[Marshall] Texas Republican, July 28, 1860
Fearful Abolition Raid—Negro Insurrection—Northern Texas to be Laid in Waste—Intense Excitement.
We have received an extra from the Bonham Era of the 17th, from which we learn that the most intense excitement exists throughout Northern Texas, predicated upon revelations recently made at Dallas, which are mentioned in the following letter:
Dallas, July 15th, 1860.
Capt. DeLisle, Editor of Bonham Era:
Dear Sir:–I write in haste that you may prepare your people for the most alarming state of affairs that has ever occurred in Texas. On the 8th July the town of Dallas was fired, and the whole business portion entirely consumed, every store in town was destroyed. The next day the dwelling house of J. J. Eakens was burned; after that the residence of E. P. Nicholson was fired but discovered in time to arrest the flames. On Thursday, the premises of Crill Miller, with a large amount of oats, grain, etc., were totally consumed. This led to the arrest of some negroes and white men. A most diabolical plan was then discovered to devastate this entire portion of Northern Texas, extending even to the Red River counties. White men, friends of the Abolition preachers Blunt and McKinney, who were expelled from the country last year, are the instigators of the plot. The whole plan is systematically conceived, and most ingeniously contrived. It makes the blood run cold to hear the details. This whole country was to be laid waste with fire, destroying all the ammunition, provisions, arms, etc., to get the country in a state of helplessness, and then on Election day in August to make a general insurrection, aided and assisted by emissaries from the North, and persons friendly to them in our midst. Their sphere of operations is districted and sub-districted, giving to each division a close supervision by one energetic white man who controls the negroes as his subordinates. A regular invasion, and a real war. You and all Bonham are in as much danger as we are. Be on your guard, and make these facts known by issuing extras to be sent in every direction. All business has ceased, and the country is terribly excited.
In haste,
Yours truly,
Chas. R. Pryor.
Two of our citizens, who returned from Dallas a few days ago, state that the excitement at that place is intense. They learned that about 65 negroes were under arrest, and from them the facts set forth in Mr. Pryor’s letter had been satisfactorily ascertained. The abolition preachers, Blunt and McKinney, some time last year, were lynched and driven out of the country, instead of being hung or sent to the penitentiary, and this is the first fruits of their vengeance.