Marcus Parrott wrote from Manhattan, Kansas Territory, to his brother, Edwin Parrott. Marcus had been traveling around Fort Riley and prepared for a trip from Manhattan to Topeka. He asked his brother how his election went, and contrasted what must be Edwin's election experience with his own, over which the "fear of a fraudulent defeat" always hovered. Despite this fear of fraud, Marcus stated that his Black Republican friends would support him, "ready to correct any errors".