USA > Missouri > Lafayette County > History of Lafayette county, Mo. , carefully written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of its townships, cities, towns, and villages > Part 39
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
After Mulligan's men recaptured the Anderson House they then fired from it, the same as the confederate sharpshooters had done before, although the hospital flag was still flying. But in a short time-not more than one or two hours-the confederates came on again with increased forces, drove them out, and again took possession. Some of the confederate soldiers who took part in this second affair knew nothing about the first one- didn't know that there had been any other-and hence, these, from this circumstance, were misled in their ideas about the first firing from the building.
FEDEARL OPERATIONS.
As soon as word was sent to Mulligan that the hospital had been cap- tured, he ordered a German company, of Peabody's regiment, to retake it. This company, Mulligan says, refused to go outside of the breastwork, saying: "We shall go not out, for it is bad to go out!" A company of White's home guards was then ordered to "go out," but it would "go not out." "Then," Mulligan says, "the Montgomery guards, Capt. Gleason, of the Irish brigade, were brought out. The captain admonished them that the other companies had shrank from the task, and with a brief exhorta- tion to uphold the name they bore, gave the word to 'charge! The dis- tance was 800 yards. They started out from the intrenchments, first quick, then double-quick, then on a run. The enemy poured a shower of bullets upon them, but on they went. They ran down the slope to the hospital, and, with great bravery, drove the enemy before them, hurling them far down the hill beyond."
The assault was no doubt a brave one, but it was also a ferocious one. Mulligan had said: "Teach the d-d vagabonds what it means to charge a hospital, and abuse wounded men, and insult a priest;" and Gleason's company took but one prisoner, a young man named Mansur, from the north side of the river; he got under the blanket with one of the Illinois cavalrymen who was lying sick, and so passed for a sick man himself, and thus escaped. All the rest caught in the building were shot or bayoneted; three of these latter were from Richmond, Ray county. These federal soldiers have been accused of barbarity, but they were resenting what they at the time fully believed to have been a wanton violation of the hos- pital flag.
The federals held the Anderson house but a short time. It was retaken that evening, after a hot fight on the part of Capt. Gleason, who was twice wounded; once by a ball, which passed through both cheeks, and again by another, that went through his arm. The loss of the federals, at the Anderson house, Mulligan says, was thirty out of eighty men engaged. It is said that four of these were sick and wounded men in the hospital, who were killed by shots not aimed at them. The priest, Father
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Butler, was wounded by a bullet, which cut a groove entirely across his forehead.
Mulligan's position now was indeed a perilous one. Environed on all sides, subjected to a disagreeably accurate fire, both of artillery and small arms, his men dared not expose themselves. Now they were entirely cut off from the river, and Marshall's cavalrymen and some of the teamsters had watered their horses out of the cisterns at the college, and there was but little water left-what there was being, muddy. Two springs at the foot of the bluffs, one on the north and one on the south, were closely guarded by the enemy, and it was death to venture to them. Mrs. Engle and Mrs. McDonald, wives of two soldiers, were inside the fortifications* They ventured down to the spring on the north side for water, but were met by the guards, given refreshing draughts themselves, their buckets politely taken from them, and they then returned of their own accord to their husbands. Greeley's history, and several others, say that in their extremity "the soldiers caught the falling rain in their blankets, and then wrung it out into camp-dishes, to assuage their thirst." Lieut. McClure's diary notes that rain fell during the afternoon of September 13; and the Chicago Tribune's account of the battle says, "a heavy rain came at inter- vals, greatly to their relief."-(Rebellion Record, Vol. 3, p. 71.) One of Col. Mulligan's men prepared a consecutive and well written account of the battle for the Chicago Post, in which he says: "On the morning of the 19th it rained heavily for about two hours, saturating our blankets, which we wrung out into our canteens for drinking."
On the 19th the situation was unchanged save for the worse, and on the 20th it was still worse. Marshall's cavalrymen and the horses were a great disadvantage to the Federals. The men could not fight save only as a soldier of another command was shot and unable to use his musket, for they were armed only with old dragoon pistols that would not carry above 100 yards, and then would hit nothing they were fired at. The horses were only in the way. Many were killed and the stench from their carcasses soon became unbareable. The dead bodies of the men that had been killed were also very offensive, for they were permitted to lie above ground awaiting the close of the fight, until the night of the 19th, when some of them were given a hasty and imperfect burial inside of the works. The horses became frantic with thirst and many of them ran about the works unrestrained and trampled upon the soldiers. Their masters were for the time being non-combatants, and only sought to shelter themselves from the bullets of the enemy.
