and camping until the day of election. (1) The night before the election, 200 men were sent for from the camp of the Missourians at Lawrence. (2) On the morning of the election, before the polls were opened, some 300 or 400 Missourians and others collected in the yard about the house of Thomas Stinson, where the election was to be held, armed with bowie-knives, revolvers, and clubs. (3) They said they came to vote and whip the damned Yankees, and would vote without being sworn. (4) Some said they came to have a fight, and wanted one.(5)

Colonel Samuel H. Woodson, of Independence, Missouri, was in the room of the judges when they arrived, preparing poll-books and tallylists, and remained there during the attempts to organize. (6) The room. of the judges was also filled by many of these strangers. (7) The judges could not agree concerning the oath to be taken by themselves, and the oath to be administered by the voters; Mr. Burgess desiring to administer the oath prescribed by the governor, and the other two judges opposing it. (8) During the discussion between the judges, which lasted for some time, the crowd outside became excited and noisy, threatening and cursing Mr. Burgess, the free-State judge.(9) Persons were sent at different times by the crowd outside into the room where the judges were with threatening messages, especially against Mr. Burgess, and at last ten minutes were given them to organize in or leave; and, as the time passed, persons outside would call out the number of minutes left, with threats against Burgess if he did not agree to organize. (10) At the end of that time the judges, not being able to organize, left the room, and the crowd proceeded to elect new judges and carry on the election. (11)

The free-State men generally left the ground without voting, stating that there was no use in their voting there. (12) The polls were so crowded during the first part of the day that the citizens could not get up to the window to vote (13) Threats were made against the free-State men. (14) In the afternoon the Rev. Mr. Gilpatrick was attacked and driven off by the mob. (15) A man, by some called "Texas," made a speech to the crowd, urging them to vote, and to remain on the ground until the polls were closed, for fear the "abolitionists” would come there in the afternoon and overpower them, and thus they would lose all their trouble. (16)

(1) W. A. M. Vaughan, M. J. Mitchell, John Long.

(2) H. B. Burgess.

(3) Rev. H. B. Burgess, Charles Jourdan, James Hickey, Lewis 0. Wilmarth. D. H Horne, J. M. Merriam, W. R. Boggs, W. A. M. Vaughan.

(4) John Long, L. O. Wilmarth, George Holmes.

(5) L. O. Wilmarth.

(6) Rev. H. B. Burgess, John Long, George Holmes.

(7) H. B. Burgess.

(8) H. B. Burgess, George Holmes.

(9) H. B. Burgess, John Long, D. H. Horne.

(10) H. B. Burgess, Charles Jourdan, D. H. Horne.

(11) H. B. Burgess, Charles Jourdan, J. M. Merriam, George Holmes.

(12) H. B. Burgess, C. Jourdan, J. M. Merrian.

(13) L. O. Wilmarth.

(14) C. Jourdan.

(15) John Long.

(16) Charles Jourdan, James Hickey, D. H. Horne.

H. Rep. 200—————- 2

For making an affidavit in a protest against this election, setting forth the facts, Mr. Burgess was indicted by the grand jury for perjury; which indictment was found more than fifteen months ago, and is still pending, Mr. Burgess never having been informed who his accuser was, or what was the testimony against him. (17)

A large majority, four to one, of the actual settlers of that district were free-State men, (18) and there cannot be the least doubt that if none but the actual settlers of the district had voted at that election the free-State candidates would have been elected. The number of legal voters in the district, according to the census returns, were 101. The total number of votes cast were 372, and of these but 32 are on the census returns; and, from the testimony and records, we are satisfied that not over forty legal votes were cast at that election.

FOURTH DISTRICT.

A body of armed Missourians came into the district previous to the election, and camped there. (1) Before the time arrived for opening the polls, the Missourians went to another than the house appointed for the election, and one of the judges appointed by the governor and two chosen by the Missourians proceeded to open the polls and carry on the election. (2) The Missourians said that none but pro-slavery men should vote, and threatened to shoot any free-State men who would come up to vote. (3) Mr. Mockbee, one of the judges elected by the Missourians, had a store near the boundary fixed by the proclamation of the governor, while he cultivated a farm in Missouri, where his, family lived, (4) and while his legal residence is there, and is now.

