Beyond the Wakarusa, and about eight miles from Lawrence, was a placed called Hickory point.  Here were some timber claims, and here resided Jacob Branson, a peaceful and harmless free State man.  Beside him lay a vacant timber claim, and he invited a young man named Dow to take it, Dow boarded with Branson.  When the Missourians came into Kansas the preceding March, many of them staked out a claim which they pretended to hold.  One William White, of Westport, Mo., pretended, in his way, to hold this claim.  There was not a particle of legality in his proceeding.  Notwithstanding, certain pro-slavery men, among whom were Coleman, Hargis and Buckley, determined to drive off Branson and Dow.  They sent threatening letters to Branson, and cut timber on Dow’s claim; and this made bad blood.  One day an altercation took place between Dow and the above-named pro-slavery men at a blacksmith shop, and Coleman followed Dow and shot him.  Dow was unarmed, and held up his hands and cried, “Don’t shoot,” but Coleman lodged a load of buckshot in his breast, and he fell dead, and his body lay in the road till sundown.  Then Branson came and took up the body and buried it.  This murder created a prodigious sensation; and a public meeting was called, at which there was violent and threatening talk by the free State men.  The three above-named pro-slavery men were all present when the murder was committed.  They fled, and their dwellings were burned.  Coleman went to Westport and gave himself up to “Sheriff Jones.”  This introduces us to the man that was able to achieve an infamous pre-eminence among that band of conspirators that put in motion a train of causes that issued in the death of half a million of American citizens, and which covered the land with mourning from Maine to Florida, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.  This Jones is described by the free State men as a bully and a braggart, as only brave when he was not in danger, and as one of the most noisy and obstreperous of the pro-slavery leaders.  Though living in Westport, Mo., he was made sheriff of Douglas county, fifty miles from his place of residence.  Buckley swore out a peace warrant against Branson—­he swore that his life was in danger.  Sheriff Jones took with him these three men, who were parties in the murder of Dow, and arrested Branson, dragging him out of his bed at night.  He had also associated with himself eleven other men.  The news spread like wild-fire among the free State men.  This Jones was supposed to be capable of any atrocity, however horrible, and a company of sixteen men was gathered up for the rescue of Branson.  Of this company Sam Wood, of Lawrence, was the leader.  They met Jones and his company at Blanton’s Bridge, on the Wakarusa River, where Jones was crossing to go to Lecompte, and called a halt.  Jones demanded:  “What’s up?”

Sam Wood replied:  “That’s what we want to know.”

Wood asked:  “Is Jacob Branson in this crowd?”