8 Pioneer Days in Kansas

like an annual family reunion. We were not so
numerous but we could visit back and forth,
and inform ourselves of each other's affairs.
An absent member was missed and inquired
after, and every new recruit was given a special
welcome. A new church was received with as
much ardor as a new baby awakens among the
brothers and sisters of the household. We took
time to freshen old friendship, and make a new
friend of every newcomer. We never allowed
a new brother to leave the meeting till we had
taken him by the hand and bidden him welcome
and Godspeed. This close fellowship was due
largely to our limited numbers. With a mem-
bership of thirty or forty an intimacy is possible
which is out of the question with several times
that number.

Another feature of our early meetings was the
prominence of laymen in them ; or perhaps it
would be nearer the truth to say that a marked
feature in our meetings was the number of
prominent laymen who interested themselves in
them. I doubt if anj^ association in the West
has had more honored names on its roll. As we
look back several unique figures rise before us,
men who would have honored any body, religious

Fellowship on the Frontier 109

or secular. Some of these still remain with us ;
some have gone to various fields, while others still
have passed over to the home beyond. I cannot
speak of all who deserve a mention, but will only
name a few of those who have gone from us.

The most unique figure among these was Charles
B. Lines, or Father Lines, as we loved to call him.
He was almost always at the meetings, and at the
time of his death had attended more sessions of
the association than any other person. He was
one of the original members of the association in
1857, and for thirty-two years he only missed
one meeting, and that by failing to make rail-
way connections. So constantly was he pres-
ent that we were more sure of meeting him
than any minister or member. He was not
only present, but always interested in the work
of the churches, and would discuss with earnest-
ness every question which that work suggested ;
taking part in all our discussions with ability
and relish, especially those which related to
temperance and reform. He was an old tem-
perance war-horse from "away back," and he
had fought the battles of reform in the Connec-
ticut legislature before Kansas came into notice.
On these themes he was at his best, and he

no Pioneer Days in Kansas

entered into their discussion with the momentum
of lifelong convictions. Having begun with the
Washingtonian movement, he had been in the
advance ranks in all the stages of the reform.
He had few educational advantages in his youth,
but under the eaves of Yale College he had
caught much of its stimulus, and was a recog-
nized leader in jDublic ajffairs for years in his own
city and state. He came to Kansas as the orig-
inator and leader of the " Beecher Sharpens Eifle
Company," and was prominent in Kansas affairs
all through his life. He was a man of boundless
resources and tremendous force, and his convic-
tions were like " the everlasting mountains that
stand fast forever." In debate he was ever on the
alert, and spoke with a force and earnestness
that were irresistible. He was like a fresh
breeze from the ocean, always from the same
quarter, and always strong. It was a high
wind, and was liable to wreck any craft which
lay in his way. In his Christian sympathy
he was very tender, and his personal relig-
ious experience was very rich. When he en-
tered the realm of Christian experience, his
manner changed, and everything betokened the
gentle and loving disciple. He used to take

Fellowship on the Frontier 1 1 1

great delight in going into neighborhoods where
preaching was rare, and holding forth the word
of life from the standpoint of a layman and a
business man. He sometimes did more formal
work in this line, and supplied pulpits with ac-
ceptance. It seemed as if one of the great
landmarks had gone when he passed out from
among us.

Another unique figure in all our meetings was
Judge Jesse Cooper of "Wyandotte. He too was
always present, unless hindered by some neces-
sity. It made no difference whether the church
appointed him a delegate or not, he always came.
He and Father Lines were essentially life mem-
bers, and at one time it was proposed to create
life membership in the association in order to
cover their case. They were component parts
of the body, and it would seem as if something
had dropped out if either of them were absent.
They were alike in some respects, and very dif-
ferent in others. They were equally positive
and uncompromising in their convictions, but
Father Lines was radical, while Father Cooper
was conservative. Father Cooper was very de-
cided in his defense of regularity and order in
all ecclesiastical proceedings, and in all church

112 Pioneer Days in Kansas

business and work. Like the old English sexton,
" He loved established ways of serving God."
He could not tolerate anything like looseness,
and all newfangled notions were an abomination
to hira. He used to say : " It is the stated min-
istry of the word which God blesses," laying
special emphasis on the word "stated." He was
the firm advocate of the strictest Puritan sim-
plicity. If you wanted to stir up the lion in
him, it was only necessary to suggest some
change from what he called " The pattern shown
us in the mount." He was always on the alert,
as Father Lines was, and read}^ to join in any
debate with vigor and effect. While thus posi-
tive, however, he was always kindly, and when
outvoted, he could acquiesce with grace without
at all yielding his convictions. He kept up
his interest to the last, being present at the
meeting in IS 72, only a short time before his
death. He was a native of Vermont, and prac-
ticed law in his native state until he came to
Kansas at the beginning of her history. In a
sketch of his life one of his law associates said
of him : " He was a good lawyer and an enter-
prising citizen, a faithful friend, a firm foe of
whomever or whatever he deemed wrong. His

Fellowship on the Frontier I13

convictions were very strong, and when he had
prejudices, they partook of all the rugged, in-
tense earnestness of the man. He was fearlessly
independent of the judgment of men, but humble
before God and charitable toward all. He was
a strong man, on whom his pastor leaned, and a
true Christian with a humble sense of his own
imperfections."

Such a man was Judge Cooper in his business
and private life and in his intercourse with his
brethren. He was a man by himself, with a
marked individuality and strong elements of
character. His like we shall not soon see again.

Another marked character, entirely different
from either of these, but no less original, was
Dudley C. Haskell. He was not so often with
us but his influence was strongly felt. In 1874
he was moderator and preached the opening
sermon at the next annual session, giving a lay-
man's view of the work. He had been speaker
of the Kansas House of Representatives, and
was soon after elected to Congress. Clear and
intense in his thinking, he was strong in his
convictions and eloquent in his utterance. He
had a voice of wondrous power and compass,
which could wake the echoes or soothe an

114 Pioneer Days in Kansas

infant's slumbers. He had a magnificent pres-
ence, and would be singled out from a thousand
as a man of mark. When aroused he was a
moving tornado, making the earth to rock
and the trees to bend. Yet he never lost him-
self in the storm of his own excitement. The
storm might rage, but he made it do his bidding.
The winds might blow, but he always rode on
the wings of the storm, and when the time came
he could say, " Peace, be still," and there would
be a calm. In Congress he was always master
of the situation, and was rapidly coming to the
front as a leader in his party, and in the body.
A great element of his power was his marvelous
voice, which always commanded a hearing. At
one time his colleague, Colonel William A.
Phillips, was trying to get the attention of the
House to a matter of importance. He was a very
able man, but had a feeble voice, which was lost in
the babel of confused talk. Haskell endured this
treatment of his colleague as long as his right-
eous soul could contain itself. Then he sprang
to his feet, and in a voice that shook the very
walls, he cried ; " I demand that my colleague
be heard." After that there was silence in that
hall "by the space of half an hour." He was

DUDLEY C. HASKELL

iT^t^

Fellowship on the Frontier 115

richly and variously endowed, and in ten years
from entering Congress, he was next to the
leading man in the party on the floor of the
House. Whether he spoke from hustings, or in
the halls of Congress, or in the prayer-meeting
room of his home church, he could always voice
the situation, and say just the thing that ought
to be said. If some of his spontaneous talks in
his home prayer-meeting could have been pre-
served, they would take their place among the
gems of English speech. He rose so rapidly, and
so entirely on merit, that one cannot guess what
he might have come to if he had lived his three-
score years and ten, instead of twoscore years and
two. We may easily think of him as the peer of
any man in public life, while surpassing many
in the purity of his motives and the elevation of
his purpose. It was a bitter disappointment, as
well as grief to his friends, and a great loss to the
state and nation, when such a man was cut
down in the midst of his career at the age of
forty-two.

Time would fail me to speak of all the dis-
tinguished men who have honored our meetings
with their presence, and enriched them by their
voice and interest. All will remember Honorable

ii6 Pioneer Days in Kansas

M. S. Adams, the peerless moderator, who was
always selected for that office whenever he was
present. He was chosen moderator at three
separate sessions within five years, and was a
model presiding officer. He had been speaker of
the Kansas House of Kepresentatives, and one of
the best that body ever had. Thoroughly in-
formed on all parliamentar}^ matters, he was quick
to catch a point, and lucid in stating it. He was
never confused, and the House was never con-
fused under his ruling. At the same time he
was the very soul of urbanity and grace.

Honorable David J. Brewer, of Leavenworth,
late one of the Judges of the United States Su-
preme Court, was several times a member of the
Association. He was moderator at one of our'
sessions, and preached the opening sermon at the
next. He was a poet as well as a jurist, and was
equally at home in literature or law. He was a
living example of the possibility of uniting
power with gentleness of manner and softness
of tone.

I might speak of many others if there were
space. There were the two Thachers — Solon O.
and T. D wight, both men of rare gifts and elo-
quent speech ; there was John G. Haskell,

REV. ROSWELL DAVENPORT PARKER

-J

Fellowship on the Frontier 117

brother of the Congressman, who has been a
power with us during all these years. Then
there were Hannahs, and Eitchey, Eice and
Farns worth, of Topeka ; Hunter and Watson
and Chester and many others. This is enough
to show the kind of men who helped to make the
Association the power it was. They were men
who have made their mark on the state as well
as on our churches, and have been honored in
public life as well as in Christian circles. They
were men of native powers as well as Christian
consecration, men who would shine in whatever
company they might enter. They are the men
who have made our churches what they are, and
who have made our State what it is.

There was another prominent feature of all
these earlier gatherings. We believed in them.
We magnified our office, and believed that our
meetings meant business, and that our action
was important. We may have exaggerated our
importance, but we were never guilty of belit-
tling it. I^ewcomers smiled at our assurance,
but they soon caught the infection. It was a
pleasant condition, whether the facts warranted
it or not. Some of our resolutions seem a bit
wild as we read them now, but we never stopped

ii8 Pioneer Days in Kansas

to think who we were, the youngest and smallest
of the Associations. If we wanted to say a
thing we said it. We were not afraid of that
which was high. "We did not hesitate to speak
our mind in regard to anything which we thought
called for our opinion. The audacity with which
we discussed the affairs of the great societies
was refreshing, but it is a satisfaction to know
that our ideas were in the line of coming events.
We were nearly all young men. This was our
first effort. We had not learned how tough this
tough old world is. We expected to see things
yield to our blows, and we struck as if we ex-
pected to produce effects. We passed radical
and vigorous resolutions on almost everything
that pertained to church life and missionary
work. There were resolutions on dancing and
theatergoing ; on Sabbath-breaking, intemper-
ance and tobacco ; we arranged for calling con-
ventions on Sabbath observance and on temper-
ance ; we resolved that the Boston Tract Society
was the only one worthy of our patronage ; we
asked the American Bible Society to appoint an
agent to look after Bible destitution ; we asked
the American Home Missionary Society to ap-
point general missionaries to look after destitute

Fellowship on the Frontier i ig

fields, and a superintendent to oversee the work ;
we instructed the Church Building Society as to
how they should distribute their funds ; and we
appointed a committee to aid in securing parson-
ages. But that which most engaged our atten-
tion was the matter of founding a college. It
was decided to " found " a college at Topeka in
response to a liberal proposition from the citi-
zens of that place. That we had not a dollar in
sight toward developing such an institution did
not disturb our plans in the least, nor at all
dampen our enthusiasm. We adopted a basis of
organization which had all the fulness of a legal
charter, providing for all emergencies and guard-
ing against all contingencies. The instrument
constituted a board of trustees and defined their
duties. It directed them how to invest their
money not yet secured, and how to dispose of
property not yet possessed. The board was to
consist of fifteen members, of whom the presi-
dent of the college was to be ex-ofiicio chairman.
They were to secure first-class men for the presi-
dent and faculty, and pay them good living sal-
aries. At no time since has there been so un-
questioning a faith in the success of the institu-
tion. There was a feeling that the college was as

120 Pioneer Days in Kansas

sure to come as the years were to revolve. It
may not be easy to understand how much this
sublime faith had to do with the reality we now
see in Washburn College. But many of us can-
not help feeling that if it had not been for the
faith of those early years these later years would
not have seen the reality they now behold.
What was airy vision then is stone and mortar
now.

A great deal of sport has been made of the
high-sounding resolutions passed by some of
these early assemblies. But those resolutions
were more than an exercise in English composi-
tion. They were the shadows of coming events,
the prophecy of what faith already saw. The
brethren of that day believed that a resolution,
with a resolve back of it, had power in it, and
had the promise of fulfilment in it. It needs
money to build churches and colleges, we are
told. But money follows thought, and comes in
response to faith. A resolve baptized in prayer
is one of the powers that move the world. Ideas
are stronger than stone walls. Stone w^alls rise
and crumble at the bidding of ideas. Ideas that
take hold on God, and touch human souls, take
hold also on the forces of the world. The breth-

--^•mmmmmsmmm

PETER McVICAR,
Twenty-five years President of Washburn College

Fellowship on the Frontier 121

ren of that early day came here for a purpose, to
take possession of Kansas for Christ and freedom.
They came to help build a state after " the pat-
tern shown them in the mount." There were,
therefore, an enthusiasm and a glow in all they
did which was contagious and effective.

CHAPTEE YII

LIZZIE AND THE TJNDERGEOUND RAILROAD

During the summer of 1859 we were living in
a stone bouse just south of the city limits of
Lawrence, before we bad a home of our own.
As the town then was, we were fully half a mile
from any other house. There was in my church
a family named Monteitb. They were from Mc-
Indoe's Falls, Yermont, and the gentleman was
a descendant of one of the Scotch families who
early settled in northern New England. One of
these Scotch colonies was near Mclndoe's Falls.
Mr. Monteitb, by bis sturdy independence and
brusque and energetic ways would be known
as a Scotchman anywhere, although American
born. He was a man of education, large intelli-
gence and considerable travel. He was quite
prominent and influential in the councils of the
Free State men. Like most of the early settlers
he came to make Kansas a free state, and he pro-
posed to stay and see it done. We soon became
fast friends and our families were quite intimate.

122

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 123

He lived on a farm, or " claim," some two miles
southwest of the town, in the "Wakarusa bottom.

One day Monteith came to my house and said
he wanted to talk over a little matter with me.
" There is at my house a runaway slave, who has
been here several months. She is a very likely
young w^oman and has a great horror of being
taken back to slavery. At the same time we do
not like to send her to Canada until arrangements
can be made for her. She would be entirely
alone. So we have been keeping her here in
Lawrence. She has been at my house for several
weeks, and it is thought wisest to find another
home for her. It is not best for her to be too
long in one place. Would you take her into your
house for a few weeks until other arrangements
can be made?"

In my college days I had discussed the " Fugi-
tive Slave Law " in Lyceum and elsewhere. I
had denounced it as the outrage of outrages, as a
natural outgrowth of the "sum of all villainies."
I had burned with indignation when the law was
passed in 1850. I had declared that if a poor
wanderer ever came to my house, I should take
him in and never ask whether he were a slave or
not. It is easy to be brave a thousand miles

124 Pioneer Days in Kansas

away. But now I must face the question at short
range. I had been quite familiar with the law,
and its penalties came to mind very vividly just
then. " For harboring a slave, six months im-
prisonment and $1,000 fine." All this passed
through my mind in rapid succession. It was
the first time I had ever confronted the question
except in theory. Theory and practice affect one
very differently in a case like this. But I felt
there was only one thing to do. So we told our
friend to bring his charge to our house, and we
would care for her as best we could.

The next day, therefore, *' Lizzie " became an
inmate of our house. She was about twenty -two
years old, slightly built, and graceful in form and
motion. She was quite dark, but the form of her
features indicated some white blood. She was
very quiet and modest and never obtruded her-
self upon any one. She had been thoroughly
trained as a house servant, and we never have
had more competent help than Lizzie proved
to be. She insisted on doing the larger portion
of the housework, and said the work of our little
family was like play to her. She was a good
cook and often surprised us by some dainty dish
of her own. Our means did not allow a very

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 125

elaborate table, but she knew how to make the
most of everything. A simple but delicious cake
which she made was known in our family and
among our friends for years as "Lizzie cake."
We did not wonder that her master set a high
price on her, or that he was anxious to recover
his " property." She did not complain of cruel
treatment from her owners, but she had a great
horror of going back. She would live anywhere
or anyhow, and would work at anything, rather
than go back to slavery. She fully understood
the situation and the danger of being taken back
if her whereabouts became known. She kept
herself out of sight as much as possible, and never
showed herself out-of-doors or in the front part
of the house when there was travel going by on
the road. We became deeply interested in her
and learned more and more to prize her. Our
housework was never done more quietly or more
efficiently. We came to look forward with dis-
may to the time when Lizzie must leave us.

In the autumn of the same year, 1859, the
Monteiths moved into town, and it was thought
best for Lizzie to return to them. We were re-
luctant to let her go, but we had no claim. Be-
sides, she had been with us as long as it was wise

126 Pioneer Days in Kansas

for her to stay. We were in a lonely place, and
it would not be difficult to kidnap her and take
her oflP. By this time her being with us was ver^
generally known. She went home with the
Monteiths, therefore, and remained with them
until a change was made necessary by " circum-
stances over which they had no control."

About this time a young man called upon me
and reported himself as a graduate of the last
class in Andover Theological Seminary. He had
come to Kansas in search of a field of labor. He
was not particular as to the kind of a field. He
only wanted a place where he could preach
Christ and do good. His name was William
Hayes Ward. His father was a Massachusetts
pastor distinguished for his familiarity with the
language of Scripture. It was said that in his
father's house the Scriptures were read at morn-
ing worship in " seven different languages."
They read in turn, and each member of the fam-
ily read in a different tongue. However this
may be, this son was one of the best scholars
Andover ever sent out. For man}^ years he has
been the well-known editor of the New York
Independent^ and one of the best editors in the
land. He had devoted himself to the foreign

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 127

field, but his wife's health was so delicate that it
was not deemed wise for them to go abroad. So
he had come to find a home missionary field in
Kansas. After some investigation and consulta-
tion he had selected Oskaloosa as his field.
There was no church yet formed at that place,
but a number of people were anxious to have
one, and he had consented to help them in the
enterprise. He remained there as long as the
failing health of his wife would permit. He was
a man of infinite energy. On one occasion,
needing some delicacies for his sick wife, he
walked to Lawrence, twenty-four miles, to pro-
cure them. He took dinner with us, and then
announced his intention of returning home the
same afternoon. About three o'clock he started
back and reached home about midnight, having
walked forty-eight miles since morning.

It was late in the autumn when he went to his
field, and he and Mrs. Ward were making a final
visit at our house before leaving town. We
were enjoying very much a day or two with
them. One very cold afternoon during this
time, there came a sharp rap at the door. I
opened it and two gentlemen stood there,
wrapped "in heavy fur overcoats. They were so

128 Pioneer Days In Kansas

bundled up that I did not recognize them, but I
bade them enter. When they had come in and
thrown back their wraps a little, we saw that one
was our old friend Monteith and the other was
Lizzie. We knew their coming in this way was
not a joke, so we waited in silence for an expla-
nation. Monteith then told us : " Lizzie's mas-
ter has found out where she is. He is deter-
mined to take her back at any cost. He proposes
to make a test case of it and show that a slave
can be taken out of Lawrence, and returned to
slavery. A large sum of money is offered for
her recovery, and the United States marshal is
here with his posse to take her at all hazards.
They found where Lizzie was this morning and
have been shadowing my house all day. Not a
movement could be made about our house with-
out their knowledge. Lizzie could not get away
without being seen. Their plan seems to be to
watch the house all day and be sure she does not
leave it, and then at night come and take her,
and rush her away, before any alarm can be
given. We determined to foil them. So Lizzie
put on that overcoat of mine and drew the cap
down over her head, and we walked out together
as two gentlemen. We went to town, and then

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 129

we turned south and came down here. When I
go back they will think my companion stayed
over in town. Now, we want Lizzie to stay here
till night. About ten o'clock a team will come
for her and take her into the country to a place
of safety."

