Buchanan County, Missouri - Chapter 16: Crimes, Incidents and Accidents, 1881 (part 2 of 2)

"The sheriff now announced his purpose to commence the sale. He was immediately surrounded by a ring of strong men, and there rang out upon the assembled crowd, the cry 'that no one should bid against the claimant of the land.' The excited squatter bid one dollar and a quarter for his home, now under the sheriff's hammer. The bid was announced again and again. For a moment breathless silence reigned on every hand, but, to the amazement of all present, some daring fellow stepped forward with a weapon of death clutched in his hand, said : "I will give one dollar and fifty cents per acre." In an instant the coats flew from more than a dozen stalwart shoulders and the indications were unmistakable that some one would be hurt. The opposing bidder now walked quietly away, remarking that he ' did not want the land ; that he only desired to show these gentlemen that he was not afraid to bid.'

In the summer of 1838, while passing through a sparsely settled portion of Buchanan County, I suddenly came upon fifteen or twenty Indians. They were either pa.ssing though the country, or had returned to their old hunting grounds for the purpose of taking game. Without doubt, they were friendly Indians, but the unexpected discovery of such a company, far away from any human habitation, created in my mind a desire for some other locality just about that time.

Suspecting my trepidation, one of the redskins dashed after me like an arrow, but from some inexplicable cause to me, suddenly stopped and retraced his steps. The latter movement met with my decided approval, and the Indian now returned to his comrades, with an apparent sardonic grin upon his dusky countenance, and pursued the even tenor of his way. The first political nieeting I attended in Buchanan County was held a few miles north of the Blacksnake Hills. Two candidates for the Leg-' islature were present, and at once proceeded to present their claims to the assembled voters. They were both Democrats, but one of them had conceived the idea of charging his opponent with being a Whig, wellknowing that even a suspicion of this kind would defeat his election. He supported his charge by the following arguments : First, his opponent was from a Whig State ; second, he handed a notice for public speaking to a Whig, with the request that he would post it up at the place of meeting, and third, the Whigs to a man were giving him their support. The speaker here distinctly proclaimed that he did not desire Whig support ; that if any Whig voted for him it would be without his consent. The other candidate now took the stand, and unequivocally denied the charge of being a Whig, but admitted the specifications. He said it was true, he was from a Whig State ; that he did hand a notice to a Whig, with the request that he would post it up at their place of meeting, and, moreover, he thought it altogether probable that the Whigs intended to give him their support at the approaching election, and he was quite willing they should do so. Here the speaker reminded his opponent that there might be satisfactory reasons why one gentleman should be preferred to another for an official position,- independent of all political considerations. The man who was willing to receive Whig support, and not sufficiently cautious to conceal it, was defeated, and the demagogue was triumphant''