The Missourians also held a side election for governor of the Territory, voting for Thomas Johnson, of Shawnee Mission. (5) The freeState men finding the polls under the control of non-residents, refused to vote and did not vote. (6) They constituted a decided majority of the actual settlers. (7) A protest, signed by a majority of the residents of the district, was sent to the governor. (8) The whole number of voters in this district, according to the census returns, were 47; the number of votes cast were 80, of whom but 15 were residents. The number of residents whose names are on the census rolls, who did not vote, were 32.

FIFTH DISTRICT.

For some days prior to the election, companies of men were organized in Jackson, Cass, and Clay counties, Missouri, for the purpose of

coming to the Territory and voting in the fifth district. (1) The day previous to the election, some 400 or 500 Missourians, armed with guns, pistols, and knives, came into the Territory and camped at Bull creek, and on the Pottawatomie creek. (2)

On the evening before the election, Judge Hamilton, of the Cass county court, Missouri, came from the Pottawatomie Creek camp to Bull Creek camp for 60 more Missourians, as they had not enough there to render the election certain, and they went down there with him. (3)

On the evening before the election, Dr. B. C. Westfall was selected to act as one of the judges of election in the Bull Creek precinct, in place of one of the judges appointed by the governor, who, it was said, would not be there the next day. (4) Dr. Westfall was at that time a citizen of Jackson county, Missouri. (5) On the morning of the election the polls for Bull Creek precinct were opened, and, without swearing the judges, they proceeded to receive the votes of all who offered to vote. For the sake of appearances, the judges would get some one to come to the window and offer to vote, and when asked to be sworn he would pretend to get angry at the judges, and would go away, and his name would be put down as having offered to vote, but "rejected, refusing to be sworn." This arrangement was made previously, and was perfectly understood by the judges. (6) But few of the residents of the district were present at the election, and only 13 voted. (7) The number of votes cast in the precinct was 393. One Missourian voted for himself, and then voted for his little son but 10 or 11 years old. (8) Colonel Coffee, Henry Younger, and Mr. Lykins, who were voted for and elected to the legislature, were residents of Missouri at that time. (9)

After the polls were closed the returns were made out, and a man claiming to be a magistrate certified on them that he had sworn the judges of election before opening the polls. (10)

In the Pottawatomie precinct the Missourians attended the election, and after threatening Mr. Chestnut, the only judge present appointed by the governor, to induce him to resign, they proceeded to elect two other judges, one a Missourian and the other a resident of another precinct of that district. The polls were then opened, and all the Missourians were allowed to vote without being sworn. After the polls were closed, and the returns made out for the signatures of the judges, Mr. Chestnut refused to sign them, as he did not consider them correct returns of legal voters. Colonel Coffee, a resident of Missouri, but elected to the Kansas legislature from that district at that election, endeavored, with others, to induce Mr. Chestnut by threats to sign the

return, which he refused to do, and left the house. On his way home he was fired at by some Missourians, though not injured. (11) There were three illegal to one legal vote given there that day. (12)

At the Big Sugar precinct, the judges appointed by the governor met at the time appointed, and proceeded to open the polls, after being duly sworn. After a few votes had een received, a party of Missourians came into the yard of the house where the election was held, and unloading a wagon filled with arms, stacked their guns in the yard, and came up to the window and demanded to be allowed to vote. Two of the judges decided to receive their votes; whereupon the third judge, Mr. J. M. Arthur, resigned, and another was chosen in his place. Col. Young, a citizen of Missouri, but a candidate for and elected to the Territorial council, was present, and voted in this precinct. He claimed that all Missourians who were present on the day of election were entitled to vote. But 30 or 40 of the citizens of the precinct were present, and many of them did not vote. (13)

At the Little Sugar precinct the election seemed to have been conducted fairly, and there a free-State majority was polled. (14) From the testimony the whole district appears to have been largely freeState; and had none but actual settlers voted, the free-State candidates would have been elected by a large majority.