After answering a few questions, Monteith left
us. We looked at each other in silence for a
moment, and then came the thought, "What
shall we do ? " I had little hope that her new
hiding-place would not be known. The United
States marshal was a man of experience and of
determined purpose. He knew what he had
come for, and every motive prompted him to
persevere. He had assistants with him who
understood their business. It was not likely that
they would be deceived by the ruse we were
attempting to practice. As night came on we
were confronted by the probability that Lizzie's
pursuers would come before her rescuers arrived.
If they did, then what should we do ? What
could we do ? To give her up to them was not
to be thought of, but how to prevent their taking
her was a serious question. It would be folly to
resist by force. There were no arms in the
house, and if there had been we should not have

130 Pioneer Days in Kansas

used them. These were officers of the law and
resistance would be madness. Could we in any
way save Lizzie from them if they should come ?
Of course, they would search the house. The
ladies, Mrs. "Ward and Mrs. Cordley, hit upon a
plan to which we all assented. As has been said,
Mrs. Ward was an invalid, very slight of figure
and pale of feature. She was to retire im-
mediately after tea. Her room was the front
chamber. The bed consisted of a mattress with
a light feather bed spread over it. Mrs. Ward
was to play the sick lady. She was so pale and
slight that this was not a difficult part for her.
Mrs. Cordley was to play the part of nurse, and
was to be sitting by the bed. A stand at the
bedside with bottles and spoons and glasses com-
pleted the picture of the sick-room. In case of
alarm Lizzie was to crawl in between the mat-
tress and the feather bed and remain quiet there
till the danger w^as passed. Lizzie assented to
the plan with great readiness. " I will make
myself just as small as ever I can, and I will
lie as still as still can be." Then she turned
to Mrs. Ward and said : *' You need not be
afraid of lying right on me with all your might.
You are such a little body you could not hurt

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 131

any one." If the officers came they were to be
told to look for themselves. The house would
be thrown open to them. The illusion of the
sick-room was so complete and natural that we
felt a perfect assurance that they would not dis-
turb a lady as sick as Mrs. Ward would be by
that time.

The women remained up-stairs during the
evening. Mrs. Ward retired according to pro-
gram, and the bed was made ready for the " sec-
ond act." Lizzie kept herself in the shade, so
that her form might not be observed through
the windows. Ward and I sat in the parlor,
talking of everything on earth and elsewhere,
but thinking of just one thing, and listening for
the sound of wheels. The night was dark and
cloudy and biting cold. We never realized be-
fore how long the evenings were at this season
of the year. The question which puzzled us
was : " Which will come first, friend or foe ? "
Every noise we heard we fancied was one or the
other. About ten o'clock, the time set for the
rescue, we heard a carriage coming up the road.
It might be simply going by. As it came to the
gate it turned in and drove up to the door and
stopped. We waited in silence, expecting a

132 Pioneer Days in Kansas

knock at the door. We wondered which it was
and how many there were. There was dead si-
lence. Ko one seemed to be coming to the
house. What were they doing? What were
they going to do ? Who were they ? After a
few moments of absolute silence, the carriage
moved on, drove by the house, and turned around.
It then passed out of the gate and down the road
the way it came. It was a greater mystery than
ever. What did they come for and why did
they go away ? After a while we came to the
conclusion that it must have been a part of the
marshal's posse and that they had come to take
Lizzie. Seeing the house lighted up-stairs and
down, they supposed we were prepared for them
and did not dare come in. We felt sure they
would come again soon with a larger force.
Where were Monteith and his friends all this
while? It was now nearly eleven o'clock and
they were to come at ten. Had the officers in-
tercepted them ? We could onl}^ wait and see.
The moments dragged very slowly, as they al-
ways do Avhen you want them to hurry. Eleven
o'clock passed and then twelve, and still no re-
lief and no sound. About half past twelve we
again heard the sound of wheels coming up the

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 133

road. It was not likely that any travelers would
be going by at this time of night. Again the
question came, which will it be, friend or foe ?
It was a wagon this 'time. This was favorable.
The rescuers expected to come with a large im-
migrant wagon. Still, the pursuers might do
the same. The wagon turned in at the gate
as the carriage had done before. It came to
the door and stopped. There was a moment
of silence and painful suspense. Then there
was a soft tap at the door. I opened it and a
whisper came out of the darkness : " All ready."
It was Monteith. The word was passed up-
stairs, and in a very few minutes Lizzie came
down warmly wrapped up for the cold night's
journey. It was very dark and we could scarcely
see the team and could not at all distinguish the
faces of our friends. Monteith's voice was suffi-
cient to assure us of their genuineness. We
could see that they had a large covered wagon and
that the ride would be made as comfortable as
possible. Lizzie was only too glad to escape the
terrible doom which had threatened her. There
were no parting ceremonies and no long fare-
wells. The wagon was in motion almost before
we realized that it had come. All the while we

134 Pioneer Days in Kansas

were listening for the sound of wheels or hoofs.
A few minutes' delay might defeat the whole
plan. I presume it was not more than ten min-
utes from the time they stopped till they were
all on their way and moving off into the night.
We stood at the door and listened until the
sound of the wheels died away in the distance,
and then we went in with a wonderful sense of
relief after the strain and excitement of the day
and the night. Sometime in the "small hours"
we retired to enjoy " the sleep of the just " for a
little while. In the morning we were all glad to
see that Mrs. Ward had so far recovered from
her sudden illness as to be down to breakfast.

We never knew where Lizzie's rescuers went,
and did not inquire. It is often just as well not
to know too much. We did not know where
they took her that night, only that she was
safe. We were told afterwards that the wagon
was followed by a number of armed horse-
men for several miles ; but they made no attack.
They were wise enough to practice the " better
part of valor." The wagon and its company
were not molested and reached their destination
in safety.

We learned still later that Lizzie, after being

Lizzie and the Underground Railroad 135

cared for in Kansas for a few months, was taken
to Canada, where she found friends and a com-
fortable home. Beyond this we never heard.
The war soon after broke out and other stirring
events occupied our attention.

This was the first and only time I ever came
in personal contact with the Underground Rail-
road. It is the only time I ever had any per-
sonal knowledge of its operations. I have some-
times wondered how it was I did not oftener
know something of movements of this kind, but
I presume those engaged in them never cared to
have any more persons in the secret than was
necessary. So far as I know very few Kansas
people ever enticed slaves away or incited them
to escape. But when one did escape and came
to their door, there were not many who would
refuse him a meal or a helping hand. A slave
escaping across the line was sure to find friends,
and was sure not to be betrayed into the hands
of his pursuers. It was said that the line of the
Underground Railroad ran directly through Law-
rence and Topeka, then on through Nebraska and
Iowa. This roundabout way was the shortest
cut to the north pole. Every slave for a hundred
miles knew the way, knew the stations and knew

136 Pioneer Days in Kansas

their friends. I have been told by those who
ought to know, that not less than one hundred
thousand dollars' worth of slaves passed through
Lawrence on their way to liberty during the ter-
ritorial period. Most of this travel passed over
the line so quietly that very few people knew
anything about it.

CHAPTEE YIII

THE CONTRABANDS

Lawrence was settled as a Free State town
and soon became recognized as the headquarters
of the Free State movement. As a result it was
the center of proslavery hate, and at the same
time the center of hope to the slaves across the
border. The colored people of Missouri looked
to it as a sort of " city of refuge," and when
any of them made a '^dash for freedom," they
usually made Lawrence their first point. It was
on the direct line to the north pole, even if it did
lie to the west of them. When the war broke
out in 1861, the slaves on the border took ad-
vantage of it to make sure of their freedom,
whatever might be the result of the conflict.
They did not wait for any proclamation, nor did
they ask whether their liberation was a war meas-
ure or a civil process. The simple question was
whether they could reach the Kansas line with-
out being overtaken. They took Paul's advice,
" If thou mayst be free, choose it rather." They

137

138 Pioneer Days in Kansas

"chose it rather." Those within reach of the
border lost no time in crossing it. A large num-
ber found their way to Lawrence. They did not
know much of geography, but they had three
points fixed in their minds — Lawrence, Canada
and the north pole. As Lawrence was the near-
est of the three, they came there first. They
were not so fortunate as the Israelites when they
fled from Egypt, and were not able to " borrow "
of their masters to Siny large extent. They were
most of them very destitute, and had little idea
what they should do beyond escaping from bond-
age. They came by scores and hundreds, and for
a time it seemed as if the}^ would overwhelm us
with their numbers and their needs. But they
were strong and industrious, and by a little effort
work was found for them, and very few, if any
of them, became objects of charity. They were
willing to work and they were able to live on lit-
tle, and the whole community of freed slaves was
soon able to take care of itself.

But it was soon evident that they needed help
in other directions than that of securing a liveli-
hood. They were mostly ignorant, only now and
then one being able to read. In slaver}^ no
one was permitted to learn, it being a crime to

The Contrabands 139

teach a slave to read. We could not think of
having this multitude with us, and not do some-
thing to teach and elevate them. They were
very anxious to learn. They had got the impres-
sion that there was a connection between liberty
and learning. Our public schools would soon
provide for the children. But the grown people
had no time to attend the public schools, and
there was no provision for them in these schools
if they had been able to attend them. Mr. S. E".
Simpson, who started the first Sunday-school in
Lawrence in 1855, and was an enthusiast on Sun-
day-schools, conceived the idea of applying the
Sunday-school methods to this problem. He
proposed a night school where these people could
have free instruction. There was no money to
pay teachers, and he proposed that citizens vol-
unteer to teach each evening for a couple of hours.
He secured a room and organized a corps of vol-
unteer teachers, mostly ladies, and commenced
the school. About a hundred men and women,
eager to learn, came to it. They were divided
into classes of six or eight, and a teacher placed
over each class. The form was that of a Sun-
day-school, but the alphabet and the primer
were the principal things taught. The school

140 Pioneer Days in Kansas

was a great blessing in every way. The teach-
ers were naturally from among the best people of
the town. They were men and ^vomen of cul-
ture and character and consecration. It brouo:ht
them in contact with these newcomers, and the
interest did not cease with the closing of the
session. Many of the colored people got a start
in this school which enabled them to learn to
read. It gave the teachers also a grand oppor-
tunitv to furnish their scholars with some intelli-
gent notions of the new life of freedom which
they had entered. Besides teaching the lessons,
lectures were given on their new duties and their
new relations to society.

The general conduct of the school, as well as
the method of teaching, was on the model of the
Sunday-school. There was a short devotional
service at the opening, and some general exer-
cises at the close. They sang a good deal, and
answered certain Bible questions in concert.
They sang the old Sunday-school songs, and
did so with great zest and unction. A fa-
vorite song with them was that quaint old
hymn :

" Where, oh, where, is the good old Moses,
Who led Israel out of Egypt ? "

The Contrabands 141

The editor of the Lawrence State Journal vis-
ited the school one evening, and published an
account of it which was very accurate and ap-
preciative. This was in January, 1862. The
article says :

" Contrabands are becoming one of the insti-
tutions of Lawrence. As they break their fet-
ters they very naturally strike out for the center
of abolitionism. For some months they have
been thickening on our streets, filling and even
crowding our few vacant houses and rooms.
The question, What shall we do with them? so
perplexing in theoretical discussions, has become
with us a practical one and must be met at once.
General Lane's ' Ocean ' is not at hand to be let
in between the races, and the ' mingling ' is in-
evitable. While many were speculating as to
what course to pursue, and insisting that ' some-
thing must be done,' several benevolent ladies
and gentlemen suggested and carried out the
idea of a night school, which should educate
these refugees from slavery, and fit them for the
freedom they have acquired.

" The school was started on the same principle
as our Sabbath-schools — one or more taking the
general oversight and preserving order, and then.

142 Pioneer Days in Kansas

having the scholars divided into classes large
enough to occupy the time of one teacher during
the evening. At first the school was held in a
small room with only four scholars ; but it rap-
idly increased until the room was full, and then
it was moved into the court-house. Our citizens
have been very liberal in fitting up the court-
house in proper shape, and volunteer teachers
have been sufficient to supply the demand. The
school is held every night in the week except
Saturday. Last Fridaj^ evening we visited the
school, and it is not often we have seen a more
interesting sight. There were present that even-
ing eighty -three scholars and twenty-seven teach-
ers. The court-house was crowded, but we have
seldom seen a more orderly school of any kind.
Most of these people came among us entirely ig-
norant even of their letters. They had to begin,
like little children, with the alphabet. But the
earnestness with which they learn is exceedingly
interesting. They seem to be straining forward
with all their might, as if they could not learn
fast enough. One young man who had been to
the school only five nights, and began with the
alphabet, now spells in words of two syllables.
Another, in the same time, had progressed so

The Contrabands 143

that he could read, quite rapidly, the simple les-
sons given in the spelling-book. The scholars
were of all ages. Here is a class of little girls,
eager and restless ; there is a class of grown
men, solemn and earnest. A class of maidens in
their teens contrasts with another of elderly-
women. But all alike showed the same intent-
ness of application. We were especially pleased
with the courteous frankness with which they all
answered any questions in reference to their
progress. Some who began when the school
opened, can now read with some fluency, and
were ready to commence with figures.

" The school commences at seven o'clock.
After the lessons are finished a short time is
spent in singing. Their wild, untutored voices
produced a strange but pleasing impression. One
of their songs, altered from a familiar Sunday-
school hymn, seemed peculiarly fitted for the oc-
casion, and they sang it as though they meant it :

" 'Where, oh, where is the Captain Moses,
Who led Israel out of Egypt ?
Safe now in the promised land. '

" It is worth an evening to see such a sight.
Eighty-three scholars just out of bondage, giving
themselves intently to study, after working hard

144 Pioneer Days in Kansas

all day to earn their bread ; and twenty-seven
teachers, some of them our most cultivated and
refined ladies and gentlemen, laboring night
after night, voluntarily and without compensa-
tion, is a sight not often seen."

This long extract, written at the time, will
give a more vivid view than any later recollec-
tions could give. The editor of the State Jour-
nal was Josiah Trask, son of Dr. Trask, of Fitch-
burg, Massachusetts, the well-known anti-tobacco
apostle. He took a great interest in the school
and in the colored people. A little over a year
later he became one of the victims of the Quan-
trill raid. This editorial was written early in
Januarv, 1862. The school had then been in
operation several weeks.

Work in religious lines was commenced about
the same time. A Sunday-school was carried on
among these people every Sunday ; and Sunday
services were conducted for them whenever it
was possible. The evening services soon out-
grew the room in which they were held, and
they were moved over into the Congregational
church. Evening after evening that house was
filled with an earnest congregation. They
seemed to be all of one mind, and no sectarian

The Contrabands 145

name was mentioned. They had been members
of different churches, but all seemed to go to-
gether. We began to think that the sectarian
divisions which so hinder Christian work among
white people did not exist among these colored
brethren. "We afterward learned our mistake,
and found to our sorrow that the millennium
was not as near as it seemed. Before the year
had passed several of their own ministers ap-
peared, and they divided into various ecclesiastical
camps. Most of their preachers were very igno-
rant, some of them not able to read. But the
less they knew the more confident they were,
and the more bigoted. We felt that our work
was not done, so we kept on with our Sunday-
school and Sunday evening services. Quite a
number of earnest souls clave to us, and after a
time desired to be formed into a church. The
following account of the forming of the church
is found in the Congregational Eecord, April,
1862:

" On Sabbath evening, March 16, a church was
organized among the ' Contrabands ' at Law-
rence. Only one of those composing the church
brought a letter from the church from which he
came. His letter was for himself and wife. We

146 Pioneer Days in Kansas

asked him where his wife w^as. He said they
had sold his w^ife and children down south before
he got away, but he got a letter for both, hoping
he might find her sometime. All the rest united
on profession, although they had been members
of churches before. They came away in too
much of a hurry to get letters. Their experi-
ences were distinct and very satisfactory. They
seemed to understand very clearly the grounds
of their hope. One of them said he always
thought that if he ever experienced religion he
should keep it to himself ; he would not go
around telling about it. But w^hen he was con-
verted he went right in among the white folks
praising God ; he could not keep it to himself.
They said he was drunk ; but he thanked God
for such drunkenness as that. His story re-
minded us of what was said of the apostles on
the day of Pentecost; 'These men are full of
new wine.'

" This is the only church in Kansas that has a
commercial value. The men are fine looking fel-
lows, and in good time would bring fifteen hun-
dred dollars apiece ; for piety has a value in the
slave market as well as muscle. This Second
Congregational Church of Lawrence has a mar-

The Contrabands 147

ket value, therefore, of some twenty thousand
dollars."

Only one of the sixteen members could read.
This was Troy Strode, who was chosen deacon.
He was consumptive in his youth and not able to
work much. To relieve his loneliness his master
allowed him to learn to read, and he made the
best of the privilege. He was of great service
to the little church, being a good reader, and
a good singer, and a man of superior ability.
Though his skin was dark he had as finely
chiseled features as one often sees. His mind
was as fine as his features and in the prayer-
meeting often he spoke with a poetic touch
that was thrilling. He was the main reliance
of the church for many years. He was a
hard working man, having entirely recovered
from the debility of his youth. He was a black-
smith and a good workman, and secured him a
home and a good property.

Another marked character was Anthony Old-
ham. He was the one who brought the letter
for himself and wife. His wife and family he
never found. One daughter came with him and
she kept house for him. He could not read, but
was well versed in Scripture and had a large

148 Pioneer Days in Kansas

stock of hard sense. He had been a sort of a
preacher among his people and was read}^ to con-
duct services for the new church when no other
arrangement could be made. Everybody be-
lieved in him, and they all listened to him with
respect. He was one of the sturdy kind whose
convictions were as firm as a rock. He might
have been of Puritan stock, judging from his
character. It was a great loss to the church
when he fell a victim to the Quantrill raid.

One of the newspapers of the time gave an
account of the dedication of the house of wor-
ship erected for these people :

" The ' Freedmen's Church ' of Lawrence was
dedicated Sabbath evening, September 28th,
1862. The house was filled with an attentive
congregation of 'freedmen' — all lately from
bondage, and all neatly dressed as a result of
their short experience of free labor. Rev. J. "W.
Pox, of Ridgeway, preached from the text,
^ They shall not build, and another inhabit ; they
shall not plant, and another eat.' The most
eloquent passage of the sermon was where the
preacher drew a parallel between that old Dutch
ship coming up the James River, two hundred
and forty years ago, freighted with twenty

The Contrabands 149

slaves, and the moving of the vast armies of
the time up that same river, washing out in
blood the crime then inaugurated. That old
Dutch ship brought in the first instalment of
the accumulating curse that has at last brought
our nation to the verge of ruin."

At the conclusion Mr. Fox presented the
church with a pulpit Bible which had been
sent by a lady in Worcester, Massachusetts, for
the " first Freedmen's Church."

The word " contrabands," as used in these ex-
tracts, may need a word of explanation, as it has
entirely passed out of use in that sense. As soon
as the war commenced, slaves began to escape into
the free states and into the Union camps. On what
ground to hold them was a perplexing question.
There had been no declaration of freedom, and
the slave laws were still in force. Yet no one
could think of sending these slaves back to their
masters. General Butler, in whose camp a large
number were found, said they were " contraband
of war," and set them to work on the Union
fortifications. The term at least furnished a
convenient name for a class of people whose ex-
act status was not easy to define. For many
months they went by the name of "contra-

ijo Pioneer Days in Kansas

bands." After the proclamation of freedom they
were very properly called " freedmen."

What occurred at Lawrence was only a speci-
men of what was happening all along the border.
In all the border communities and in all the
Union camps the freed slaves made their appear-
ance. The question of their education and of
their Christian training became at once a grave
one, and has been a serious one ever since. All
denominations have entered into the work heart-
ily and it has become recognized as a distinct
department of missionary operations. The ques-
tion can hardly be made too prominent — what
we do for these people, we do for ourselves.
They are a part of the nation, and no wish or
will of ours can separate them from us, or sepa-
rate their destiny from ours. We may restrict
immigration as we will, but these people are al-
ready here. It is of no use to shut the door.
They are already in. Dr. Talmage begins one of
his lectures with something like this : " The
evolutionist has disposed of the question as to
where we came from. The restorationist has
disposed of the question as to where we are
going. It only remains for us to consider that
we are here?'* The negroes are not coming.