*The wife of Col. Mulligan was in the city, a guest of the family of Wm. Hunter, Esq. She had come from Jefferson City after the seige commenced. Mrs. Maj. Van Horn was at the Virginia hotel, then kept by Henry Turner, Esq., on the corner of Laurel and Franklin streets (now the Opera House). Dr. Alexander was then postmaster, and deliv- ered the federal soldiers' mail to Mrs. Van Horn.
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
The position of Mulligan's forces the greater portion of the time were as follows: The Irish brigade [regiment] were in the woods on the north aad northeast; Peabody's regiment and one or two of the home guard companies were upon the south, and Col. White's home guards, Neet's, . Graham's and Van Horn's men held the west line and an angle on the south.
On the evening of the 18th Dr. Cooley, being on parole, came up from the Federal hospital to the entrenchments on an errand. As he passed Capt. Neet, he whispered, "Look out! they'll charge you to-night." Thus forewarned, a picket rope was procured from the cavalry and stretched in front of the breastworks and between them and the hospital. True enough, at about 9 o'clock a charge was made by some of the men of Rive's com- mand, but it was easily repulsed, with some loss on the part of the assail- ants, the picket rope tripping many of them up and adding to the confu- sion which led to their repulse.
On the 19th a fire from all sides was kept up on the fort, and many Federals were struck. The old squirrel rifles were getting in their work. Their owners crept up, and with a tree, a stump, a rock, or a hump of earth for a breastwork, they fired at every animated object they saw inside of Mulligan's works. Not a " yankee " dare raise his head above the parapet, and indeed, not a " reb" dare expose himself to Mulligan's muskets either. Many of the Missouri sharp-shooters were up in trees, from which positions they made it especially warm for the Federals. At 8 o'clock P. M. a proposition to surrender was received by Mulligan and rejected.
At 1 o clock on the morning of the 20th the batteries of the State forces opened on the Unionists, occasioning some alarm on the part of the latter and apprehension of an immediate assault; but none was made, and the camp relapsed into something of quietude, notwithstanding the incessant firing of the riflemen of Rains and Harris and Parsons and Slack.
Provisions were scarce in Mulligan's camp. There were no crackers or "hard-tack," and no water with which to prepare flour for baking. By some means a little was procured and some " slap-jacks" made by some of the Irishmen on the night of the 19th. But the Federals did not complain so much of hunger as of thirst; and while there was much dis- tress from the latter cause there was comparatively little complaint upon that score. Officers and men were anxious to fight the battle to the end, let that be what it might. And the end was beginning.
Mulligan hoped that either re-inforcements would reach him, or that Price would assault him. The only really practicable points of assault upon his works were east, north and south of the heavy breastworks about the college building and the boarding house, and these were easily defended. The ground in front was dug full of pits, the ditch was deep and broad
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
and the approaches heavily mined. A storming column would have been blown into the air before it could reach the pits, and there were mines up to the edge of the ditch.
An assault was advised by some of the subordinate commanders of the State troops, and hundreds of men were quite willing to attempt it; but Gen. Price refused to needlessly expose his men to such great danger, when he had as he expressed it, a " dead sure thing " on Mulligan's com- mand. "There is no use in killing the boys now," he is reported to have said; " poor fellows! They may, some of them at least, be killed soon enough."
The morning of the 20th dawned cold and cloudy. Bledsoe's battery opened early on the college building, and was assisted by a section of Guibor's, under Capt. S. Churchill Clark, of St. Louis. The object was to patter down the building, or make it untenable for Mulligan and his men; but the calibre of the artillery was too small to effect much in this direction. All of the guns were six-pounders, save " old Sacramento," the famous twelve-pounder of Bledsoe's battery. The Federal artillery replied very infrequently. Ammunition was getting scarce. Adams' two guns of Peabody's command had only a few solid shot, cast in Morrison's foundry, by Lieut. McNulty, of !Marshall's cavalry, and all the artillery cartridges used during the siege were made by hand. One iron gun in charge of the Lexington home guards under Capt. Pirner used canister shot, made very rudely by themselves. (See article headed " Battle Items.")