From a careful examination of the testimony and the records, we find that from 200 to 225 legal votes were polled out of 885-the total number given in the four precincts of that district. Of the legal votes cast the free-State candidates received 152.

SIXTH DISTRICT.-Fort Scott.

A company of citizens of Missouri, mostly of Bates county, came into this district the day before the election, some camping, and others putting up at the public house. (1) They numbered from 100 to 200,(2) and came in wagons and on horseback, carrying their provisions and tents with them, and were generally, armed with pistols. They declared their purpose to vote, and claimed the right to do so. They went to the polls, generally, in small bodies, with tickets in their hands, and many, if not all, voted. In some places they declared they had voted, and gave their reasons for so doing. Mr. Anderson, a pro-slavery candidate for the legislature, endeavored to dissuade the non-residents from voting, because he did not wish the election contested. (3) This person, however, insisted upon voting, and upon his right to vote, and did so. No one was challenged or sworn, and all voted who desired to. Out of 350 votes cast not over 100 were legal, and but 64 of these are found in the census taken one month before by Mr. Barber, the candidate for council. Many of the free-State men did not vote; but your committee are satisfied that of the

(11) Wm. Chestnut.

(12) Wm. Chestnut.

(13) James McArthur.

(14) S. W. Bouton.

(1) John Hamilton.

(2) John Hamilton, E. B. Cook, F. B. Arnett.

(3) Joseph C. Anderson.

legal votes cast the pro-slavery candidates received a majority. Mr. Anderson, one of these candidates, was an unmarried man, who came into the district from Missouri a few days before the election, and boarded at the public house until the day after the election. He then took with him the poll-lists, and did not return to Fort Scott until the occasion of a barbacue, the week before the election of October 1, 1855. He voted at that election, and after it left, and has not since been in the district. S. A. Williams, the other pro-slavery candidate, at the time of the election had a claim in the Territory, but his legal residence was not there until after the election.

SEVENTH DISTRICT.

From 200 to 300 men from the State of Missouri came, in wagons or on horseback, to the election ground at Switzer's creek, in the second district, and encamped near the polls, on the day preceding the election. They were amed with pistols and other weapons, and declared their purpose to vote, in order to secure the election of proslavery members. They said they were disappointed in not finding more Yankees there, and that they had brought more men than were necessary to counterbalance their vote. A number of them wore badges of blue ribbon, with a motto, and the company were under the direction of leaders. They declared their intention to conduct themselves peacefully, unless the residents of the Territory attempted to stop them from voting. Two of the judges of election appointed by Governor Reeder refused to serve, whereupon two others were appointed in their stead by the crowd of Missourians who surrounded the polls. The newly appointed judges refused to take the oath prescribed by Governor Reeder, but made one to suit themselves. Andrew Johnson requested the voters to swear if he had a claim in the Territory, and if he had voted in another district. The judges did not take the oath prescribed, but were sworn to receive all legal votes. The Missourians voted without being sworn; they supported H. J. Stickler for council and M. W. McGee for representative; they left the evening of election; some of them started on horseback for Lawrence, as they said they could be there before night, and all returned the way they came. The census list shows 53 legal voters in the district. 253 votes were cast; of these 25 were residents, 17 of whom were in the district when the census was taken. (1) Some of the residents present at the polls did not vote, declaring it useless. Candidates declined to run on the free-State ticket, because they were unwilling to run the risk of so unequal a contest, it being known that a great many are coming up from Missouri to vote. (2) Nearly all the settlers were free-State men, and 23 of the 25 legal votes given were cast for the only free-State candidate running. Mobillon McGee, who was declared elected representative, had a claim-a saw-mill and a housein the Territory, and he was there part of the time. But his legal residence is now and was then near Westport, in Missouri, where he owns and conducts a valuable farm, and where his family resides.

(1) James A. Stewart, M. H. Rose.

(2) W. F. Johnson,