The Contrabands l^i

They are here. They will stay here. They are
American born. They have been here for more
than two hundred and fifty years. They are not
going back to Africa. They are not going to
South America. They are not going to other
parts of our own land. They are going to stay
where they are. They are not able to emigrate
if they would. We are not able to send them
away if we wished. Even if we would and they
would, the thing is not possible. It is not possi-
ble for eight millions of people to be transported
from the land in which they were born, to some
land across the seas, or some continent far away.
They are to remain, and they are to increase.
They are with us and with us to stay. They are
to be our neighbors, whatever we may think
about it, whatever we may do about it. It is
not for us to say whether they shall be our
neighbors or not. That has been settled by the
providence that has placed them among us. It
is only for us to say what sort of neighbors they
shall be, and whether we will fulfil our neigh-
borly obligations.

CHAPTER IX

KANSAS IN THE CIVIL WAR

"When the War of the Rebellion broke out in
1861, Kansas was in a very peculiar and critical
position. She was a small community, isolated
from her sympathizing sister states. The rich
and powerful state of Missouri lay on her eastern
border. Missouri was a doubtful state. It had
a large slave population, and a very strong
proslavery sentiment. Her governor was Clai-
borne F. Jackson, who had led the mob of
Missourians which invaded Lawrence at the
election on March 30, 1855, took possession of
the polls and elected the bogus Legislature.
The commander of her militia was Sterling
Price, who became one of the ablest and most
noted of the Confederate generals. February
28, 1861, a convention met to consider the
question whether Missouri should join the Con-
federacy or remain in the Union. Sterling Price
was president of the convention, and he and
Governor Jackson used all their influence in

152

Kansas in the Civil War 153

favor of secession. The convention voteji to
remain with the Union. In spite of this vote,
Governor Jackson and General Price did all in
their power to carry the state over to the Con-
federacy, and they would have succeeded but for
the prompt action of General Lyon at St. Louis
and JefiFerson City. The disloyal sentiment was
particularly strong on the Kansas border, where
the largest slave population was found.

Kansas, therefore, had everything at stake.
The success of the rebellion meant the destruc-
tion of Kansas. It was exposed to all the perils
of a hostile frontier. It responded, therefore, to
the nation's call for troops with an alacrity
seldom witnessed. Her sons pressed into the
service until her prairies were desolate, and her
homes almost deserted. Kev. Louis Bodwell,
Superintendent of Missions, undertook to ascer-
tain how large a proportion of the able-bodied
men in our missionary churches had entered the
service of the nation. The proportion would no
doubt hold good among all the people. In all
the churches reporting he found one-half of those
liable to military duty had entered the service.
One little missionary church, with only eleven
able-bodied men, had sent ten of these into the

154 Pioneer Days in Kansas

army. Another church with twenty men ca-
pable of bearing arms had fifteen in the army.
Whole neighborhoods were found without a
single able-bodied man left. The homes and the
herds and the fields were cared for by the women
who stayed by the stuff. When ten regiments
had responded, we thought it a good propor-
tion. It was one in ten of the entire population.
But it did not end here. The enlistments went
on until twenty-two regiments had gone forth.
They answered to every call and were found on
every field.

" They left the plowshare in the mold,
The flocks aud herds without the fold,
The cattle in the unshorn grain,
The corn half garnered on the plain.
They mustered in their simple dress,
For wrongs to seek a stern redress ;
To right those wrongs, come weal or woe,
To perish, or o'ercome the f oe ! "

I remember well the first enlistments. Only
one regiment from Kansas was called for at
first, but enough responded to make two. The
first regiment went to the front, and the second
waited till it was wanted. A company of this
second regiment was encamped just back of my
house in Lawrence for several weeks, and many

Kansas in the Civil War 155

a meal some of their number took with us in our
house. They had not yet been armed or uni-
formed or furnished. They were waiting to
learn if they would be received. So far their
request to be permitted to serve their country
had been refused. But they were determined to
enter, and were going to wait until they could.
They were an intelligent body of men, and their
bearing was that of gentlemen. They had not
yet been mustered in and had received no sup-
plies. They were maintaining themselves at
their own charges. They were not under
military orders. They had nothing to do and
had no idea how long the}^ must wait. But
though their camp was just back of our house,
we never had better neighbors than those
hundred men. We became strongly attached
to them, and quite intimate with many of them.
Nearly every evening we had some of them
come in and take tea with us. Sergeant
Sherman Bodwell was a brother of Eev. Louis
Bodwell of Topeka. He was a genius in his
way, a delightful companion, and a kind-hearted
friend. It was like a streak of sunshine when-
ever he came into the house, which was nearly
every day. One morning he came bounding in.

156 Pioneer Days in Kansas

more light and happy than usual, and cried:
" The agony is over ! We are going ! Good-
bye ! " And off they marched, singing as they
went. They were armed and equipped at
Leavenworth a few days later, and then they
marched south to join General Lyon at Spring-
field, Missouri. It was only a few days after this
that we heard of the battle of Wilson's Creek,
one of the most desperately fought battles of the
war. Of the thirty-seven hundred men engaged,
fourteen hundred were either killed or wounded.
The First Kansas lost four hundred of its men,
and every commissioned ofiicer but one was
either killed or wounded. The Second Kansas,
to which our friends belonged, was held in
reserve and suffered less ; but their losses were
quite heavy. That battle of Wilson's Creek
saved Missouri to the Union, and probably saved
Kansas from devastation. It is true that Lyon
was killed and his little army defeated, but the
desperateness of their onset checked the rebel
advance, and gave time to organize for the
defense.

We in Lawrence came into very close touch
with the soldiers of the Union. We saw a great
deal of them during the four years. Squads and

Kansas in the Civil War 157

detachments, regiments and brigades, were con-
stantly passing through the state, often remain-
ing for days and weeks in camp among us.
When they did this, our relations with them were
intimate and very delightful. Most of the time
we were just on the border of military opera-
tions, and sometimes we seemed to feel the pulse
of the Army of the Southwest. We were so
nearly concerned in their success that our inter-
est in all their movements was sometimes strained
to almost a painful tension. The pulsations of
that army passed through us and we felt every
throb. Union soldiers were constantly going
back and forth ; Union refugees came to us con-
tinually by scores and by hundreds ; ex-slaves
came by thousands ; while " the poor white trash "
of the South came in colonies. And after some
of the battles of the southwest the wounded were
sent to us at Lawrence to be cared for, and our
city was almost converted into a hospital.

During this first summer two regiments from
Wisconsin camped in the woods above Lawrence,
and remained several weeks. They were a fine
lot of men, and we came to regard them as neigh-
bors. It seemed as if they were all picked men.
They were men of education and high character,

158 Pioneer Days in Kansas

men of means and good position. Some of them
had occupied positions of honor in their state,
and had been trusted with large responsibilities.
Yet these men had enlisted as private soldiers to
serve their country for three years. Their camp
was as orderly as the quietest village, and the
soldiers everywhere conducted themselves like
gentlemen. They commanded the respect of
everybody while the regiments were with us.
Hon. E. D. Holton, of Milwaukee, visited them.
He was sent by the state to look after the "Wis-
consin troops and to see that they were well cared
for, and to furnish them whatever might be need-
ful for their comfort at the expense of the state.
He was a noble Christian gentleman, full of sym-
pathy and good sense. While with them he did
all in his power to interest the citizens of the
town in the soldiers, and there sprang up quite a
friendship between the two communities. The
Wisconsin Thirteenth had a very able chaplain,
Rev. Dr. Hilton. He had been pastor of leading
Methodist churches in the cities of Wisconsin,
and had left a large parish to go with the sol-
diers. He was very much beloved by the men
and exerted a powerful influence for good. He
usually held services in camp Sunday morning,

Kansas in the Civil War 159

and then many of the men came to the churches
in town in the evening. One Sunday evening
they seemed to have all agreed on our church,
and I was surprised to find the church full of
soldiers. I had not been expecting anything of
the kind, but I had somehow been led to choose
for my text the words, " He that ruleth his own
spirit is better than he that taketh a city." I
remember only two sentences : " Alexander con-
quered the world, but was himself conquered by
his passions. Had he been able to rule his own
spirit, he would have saved himself and his em-
pire." A few days after this they were ordered
away, and this was the last I saw of any of them.
We followed them with interest, however, and
as one might expect, they acquitted themselves
like men in many a close encounter. Their fate
was doubtless like that of many brave regiments,
not half of which ever returned.

The next spring another body of soldiers was
stationed among us for several weeks, waiting for
orders. We were just then holding nine o'clock
prayer-meetings each morning, it being a time of
special religious interest. A few of the soldiers
dropped in, and more and more each day. The
officer in charge was present each morning.

i6o Pioneer Days in Kansas

After about two weeks we proposed to close the
meetings. This ofl&cer came to me and begged
that we continue the meetings. He said, " I am
anxious for mv men. Many of them are inter-
ested, and I want the impressions fostered. We
shall be ordered to the front in a few dsLjs, and
no man can tell how many of us will come back."
At his request we continued the meetings and
they filled the room day by day. Many of them
expressed the detei'mination to lead a new life,
and to go forth thereafter in the name of the
Lord. One morning they were missing from the
place of prayer. They had been ordered to the
front and had gone at daybreak. They met with
us no more and prayed with us no more, but it
w^as a long time before we forgot to pray for
them.

At one time the military authorities sent us
word that they desired to quarter a lot of sick and
wounded soldiers with us. Eooms were there-
fore cleared over some of the stores, and prep-
arations made. The rooms were filled with
cots, and soon the cots were filled with sick and
wounded soldiers from the battle-fields and hos-
pitals of Arkansas and southwest Missouri.
Then we were all planning what we could do to

Kansas in the Civil War 161

relieve the poor fellows and soften their lot.
One day the officer in charge came to me and
said that a sick soldier wanted to see a minister.
I hastened over to the hospital, and was taken
into a room full of cots, on which the sick and
wounded lay. I was shown the cot of the man
who had sent for me. He seemed to be about
thirty-five years of age. His face was thin and
worn, and his frame was wasted. Almost as
soon as I had sat down he began to tell me his
story. " I have been a bad boy. My father and
mother were Christians. Often and often I
have knelt by my mother's knee, and she has
taught me to pray. But I grew up wild and
reckless. I ran away from home and enlisted in
the regular army. For years and years we were
wandering from place to place. We have been
on the Pacific coast, among the Western moun-
tains, and almost ever3^where." So he went on
bemoaning his life and despairing of hope.
After a while I got before him the idea of
divine mercy in Jesus Christ. He caught at the
idea as if it were a new revelation to him. The
despairing look began to pass away, and the
doleful tones grew more hopeful. His face
brightened and his eye glistened as if he bad

i62 Pioneer Days in Kansas

seen a new light. Before I left he had offered
a prayer, and as I turned to leave I saw the poor
fellows all over the room wiping the tears from
their eyes. The next day when I came to the foot
of the stairs I heard singing, and as I went up I
found the whole room singing a familiar hymn in
which my friend was leading. I found him calm
and peaceful as if the Lord had spoken to him, as
I believe he had. Day by day he grew more
clear, and spent most of his time in reading the
Bible and singing of Him who had saved him.
Often the whole room would join with him as
he sang. After a few weeks they were all re-
moved and I saw my friend no more. I heard,
however, that he died, shortly after, a peaceful
death. A few months later I received a letter
from a minister in Maine thanking me for my
attentions to his poor wandering boy, and want-
ing me to write them all about his last days.
The poor fellow had never told me his father
was a minister, nor did I learn enough from him
to identify him. I now found his father was an
old friend who had spent several years in
Kansas.

I have given these touches at random, depict-
ing a very few of the scenes in which I came

Kansas in the Civil War 163

myself in contact with the soldier life of the
republic. I came in touch Avith it almost con-
tinuously, and in great variety. I think I am
able to form a very fair judgment of what that
life was. A great deal has been said about the
roughness of the army, its demoralizing in-
fluences, its coarse and vile elements. But my
observation would lead me to judge that the
soldier life of the nation was a very high
grade of life. The best blood of the land gave
itself for the country. The principle that was
under the war appealed to the best that was in
men. It was an idea taking to itself a body, and
marshaling its forces for victory. It was not
mainly the restoration of the national authority
which stirred men so. It was not mainly the
preservation of the Union which so wrought on
the popular heart. It was not mainly the grand
old flag which appealed so irresistibly to the
heroic and the noble all over the land. But
under all this and back of all this was a moral
idea which lifted the w^hole conflict into the
realm of the sublime. This grand moral idea ap-
pealed to principle as well as to patriotism ; it ap-
pealed to religious enthusiasm as well as to
national pride. It appealed to conscience and

164 Pioneer Days in Kansas

sympathy and the love of justice and right.
There was in it the lifting of the lowly, the
freeing of the oppressed, the breaking of shackles
and the righting of wrongs.

This was not the avowed object, but every-
body knew that this was what the conflict in-
volved, and everybody had a presentiment that
this must be its end. This was the way Destiny
pointed. It appealed to the hatred of oppres-
sion ; it appealed to the awakened conscience of
the nation ; it took hold of the moral energies of
the people.

CHAPTEK X

COMING EVENTS CASTING THEIR SHADOWS

BEFORE

Early in the summer of 1863, Eev. Louis
Bodwell, Superintendent of Missions for Kansas,
was authorized by the American Home Mission-
ary Society to undertake work in Kansas City,
Missouri. He had long had this in mind and
had been waiting for an opportunity. The
movement did not spring mainly from a desire
to have a Congregational church in Kansas City,
but much more from a desire to have a church in
thorough sympathy with the nation and the
Union cause. The churches there were non-
committal, to say the least, on the great question
which then absorbed all others, the question of
national existence. I have heard it said by those
familiar with the place, that public prayer for the
Union cause had never been offered in Kansas
City. Soldiers and loyal citizens felt it was
time this reproach was removed. It was in re-

165

i66 Pioneer Days in Kansas

sponse to appeals of this kind that Mr. Bodwell
undertook the work. He secured a hall and ad-
vertised services for every Sunday morning.
For several months the pulpit was supplied by
himself and by neighboring pastors by his ar-
rangement.

My connection with the movement was through
an exchange with Mr. Bodwell, whereby I sup-
plied the pulpit in Kansas City for three weeks
and he supplied my pulpit in Lawrence. "We
agreed upon the first three Sundays of August —
2d, 9th and 16th. I was particularly pleased
with the plan, as it gave me an opportunity to
visit my old-time friend and college classmate,
Kev. K. D. Parker, pastor of the first church in
Wyandotte.

We went down by the stage line about the
last day in July. The journey was without
special incident until we reached Shawneetown, a
little village some eight miles from Kansas City.
Here the stage stopped for dinner. I noticed at
once the singular appearance of the village.
Doors were wide open, windows out, boxes and
goods and rubbish scattered about the streets
and sidewalks. The people, in little knots, were
talking low, and there were groups of women

LEWIS BODWELL

Coming Events 167

and children sitting here and there under trees
or awning, with the most Avretched and woebe-
gone look. Everything had an air of dreariness
and desolation. I inquired the cause, and learned
that the village had been sacked the night before
by bushwhackers. They had dashed in about
midnight, ransacked the town, carried off what
they wanted, and destroyed more than they
took. They had burned a few houses and killed
one or two men. The men of the place were
taken prisoners and held during their stay, and
then set at liberty. All their arms were taken
from them and all the horses that could be found.
This was all done in about an hour, when the
gang disappeared as they came. Of course the
raid was the theme on everybody's tongue.
Turn which way we would, we heard nothing
else but the terrors of the night just passed. As
we sat at dinner we heard the details being nar-
rated by every group at the tables. The terror
of the attack, the wild confusion that followed,
the horror and the desolation when they were
gone, were all pictured out in the vivid speech
of those who had seen and felt it all only a few
hours before. They all thought that the gang
was still in the neighborhood and that they med-

l68 Pioneer Days in Kansas

itated more depredations. They said the burn-
ing of farmhouses and the stealing of horses were
things of almost nightly occurrence.

After dinner the stage drove up again and we
resumed our seats. We did so with some trepi-
dation, for we learned that the stage route ran
directly through the bushwhackers' country. As
we drove into it we could understand something
of the difficulty of pursuing these desperate men.
For several miles we passed through a dense
forest, or, more properly, a dense jungle of un-
derbrush. The road seemed as if it had been
hewn through this thicket with a broad axe, the
walls of brush standing on either side, a seem-
ingly impenetrable mass. As we looked up the
road it seemed like a line of sky ahead of us be-
tween the trees. Our only traveling companions
were a couple of military men, a captain and
a lieutenant, who had been home on a furlough
and were returning to their commands in Kansas
City. As they took their seats I noticed that
they examined their revolvers with great care,
and placed them where they would be " handy."
Our first thought was that we should have the
protection of these two brave men in case of at-
tack. But on second thought we remembered

Coming Events 169

that two prominent Union officers would be a
great prize to these rebels, and that they might
attack us on this account. After we had gone
about three miles our stage suddenly stopped. I
could see, through the little window in front, a
horse leap from the jungle. I could see no more.
Whether it was a single horse or a company we
could not tell. Our military friends seized their
revolvers and were instantly on the alert. It
could have been but a moment, but it seemed a
long time before the mystery was explained. A
schoolgirl coming down the road had turned
aside and crowded her horse into the jungle to
let the stage pass. As the stage drove up her
horse became startled and plunged back into the
middle of the road in front of us. It was this
that had brought our lumbering stage, with its
driver and four horses, to a standstill, and set us
passengers all in a quiver. We were on our way
again before we fully realized how simple a thing
it was and that there had been no danger what-
ever. An innocent schoolgirl and her farm
horse had caused the whole disturbance. When
we learned how little a thing had alarmed us,
"then were our fears turned to laughter." But
that such a thing should so startle not only us,

lyo Pioneer Days in Kansas

but brave soldiers well armed, may give some
idea of the perils of the situation. We all felt,
therefore, a wonderful relief when we drove into
the open streets of Kansas City an hour later.

As I said, one of the motives in making this
exchange with Mr. Bodwell was the opportunity
it gave me of visiting my old friend and class-
mate, Kev. K. D. Parker. "We had been class-
mates in college, chums in the theological sem-
inary, and had come out to Kansas together.
Our wives, too, had been friends in their girl-
hood in Michigan. Mr. Parker was now pastor
of the church in Wyandotte. A good portion of
the time we made our home at his house. Wyan-
dotte was so near the bushwhacker country that
it had been in a state of alarm and peril from
the first breaking out of the war. The woods
and thickets in which the bushwhackers had
their hiding-places came up to the Kansas Kiver,
only three miles away. When we retired at
night it was with the thought that the enemy
might be within an hour's ride. There could be
no intermission to the vigilance of defense. The
men were organized into military companies, and
armed, and held themselves ready to rally at a
moment's call. The town was patrolled at night

Coming Events lyi

almost as thoroughly as if it had been a military
camp.

Mr. Parker was among the foremost in all
plans for defense. He was a member of one of
the military companies, and held himself subject
to call like the rest. His revolver and musket,
always loaded and ready for use, were at the head
of his bed every night. The first night we were
there a call to arms was made about midnight,
and as I looked out, I saw the apparition of my
friend with a musket on his shoulder and revolver
strapped to his side, hurrying to the place of
rendezvous. After a while he returned and re-
ported a false alarm. A report had come in that
the enemy were crossing the river a few miles
away. These false alarms were common, but the
peril was so real and so near, that they dared
not be thrown off their guard.

