of his camp
were furious that they were held back from pitching into the Lawrence
people; but the officers had become cognizant of the bloody job they
would have on hands, and were willing to be let off. And so the Governor
patched up a peace, and sent his militia home again, with their curses
diverted from the Lawrence Abolitionists to Gov. Shannon. Cowardly,
weak-minded and infirm in purpose as this unhappy man was, he was not
wholly a fool; and we may justly believe that he had in his heart a
foreboding of that awful day of reckoning that would surely come, when
inquisition would be made for the blood of these citizens, and the
Governor himself would be called to answer, "Why were these men slain?"

And now that peace--angelic peace--sat brooding over Lawrence with her
dove-like pinions, they made a love-feast and invited the Governor to
partake of it; and what with the ravishing music, and the blandishment
of flattering tongues, and the intoxication of fair women's eyes and
sweet voices, the Governor was made to forget, for the time being, that
he was the property, body, soul, and spirit, of the "Law and Order" party;
and his soft and plastic nature was beguiled into signing a document
constituting the army of defense of Lawrence a part of the Territorial
Militia, and giving them authority, under his own hand and seal, to
fight with teeth and toe-nails against the outside barbarians that he
himself had invoked to cut their throats. When, however, he had come to
himself, and had to front the frowns and ungrammatical curses of the
"Border Ruffians," he was fain to lay the blame on the sparkling wine of
the feast, and the more sparkling eyes and sparkling wit of beautiful
women.

These felicitations of the people of Lawrence with Governor Shannon did,
however, have a somber and awful background. While this had been going
on a boy had been murdered in the vicinity of Lawrence. Some young men
rode out to see about it, and one of them was shot and killed. But a
still more ghastly crime threw its baleful shadow over the people. It
was perpetrated two days before the Governor concluded his treaty of
peace.

Thomas W. Barber and Robert F. Barber were farmers, living about seven
miles from Lawrence; and on December 6th started with a Mr. Pierson to
go home to their families. These were two brothers and a brother-in-law.
They were intercepted on their way by J. N. Burns, of Weston, Mo., and
Major George W. Clarke, United S