The Free-state Plan. The free-state people decided to ignore the proslavery government, and since they were really made outlaws by the “Bogus Legislature” they organized another government and sought the admission of Kansas as a state. To accomplish this it was necessary to draw up a state constitution, which must be approved by the people of the Territory and by Congress.
Free-state Leaders. A number of meetings were held for the purpose of getting the free-state people interested and willing to work together. The leaders in these efforts were Dr. Charles Robinson, of Lawrence, ex-Governor Reeder, who had come back to Kansas as a tireless worker in the free-state cause, and James H. Lane, a man of much experience, who had recently come to Kansas. Lane became one of the most radical of free-state men and played an important part in Kansas affairs for many years.
James H. Lane.
The Topeka Constitution, 1855. In the fall of 1855 a convention was held at Topeka, and a state constitution which said, “There shall be no slavery in this State,” was drawn up. When a little later the Topeka Constitution was submitted to a vote of the people it carried by an immense majority. Only free-state people voted, of course, for the proslavery people did not recognize any of these acts as having any force. Later in the winter state officers were elected under the Constitution, Dr. Charles Robinson being made Governor and James H. Lane a United States Senator. In the spring of 1856 the Constitution was sent to Congress with a request that Kansas be admitted to the Union, but the bill making Kansas a state failed to pass.
The Wakarusa War, 1855. These were not the only events occurring in the Territory. It had become evident early in the fall of 1855 that with the people divided into these two groups, each governing itself and denying the authority of the other, there would be a conflict. The proslavery people had committed several outrages that added to the irritation of the free-state people, but the real trouble came with the murder of a free-state man. This brought on what was called the Wakarusa War.
The Beginning of the Trouble. A proslavery man named Coleman shot and killed a young free-state man named Dow. This occurred about ten miles south of Lawrence. Coleman then fled to Westport, Missouri, where he appealed for protection to a man named Jones, who, although he lived in Missouri and was the postmaster at Westport, had been appointed by the “Bogus Legislature” as sheriff of Douglas County. Jones was a border ruffian of the lowest and most dangerous type, and had made himself obnoxious to the free-state people by his leadership in the fraudulent elections.
The Arrest of Branson. In the meantime a friend of Coleman declared that his life was threatened by Jacob Branson, an old man with whom young Dow had made his home. Thereupon Sheriff Jones arrested Branson, but a party of free-state men, indignant because of such high-handed proceedings, rescued him and took him to Lawrence.
Proslavery Hatred of Lawrence. Of all the settlements in Kansas, Lawrence was the most hated by the proslavery people, for it was the hotbed of free-state principles and the gathering place of those who scorned the Territorial Legislature. There had come to be a general proslavery conviction that nothing less than the destruction of this town could bring them peace and safety.
Sheriff Jones Gathers an Army. Lawrence had nothing to do with any of this trouble with the sheriff, but when the rescued Branson was taken there it gave the enemy an excuse to threaten the destruction of the town. When his prisoner was taken from him, Jones sent a call to Missouri for help and asked Governor Shannon for three thousand men to “carry out the laws.” The result was that fifteen hundred Missourians assembled for the destruction of Lawrence, and camped on the banks of the Wakarusa River about three miles south of the town.