Sunday morning, August 2, I sought my new
parish. I rode over to Kansas City on Mr.
Parker's horse, and he insisted on my carrying
his revolver. Kansas City and Wyandotte, which
have since become one great city, were then
nearly three miles apart. The space from the
Kansas River to the bluffs was as lonely a piece
of wood as could be found on the continent. It

172 Pioneer Days in Kansas

has been the scene of many a robbery, and in
those turbulent war times was not often chosen
for evening walks. In the daytime there was
not much danger, but it was one of those spots
which one is always glad to get by. There was
a wagon road through the woods, and also a
foot and bridle path skirting the bank of the
Missouri Kiver. This footpath ran along about
where the great packing-houses now stand and
not far from the site of the Union Depot. Ordi-
narily no living thing was to be seen all this
distance. Travel was very scanty and no one
crossed over unless he was obliged to do so.
There might have been some houses on the bot-
tom, but they were not visible from the path on
which we went. After crossing the bottom the
road wound along under the bluff until it came
to where Main Street strikes the river. Main
Street itself at this point was only a deep cut
through the bluffs, with clay banks on either
side, fifty feet high. In a peaceful time the ride
through the wood along the river-bank would
have been deliD:htful, but at this time there was
just enough of uncertainty about it to make the
end of the journey the best part of it.

Our services were held in what was called

Coming Events 173

"Long's Hall," a large room on the second floor,
on the east side of Main Street. It was a very
plain room, smoked and dingy, and was lighted
altogether from the street end. It was used for
all sorts of shows and entertainments during the
week, as it was the principal hall in the place.
It would seat probably eight hundred or a thou-
sand. It must have had almost this number of
wooden chairs. On Sunday morning the room
was put in shape for us. A faded, dilapidated
curtain partially hid the tawdry decorations of
the stage, while most of the chairs were stacked
up on one side of the room to be out of our way.
On the other side of the room about a hundred
chairs were set in a kind of semicircle for the use
of our congregation. A little stand by the wall,
facing these chairs, served for a pulpit. We
seemed like a lonely lot, sitting in this little sec-
tion of the great room, with the vacant spaces
swallowing our words like pebbles dropped in
the sea. Our congregations were small, varying
perhaps from thirty-five to seventy-five. A large
proportion were men, and many of them officers
and soldiers from the camp. They were largely
strangers and changed every Sunday. There
were a few who stood by and were present at

174 Pioneer Days in Kansas

every service. Among these was Hon. T.
D wight Thacher, a member of my Lawrence
church, who was at that time editor of the Kan-
sas City Journal. We had no organization, but
he was a sort of trustee, deacon and chorister,
and pretty much everything else in the way of
service. It was a wide-awake congregation and
very stimulating. The great drawback was the
unsettled state of things. Xobody knew what a
day would bring forth. Everybody was ready
to move at an hour's notice. For this reason all
thought of organization was postponed until
quieter times.

During these three weeks, what was called
" Lincoln's Thanksgiving Day " occurred. After
the great national victories at Gettysburg, Yicks-
burg and other points, all occurring about July 4,
Lincoln appointed a special day of thanksgiv-
ing. He seemed to realize that the tide of battle
had turned and the triumph of the Union cause
was forecast. The day set apart was the sec-
ond Thursday in August, the thirteenth. The
churches of Kansas City did not notice the proc-
lamation. There was no opposition, but they re-
ceived it with a " silence that could be heard."
" Our people " in Long's Hall determined to

Coming Events 175

observe the day and I was asked to conduct the
services and preach. I prepared a sermon spe-
cially for the occasion. I remember nothing
about it except some impressions I had while
writing it. I was suffering from a felon on my
hand just then, and could not hold a pen. My
wife wrote the sermon, therefore, as I lay on the
lounge and dictated it between the twinges of
pain. Several times my wife hesitated and said,
" I would leave that out. It may malce you
trouble." I replied, " That is just what I should
say if at home to-day, and I am going to preach
in Kansas City just as I would if I were at home
in Lawrence."

On Thursday morning I rode over, carrying
my lame hand in a sling. I was not expecting
much of a congregation at this special week-day
service, but to my surprise I found our corner of
the hall fairly filled. It was different from the
Sunday congregations. There were more sol-
diers and officers and strangers. I realized that
I might be throwing fire among fireworks, but
the audience seemed in sympathy with the service
and with the theme of my sermon. It seemed
to be a very fitting thing that we should observe
the day, and we were all glad we had done so.

176 Pioneer Days in Kansas

The days of our sojourn hastened away.
There was nothing in my service of special
mark, but the stirring events around us and the
thrilling events which followed, have made the
occasion ever memorable in my mind. As soon
as the days were ended for which I had engaged
to supply, we prepared to return to our regular
work in Lawrence. On account of the condition
of the country through which the stage route
passed, we concluded to go by way of Leaven-
worth. On Tuesday, August 18, we took a steam-
boat, for Leavenworth, and the next day the stage
carried us across to Lawrence. We arrived at
home Wednesday evening, August 19.

Home never seemed more welcome than it did
that Wednesday evening. For three weeks we
had been on the border, within an hour's ride of
the bushwhackers' home in the jungle. Every
night we could see the signs of their work in
the glare on the clouds. Alarms were almost
nightly. Only constant vigilance would ward
off peril. Kow we were at home once more,

"And Quan trill forty miles away."

The effect was wonderfully peaceful and sooth-
ing. Our little white cottage had just been
repainted, and as we approached it in the moon-

Coming Events 177

light that evening, it seemed a gem among the
trees that were just growing up around it. It
was our first home, and like all " first homes "
was very dear to us. We took the full enjoy-
ment of it that night, walking about to view it
from different points. We had the full comfort
of it all the next day.

CHAPTER XI

THE LAWRENCE RAID

We felt a wonderful relief on getting home,
and having forty miles instead of ten between us
and the marauders. We had one quiet day at
home and thoroughlj^ enjoyed it. Rev. Louis
Bod well, who had been supplying my church
during my absence, was with us. We sat up late
Thursday night talking over the things that had
happened during our absence. I arose quite
early Friday morning. It was a beautiful morn-
ing ; there was not a speck of a cloud in the sky,
and the air was so still that it seemed as if the
ver}^ elements were holding their breath. A few
moments afterward I heard a strange noise in the
south part of the town. It suggested to me the
breaking up of school in the olden time, when at
the word, " dismissed," every boy jumped and
yelled. I went to the door and saw my neigh-
bors everywhere peeping around their houses.
Some one said, '' There's a regiment of Mem." I
could hear rapid firing at a little distance. Then

178

The Lawrence Raid lyg

there came in sight the head of a column of
horsemen, rushing forward at a furious speed, the
reins over the horses' necks, and the men sitting
freely in their saddles with revolvers in hand,
and firing continuously. On the still air came
the command, " On to the liotel.^'^ At this they
wheeled obliquely to the left toward the main
street. They passed about three hundred yards
from my door in plain sight and wheeled to the
left just in front of my house. They rode five or
six abreast, and were splendid horsemen. They
were desperate-looking men, clad in the tradi-
tional butternut, and belted about with revolvers,
some carrying as many as six. Most of them
also carried carbines.

Eapidly as they rushed forward the column
seemed a long time in passing. At last the rear
came in view, and the whole body soon disap-
peared on the main street. For a time we could
neither hear nor see what was going on, and
could only await developments. How long we
were in suspense I do not know. It was prob-
ably half an hour. We then saw a column of
black smoke shoot up from the Lawrence Re-
publican printing office. We now knew that
they had the town in their possession. Our

i8o Pioneer Days in Kansas

thought was that they would do here as they had
done elsewhere, carry off what they wanted,
burn the business part of the town, kill a few
persons who were obnoxious to them, and then
depart. This had been the usual course, and this
was what \ve all were expecting in case a raid
should occur. As our house was at some dis-
tance from the center of the town, we thought
the chances were good that we should not be
reached. "We could not see very much. One
column of black smoke after another shot into
the air, and we could follow their work all along
the business street by the fires they kindled.
The air was so still that the smoke of each
building shot straight up into the sky, and these
columns stood like great black pillars all along
the street. Bits of charred paper and burnt cloth
hung in the air and floated slowly over us.
Xow and then an explosion told us that the fire
had reached the powder in some cellar. Squads
of six or eight horsemen were dashing here and
there all over the town. Then a squad came by,
right in front of our house, two blocks away,
and after a little disappeared to the south.
Another squad came, a little nearer, and went
off again, and all was quiet. I was watching at

The Lawrence Raid l8l

the west window looking toward the town. Mr.
Bodwell was watching at the north window
looking down our street. He called me to come
and look. I went to the north window, and at
the house just below us, on the opposite side of
the street, there was a squad of six talking with
the lady at the door. It was evident that we
were not to be overlooked. It was our turn
next. Turning to me Mr. Bodwell said, " You
are well known here, Cordley, and I am not ; you
must go at once." There was no time for argu-
ment, and no disposition for any. The chance
of getting by them safely was not very promis-
ing, but it was the only chance there was of es-
cape. If we remained in the house they would
surely be upon us in a few minutes. I simply
replied that I should " not go and leave any one
in the house. We must all go." Taking our
little Maggie in my arms, we all passed out by
the back door, and the back gate, and straggled
along toward the river. The squad we had
seen from the window was still at the house
across the street. Some of them had dismounted,
and some were still in their saddles. They were
not more than three hundred feet from us, but
they were so busily engaged talking with the

i82 Pioneer Days in Kansas

woman who stood in the doorway, that they did
not notice us as we passed by them. We knew
our only hope of escape lay in not attracting at-
tention, so we sauntered along slowly as if we
were out for a morning walk. We were in plain
sight of them for an eighth of a mile or more,
expecting every moment to be fired upon, or
called back. At last we came to the woods on
the river-bank not very far from where the gas
works now stand. Here Bod well remained, and
climbed a tree to watch operations. We kept on
down the river for half a mile or more. There
we hailed a friend who lived on the opposite
side, and he came over for us in his rowboat.
In a few minutes we were "safe beyond the
river."

I left my family at my friend's house, and
started back on the north side of the river. When
I reached the ferry opposite the town, I could
still hear firing toward the south, but it was
growing fainter, and the raiders were evidently
leaving. There were a number of us at the
ferry, all eager to cross. After a little while the
ferryman pushed out into the stream, but we had
hardly gone out fifty feet when we heard several
sharp shots on the hill just above us. The ferry-

The Lawrence Raid 183

man pushed his boat back a good deal quicker
than he had pushed it out, and none of us felt
like objecting. The shots we had heard, as we
afterward learned, were those fired into the
company of prisoners at the Whitney House,
after Quantrill and the main body of rebels had
left the town. As soon as the firing ceased, the
ferryman pushed out again, and in a few moments
we were landed on the Lawrence side. I hurried
up the hill, anxious to know how great the dis-
aster was. The first man I met was John Speer,
editor of the Lawrence Kepublican. He was
covered with ashes and soot as if he had been
through the fire. He grasped my hand eagerly,
and said, " I want you to help find my boy.
They have killed one, and the other I cannot
find. He slept in the printing-office, and I ex-
pect he was burned with the building." So we
went where he said the bed stood, and raked
about among the embers in the cellar with poles,
but could find no signs of his boy, and no signs
of him were ever found. I next saw Bodwell,
from whom I had parted a short time befoi'e,
scarcely expecting to meet again. He was hurry-
ing about, caring for the wounded. About this
time I met Capt. J. G, Lowe, an old citizen.

184 Pioneer Days in Kansas

Twenty minutes later tiis wife hailed me from
a window, and asked if Mr. Lowe was dead.
I told her, " No, I had just left him." I had
scarcely turned the corner from where she had
hailed me, when some one said that Mr. Lowe,
in trying to rescue Mayor Collamore from the
well he was concealed in, had fallen and perished.
I went from one stricken group to another, help-
ing as I could. Every one had a tale of horror
or of marvelous escapes, and to tell all I heard
and saw that day would fill a volume, and would
equal the story of any Indian massacre ever
written. About three o'clock I felt strangely
faint, and came near falling on the sidewalk.
It then occurred to me that I had eaten neither
breakfast nor dinner. So I went into the house
opposite and asked for something to eat, which
they gave me, and I passed on.

Sometime in the afternoon Mrs. Cordley and
I found time to visit the ruins of our home. On
our way we came across Mr. Bodwell, and we
were all together by the ruins, as we had been a
few hours before in the house. All that remained
was a bed of embers and ashes. Not a book or
sermon, not a letter or paper, not a relic of
childhood or memento of friend was saved. As

The Lawrence Raid 185

we stood silently looking at the desolate scene,
Mrs. Cordley quietly wept. Bodwell turned to
her and said in his gentlest tones : " Don't cry,
Mary. You have got all you asked for. We are
all here." No more tears were shed for the
ruined house. So many all about us were
carrying heavier sorrows, that we could but be
thankful at our own escape. BodwelPs part in
all this is told in a sketch he wrote at the time,
from which I make a short extract :

" After Cordley and his family had crossed to
the north side of the river I turned back to the
burning town. As I drew near the firing ceased.
Climbing a bank not a soul was in sight, save one
horseman galloping at full speed southward.
Cordley's house was standing, and seemed un-
harmed. But a puff of smoke from the south
window gave warning. The first door opened
showed the house full of smoke. Two steps took
me to the library shelves, to grasp an armful of
books, and run and throw them on the grass.
The smoke and growing heat drove me from my
next attempt empty-handed. To take off the
outside blinds, to bring out the movables from
the lean-to kitchen, was all that could be done
ere the fire seemed to cover the whole."

i86 Pioneer Days in Kansas

It will be necessary to go back a little to give
a connected story of the whole affair. Quantrill
assembled his gang about noon the day before
the raid, August 20, and started toward Kansas
about two o'clock. They crossed the Kansas
border between five and six o'clock, and struck
directly across the prairie toward Lawrence,
passing through Gardner, on the Sante Fe trail,
about eleven o'clock at night, and through Hes-
per, ten miles southeast of Lawrence, between
two and three. The moon was now set, and the
night was dark and the road doubtful. A little
boy was taken from a house on Captain's Creek
and compelled to guide them into Lawrence.
They entered Franklin, four miles east of Law-
rence, at the first glimmer of day, and passed
quietly through the village, lying upon their
horses, so as to attract as little attention as pos-
sible. The command, however, was distinctly
heard : " Rush on, boys, it will be daylight be-
fore we are there. We ought to have been
there an hour ago." From here it began to
grow light and they traveled faster. When they
first came in sight of the town they stopped.
Many were inclined to waver. Quantrill finally
declared that he was going in, and they might

The Lawrence Raid 187

follow who would. Two horsemen were sent in
ahead to see that all was quiet. They rode
through the town and back without attracting
attention. They were seen going through the
main street, but the appearance of horsemen at
that hour was nothing unusual.

Their progress was now quite rapid, but cau-
tious. They were seen approaching by* several
persons in the outskirts, but in the dimness of
the morning and the distance, they were supposed
to be Union troops. They passed on in a body,
till they came to the high ground facing the
main street, when the command was given :
" Eush on to the town." Instantly they rushed
forward with a yell. They first came upon a
camp of new recruits for the Kansas Fourteenth.
These men had not yet been armed, and were wait-
ing for orders. On these the bushwhackers fired
as they passed, killing seventeen out of twenty-
two. The attack did not check the general ad-
vance. A few turned aside to run down and
shoot fugitive soldiers, but the main body rushed
on with unslackened speed. In all the bloody
scenes which followed, nothing surpassed, in
wildness and terror, that which now presented
itself. The guerillas rode with the ease and

i88 Pioneer Days in Kansas

abandon acquired by a life spent in the saddle,
and amid desperate scenes. Their horses scarcely
seemed to touch the ground, and the riders sat
with bodies and arms perfectly free, shooting at
every house and man they passed, and yelling at
every bound. On each side of this stream of
fire, as it poured along, were men falling dead
and wounded, and women and children, half
dressed, running and screaming — some tr}ing to
escape from danger and some rushing to the side
of their murdered friends.

The ruflBans dashed along the main street,
shooting at every straggler on the sidewalk, and
into almost every window. They halted in front
of the Eld ridge House. The firing ceased and
all was quiet for a few minutes. They evidently
expected resistance there, and sat gazing at the
rows of windows above them, apparently in fear-
ful suspense. In a few moments Captain Banks,
provost marshal of the state, opened a window
and displayed a white flag, and called for Quan-
trill. Quantrill rode forward, and Banks, as
provost marshal, surrendered the house, stipu-
lating for the safety of the inmates. At this
moment the big gong of the hotel began to
sound through the halls to arouse the sleepers.

The Lawrence Raid 189

The whole column fell back, evidently thinking
this the signal for an attack. In a few moments
they pressed forward again, and commenced the
work of plunder and destruction. They ran-
sacked the hotel, robbing the rooms and their in-
mates. These inmates they gathered together
at the head of the stairs, and when the plunder-
ing was done, marched them across the street on
to Winthrop Street under a guard. Soon Quan-
trill rode up and told them to go to the City
Hotel, on the river-bank, and they would be pro-
tected, because he had boarded there some years
ago and had been well treated. He ordered the
prisoners to go in and stay in, and they would
be safe. The captives were as obedient to or-
ders as any of QuantrilPs own men, and lost no
time in gaining the house of refuge. This treat-
ment of the prisoners of the Eldridge House
shows that they expected resistance from that
point, and were relieved by the offer of surrender.
They not only promised protection, but were as
good as their word. Other hotels received no
such favors, and had no such experience of rebel
honor.

CHAPTER XII

INCIDENTS OF THE EAID

The surprise was so complete that no organ-
ized resistance was possible. Before people
could fully comprehend the real state of the case,
every part of the town was full of rebels, and
there was no possibility of rallying. Even the
recruits in camp were so taken by surprise that
they were shot in their places. The attack could
scarcely have been made at a worse hour. The
soldiers had just taken in their camp guard, and
people were just waking from sleep. There was
no time or opportunity for consultation or con-
cert of action, and every man had to do the best
he could for himself. A large number, however,
did actually start with what arms they had to-
ward the street. Most of these saw at once that
the street could not be reached, and turned back.
Some went forward and perished. Mr. Levi
Gates lived about a mile in the country, in the
opposite direction from that by which the rebels
entered. As soon as he heard the firing in town

190

Incidents of the Raid 191

he started Avith his rifle, supposing that a stand
would be made by the citizens. When he got to
town he saw at once that the rebels had posses-
sion. He was an excellent marksman and could
not leave without trying his rifle. The first shot
made a rebel jump in his saddle, but did not kill
him. He loaded again and fired one more shot,
when the rebels came on him and killed him.

Mr. G. W. Bell, county clerk, lived on the
side of the hill overlooking the town. He saw
the rebels before they made their charge. He
seized his musket and cartridge box with a hope
of reaching the main street before them. But he
was too late and was killed as he was trying to
return home. Other attempts at resistance were
equally futile.

It would be impossible to give all the scenes of
horror which were witnessed that morning.
Every house had its story and every man and
woman had their tale. I can only sketch briefly
a few of the scenes, and they must serve as speci-
mens of the scores and scores of thrilling tales
which might be told.

General George W. Collamore was mayor of
the city. He was a man of ability and ex-
perience, and had taken great pains to pre-

192 Pioneer Days in Kansas

pare Lawrence for defense. But his prepara-
tions, like all other arrangements in the same line,
failed of their purpose. He lived in the western
section of the town, vet his house was attacked
at once. The raiders evidently knew his house
and wished to forestall anything he might do to-
ward resistance. He was awakened by their
shots, and looking out, found the house was
entirely surrounded. Escape was impossible, and
there was but one hiding-place. That was the
well in the rear, and close to the house. He and
his man at once descended into the well as the
rebels entered in front. The}^ searched the house
from top to bottom, swearing and threatening all
the while. Failing to find him, they set fire to
the house, and waited around it till it was con-
sumed. Mrs. Collamore went out while the house
was burning, and spoke to her husband in the
well, and he answered her. She felt sure that he
was safe. After the flames had subsided, and
the ground was clear, she went again and spoke,
but received no response. As soon as the rebels
were gone, Captain J. G. Lowe, an intimate friend
of General Collamore, went down into the well
to seek him ; but he also lost his life and the three
bodies were drawn out together.

