They are of and for Kansas by a man whose whole life and thought is wrapped up in Kansas. They are chapters of Kansas history, and worthy of preservation. For this reason they have been cut out of the newspapers in which they originally appeared and are now presented in permanent form. That they will be highly prized by our people there is no doubt. Kansans are a reading and writing people; they are proud of their history, and they preserve all the records of the past. Governor Martin was one of the founders of the State Historical Society, has been its President, and if he did not have this spirit he would not be a Kansan. The historical facts in this book will be eagerly prized and gladly treasured. Governor Martin was one of the Secretaries of the convention that organized the Republican party of Kansas, at Osawatomie; he was the Secretary of the convention that framed our State Constitution; he was a member of the first State Senate; he has been President of the Kansas and Missouri Associated Press, and has long been Vice President of the National Board of Soldiers’ Homes. Thus he has been an active participant in the scenes and events that he describes. The work was not intended as a history, but it abounds in historical narratives, relating to war and peace; the part played by our State during the great Rebellion; the growth of the State in population; its agriculture, and manufactures; its schools and colleges; its civic and benevolent organizations; in brief, illustrations of the full, eager life of our people—a picture of the Kansas of these years. A century hence it will appear strange that all of these things took place in the life of one man, before he had reached his fiftieth year. John Winthrop and William Penn had no such story to tell of Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Those commonwealths became only clearings in the wilderness during the lives of their founders. Future readers of these records will know the man revealed herein, his standard of manhood and patriotism, and the people who chose him as their leader. They loved courage and truth; they honored labor; they believed in education; coming to a desert, they planted trees and flowers and made it a garden; wayward and feverish at first, they soon started the church and made a land of steady habits. And so our own children will read this book in their school libraries.