Mulligan's artillery fired many shots into the town. One of the can- non balls struck one of the Doric columns of the court house, and the place where it struck is plainly visible at this day. Another struck the rear of the business house on the corner of North (or Main) and Pine streets, where Geo. F. Maitland's grocery house is now located; the ball passed through the iron window grating, and then striking a large iron safe near its corner, plunged diagonally through its iron and asbestos wall and out again diagonally through the next rectangle wall. E. Winsor, Esq., now has that safe in his insurance office; and how that cannon ball could go through, instead of glancing, when it struck the heavy iron safe at a slant, is a philosopical mystery. A hot shot set on fire a frame building on Main street, behind which one of Guibor's guns had been placed, and the house was wholly consumed. It belonged to John M. Fleming, a decided union man. Other houses in various parts of town, mostly near the college, were burned by hot shot from Adams'guns. On the last day of the siege, Guibor's battery fired some hot shot at the federals, aiming at the college building, but did not succeed in burning it.
At about 9 o'clock on the morning of the 20th, quite spirited fighting took place on the northwest quarter of the federal intrenchments, between Harris' and Martin Green's northeast Missourians on one side, and Beck-
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
er's home guard, and one company of the Irish regiment on the other. Green's men made a splendid charge on the outer line of breastworks, and carried them, but were shortly after driven out with some loss. Kelley's battery was moved up to the position occupied by Gen. Harris' force,* and quickly opened a very effective fire.
When the federal transports were taken, the lower decks of one of them were protected by hemp bales procured from some of the warehouses on the wharf. On the evening of the 19th, some of Harris' men themselves rolled some of these bales part way up the bluff, and lay down to sleep behind them. After this all the hemp bales in Anderson's, McGrew's, Sedgwick's, and other warehouses, were brought forward and used with powerful effect. [See article headed "The Hemp Bale Strategy," on another page].
At 12 o'clock on the 20th, the situation of the federals was desperate and distressing. Mulligan was wounded in the arm by a grape shot from Bledsoe's guns, and through the calf of the leg by a squirrel rifle ball. Marshall was wounded in the chest; White was severely wounded, (shot through the lungs, but lived a cripple in St. Louis, for six or eight years afterward); Peabody was wounded; Van Horn was wounded; Grover was wounded; other officers were wounded. Major Becker was in the outer works, the only undisabled officer in his rank .t
At about half past one o'clock Major Becker, from the works near the college building, raised a white flag. Instantly, the firing on the part of Price's troops slackened, and soon ceased altogether. The federals in other parts of the works did not understand the silence that followed, and when told that it meant surrender, many of them cursed and upbraided Becker for his action, declaring themselves able and willing to "fight the thing out." Whether or not Col. Mulligan in his heart approved the raising of the white flag at the time cannot be stated. Certain it is that he manifested much emotion, going to the extent of shedding tears, and denouncing the "d-d cowardly home guards," but it is just as certain that he soon sent out Capt. McDermott, of the Irish brigade, with a white handkerchief tied to a ramrod, and directed him to make arrangements for a parley. Maj. Moore, also of the brigade, was sent to Gen. Price's headquarters, and the terms of surrender were arranged. These were unconditional-the officers were to be retained as prisoners of war, the men to be paroled and allowed to depart with their personal property, after surrendering their arms and accouterments.
'No sooner was the white flag seen to go up from the federal intrench- ments than the Missourians manifested an anxious desire to cheer. " Wait
*According to Gen. Price's report.
+It is said that when Becker was told that all the other officers were disabled, and he was now in chief command, he replied, " Vell, den I shtops this tamm foolishness poorty gwick ! "
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a moment, boys," said Gen. Rains, "until we ascertain if they really want to surrender, and then you may halloo all you want to." In a few minutes the situation was understood, and then there was cheering to be remem- bered! The confederates poured over the breastworks to make the capture complete, but, not before many of Marshall's men killed their fine cavalry horses to prevent their falling into the hands of their captors. Some of the union troops cursed Becker most bitterly. " We have sur- rendered-there's a white flag up," said some of Peabody's men to Ridge's company. "Who put it up?" was asked. " Becker." "D-n Becker! kill him! shoot him!" and a volley was fired at him without effect. Yet, perhaps, after all, Becker did the sensible thing; and perhaps the men who denounced him were secretly satisfied.