Incidents of the Raid 193

At Dr. Griswold's house, a block away from
Mayor Collamore's, there were four families. The
doctor and his wife had returned the evening be-
fore from a visit at the East. Hon. S. M. Thorpe,
state senator, Mr. Josiah C. Trask, editor of the
State Journal, and Mr. Harlow W. Baker, grocer,
with their wives, were boarding in Dr. Griswold's
family. The house was attacked about the same
time as Mayor Collamore's. They called for the
men to come out. As the four men were well
armed, and were young and vigorous, they were
disposed to remain in the house and defend them-
selves. But the raiders assured them "they
would not be harmed ; we have come to burn
Lawrence, but we do -not want to hurt anybody
if we can help it. If the citizens make us no
trouble they will receive no harm. We want you
to go over to town where we can keep you under
guard until we do what we came for, and then
you can all go free. It will be all the better for
everybody if you quietly go with us." This
seemed plausible. Mr. Trask said to his com-
panions, " If it is going to help the town, we had
better go with them." So they went down-stairs
and out-of-doors. The ruffians ordered them into
line, and then marched them toward the town,

194 Pioneer Days in Kansas

they themselves following behind on horseback.
They had scarcely marched a dozen yards from
the gate before they were shot. All four fell as
if dead. The four wives were on the balcony
looking out, but were not permitted to come out
and minister to their husbands, or even to know
whether they were dead or alive. A guard was
stationed near by, and if the ladies made a move
to come out to their dying friends, they were
driven back into the house w4th oaths and threats.
After the bodies had lain some half an hour, a
gang rode up to them, rolled them over and shot
them again. Mr. Baker received his only dan-
gerous wound at this second shooting. After
shooting the men, the ruffians went in and robbed
the house. They demanded even the personal
jewelry of the ladies. Mrs. Trask begged to be
allowed to retain her wedding ring. " You have
killed my husband ; let me keep his ring." But
the ruffians snatched it from her hand with a
brutal oath. The wounded men outside lay in the
hot sun some four hours. Only after the rebels had
gone could the friends know who was dead and
who was alive. It was found that Mr. Trask and
Dr. Griswold had been killed instantly. Mr.
Thorpe was fatally wounded and lingered in great

Incidents of the Raid 195

agony until the next day, when he died. Mr.
Baker was shot first through the neck and then
through the lungs. He had also one or two
other slight wounds. For many days his case
was very doubtful, but having a strong constitu-
tion, he finally recovered, and is yet a member
of the firm of Eidenour & Baker, leading grocers
in Kansas City.

One of the most shocking murders was that of
Judge Louis Carpenter. Mr. Carpenter was a
young lawyer of marked ability, and had won
considerable distinction. He had been judge of
the probate court of Douglas County, and the
year before had been a candidate for attorney-
general of the state. He had been married less
than a year, and had a delightful home in
the eastern part of the town. Several gangs
called at his house and robbed him of his valu-
ables, and took from the house whatever they
fancied. But his genial manner every time di-
verted them, and they left him unharmed. To-
ward the last another gang came who were
harder to divert than the others had been. He
accosted them in his usual pleasant way, hoping
to engage them in conversation as he had the
others. One of them asked him where he was

196 Pioneer Days in Kansas

from. He replied, "iS'ew York." "Oh, it is
you IS'ew York fello\ys who are doing all the
mischief," replied one of them. The fellow
at once drew his revolver, and Judge Carpenter
ran into the house. The man dismounted and
followed. Mr. Carpenter ran first up-stairs, then
down again through the house. Finally he
eluded his pursuer and slipped into the cellar.
He was already badly wounded, and his blood
lay in pools on the cellar floor where he stood.
His hiding-place was at last discovered, and he
ran out into the yard, and the man shot him
again. He fell mortally wounded. His wife
ran to him and threw herself over him to shield
him from further violence. The brute deliber-
atel}^ walked around her to find a place to shoot
once more. He finally raised her arm, and
thrust his revolver under it and fired so that she
saw the charge enter her husband's head. They
then set fire to the house, but through the
energy of Mrs. Carpenter's sister, the fire was
extinguished and the house saved. There was
nothing in the judge's character or life that gave
any reason for the hate with which he was pur-
sued. He was a moderate man in his views, and
had no special part in any of the early conflicts.

Incidents of the Raid 197

There is no evidence that they even knew who
he was or anything about him but the fact that
he lived in Lawrence.

Another case of singular brutality was the
murder of Mr. E. P. Fitch, who lived only a
couple of blocks from Judge Carpenter's. He
was up-stairs when they came to his door. They
called him down and as soon as he appeared
they shot him, and he fell in his own doorway.
Although he was evidently dead, they continued
to shoot until they had lodged six or eight
bullets in his lifeless body. They then came in
and set fire to the house. Mrs. Fitch endeavored
to drag her husband out from the house, but
they forbade her. She then endeavored to take
his picture from the wall, but she was forbidden
to do even this. Stupefied by the horrors of the
morning and the strange brutality exhibited
toward her, she stood in a half dazed condition,
looking at what was going on around her. As
the fire progressed one of the ruffians came and
drove her out of the house ; otherwise she might
have been consumed with the rest. She then
took her three little ones a short distance away
and sat down on the grass and watched the
flames consume her husband who still lay in the

198 Pioneer Days in Kansas

doorway of his own house. While she sat look-
ing, one of the ruffians went up to the door and
drew the boots off of Mr. Fitch's feet, put them
on his own, and walked away. Mr. Fitch was a
young man of excellent character and was
highly esteemed by everybody. He was one of
the early settlers and taught the first school
started in Lawrence or in Kansas. He ^vas an
earnest Christian man and was secretary of the
Congregational Sunday-school. He was quiet in
his habits, and mild and gentle in his spirit.
He was not extreme in any of his views, and
was always a friend of order and justice and
peace.

Mr. Longley lived about a mile from town.
He was a fine old gentleman of sixty. He was
a peaceable man, taking no special part in public
affairs. He and his wife lived by themselves on
a small farm and were both worthy members
of the Congregational church. Some of the
pickets stationed outside of the town came
to the house. Mrs. Longley begged them " to be
merciful ; they were old people and could not
live long at best." But her entreaties had no
effect. They hunted the old gentleman around
the house and shot him in the yard. The first

Incidents of the Raid 199

shot not doing its work they shot him again and
again. They then set fire to the house, but
through the energies of the old lady the fire was
put out and the house saved.

Mr. D. W. Palmer was a native of Andover,
Massachusetts. He had a gun-shop on the main
street, just south of the business portion. Being
in the heart of the town he had no chance to es-
cape. He and his man were standing in the
door of his little wooden shop, as a gang of
drunken rebels went by. They fired upon them,
wounding them both. They then set fire to the
shop, and threw the two wounded men into the
burning building, and kept them in the flames
till they died.

There were many hairbreadth escapes. Many
ran to the corn-fields near the town ; others fled
to the " friendly brush " by the river-bank. The
ravine which runs almost through the center of
the town proved a safe refuge to scores. The
corn-field west of the town and the woods east
were all alive with refugees. Many hid in the
" Park " which was planted with corn. Many
others who could get no further, hid among the
weeds and plants in their gardens. Mr. Strode,
a colored blacksmith, had a little patch of toma-

200 Pioneer Days in Kansas

toes, no more than ten feet square. He took
his money and buried himself among the vines.
The rebels came up and burned his shop, not
more than ten feet off, but did not discover
him.

Hon. S. A. Riggs, district attorney, was set
upon by the vilest ruffian in the lot. His wife
rushed to his side at once. After a short parley
the man drew his revolver and took aim. Mr.
Riggs pushed the revolver aside and ran. The
man started after him, but Mrs. Riggs seized the
bridle-rein and clung to it till she was dragged
round a house, over a wood-pile, and through the
yard back to the street again. But she clung to
the horse until Mr. Riggs was out of sight and
in a place of safety. All this time the man was
swearing and striking at her with his revolver
and threatening to shoot her.

Old Mr. Miner hid among the corn in the
" Park." Hearing the racket around Mr. Fisher's
house near by, he ventured to the edge of the
corn to gratify his curiosity. He was seen and
immediatelv shot at. He ran back into the corn
but had not proceeded far before he heard them
breaking down the fence. The corn-field was
evidently to be searched. He ran, therefore,

Incidents of the Raid 2oi

through the corn, and lay down among the
weeds beyond. The weeds only partially cov-
ered him, but it was the best he could do. He
had scarcely lain down when the rebels came
dashing through the corn, and stationing a
picket at each corner of the field to prevent
escape, they searched the field through but
found no one. They did not happen to look
among the grass almost at their feet.

Near the center of the town was a sort of out-
door cellar with a very obscure entrance. A
woman, whose name we have been unable to
obtain, but who ought to be put on record as one
of the heroines of that day, took her station at a
convenient distance from this cellar. Every
poor fugitive that came into the region she
directed into this hidden cellar. Thus eight or
ten escaped from the murderers. Finally, the
rebels, noticing that their victims always disap-
peared when they came into this locality, sus-
pected this woman of aiding in their escape.
They demanded of her that she should show
their hiding-place. She refused. One of them
drew his revolver, and pointing it at her said,
" Tell us, or I will shoot you." " You may shoot
me," answered the brave woman, " but you will

202 Pioneer Days in Kansas

not find the men." Finding they could not in-
timidate her thev left.

Several saved themselves by their ready wit.
An oflBcer in the camp of recruits, when the
attack was made, ran away at full speed. He
was followed by several horsemen, who were
firing at him continually. Finding escape im-
possible, he dashed into the house of a colored
family, and, in the twinkling of an eye, slipped
on a dress and shaker bonnet, passed out at the
back door, and walked deliberately away. The
rebels surrounded the house, and then some of
them entered and searched, but found no prey.

A son of John Speer hid for some time under
the sidewalk. The fire soon drove him into the
street, which was full of rebels. He went boldly
up to them and offered his services in holding
horses. They asked his name, and thinking that
the name Speer would be his death warrant, he
answered, " John Smith," and he remained among
them unharmed to the last.

One man was shot as he was running away,
and fell into a gutter. His wife, thinking him
killed, began to wring her hands and scream.
The rebel, thinking from this that her husband
was dead, left. As soon as he was gone, the

Incidents of the Raid 203

man said, " Do n't take on so, wife, I do n't know-
as I am hit at all." And so it proved.

Mr. Winchell, being hard pressed, ran into the
house of Rev. Charles Keynolds, rector of the
Episcopal church. Mrs. Reynolds at once ar-
rayed him in female attire, shaved off his mus-
tache with a knife, and set him in a rocking-
chair with a bab}^ in his arms, and christened
him "Aunt Betsy." The rebels searched the
house, but did not disturb " Aunt Betsy."

Mr. Gurdon Grovenor had a narrow and prov-
idential escape. He lived on the corner of
Berkley and New Hampshire Streets. "While
standing on his porch a rebel rode up within ten
feet of him, and snapped his pistol at him, but it
missed fire. It failed a second time and at that
instant another gang rode up and the leader
said, " Do n't shoot that man," and told Mr.
Grovenor to go to the cellar or somewhere. The
house was now in flames, but he secreted himself
in the cellar under the back kitchen until the
danger had passed. One gang ordered Mrs.
Grovenor to draw water for themselves and
horses. A young man, more humane than the
others, alighted from his horse and told her he
would draw the water. This young man said he

204 Pioneer Days in Kansas

had no idea that any such murderous work was
contemplated. He was told they were going to
recapture some horses which had been stolen.
He had not killed any one nor set fire to any
houses and was not going to.

General Lane was one of the first men sought
for. They seemed to know he was in town, and
determined to get him. But he also knew they
were in town, and that they would be looking
for him. His first act, when he learned of their
attack, was to wrench the door-plate from his
front door. His next act was to flee out of the
back door into the corn-field which lay just back
of his house. Passing through this he fled over
the hill and concealed himself in a ravine until
the raiders had gone. They came to his house
immediately after he had left it. Not finding
him they burned the house, and Quantrill told
Mrs. Lane to " give the general his compliments,
and to say he should be glad to meet him."
Mrs. Lane replied that " Mr. Lane would be very
glad to meet him under more favorable circum-
stances."

Mr. Joseph Savage lived just outside the
limits of the town, on one of the roads to the
southeast. He had just risen and was making

Incidents of the Raid 205

his morning toilet in the back part of the house,
when the troop passed as they were coming in.
He heard the tramp of horses' feet, but did not
see them. In a little while there came a loud
knock at the front door. When he opened the
door a horseman was just going out of the
gate, and joining his companions, who were on
their way to the town. The single horseman
had left the ranks to come to his door and
murder him, but could not wait for him to
finish his toilet. But his perils did not end with
this. He knew they were liable to call again on
the way back. His own farm was two miles to
the southwest. He thought they would be safe
there, so he harnessed up his team as quickly as
possible, and with his wife and hired man, drove
out toward the farm. When almost there they
came upon the gang that were shooting old Mr.
Longley. It was too late to turn back, as they
were right upon them. Mr. Savage leaped from
the wagon, jumped the fence, and lay down in
the corn, so near to the ruffians that he could
hear them talking. His wife drove on as though
nothing had happened and in a moment was
stopped by one of the brutes. He questioned
her closely, but never suspected that her husband

2o6 Pioneer Days in Kansas

was so near. He was about to shoot the hired
man, but as he found he was a German, he let
him go with a kick or two. Mr. Savage was a
musician and played the bass horn in the band.
Among the few precious things he had thrown
into the wagon was his horn. This caught the
attention of the ruffians at once. They thought
it had some military significance, and took it out
and beat it over the wagon tire, and doubled it
up, and threw it into the corn-field. They then
allowed Mrs. Savage to proceed. Soon after the
ruffians left, Mr. Savage crept from his hiding-
place, and made his way to the house, where his
wife had preceded him. He afterward picked
up the " crumpled horn " from the field and sent
it to the manufacturers, who repaired it and sent
it back to him. He ever after kept this old horn
as one of his choice relics. He would not have
exchanged it for a horn of solid silver.

The courage and persistence of the women
saved a great many houses and a great many
lives. Quantrill said, " The ladies of Lawrence
were brave and plucky, but the men of Lawrence
were a pack of cowards." While his compliments
to the ladies were fully deserved, his judgment
of the men would hardlv be borne out. I have

Incidents of the Raid 207

noticed that it makes a great difference in any
man's courage whether he expects to be shot or
not. But the ladies were wonderfully brave and
efficient that morning. Some of them, by their
shrewdness and suavity, turned the raiders from
their purpose when they came to their houses.
Sometimes they outwitted them, and at other
times they boldly confronted and resisted them.
In scores of cases they put the fires out as soon
as those who kindled them left the house.
In some cases they defiantly followed the raiders
around, and extinguished the flames as they were
kindled.

The number left wounded was very small. In
battle the wounded usually outnumbered the
killed three to one. In the Lawrence massacre
the killed outnumbered the wounded five to one.
There were only about thirty left wounded,
while there were about one hundred and fifty
left dead. Those who were wounded were in
most cases desperately hurt. The raiders in-
tended to kill every one they shot. In many
cases they would shoot a man repeatedly, even
after he was dead, as if to make doubly sure.
Wherever they suspected a man was still living,
they would shoot him again. Harlow W. Baker

2o8 Pioneer Days in Kansas

fell at the first shot, with his three companions.
He was not severely wounded, but thought his
only chance w^as to feign death. After a while
some of them thought he showed signs of life,
and shot him again, the ball passing through his
lungs. It was the last shot which came so near
proving fatal.

It was said that Quantrill's orders to his men
were " to kill every man and burn every house."
Whether these were his orders or not, the
slaughter was so entirely indiscriminate that it is
evident they came to kill. The men killed were,
almost without exception, quiet, inoffensive citi-
zens. They w^ere loyal men, but not partisans.
Yery few had been in the army or had taken any
part in the conflict. Most of them were entirely
unknown to their murderers. There was no prov-
ocation in any case. There was no reason for
this w^holesale massacre except that the raiders
came to kill, and it was a matter of little moment
whom they slew.

The guerillas differed very much in their spirit
and conduct. Some of them were as humane
as they well could be in the work they were
ordered to do. In some instances they advised
men to get out of the way. They burned

Incidents of the Raid 209

houses, but were not unnecessarily harsh. They
said they were obeying orders and doing a work
that they hated, and sometimes helped to save
some of the furniture and things especially prized
in houses they burned. In one or two instances
they helped women take up the carpets and throw
them out. But this was not the common expe-
rience, or the common spirit. Most of the men
seemed to be in their natural element. They
sought to destroy everything they came to,
and had no mercy and no compunction, adding
needless cruelty to destruction. In one case, as
already stated, they refused to allow a wife to
take the picture of her husband who lay dead
on the doorstep, and who was consumed in his
own house as his wife and children looked on.
Mrs. F. "W. Kead begged them to leave her a
little bracelet which had belonged to her baby
who had died a short time before. Their only
reply was : " Your dead baby will not need it."

These are only a few of the tales that might
be told. I knew all the people personally, and
the stories were told me by friends at the time.
Many of the persons referred to were members
of my church and congregation. Other examples
could be given by the score no less thrilling.

210 Pioneer Days in Kansas

There were one hundred and eighty killed and
wounded, and every one involved an experience
of savage brutality equal to those I have been
describing. Many of those who escaped could
tell as thrilling stories as could be told of the
dead. One will hardly read such accounts out-
side the history of savage warfare.

The Lawrence massacre was unique. It will
always stand among the marked massacres of the
world. It had features of its own which distin-
guished it from any other that ever occurred.
There were other raids during the War of the Re-
bellion which have passed into history. Morgan's
raid into Ohio is a notable exam])le. The sack-
ing of towns is no uncommon thing among the
horrors of war. "War itself is a terrible condition
and it lets loose all the worst passions and all the
worst men. Over and above the slaughter and
suffering of what is called '' legitimate warfare,"
there are always outrages committed under the
cover of war which could not be tolerated even
by the cruel code of war itself. Private wrongs
are avenged and private enmities gratified, in
the name of the public defense. In the War of
the Rebellion there were doubtless manv cruel
wrongs committed by individuals, and by com-

Incidents of the Raid 2 1 1

paniesof men on both sides, which had no justifi-
cation even in the condition of the times. Thus at
Olathe, Shavvneetown, Aubrey, and other points,
farmhouses were burned, crops destroyed, and
horses and cattle were stolen ail along the line
from Kansas City to Fort Scott. During the
summer of 1863 most of the farmers along the
border hid their horses in the corn-fields or in the
woods every night, and slept themselves in the
fields. These raids were mostly for pillage and
plunder, and for the sake of keeping the country
disturbed. The marauders would dash into a
town at night — usually about midnight — and
create a tremendous panic by their yells ; then
they would burn a few houses, carry off what
they wished, and dash away again before morn-
ing. Usually some persons were killed, some-
times quite a number ; but generally they were
persons who were obnoxious to the raiders or
who resisted them. This was the usual way in
which these raids were conducted and the guerilla
warfare of the border carried on.

The Lawrence raid was altogether of another
kind, and showed that there was back of it alto-
gether a different animus. It was a general and
indiscriminate slaughter. The murdering and

212 Pioneer Days in Kansas

burning began with the first charge, and contin-
ued to the end. It was not the shooting of a
few obnoxious persons. There were several of
these in town who were intended for destruction.
We might name Jim Lane, General Deitzler,
Rev. H. D. Fisher, and others ; but none of these
were found. The killing was indiscriminate and
mostly in cold blood, the victims being quiet,
peaceable citizens. ISTone of them, as far as I
know, had taken any part in the early disturb-
ances, and none of them were connected with the
border troubles during the war. I do not now
recall a single military man among the killed,
except the seventeen unarmed recruits who were
shot in their camp, almost in their beds, at the
first onset. The guerillas shot the men they
found, without knowing who they were or car-
ing what they were. In other raids plunder had
been the prominent thing ; in the Lawrence raid
it was destruction and slaughter. The amount
of property they carried off was small compared
with what they destroyed.

