Page:The History of Slavery and the Slave Trade.djvu/751

 to address Gov. Shannon, stating the facts in gentle terms, and asking fail protection against such hands by the United States troops at his disposal.

To this respectful application the committee received the following reply:

": Your note of the 11th inst. is received, and, in reply, I have to state that there is no force around or approaching Lawrence, except the legally constituted posse of the United States marshal and sheriff of Douglas county, each of whom, I am informed, have a number of writs in their hands for execution against persons now in Lawrence. I shall in no way interfere with either of these officers in the discharge of their official duties.

"If the citizens of Lawrence submit themselves to the territorial laws, and aid and assist the marshal and sheriff in the execution of processes in their hands, as all good citizens are bound to do when called on, they, or all such, will entitle themselves to the protection of the law. But so long as they keep up a military or armed organization to resist the territorial laws and the officers charged with their execution, I shall not interpose to save them from the legitimate consequences of their illegal acts.

"I have the honor to be yours, with great respect,

""

Still desirous of averting the impending difficulties, the citizens of Lawrence held another meeting on the 13th, when the following preamble and resolution were adopted, copies of which were immediately forwarded to Marshal Donalson and Governor Shannon:

"Whereas, by a proclamation to the people of Kansas territory, by I. B. Donalson, United States Marshal for said territory, issued on the 11th day of May, 1S5G, it is alleged that 'certain judicial writs of arrest have been directed to him by the first district court of the United States, etc., to be executed within the county of Douglas, and that an attempt to execute them by the United States deputy marshal was violently resisted by a large number of the citizens of Lawrence, and that there is every reason to believe that any attempt to execute said writs will be resisted by a large body of armed men'; therefore,

Resolved, by this public meeting of the citizens of Lawrence, held this thirteenth day of May, 1856, that the allegations and charges against us, contained in the aforesaid proclamation, are wholly untrue in fact, and the conclusion which is drawn from them. The aforesaid deputy marshal was resisted in no manner whatever, nor by any person whatever, in the execution of said writs, except by him whose arrest the said deputy marshal was seeking to make. And that we now, as we have done heretofore, declare our willingness and determination, without resistance, to acquiesce in the service upon us of any judicial writs against us by the United States deputy marshal for Kansas territory, and will furnish him with a posse for that purpose, if so requested; but that we are ready to resist, if need be, unto death, the ravages and desolation of an invading mob.

, President."

On the 14th, still another meeting was held at Lawrence, and a letter, signed