2020-01 Putnal
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 1/18/2020
Autograph Letter Signed, "M. Shaw", 6p. Octavo, Lawrence, Kansas, August 28, 1863, and reads in part: "...I am still alive, I believe, but it did not seem possible on the morning of the 21, that I would escape. Friend Cressey I am not able to tell you of the horrors it is beyond description. The scene was more than I could endure. My intimate friends laying in all directions, as they were shot down by the villains. A large number was shot near where the houses were burning and were partially burnt, some with there legs burnt off some with their heads off and arms burned off others burned up the bones of a man was dug from the ruins yesterday...on the morning of the 21 about sunrise before many people had got up the Villains made a charge on the city and in a moment they were all over the town. I being a little remote they did not get where I was until I had run out with two others to meet them but we had not got far when we saw that they were well mounted & armed and were shooting down apparently all my neighbors. We started back to the house followed by the fields, and one of the other two was shot. I stood inside my yard waiting to get a chance to shoot. I was partially hid by the peach trees that grew from the seed you gave me, the chance came I took good aim and all I could do was to snap a cap a them. My musket would not shoot. O but I felt my time had come then I throwed the gun and ran into my house by this time buildings were burning all over town during this time the other man that was with me had been firing at them, and ran in the house. Then about 12 surrounded my house and demanded us out and that [?] to kill us all and burn the house, and dismounted to make a charge on the house. I then ran out of my house and they after me shooting all the time but I escaped and I can hardly tell how...I was not the only one that had a narrow escape...they would go up to a house and call men out promising not to hurt them and make them hand over their money and shoot them down, They sot one old man that was feeding them when they had enough they shot him right down dead. They shot others in the arms of the wife. Killed in all 130 wounded 15 and quite a number missing probably in the ruins. You probably have a list of the killed and can guess whether there will be a retaliation or not. I say damn them give them no quarters...The reports in the papers don't exaggerate our case at all, it is even worse. I have been around today paying benefits to the widows of Old Fellows killed and one wounded very hard. The Masons hall was but out, our hall had some of the windows burned out... best thing for us now would be to send us something to shoot with. I will admit we have lost most all of our property but we have a way of getting that back again if we had anything but old muskets that won't shoot...all of our printing house are burned out...our editor of the journal was killed...there was four shot from [?] house that he was in Stuart, Griswold, Thorp and Baker. There was 17 killed from the Goshon House…" Fine.
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