That Lawrence was not warned of Quantrill's
comino^ is one of the strano^est fatalities con-
nected with this fearful event. Quantrill passed
into Kansas five miles from Aubrey, w^here a

Incidents of the Raid 213

small cavalry force was stationed under Captain
Pike. Instead of following them or sending
word to Lawrence, Captain Pike sent word to
Kansas City, which delayed all pursuit until too
late to avail. People along the line of march
who saw them either did not know who they
were or did not know where they were going.
Two or three efforts were made to get some
word to Lawrence people, but they all miscar-
ried. Not a whisper of their coming reached
the doomed town. The surprise was as com-
plete as it could be. When they came, the people
were either asleep or just rising from their beds.

CHAPTER XIII

EECOVERY AND RESTORATION

How long the raiders were in town can only
be a matter of conjecture. Of the scores I have
talked with on the subject, I have never found
one who noted either the time of their coming or
the time of their going. They came in just be-
fore sunrise, in the gray of the dawn. As they
rode past my house, not more than three hun-
dred yards away, I could see the flash of their
pistols and could also distinguish their forms and
their clothing. It was therefore at that hour of
the morning when it is "not day, and not
night " — a little before five o'clock. They prob-
ably left about nine, being in town about four
hours. They left suddenly in the midst of their
work of destruction. Their pickets on the hill
saw Major Plumb's force coming over the
prairie, some ten miles to the eastward. Some
signal was given, and the men came galloping
in from all quarters, and in a few minutes the
band was together, and on the homeward march.

214

Recovery and Restoration 215

As Major Plumb was coming from the east, they
struck off to the south so as to avoid him. It
was fortunate they left as they did. The town
was at their mercy, and they were burning as
fast as they could kindle the fires. They left a
number of fires burning, which the women at
once extinguished. In half an hour more there
would hardly have been a house standing in
town.

As they moved leisurely southward, they kept
up their burning along the line of their march,
but did not kill many, as the men had warn-
ing and had time to get out of their way.
The last man killed was old Mr. Kothrock, a
Dunkard preacher, living some ten miles south
of Lawrence. As they passed his house a gang
of them went in and ordered Mrs. Eothrock to
get them some breakfast. She cooked them a
good breakfast, which they ate with evident
relish. After rising from the table they in-
quired about the old gentleman, who was in the
room. Some one told them he was a preacher.
" We intend to kill all preachers," they said, and
at once shot him, and left him for dead. He
was quite an old gentleman and very highly
esteemed by those who knew him.

2i6 Pioneer Days in Kansas

As soon as the raiders were out of the town
the men of Lawrence came from their hiding-
places, and all who could get guns and horses
started in pursuit. It was the first time it had
been possible for half a dozen of them to get to-
gether. There were probably a hundred or more,
mounted and armed in all sorts of ways. They
overtook the rebels about twelve miles from
town. Lieutenant John K. Rankin was in com-
mand, by request of General Lane, who was with
the pursuers. Rankin ordered a charge, and the
company dashed forward. But the brave lieu-
tenant soon found himself alone, as every horse
had a gait of his own, and the company were
scattered along the line of advance in a very un-
warlike fashion.

The appearance of Major Plumb with a troop
of mounted men just at this time, reveals another
side of this story. When Quantrill crossed the
state line at Aubrey the night before, word was
sent to the military authorities at Kansas City.
General Ewing, who was in command of the
post, was . at Leavenworth, but the telegraph
operator could not be found, and no communica-
tion could be had with him. This consumed a
good part of the evening. At last Major Plumb,

Recovery and Restoration 217

the next in command, got together what horse-
men he could, and started in pursuit. It was now
about eleven o'clock, and Quantrill was six hours
in advance. About nine o'clock the next morning
Plumb's force was some eight miles from Law-
rence, and their appearance was the signal for
the raiders' leaving. They took the road south
so as to avoid him coming from the east. Major
Plumb soon learned of this movement, and
struck across the prairie westward to intercept
them. A short time after having been joined
by some men from Lawrence, he came in sight
of them. As soon as the rebels saw them they
ceased their depredations and moved on rap-
idly. They rode in more compact order, pre-
pared to repel an attack, but they committed
no more offences. When night came on they
reached the Missouri border, and all scattered to
their hiding-places. Plumb's men were newly
mounted and no match for the desperate men
they encountered. Had he attacked them there
might have been another tragedy more startling
than any that had occurred,

No description can give an idea of the scene in
Lawrence after the raiders had left. The business
section of the town was entirely destroyed, and

2i8 Pioneer Days in Kansas

a large portion of the dwelling-houses. Those
homes which were not burned had most of them
been ransacked and robbed, and their condition
increased the sense of desolation rather than
relieved it. The dead were lying everywhere,
and the varied horrors of the massacre were on
everybody's tongue. Massachusetts Street was
one long line of blackened walls and cellars
filled with ashes and embers. The dead lay
along the sidewalks, many of them so burned
that they could not be recognized. Here and
there among the embers could be seen the bones
of those who had been consumed in the fire.
Around one corner lay seventeen bodies. In an-
other spot five bodies were piled in a heap. The
undermost man of these was alive, and had lain
under the dead for four hours, and so saved him-
self from a fatal shot. He was severely wounded,
but recovered. Groups of women were seen
here and there, going back and forth, bearing
water to the wounded, or covering up the dead
with sheets. 'Now and then you would see a
woman wailing over her dead husband. But as
a rule there was little wailing and few tears. It
was beyond all that. So many had been killed
that every man we met on the street seemed to

MAJOR PRESTON B. PLUMB,
Who led the pursuit of Quantrill ; afterwards United States Senator

Recovery and Restoration 219

come from the dead. The first salutation was :
" Why, are you alive ? " The embers were still
red, the fires were still burning, as we began to
gather the dead and wounded from among the
ruins.

The work of gathering up and burying the
dead soon began. From every quarter they
were brought in, until the floor of the Meth-
odist church, which was taken as a sort of
morgue, was covered with the bodies. In almost
eVery house could be heard the wail of the widow
and orphan. The work of burial was long and
wearying. Coffins could not be procured. Many
carpenters were killed, and most of the living
had lost their tools. But they rallied nobly, and
worked night and day, making pine and walnut
boxes, fastening them together with the burnt
nails gathered from the ruins of the stores. It
sounded harsh to the ears of friends to have the
lid nailed over the bodies of their loved ones ;
but it was the best that could be done. Thus
the work went on for three days, till one hun-
dred and twenty-two were deposited in the
cemetery, and many others in their own yards.
Brief services were held whenever possible —
sometimes in a home, sometimes beside the

220 Pioneer Days in Kansas

grave, sometimes on the street. Sometimes a
number of bodies were brought together, and a
brief service held for all. In one case a trench
was dug and fifty- two bodies laid side by side,
and Rev. Louis Bodwell offered a prayer at the
head of the trench. It was over a week before
all the dead -were buried — a w^eek of almost un-
interrupted funeral services.

So we laid our dead away, and turned our
attention to the living. The Sabbath following,
we held a service in the old stone Congregational
church. There was a large congregation, con-
sisting mostly of women and children. Most of
'them had only the clothes they had escaped with
on the morning of the raid. The men were in
their w^orking clothes — some of them in their
shirt-sleeves, not having saved a coat. The
women came, some in sunbonnets, some in
hoods, some with handkerchiefs or shawls over
their heads. It deepened the impressiveness of
the scene to know that a large portion of the
women and children were newly made widows
and orphans. Rev. Grovesnor C. Morse, of
Emporia, was with us that morning, and assisted
in the service. We had no sermon, in fact no
remarks were made by either of us. Neither of

-::-^J&J T>,y.aMP ag»K-te. ■».:-' ,jw;av

GROVESNOR C. MORSE

THE NEW YORK

PUBLIC UBRARyl

A6TO?*. LENOX \ND

Recovery and Restoration 221

us felt that we could say anything, or that any-
thing oughf to be said. We had a brief devo-
tional service, and dismissed the congregation,
and they went away in silence. Of the service
itself, I remember little beyond its profound
solemnity. I remember, however, Mr. Morse's
Scripture lesson. It was the Seventy-ninth
Psalm, which seemed to have been written for
the occasion. Everybody was startled at its
fitness. It seemed as if Brother Morse was as
really inspired in selecting it, as the author had
been in writing it. "O God, the heathen are
come into thine inheritance. The dead bodies of
thy servants have they given to be meat unto
the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints
unto the beasts of the earth. Their blood have
they shed like water round about Jerusalem ; and
there was none to bury them." ]^o one in the
audience found any fault that morning with the
imprecatory psalms.

In the midst of all this sorrow and desolation
there was added the constant sense of exposure
and peril. That three hundred men could pounce
upon us without a whisper of warning was a
revelation. We could not guess what might
come next. Nightly alarms kept us continually

2 22 Pioneer Davs in Kansas

on the quiver. The Sunday night after the raid
occurred the wildest scene I ever Avitnessed. I
was standing at the gate of a friend, not far
from the river-bank. All at once a piercing
shriek rose on the night air. A stream of men,
women and children came flying past, without
hats and with hair streaming, and crying, '' Run
for vour life I Pain for vour life ! Thev are on
US again ! " It was so sudden and so wild that
the panic seized me, and 1 ran with the crowd
toward the river-bank, about two hundred
yards awav. Mv senses soon be^-an to return,
and the ludicrousness of the situation came over
me. I was running away without knowing
where I was ^roino^ or what the dancrer was. I
migrht be in its verv track. I went back and
walked over to the town. There a number of
men had come together and they gave me a
musket, and we remained a couple of hours,
while some horsemen went to learn the occasion
of the alarm. Thev found that a farmer two
or three miles below the town had been burn-
ing some straw. Some one, seeing the flames,
mounted his horse and galloped into town,
screaming:. '• Thev are comincr ; Thev are com-
ins: ag-ain ! Run for vour lives 1 Run for vour

Recovery and Restoration 223

lives ! " And he that heard ran, and hallooed.
Most of those who ran did not come back to
learn the contradiction of the report. Some
crossed the river, others hid themselves in the
bushes by the river-bank, or in the corn-fields
outside the town. A cold, drizzly rain set in
during the night, and many of the fugitives
stayed out till midnight, and some, women as
well as men, remained out till morning, in the
cold rain, fancying all the while that the town
was being sacked again. The horror of that
Sunday night was in some respects worse than
the raid itself. During that there was no panic
and no outcry. It was upon us without warn-
ing, and there was no escape. We could simply
wait and accept whatever might come. Every-
body was calm and quiet. But these alarms
gave room for the imagination to play, and for
fear and panic to do their perfect work. In
manj^ respects panic is worse than peril.

A few days after the raid, about ten o'clock
one night, Mrs. Cordley and I were summoned
in haste to go and see one of the wounded, a
member of my church, who was dying. "We
hastened over and found him in great agony
and remained quite a while to sustain his faith

224 Pioneer Days in Kansas

and lighten the dark passage. About midnight
we started home. It was nearly a mile we had
to go. Not a soul was stirring on the streets,
and not a light was to be seen in lantern or
window. All was still and dark. We had to
go the whole length of Massachusetts Street, the
main street, which had been all destroyed. The
sidewalks were burned or blocked up with debris,
and we took the middle of the road. The walls
of the brick and stone buildings were still stand-
ing, black, gloomy and threatening. The smoke
was rising from the ruins, and in the cavern-
ous openings between the walls, and in the
deep cellars, the fires were still glowing. The
odor of burning flesh, with all its sickening sug-
gestiveness, was heavy on the air. We passed
the corner where the seventeen dead bodies lay
a few days before, and other spots where I had
seen the dead half consumed or piled one upon
another. All the tragedies of that street came
freshly to mind. I am not at all superstitious,
and I have no fear of the night, but the op-
pressiveness of that midnight walk is as fresh
in my mind to-day as it ever was. It seemed as
if another mile would have been more than
could be borne. I was glad to get home, and I

Recovery and Restoration 225

did not care to take any more midnight walks
among the ruins.

Some have asked what the people could do,
stripped of homes and business and everything,
as they were ? Each did as he could, and all
helped each other, and neighboring towns were
very prompt in their kindness. Those who had
homes shared them with friends who had none,
and every house that remained did its ut-
most to meet the pressing want. I suppose our
own experience Avould fairly represent that of
others, except possibly that we fared better than
many. We were fortunate in being able to
secure two of the four rooms in a small stone
house, another family occupying the correspond-
ing rooms. One room was down-stairs and was
about twelve feet square ; the other room was a
very low, half-story chamber with one very
small window looking to the north. These two
rooms easily held what little furniture we were
able to get. I cannot say that the associations
were cheerful. I had conducted three funerals
in this same house but a few days before. Just
back of us were the ashes of Mr. Fitch's house,
where he had been shot and burned in his own
doorway. JSTine persons had been killed along

226 Pioneer Days in Kansas

the same block with varying degrees of brutality
and horror. It was around this same house that
Mrs. Riggs had been dragged as she hung to the
bridle of the murderer's horse as he was seeking
to kill her husband. A superstitious person
might have repeated Tarn O'Shanter's sensations
as he rode toward old Alio way's kirk. But the
house gave shelter, and w^e slept " the sleep of
the just."

We managed to make a comfortable home in
those two rooms. The second day after the
raid, friends in Leavenworth sent us over a cook
stove, three hickorj^ bottomed chairs, and half a
dozen iron knives and forks. These, with a few-
odd dishes saved from the fire, served for furni-
ture. The day after w^e were settled in our
rooms, w^e were surprised by a visit from my
classmate, Parker, whose house we had left but
a few days before. He had a big satchel full of
things the Wyandotte friends had sent for our
comfort. As soon as he had heard of our dis-
aster, he took the stage and hastened over to see
how we were faring. He spent a day or two
with us and cheered us very much. September 4
Mr. Bod well made us another visit, and some
time after w^rote an account of the situation. I

Recovery and Restoration 227

take the liberty to insert a paragraph from his
article :

" September 4th I rode over to Lawrence. I
found Brother Cordley and his family in a small
house, to which a kind neighbor had invited
them for shelter. He was in his study, a little
half -story, or attic room, with one small window.
From this window could be seen the still smok-
ing site of his ruined home, where lay all that
remained of his library, sermons, clothing, me-
mentoes of dead friends — in short, all his perish-
able goods. He was preparing his first sermon
for his stricken and mourning church. His
study table was a dry-goods box from which
* relief stores' had recently been taken, and his
study chair was a shoe box which in size and
height matched the table very well. His library
was small, select, and borrowed, and consisted of
a pocket Bible, and a small Bible concordance,
both worth, I should think, one dollar and sixty
cents. But if all else — home, furniture, and
books — were borrowed, his text was given him.
' The Morning Cometh ' was his watchword,
written on the first page. In its light he saw
the ruins ; across its sunshine drifted the smoke ;
on its breeze whirled the ashes ; but God, who

228 Pioneer Days in Kansas

had been there in the darkness, had not left at
the dawn. This was God's promise to every
heart, the sure coming of that day of the Lord, the
morning light of God's unchangeable promise."

This sketch would not be complete without a
mention of the universal sympathy which was
everywhere awakened and which did so much to
lighten the blow. All the provision stores in
Lawrence were destroyed, and probably not two
days' supplies remained in the whole town.
Large numbers had nothing left whatever.
Those who had a little for themselves, had none
to spare for neighbors. But as soon as the raid-
ers were out of town, the kind-hearted farmers
round about hastened in with wagon-loads of
vegetables, and such things as they had, and
dealt them out to all who came and called for
them. The second day after, great loads of pro-
visions and clothing came over from Leaven-
worth, and as soon as it was possible, other
towns sent in their aid. The city of St. Louis
contributed some ten thousand dollars to aid
those who were trying to rebuild. The mer-
chants found ready and abundant credit to any
extent they desired in restocking their stores.
From all over the land there were words of sym-

Recovery and Restoration 22g

pathy and encouragement, and with the words
came abundant and substantial help. But for
this aid it would not have been possible to re-
build the town, and a large portion of the people
would have been compelled to leave.

The number killed was never exactly known.
About one hundred and forty-three were found
and buried. A few of the wounded afterward
died. Several were missing, and as they never
returned, it was supposed that they had perished
and had been consumed in the burning buildings
where they fell. There may have been others
killed and consumed who were strangers. The
whole number could not vary much from one
hundred and fifty. More likely it was over
than under that number. The population of
Lawrence was less than two thousand. A large
number of the men were in the army. It is evi-
dent that the proportion of the men killed was
greater than in the bloodiest battles of the war.
It was estimated that there were left at least
eighty widows, and two hundred and fifty
orphans.

The destruction of property was very great.
All of the buildings, about seventy-five, and
their contents, in the business section of the

230 Pioneer Days in Kansas

town, were entirely destroyed with but one ex-
ception. [N'early one-half of the residences were
also burned — almost all those in the central
portion of the town. Along the banks of the
river, and around the outskirts, most of the
houses were left. A good portion of those
which remained were robbed of everything valu-
able and many of them partiall}^ burned. Be-
sides this the women, as well as the men who
survived, were nearl}^ all robbed of their money,
watches and jewelry. A very conservative esti-
mate placed the entire loss at §1,500,000.

The first feeling after it was all over was one
of despondency. A great many felt that there
could be no security for life or property after
this, and it was madness to attempt to rebuild.
The prophets of evil were present, as usual, and
predicted that Lawrence had received her death-
blow and would never recover. But more cour-
ageous counsels prevailed, and when the first
stunning effect of the blow was over, the com-
mon feeling was that Lawrence must be rebuilt
at all hazards, and rebuilt at once. Thev insisted
that every house must be replaced, and every
business block restored. In an incrediblv brief
time this purpose began to materialize. The

Recovery and Restoration 231

most marked instance of faith and pluck was
that displayed by the firm of Kidenour & Baker.
They had just received a stock of groceries,
the largest they had ever brought on. The
building and goods were all destroyed. Mr.
Eidenour's house was burned, and Mr. Baker
was so seriously shot that his life was despaired
of for several days. Yet, before a week passed
work was commenced toward a new building,
and business had been resumed, in a small way,
in a little shanty back of the store, which had
escaped the fire. Many times as I passed the
place I stood and looked at the workmen clear-
ing away the ruins. The fire was not yet out,
and as they came up the incline of the cellar
their barrows would be blazing from the live
coals they were wheeling. In the line of uncon-
querable pluck, it surpassed anything I ever saw.
It is not a strange thing that this firm prospered
largely, and is now one of the leading grocery
firms in the whole West. Simpson Brothers
were bankers. Their building and all in it were
destroyed, and also their home. The safe, how-
ever, could not be opened, and its contents were
unharmed. They at once put up a cheap tempo-
rary wooden building inside the foundation

232 Pioneer Days in Kansas

walls. In a very tew days the building was
ready for use, and they resumed business. Then
they began at once to erect a large brick build-
ing around their temporary shelter, and when
the brick building was completed they took out
the wooden frame. In a month work was going
on all along the business street, and several resi-
dences had been commenced. Before winter
came, Lawrence had assumed the appearance of
a live town again. Many buildings were com-
pleted, and a number more were well under way.
With rare exceptions the people stood by the
town. A few broken families were compelled to
leave, but the rest made it a matter of conscience
to " stay by the stuff " till the town was restored.
All the while they were working to rebuild the
town, they were compelled to defend it. Every
man took his turn in guarding, and those not on
guard stood ready to rally at a moment's notice.
As did the Jews under Nehemiah, so did these
men. "Every one with one of his hands
wrought in the work, and with the other held
a weapon. And so builded." The men were
organized into five military companies, and the
city built five block-houses in different parts.
Each company had its block-house, and a portion

Recovery and Restoration 233

of each company slept in it every night. This
was kept up till winter removed the danger, and
it was resumed in the spring. The heaviest part
of the strain, however, was relieved after a few
weeks. About October, 1863, the military au-
thorities sent two companies of regulars for the
protection of Lawrence, and they remained until
the close of the war. They threw up earth-
works on the hill overlooking the town, and
placed there several pieces of artillery. These
troops were under command of Major E. G.
Ross, afterward United States senator, and later
governor of New Mexico. No child was ever
more delighted to " see the soldiers " than were
the people of Lawrence when these troops came
in. Major Ross, who was a very genial gentle-
man, was soon the most popular man in the
place.

