lf the marplot of his party.

CHAPTER X.

Sheriff Jones went away, vowing that he would have revenge, and sent
the following dispatch to Gov. Shannon:

DOUGLAS CO., K. T., NOV. 27, 1855.

SIR:--Last night I, with a posse of ten men, arrested one
Jacob Branson, by virtue of a peace warrant regularly
issued, who, on our return, was rescued by a party of
_forty men_ who rushed upon us suddenly from behind a
house by the roadside, all armed to the teeth with
Sharpe's rifles.

You may consider an open rebellion as already having
commenced, and I call upon you for THREE THOUSAND MEN to
carry out the laws. Mr. Hargis, the bearer of this letter,
will give you more particularly the circumstances. Most
respectfully,

SAMUEL J. JONES,
Sheriff Douglas County.

To His EXCELLENCY, WILSON SHANNON, GOVERNOR KANSAS TERRITORY.

On receipt of the above dispatch, Gov. Shannon wrote to
Major-General William P. Richardson, reciting the story
told him by Sheriff Jones, together with additional
stories (equally false), told him by Hargis, and closed
his letter with the following order:

You are therefore hereby commanded to collect together as
large a force as you can in your division, and repair,
without delay, to Lecompton, and report to S. J. Jones,
Sheriff of Douglas County, together with the number of
your forces, and render him all the aid and assistance in
your power in the execution of any legal process in his
hands. The forces under your command are to be used for
the sole purpose of aiding the Sheriff in executing the
law, and for no other purpose.

I have the honor to be
Your obedient servant,

WILSON SHANNON.

Gov. Shannon knew, as well as he knew his name was Wilson Shannon, that
this meant another invasion of Kansas Territory. There was no organized
militia in Kansas. Gen. Richardson did not live in Kansas; he lived in
Missouri, and it meant Missouri militia and not Kansas militia.
Moreover, the Governor knew, or at least ought to have known, what an
unreliable man this Sheriff Jones was. Jones was Postmaster at Westport,
and Shannon was living at Shawnee Mission, in the neighborhood of
Westport. And yet, without one moment's inquiry, he placed the issues of
life and death of this infant Territory in the hands of this lying
scoundrel.

There was a rallying of the clans of the blue lodges of Missouri. The
following appeal, sent by Brig. Gen. Eastin, editor of the _Leavenworth
Herald_, and commander