The narrative of John Doy, of Lawrence, Kansas ...: Printed for the author.

MEETING OF CITIZENS.
appointee of the Administration, and the largest slaveholder in Kansas. This was in October, 1858.
Charles Fisher, the mulatto barber, had lived two years
in the Territory, most of the time in Leavenworth, claiming always to be a free man. His rights as such had never
been questioned, nor was he claimed as a fugitive, but the
whole affair was a bare-faced outrage, undertaken solely
for the purposes of gain, and indicative of that utter disregard of human rights which is engendered by the peculiar
institution.
During that Autumn and Winter, the attempts at kidnapping became more and more frequent, and were sometimes successful. At last the colored people in Lawrence,
finding themselves in constant danger, applied to the
citizens for protection. In consequence of this application,
a meeting was held in the Court House, on or about the
18th of January, 1859, to take the matter into consideration. As no adequate protection against the insidious
attempts of the kidnappers could be assured to the colored
people if they remained in Lawrence, a removal to Iowa
was agreed upon, and some money raised to defray the
expenses.
I was solicited to convey these people as far as Holton,
in Calhoun county, as I had just returned from a tour
through that section of Kansas, and, being well acquainted
with the roads and the people along the route, was considered the person best fitted for the task. Holton is on the
direct northern route travelled by the Free State emigrants
in 1856.
I complied with the request, and agreed to undertake
the trip with my own wagon and horses, to be driven by
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