The second Sabbath after the raid, August 30,
we resumed our regular church services, and I
tried to preach. As usual, the text was the best
part of the sermon. It was a portion of God's
comforting message to his afflicted people, sent
through the prophet Isaiah : " For a small mo-
ment have I forsaken thee ; but with great mer-
cies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid

234 Pioneer Days in Kansas

my face from thee for a moment ; but with ever-
lasting kindness will I have mercy on thee." It
is found in the fifty-fourth chapter of Isaiah.

In writing this account of the raid I looked
up the old manuscript of that first sermon. I
had not looked it over since I preached it more
than forty years ago. When I prepared it the
fires were still burning in many of the buildings ;
the dead were not yet all buried ; not a blow
had yet been struck toward rebuilding the
town. I wrote the sermon on a dry-goods box,
for I had no table ; I sat on a shoe box, for I
had no chair. I read my text from a borrowed
Bible, for I had no Bible of my own. I was in
a little half-story hired chamber, for I had no
home of my own. The one little window of my
room looked directlj^ out upon the ashes of what
had been my home a few days before. Most of
my people were in the same condition as myself.
As I looked over the sermon, after the lapse of
forty years, it brought back to my mind not
only the condition of things, but the state of
mind in which we were. The conclusion of the
sermon expressed the faith and purpose which
were in the hearts of all. The final paragraph
of the sermon shall conclude this sketch :

Recovery and Restoration 23 J

" Having stood for nine years as the outpost
of freedom, shall Lawrence be deserted now ?
Shall we leave these broken walls to the owls
and the bats, and leave the new-made graves
of these martyrs to be torn up by the wild
beasts of the field ? Shall history say that free-
dom here sought a home, and was driven out
by the minions of slavery ? No ! my friends.
Lawrence may seem dead, but she will rise again
in a more glorious resurrection. Her ranks have
been thinned by death, but let us ' close up,'
and hold the ground. The light of liberty which
shall shine from her rising walls will yet pene-
trate the mists of our neighboring state, and
we shall *see eye to eye.' The day is coming,
when they who needlessly desert us now, will
be ashamed to tell the date of their departure.

" The conflict may not be ended, but the vic-
tory must be ours. We may perish, but the
principles for which we contend will live.

^'For freedom's battle, once begun,
Bequeathed by bleeding sire to son,
Though baffled oft, is ever won."

CHAPTER XIY
peice's invasion

Peice's invasion gained its significance to
Lawrence people from Quantrill's invasion a
year before. They did not suppose that Price
would do as Quantrill did. He was a general in
the regular Confederate service, and his troops
were a part of the regular Confederate army.
They would observe the usual rules of war, and
would not be guilty of the barbarities which
characterized Quantrill's raid. But after Price
and his army, there would follow the entire
guerilla force of Missouri. After Price and his
army had rendered the country helpless, these
guerillas would follow and finish the work.
The people of Lawrence felt that the coming of
Price would involve a repetition of the terrible
scenes of 1863. The rumor of his coming, there-
fore, was received with serious alarm. The ex-
periences of the past year had made them pecul-
iarly sensitive to alarming reports.

The winter of 1863-4 was a very severe one.

236

Price's Invasion 237

The people of Lawrence were as ill prepared to
meet its severity as were the first settlers in
1855. The work of rebuilding had been pushed
with all possible energy, but the people were
very far from being prepared for a hard winter.
The supply of clothing and bedding was very
scant, and people accustomed to spacious and
comfortable homes were compelled to live in
very contracted quarters. They were glad to
find shelter in single rooms, in garrets and base-
ments, or unfinished houses — wherever they could
find cover. It had been a trying year, such as
very few people ever pass through. We then
regarded ourselves as fortunate to secure two
small rooms, one of them a low, half-story
chamber, with a little window in the gable.
Even these we could not retain. About New
Year the owner needed them, and we had to
move. The best we could do was to secure one
room, in the north wing of a house, exposed to
all the storms of that severe winter. The day
we moved the thermometer stood at eight de-
grees below zero. Fortunately we had not much
to move, and the job was soon done. A man
with a wheelbarrow moved all our effects in
about two hours. This single room had to servi<

238 Pioneer Days in Kansas

us for parlor, kitchen, bedroom and study. It
was exposed on three sides to the storm, and we
could keep comfortable only by making a little
enclosure round the stove with quilts. It was a
long, dreary winter, and the circumstances did
not promote any large degree of cheerfulness
among the people. It might be called " the
winter of our discontent." But all the people
staj^ed by because they had pledged themselves
to restore Lawrence to its old place.

But spring came at last, and things began to
assume a more cheerful aspect. Building was
resumed in all parts of the town, and Lawrence
began to look somewhat like her former self.
But with the return of spring came also a re-
newal of the perils and alarms of the former
season. With the coming back of the leaves
the bushwhackers returned to Missouri, and re-
sumed their work of terrorizing the country.
Eumors of threatened raids were frequent, and
it was no uncommon thing for the men to be
called out at midnight by some alarming report.
All these reports proved false, but so had those
of former 3^ears, except one. We had learned
that the thing could be done. We had found
out that it was possible for a body of horsemen

Price's Invasion 239

from Missouri to reach Lawrence without ob-
struction, and pounce upon the people without
warning. Rumors therefore meant more than
they formerly did, and we were not disposed to
treat lightly even the most unlikely reports.
The slightest alarm would bring all the people
to their feet. The firing of a gun at night, or
the galloping of a horseman through the streets,
would bring all the men from their houses to
their places of defense. Any unusual noise at
night would startle the town. For example,
one night about one o'clock the whistle in one of
the mills began to blow, and it continued blow-
ing for an unaccountably long time. After it
had blown beyond the usual time, I felt sure that
something was wrong. Hastil}^ dressing, I
seized my Spencer rifle and ran toward the
sound. I could hear men running down differ-
ent streets from all directions. The whistle
proved to be in the mill across the river, and
when we came together near the bank, we
learned the cause of the trouble. The machinery
had become deranged, and the whistle could
not be stopped. We parted with a good laugh,
and were laughed at next day by the sleepy-
heads who had not been awakened. But we

240 Pioneer Days in Kansas

were just as ready to rally the next time at
the slightest call. The company to which I be-
longed was a rifle company, and comprised a
large portion of the business and professional
men of the place. Instead of accepting the
muskets furnished by the state, we had armed
ourselves with the most improved repeating
rifles, mostly Spencer rifles. Our block-house
was the most exposed of the five, being on the
track of Quantrill's former entrance. Any
force coming from Missouri would naturally
pass us.

It was in this state of mind, and in this condi-
tion of things that the rumors of Price's threat-
ened coming began to reach us. They meant
more to us than they would to people in ordi-
nary circumstances. We had had an object les-
son as to what a rebel invasion involved. There
was no thought of abandoning the ground, but
we all felt that the situation was very serious.
If Price should sweep over Kansas, Lawrence,
just being rebuilt by such desperate efforts,
would be laid waste again. It was these rea-
sons which gave Price's invasion such signifi-
cance to us. We read the future in the light of
the past.

Price's Invasion 241

The invasion of Missouri by Price was no sud-
den freak of the Confederate general. It was a
long contemplated movement on his part. All
summer long rumors were afloat pointing in this
direction. Intercepted letters, reports from refu-
gees from rebel lines, all told the same story.
General Price was coming to Missouri, to recover
the state and hold it for the Confederacy.

The latter part of September, Price began to
move northward, but deflected toward the east.
He captured Pilot Knob, and then moved
up near St. Louis. After threatening St. Louis
for a while, he turned westward and invested
Jefferson City, the capital of the state. With-
out any serious attempt to capture the place,
however, he raised the siege on the eighth day of
October, and marched westward with his whole
force. Whatever his intentions had been thus
far, it was very plain what he was aiming at now.
He was coming to Kansas to chastise her for the
part she had taken in the struggle. Lawrence
was in his direct line of march, and must be in-
cluded in his plan. It was said that Price had
fifteen thousand trained troops, and nineteen can-
non. Besides these there were some five thou-
sand guerillas. To oppose this strong force

242 Pioneer Days in Kansas

General Curtis had about three thousand men,
and eighteen cannon, at Kansas City. This was
a small force to withstand an armv of fifteen
thousand disciplined troops. The only hope was
that he could hold them in check until other
forces from below could come up to their assist-
ance.

The situation in Kansas, therefore, was very
serious, and the alarm very general. For Price
to march through the state meant desolation and
destruction. The day Price left Jefferson City,
the governor issued a proclamation calling out
the militia of the state, and putting the state un-
der martial law. The proclamation was sent
everywhere by special messengers, and in four
days sixteen thousand men had responded, and
ten thousand militia were on the border, ready to
meet Price. The proclamation made no excep-
tions. " Every man from sixteen to sixty " was
the order, and it was very generally obeyed. It
was not a matter of state pride, or of patriotism
merely ; every man had a personal interest in
the issue. Price must be beaten or Kansas would
be desolated. The ranks of the militia compan-
ies were full, and everybody rallied, and rallied
promptly. There were merchants and ministers,

Price's Invasion 243

lawyers and doctors, laboring men and men of
leisure, all shouldering their muskets, and taking
their places in the ranks. ]^o one asked to be
excused no matter what his emergency might be.
The public emergency towered above all private
considerations. One gentleman, a banker, had
his wedding day set for the second day after the
general rally. But not even the old Jewish ex-
emption availed, and he marched away with his
company, leaving his expectant bride to wait

u

Till this cruel war was o'er."

Price, however, kindly delayed his coming, and
on Wednesday this gentleman secured a furlough
and came home, and was married at the appointed
time. He then returned to the camp, and took
his place with his comrades. There was no dis-
tinction of class or condition. Solon O. Thacher
of Lawrence had been judge of the district court,
and was at this time a candidate for governor of
the state, to be voted on in a few days. But he
went with his company to the front, and took
his place in the ranks. So general was the re-
sponse, that a gentleman traveling through the
country a few days later and coming a distance
of seventy-five miles, saw only two men in the

244 Pioneer Days in Kansas

whole distance, and they were too old for service.
A few detachments were left at exposed points
for home defense, but at other places the old men
and boys organized for a home guard, and were
kept on duty every day.

The news of the governor's proclamation was
received at Lawrence Sunday noon, October- 9.
It met the people at the close of the morning
service in the churches. All further services for
that day were suspended, and little was thought
of but the common danger, and the common de-
fense. The militar}^ companies were ordered to
assemble Monday morning on the plateau west of
the town with their arms and ammunition, and
whatever else might be necessary for the march
and the camp. The men responded promptly,
and were sworn into the service of the United
States. They were then ordered to march, and
all supposed they were going to Kansas City,
and had bidden their families good-bye. But as
they were marching down Massachusetts Street,
our rifle company and one other company were
cut off from the column, and marched to their
block-houses. We then learned that these two
companies were to remain for the defense of the
town. The other three companies went on to

Price's Invasion 245

Kansas City where they remained in camp till
the end of the campaign. The Lawrence Brass
Band, which dated back to the earliest settle-
ment, went with the Kansas City contingent, and
enlivened the camp with their music. The com-
panies which stayed in Lawrence were under
strict military discipline, remained under arms
continually, and were supplied with government
rations. We left our homes and camped in our
block-houses, and did guard duty like any other
soldiers. We were ordered to sleep on our arms
every night, ready for emergencies and surprises.
This continued for two weeks or more while
we were waiting for Price to appear.

Meanwhile nothing could be learned of Price
or his army. He left Jefferson City October 8,
and since then he had given no sound or sign.
His army lay somewhere in the great bend of the
Missouri River, near Booneville, but just where
he was, or what he was doing, no one seemed to
know. For nearly two weeks his movements
were involved in mystery, and all enquiry was
baffled. Some few began to think the whole
thing was a gigantic hoax practised on them for
some political purpose. But a more common feel-
ing was that Price and his army were quietly slip-

246 Pioneer Days in Kansas

ping a^yay, and that nothing would come of the
Price invasion. It was a common remark that
we should hear no more of Price. The militia
at Kansas City became restless, and *' wanted to
go home and attend to their fall plowing." Most
of them, however, took it all good-naturedly, and
got what they could out of their experience. It
was giving them a taste of real military life, and
some little experience in military drill.

Lawrence was forty miles from what we called
the seat of war, but felt just as intensely as if
she were in the focus of it. All business was
suspended, and all work was laid aside, and just
one thing occupied every one's thought. The
companies remaining in Lawrence were required
to be in camp just as much as if they were at the
front, only their block-houses served them for
camps. They drew rations like regular soldiers,
and became familiar with government bacon and
split peas. Old Government Java was kept
boiling in the camp kettle, and if it was not
always clear, it was always strong and hot.
Guard duty was exacted as regularly as of vet-
erans, and every belated traveler coming into
town was compelled to '* Dismount, advance
three paces and give the countersign." In de-

Price's Invasion 247

fault of this he was presented to the " officer of
the guard." They had frequent drills, and were
put through all the ordinary military evolutions,
and were acquiring something of a soldierly step.
Frequent target shooting developed their pro-
ficiency as marksmen. To most of them the
handling of guns Avas no new experience. They
were somewhat of an awkward squad, but when
it came to shooting they were at home. " An
October freeze " added to the variety of their
life, if not to the comfort of it. One night two
or three inches of snow fell, and these "^ro
tern " soldiers found themselves covered with an
extra blanket of snow in the morning, not pro-
vided for in the regulations. The block-houses
were built to keep out bullets, but were not proof
against snowflakes. The " cold snap " continued
two or three days, and part of the time was quite
severe. But this only added spice to their mo-
notonous life while they were " waiting for
Price."

October 20 Price was found. He was only
two days from Kansas City, coming rapidly
westward with his whole force. The next day
he attacked the outposts of the Union army
below Kansas City, and the third day, Saturday,

248 Pioneer Days in Kansas

engaged the whole line. He forced the Union
troops back at every point, and in the after-
noon WRS practically master of the field. The
Union forces were driven in upon Kansas City,
and it seemed as if thev could do little more than
defend that post. It seemed as if nothing could
hinder Price's army from sweeping over Kansas.
About five o'clock, however, there came a turn
in aff'airs which meant as much to Kansas as the
coming of Blucher meant to the English at
Waterloo. That was the coming of General
Pleasanton with five thousand fresh troops from
below, and their attacking Price's army in the
rear. This turned the rebel victory into a
defeat, and changed the entire situation in an
hour. Judge Solon O. Thacher, who was with
the Kansas troops at Kansas City, once described
this scene with great vividness. " About five
o'clock Saturdav afternoon, October 22d. 1864, I
was standing with some officers of the Union
army on a high knoll near Kansas City, looking
over the field. Our boys were everywhere
fighting bi^avely, but along the whole line they
were being slowly pressed back bv Price's men.
He would soon be in position to detach a body
of his troops to overrun Kansas. We all knew

Price's Invasion 249

what that meant. Home and all we held dear
would soon be at the mercy of this conquering
army. Looking eastward at this moment we saw
a great cloud of dust rising a few miles below
Kansas City. We could only see it was moving
our way, and we were sure it was a body of
troops. Who could it be? Was it reinforce-
ments for Price to complete his victory, or was
it Pleasanton's cavalry coming to our relief ?
We watched the cloud of dust anxiously as it
moved rapidly up the river. After a little they
came up to the rear of the rebel army. Then we
saw them charge upon the rebel lines. We now
knew it was Pleasanton, with his five thousand
veteran cavalry, and the fortunes of battle were
changed." He had been following Price ever
since he left Jeiferson City. His men soon
broke through the rebel lines, and joined the
Union forces in front. Before night the rebel
advance was checked. The next morning the
Union forces renewed the battle at the earliest
dawn, and Price and his army were driven
toward Arkansas.

At Lawrence of course we were in a state
of suspense all this time. We had our two
companies of home guards holding the block-

250 Pioneer Days in Kansas

houses, and besides these there were two com-
panies of regulars with two or three pieces of
artillery, entrenched on the hill overlooking the
road the enemy would come. This was enough to
repel any guerilla attack, but would not count for
much against such a force as Price would send.

There was no serious alarm until Saturday,
when we learned that the rebels had turned the
right of the Union army, and were pressing them
back upon Kansas City. We knew there was
nothing to prevent their coming to us. In a
few hours the enemy might be upon us. There
was no telegraph line, and we depended for
information on messengers and stragglers. We
knew nothing of Pleasanton's coming until the
next day. People who had just rebuilt their
homes had to face the probability of losing them
again. In order not to be stripped of every-
thing, as they were before, the people sent boxes
of goods into the country to be out of reach.
The farmers about who were in town kindly
took charge of these goods, and carried them out
where they would be safe. Many buried their
valuables in their gardens. About three o'clock
in the afternoon a train of empty government
wagons passed through the town. The mer-

SOLON O. THACHER

Price's Invasion 251

chants obtained permission of the authorities to
load these wagons with goods from their stores,
that they might be taken out of the reach of
danger. I^early all the dry goods and clothing
in town were loaded in these wagons, and were
sent across the river toward the northwest, with
the simple order, " Keep out of the way of
Price's army." The men were mostly released
from military duty during the afternoon, that
they might secure what they could in their
homes, and in their places of business. The
women were busy all day packing goods, and
hiding things where they might be found if the
town should be burned, as it had been a year
before. Mrs. Cordley, I remember, sent out two
boxes of household goods and clothing into the
country, besides hiding what she could in the
yard. As night drew near all the men came
together and took their places. It was ordered
that the lights and fires be all put out, and that
every man should lie on his arms. We had
heard nothing of the change in the aspect of
things at Kansas City through the coming of
Pleasanton. The chances seemed that the rebels
would be upon us before- morning. All through
the night stragglers kept coming up from the

2^1 Pioneer Days in Kansas

battle-field, and very naturally they all gave a
gloomy account, as stragglers always do. At
three o'clock in the morning we were all ordered
out. A report had come that the rebels were
within three hours' march of us. As no con-
firmation came, after an hour or two we were
permitted to lie down again. It was a night to
be remembered, a night of fears and gloomy
reports. It was the more gloomy for the fact
that no definite information whatever could be
obtained. Rumors were thick, but they could
neither be confirmed nor denied. The croakers
found abundant employment in exaggerating
every rumor, and expatiating on every fear.
The utter uncertainty of the situation added to
the gloom. If we were to be attacked, we could
form no idea whether it was to be by five
hundred men or five thousand. Everybody, how-
ever, kept his place, and there was a general de-
termination to stand bv and do the best we could.
In the morning the prospect brightened. We
had learned nothing more, but it was daylight,
and the gloomy predictions of the night had not
been fulfilled. Price had not appeared, and we
began to think he would not come. Soon after
we learned of Pleasanton's arrival, and the

Price's Invasion 253

change in affairs at Kansas City. The reports
were very meager, but they were enough to
relieve the tension of the last twenty-four hours.
As the day went on, fuller reports came. "We
knew that Price was defeated and we were safe.
The Sabbath that began in fears ended in peace
and rejoicing. The next morning we learned
that the victory was complete, and that our
comrades were coming home from Kansas City.
We went to the river-bank to meet them.
Peturning heroes never were welcomed with
more genuine rejoicing than were these our
comrades as they marched up the street. The
old Lawrence band was at the head of the col-
umn, playing:

* ' When Johnny comes marching home. ' '

They were dusty and bronzed, and had evidently
had a rougher time than those that had been left
behind. As they came up Msffesachusetts Street,
all the people shouted, and the whole town was
one scene of gladness. The returning companies
soon broke ranks, and hastened to their homes.
In a few days the order came, and the militia
were mustered out, and resumed their voluntary
service as before.

