Th e western arena of the Civil War seemed distant and fought for reasons other than slavery. Jayhawker and Border Ruffi ans clashed mercilessly before and after the fi ring on Fort Sumter. One confl ict after another caused tensions to escalate as each side of the Missouri/Kansas state line attempted to establish its superiority. Each injustice led to a retaliation of even more unjust actions. Certainly the Lawrence Massacre could be interpreted as a reprisal for the collapse of the Bingham Building. However, the Centralia Massacre can only be attributed to the diabolical cravings of the maniac 'Bloody Bill Anderson'.