CHAPTER XY

THE BENIGN INFLUENCES OF PEACE

The collapse of Price's invasion practically
ended the war in Kansas. It was too late in the
season for guerilla operations, and there were
no important military movements in that section
of the West. The next spring came Lee's sur-
render, and the end of the rebellion. After ten
years of disturbance in one form or another, we
were to enjoy w^iat Governor Geary was fond of
calling, '' The benign influences of peace." It
was so comfortable to feel that w^e could retire
at night without fear of alarm, and work by day
without fear of attack. We need no longer start
at every unusual sound, nor scan with care every
unusual sight. This w^as a luxury we had not
enjoj^ed since the beginning of the settlement ten
years before. One hardly needs to say that w^e
enjoyed it as few people enjoy peace and quiet.

But we were to have one more dark day, the
darkest w^e had ever seen. That was the dav of
Lincoln's assassination, Friday, April 14, 1865.

254

The Benign Influences of Peace 255

It occurred a little after eight o'clock in the
evening, at Ford's Theater, in Washington. We
had no telegraph, and so did not hear of it till
the next day, which was Saturday. Even then
we only received the most meager reports, and
were in an agony of suspense, not knowing how
great the disaster was, nor what the thing might
mean. We could only guess what might lie be-
hind it all. It might mean the renewal of the
conflict, and plunge us back into the horrors of
war. The next day was Sunday, and the church
was draped in black, and the entire service took
on the color of mourning. Not till Monday did
we learn the particulars, and then things re-
turned to their normal state. After a few days
we began to realize that peace had really come,
and that we might sit every man under his own
vine and fig tree, with none to molest or make us
afraid.

No state appreciated the return of peace more
thoroughly than Kansas. She had had a longer
experience of war than the rest of them. The
war began with her when she began her exist-
ence. Like Minerva, she sprang into being
fully armed for war — or to translate the figure
into modern speech, she was born with a musket

256 Pioneer Days in Kansas

in her band, though the musket in this case was
a Sharpe's rifle. The rest of the nation had four
years of war, and they were thoroughly tired of
it. Kansas had eleven years of war, and was
more than weary.

The war meant more to her than to any other
state. She had been the object of dispute
between the North and South in all the earlier
struggle, and the wider conflict was only an ex-
tension of the struggle with which she began her
life. Her foes were on her very borders, and
they cut her off from all her sympathizing sister
states. As she was the bone of contention in
the controversy, she would undoubtedly be com-
pelled to go with the victorious side. I heard an
eminent preacher once say : " When a man and
a bear enter upon a fight, it is not a mere ques-
tion as to which shall whip. It is a question
whether the man shall become bear, or the bear
becomes man. If the bear wins he will eat the
man, and if the man wins he w^ill eat the bear."
The conflict in Kansas had something of the
same features. The war involved her very
existence as she then w^as organized. The people
who had given her the shape and character
she possessed could not remain if the South were

The Benign Influences of Peace 257

victorious. Kansas would then become a slave
state, and these people had staked their all
on making her a free state. It was more than a
bit of poetry when they said : " We pledge our •
lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor." The
war meant everything to Kansas, and everything
was in suspense till the final issue could be
known. Nothing permanent could be done
while the very existence of the commonwealth
was in doubt. As a result of this, a larger
proportion of her able-bodied men enlisted in the
army than in any other state. From a popula-
tion of one hundred thousand, over twenty
thousand enlisted in the volunteer service of the
Union. One in five of her population was in
the field. The quota required of her was sixteen
thousand, and she sent twenty thousand men,
and was always ahead of her quota. Her troops
were in the thickest of the fight, and every-
where they fought valiantly and well.

The war, too, raged along her border and
often crossed it. For four years she was in
constant peril. Her fields had been desolated,
her homes laid waste and her towns burned.
She knew what was meant by " the horrors
of war," as no other part of the country did.

258 Pioneer Days in Kansas

She hailed the dawn of peace, therefore, with a
satisfaction which could not be exceeded any-
where. And of all places in Kansas, Lawrence
appreciated the blessedness of peace the most
heartily. From her first settlement she had
never known quiet. The town had been be-
seiged, and sacked again and again. When one
trouble ended another began, and when one
difficulty was settled another appeared. And
the people of Lawrence were not lovers of strife ;
they were lovers of order and of peace. They
stood in the gap for conscience' sake, and not
from preference. Now peace had come after all
these years of strife. And it was a peace that
would stay. The serpent's fangs had been
drawn. IN'ot onlv was Kansas a free state, but
slavery itself was abolished. Kansas had won
her case, not for herself alone, but for the na-
tion. She had not stood in the focus of the
fio:ht for nauo^ht. When Lawrence realized that
peace was really assured, it seemed as if a new
sun had arisen in the heavens, and a new atmos-
phere was giving vigor to her life. Under " the
benign influences of peace " she could look for-
ward to years of progress and prosperity.

Of course not much could be done toward the

THE OLD STONE CHURCH, 1857

PLYMOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH

t

, LENOX

The Benign Influences of Peace 259

permanent development of the country while a
war like this was raging. Affairs had been too
unsettled and too uncertain to warrant much in
the way of permanent improvement. People
built their houses and plowed their fields, but
they had little encouragement to do more. Dur-
ing all the preceding eleven years there had been
an unsettled state of things which made every-
body cautious both in public and private matters.
During all that time the country was essentially
without bridges. The streams were crossed in
the primitive way, by ford and ferry. The roads
were left as nature made them. The people had
neither the time nor the heart to make roads or
build bridges. Schools were maintained when-
ever it was possible, but only here and there was
a schoolhouse built. Even in so large a town as
Lawrence there was none until 1865. They had
their plans matured for building a year earlier,
but the near approach of Price's army in the
autumn of 1864, compelled them to put their
plans aside and wait another year. The state,
too, was practically without railroads. A few
miles of railroad had been built during the
closing months of the war, but there was not
enough done to be of any service to the country.

26o Pioneer Days in Kansas

The development of Kansas, therefore, really
began with the close of the war. When peace
came it found her without any general public
improvement, and without very much private
thrift. Her roads had to be made, her bridges
had to be built, her schoolhouses erected, and her
institutions established. In a very large degree
her farms had to be stocked and cultivated, her
improvements made, her towns built and her
lines of traffic opened.

In extent Kansas is an empire. She has over
eighty thousand square miles of surface, over
fifty-two million acres of land. She could give
nearly an acre apiece to every man, woman and
child in the United States. She is larger than
all Kew England, and if her population were as
dense she would have over six millions of people.
If she were as densely populated as New York,
she would have twelve millions ; if she were as
densely populated as Massachusetts, she would
have twenty-four ; if she were as densely popu-
lated as England, she would have over thirty-six.
With all her attractions of soil and climate, of
mineral wealth and central position, there can
be little doubt but the first century of her
settlement will give her ten millions of people.

The Benign Influences of Peace 261

Her resources have only been touched thus far.
Even the great body of her land is as yet un-
broken prairie. Her day is yet before her, and
it is surely coming.

The first settlers found a beautiful country of
ample extent and of marvelous richness. But
they only saw what lay on the surface, and this
proved to be but a very small portion of the re-
sources of the state. Some one has said that
"Kansas is four hundred miles long, two hun-
dred miles wide, eight thousand miles deep, and
reaches upward to the stars." This description
is not a mere figure of speech. To estimate the
resources of Kansas one must consider all the
four dimensions; he must measure the height
and the depth as well as the length and breadth.
The minerals below and the air and climate
above constitute a large portion of the wealth
of Kansas, and they have hardly begun to be
developed. Even the surface has a various
capacity which was not dreamed of at first. If
any one comes to Kansas with the traditional
idea of " flat prairies," he will be surprised at
least when he looks at her surface. Here are
hills and valleys, bluffs and streams, woodlands
and plains, and all these intermingle in a way

262 Pioneer Days in Kansas

which suggests art and long cultivation. There
is hardly an acre of waste land throughout her
whole extent. Without the touch of a plow, here
was hay enough growing every year to feed the
flocks and herds of the whole nation. There are
very few acres, in the eastern half of the state at
least, where two tons of good hay could not have
been cut before man had touched the soil with a
plow. The soil is everywhere fertile, while in
some of the valleys the depth and quality of the
soil are almost incredible. Beside some of the
watercourses the soil is sometimes found to be
more than fifteen feet deep. These river bot-
toms have sometimes been planted continually
year after year and still show no sign of ex-
haustion. Fields have been planted to corn
forty consecutive years, and the annual crop is
larger now than at first. This may not speak
well for the farming, but it speaks volumes for
the farm. The soil on what is called the " high
prairie " is not so deep, but it is very rich, and
with deep and thorough cultivation it will doubt-
less produce equally as well as the deeper soil
by the streams. At all events, what the high
prairies lack in richness they more than make up
in greater salubrity of climate.

The Benign Influences of Peace 263

This was Kansas as she was at the beginning.
These were the attractions which she held out to
people seeking homes. This was the capital with
which she began. These were what she offered
to people who would come and occupy her fertile
plains, and develop her boundless resources. The
old maps set her down as " The Great American
Desert." But when men looked on her they
saw that the " desert had bloomed and blossomed
as the rose."

But the years have revealed resources of which
the early settlers hardly dreamed, and which
they certainly did not see. From certain surface
indications they were wont to predict the finding
of coal, but no veins of any value were discovered.
Thicker veins were found from time to time, but
no one could guess the extent of the coal fields of
the state. The state geological survey, made a
few years later by Professor B. F. Mudge, state
geologist, showed that almost the whole eastern
portion of the state was underlaid with coal. It
is now known that there are thousands of acres
of land under which there is coal of a good
quality and fair thickness. It is a common opin-
ion that a few hundred feet lower down are
thicker and better veins still. It is not at all

264 Pioneer Days in Kansas

unlikely that coal may yet be discovered in the
more western parts. But the supply already
known is practically exhaustless.

There has been no iron of any consequence
yet found, but in the southeastern portion there
are mines of lead and zinc which have already
yielded large profits, though their development
has hardly begun. In the western part of the
state there are exhaustless beds of the finest gyp-
sum. Building stone is found everywhere, some
of it of the finest quality. It lies in layers of
from eight inches to a foot in thickness, as if
packed away in the hills on purpose for build-
ing. The Florence, the Cottonwood and the
Manhattan stones are very handsome and easily
worked, and large quantities are being shipped
to distant parts. Some varieties can be sawed
into any form or size desired. Some will take
on the highest polish.

Symptoms of salt were discovered very early
in streams and springs here and there. In bor-
ing for coal on the bank of the Kansas River
about 1868, a stream of salt water was found at
the depth of some five hundred feet. Saline
County and the city of Salina received their
names from the signs of salt which appeared.

The Benign Influences of Peace 265

All along the Kansas Kiver these signs were met
with every now and then. Everybody felt sure
that salt in paying quantities would some time be
found. But no one dreamed of the enormous
masses of this article which were really lying be-
neath the surface. In the southwest the whole
country seems to be underlaid with it. Borings
have been made and shafts sunk at a number
of points quite distant from each other, and the
same condition is found to exist. There is found
to be a solid mass of salt from one hundred and
fifty to two hundred feet thick. This mass is al-
most pure, and can be put on the market just
as it is brought out of the mine. The common
method of manufacture, however, is to pour water
into the mine, then pump it out, and evaporate it.
This source of wealth has hardly yet been
touched. 'No one pretends to guess the extent of
these deposits. They have been traced forty or
fifty miles each way and no sign appears of dimi-
nution. They very likely extend for a hundred
miles or more. Kansas can furnish the world
with salt as long as the world will want salting.
Very little systematic effort has been made to
develop the mineral resources of the state.
When this shall be done, no doubt other sources

266 Pioneer Days in Kansas

of wealth will be found lying beneath the sur-
face.

There is a very common opinion that Kansas
is all alike. Henry Ward Beecher once told an
audience that they might interrupt him at any
point with questions ; his speech was like a sau-
sage, they might cut it anywhere. So people
used to say, ''It is all Kansas — all prairie — all
alike. Go to any part you please." They used
to think of it as one great corn-field. " Hog and
hominy " were the predestined food of its peo-
ple. Some humorist speaks of Kansas girls as
" home bred and corn fed." In all this there
is a suggestion of dreary monotony of appear-
ance and production. Kow, there is no discount
on the Kansas corn crop. It is the great crop,
reaching some years to two and three hundred
million bushels and more. And Kansas has not
yet begun to raise corn. But corn is not the
only crop, nor is it the only or main dependence.
There is a great variety of soil and climate and
products in Kansas, although the surface seems
so uniform. A glance over the reports of the
Board of Agriculture will amaze one as showing
how different crops prosper in different sections.
There are thousands of bushels of peaches grown

The Benign Influences of Peace 267

in the state, but nearly all of them are grown
along the southern border. The sorghum crop
is annually worth some two millions of dollars ;
but the greater part of it is found in the western
section. Over one hundred thousand dollars'
worth of castor beans are grown each year ; but
the larger portion of them is found in a few
counties in the southeast. There are over one
million dollars' worth of broom corn raised every
year ; but most of it is cultivated in a few coun-
ties near the center. It was formerly thought
that this was accidental. It was supposed that
broom corn growers had happened to settle in
that section, and this had turned the thought of
the people in that direction. But it is now
known that it is a matter of soil and climate ;
they say Central Kansas is one of the few locali-
ties where the best quality of broom corn can be
properly matured. The quality they grow is in
great demand and readily sells at good prices.
Two acres of land well cared for will produce a
ton of broom corn, which is worth from seventy-
five to one hundred dollars, according to the
quality and the market. Thousands of acres of
land are planted to broom corn every year, and
over fifteen thousand tons are annually shipped

268 Pioneer Days in Kansas

away. The industry is growing to large propor-
tions, and Central Kansas is everywhere known
among broom makers as one of the best sources
of supply for the raw material they need. This
crop will doubtless become more important still
as the country becomes more thoroughly devel-
oped and the best methods of growing and car-
ing for it shall become generally known and
practiced.

Kansas was never reckoned among the wheat
growing states until the discovery and develop-
ment of what is called " The Wheat Belt." This
is a belt of land running through the center of
the state from north to south and is about one
hundred miles wide. It is said to contain over
ten million acres in which the soil and climate
are peculiarly adapted to wheat. You may ride
for miles and easily fanc}^ you are passing
through one continued wheat-field. They tell of
a wheat farm of eight thousand acres. When
the harvesters enter to cut the grain it is like the
moving of an army. The yield is very heavy,
some fields averaging over fifty bushels to the
acre. The opening of this " Golden Belt " pro-
duced a revolution in the wheat interests of
Kansas. Before this the wheat crop had been a

The Benign Influences of Peace 269

mere incidental affair, hardly being counted
among the resources of the state. In a few
years after the opening of this region wheat be-
came one of the leading products. It became a
large element in the commercial and railroad
situation. Cities competed for the trade, and
railroads were built for its accommodation.

But a nation's wealth is not in her soil, or her
mines, but in her people. An enterprising peo-
ple will thrive on a desert island, while an in-
dolent people would starve in Paradise. A
rugged climate and a niggardly soil have pro-
duced the most thrifty nations, while the lands
which fed their people without effort have been
the home of shiftless tribes. Even wealth does
not make strong nations or prosperous people.
It is as true now as in the days of Goldsmith :

" 111 fares the land, to hastening ills a prey,
Where wealth accumulates and men decay."

Kansas has been fortunate both in her soil and
her people. Some one has said that " When God
would plant a new nation in America, he sifted
the old world to find seed for the new." When
God would build a commonwealth in Kansas, he
sifted the older states to find the seed. It was a

270 Pioneer Days in Kansas

different method of sifting, and a different sort
of seed was secured. But the sifting was just
as effective, and the seed just as vital. The
Pilgrims of old were driven from their homes
and sought a refuge in America. The Kansas
immigrants were attracted to Kansas by the situ-
ation. It was neither the soil nor the climate
which attracted them, for they knew little of
either, and cared less. But they were attracted
by the principle at stake in the settlement of the
new state. The question of freedom or slavery
turned on the result in Kansas. As the event
showed they builded better than they knew.
Free Kansas meant a free nation. She appealed
to men of strong convictions, and men of strong
convictions were drawn to her from all quarters,
and of all sorts and all conditions. They were
as diverse as men could well be, but they were
all intense, and they all hated slavery. Many of
them were eccentric, but they were all strong.
There might be danger of excessive ferment, but
there never could be any danger of stagnation.
Not all would approach the subject from the
same quarter, but they would all move in the
same direction and all conspire to one result.
From this ferment of diverse elements there has

REV. JAMES D. LEGGETT
Pastor First Church, Leavenworth, I 859-

871

The Benign Influences of Peace 271

come a strong commonwealth, in which numer-
ous experiments have been tried, and numerous
theories have been exploited, but free discussion
and an open field have given truth her oppor-
tunity. There have been some violent upheavals
now and then, but the steady good sense of the
people has always found its level.

It is too soon to know what sort of a race
Kansas will produce. That the coming race will
bear the marks of the original stock hardly needs
saying. That they will be modified by the new
conditions is no less inevitable. An eloquent
speaker some years ago, in a public speech in
Lawrence, said that it took a niggardly soil and
a rugged climate to produce a strong people. He
said he was sorry to add that this might not be
very flattering, or very promising to the in-
habitants of a balmy clime and a fruitful soil
like those of Kansas. Had the speaker known
Kansas better he would have modified his tone.
The surface is not all even, and the climate is
not all balmy. From the Missouri Kiver to the
Colorado line the surface rises over three thou-
sand feet, giving an elevation of about four thou-
sand feet above sea level, as high as most of the
mountains of New England. In going the length

272 Pioneer Days in Kansas

of our state there is all the effect of climbing a
mountain four thousand feet high. There is a
very perceptible change in the soil, the air and
the flora every fifty miles. In a few hours of
comfortable railway travel, a man will be trans-
ported from almost sea level to the mountain
elevation. Then what we sometimes call our
Italian skies are occasionally invaded by Dakota
blizzards, or by hot winds from Mexico. Our
enormous crops are shriveled by drought, eaten
by locusts, or washed away by floods. The
Kansas farmer can sing with his more northern
brother :

" Are there no foes for me to face?
Must I not stem the flood ?
Sure, I must fight if I would win."

The Kansas child will not lack for difficulties
to develop his strength. If he would get any-
where he must stem the flood. He will not " be
carried to the skies on flowery beds of ease." If
he would reach the skies he will have to climb.
Every bushel of grain he grows has a foe at each
turn of the season waiting to snatch it from him.
He will find eternal vigilance is the price of a
corn crop. Nowhere on earth are skill and vigi-
lance in more constant demand, and nowhere

The Benign Influences of Peace 273

on earth are they more liberally rewarded. If
one succeed he may cry with Paul : " We glory
in tribulations also." In her climate and history
she never repeats herself. There have never
been two seasons alike, and there have never
been two social or political phases alike. But in
all her endless variations she has never had a
dull phase. Whether it be prosperity or adver-
sity, she always keeps people awake. For this
reason all her people love her. Even those who
have lived in Kansas but a short time, will re-
member that brief sojourn as one of the marked
experiences of their lives. They may have failed
in what they came for, but they will not forget
her. She may not have met their expectations,
but she surely stirred them up.

When I came to Kansas in 1857, she was little
more than an extended camp. There was but
little law and little authority. There were a
great many claims, but not many farms. There
were a great many farmers, but not much farm-
ing. There had been a great deal of money
spent but not much money made. Yet there
were the elements of a great state — a fertile soil,
a genial climate and an energetic people. These
elements have now grown into a strong and

274 Pioneer Days in Kansas

compact commonwealth. She has come up
through much tribulation. She has had more to
contend with than any other new state. But
tribulation has had its predestined and predicted
effect. She has cost her people a hard struggle,
but she is proving herself w^orth all she has cost.
Through difficulties such as no other state ever
encountered, and calamities such as no other
state ever suffered, she has attained results such
as no other state ever attained in the same time.
The struggle she has cost has made her all the
more dear to her people, and nowhere will you
find citizens more loyal to their state than the
citizens of Kansas. In her career and in her his-
tory she has well illustrated the beautiful and
appropriate motto of her State seal : Ad Astra
per Aspera — " through storms to the stars."
She was for many years passing through the
storms ; may we not hope that she has taken her
place securely among the stars ?