At five p. m., the stars and stripes over the college building were taken down and the Irish flag of green, bearing thereon the harp and the sham- rock, was captured from its bearers in Mulligan's regiment. Each com- pany in the brigade had its own flag, presented to it by friends at home, and every flag was lost. A small confederate flag captured by the home guards, when the night assault was made, was among the trophies tha the federals concealed and took away with them.
At four o'clock, p. m., on Saturday, the federal forces having laid down their arms, were marched out of the entrenchments to the tune of " Dixie," played by the bands of the state guard, while great cheers went up from Price's soldiers and their friends. That same night the Illinois troops were sworn not to take up arms against the state of Missouri, or the con- federate states and were sent across the river under an escort from Rains' division to Richmond. The next day they reached Hamilton, a station on the Hannibal & St. Joseph railroad, and then took the cars for Quincy, Illinois. The next day Peabody's regiment and the home guards were turned adrift, on parole, not to take up arms again until regularly exchanged. As some of the home guards lived in Lexington, they were soon at their homes. Gen. Price gave some of them up to their wives on the day of the surrender.
AFTER THE SURRENDER.
After the surrender the union prisoners were uniformly well treated. Gen. Rains' men especially were kind to the men whom they escorted to Richmond, slaughtering a flock of sheep for them on the way. Gen. Price and his men were also courteous and generous to the prisoners. "Old Pap" admired the pluck of Mulligan and refused to take his sword. Some of the more unprincipled of the men of Price's army, however, acted outrageously. A doctor of Lexington, named Roberts, made an assault upon Col. Marshall with a bowie-knife, and announced his intention of killing that officer, while he was a wounded prisoner . at the
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
residence of George Wilson, Esq. He was prevented by Mr. Wilson and others.
As Mulligan's men marched down street on their way across the river, many citizens and some soldiers called out to them and hooted at them, and these persons had before made the same demonstrations, and this caused Gen. Price to issue an order that the troops of Gen. Mulligan, "having fought gallantly and heroically," were not to be disturbed "by act, word or deed."
" The visible fruits " of Gen. Prices victory were the prisoners, stated by the General himself, in the exhuberance of joy over his victory, at " about 3,500 men," but amounting really to less than 2,700 of all arms; five pieces of cannon, all six-pounders; two old ineffective mortars; about 3,000 stand of arms for infantry and cavalry; nearly 600 horses; a lot of equipments, wagons, etc .; a quantity of commissary stores and some other property. The moral effect was of inestimable value to the southern cause. The state had been pronounced out of the union by Gov. Jackson, but the legislature had not yet adopted a formal act of secession .* The result at Lexington prepared the minds of vast numbers of people for secession, strenghtened the weak and encouraged the faint-hearted in the cause, and made many a soldier for the confederate army. Many a man in this part of Missouri when he heard of Mullian's capture avowed him- self a " secessionist all the time!" And many a man who had concluded to enroll himself as a union man, thought better of it, and became in time a confederate.
The loss of Lexington was a very severe one for the federals. Fre- mont was greatly exercised over the matter. He had trusted to Gen. Jeff. C. Davis at Jefferson City, and to Gen. Pope and Sturgis to re-en- force Mulligan, and was totally surprised when ;he heard of the latter's surrender, two days after it occurred. He instantly put his troops in motion to try and retrieve the disaster.
THE HEMP-BALE STRATEGY.
The use of hemp-bales by Gen. Price's army for movable breastworks, at the battle of Lexington, is a matter that has been a source of dispute and con- troversy-first, as to who is entitled to the honor of first suggesting it; secondly, as to whether the bales were wetted or not; thirdly, as to whether they caused the final surrender or not. There are different claim- ants of the original idea or first suggestion of it, as we show hereafter. The official reports, which we have fished up out of dusty oblivion, show
*It was at Lexington, September 26, 1861, that Gov. Jackson issued his proclamation, calling the legislature to meet at Neosho, on the 21st of October; 39 representatives and 10 senators responded to the call, as officially stated by Col. Isaac N. Shambaugh of DeKalb county. And although having far short of a lawful quorum, an act of secession was for- mally passed by this body and members elected to the confederate congress at Richmond.
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
that the bales, or at least a considerable number of them, were wetted, and also that they were the immediate cause of the white flag being raised by Maj. Becker on the Federal earthworks, for their most formidable and overwhelming approach was in front and to the right and left of his com- mand.
Pollard in his history, "The Lost Cause, " p. 165 says: " Gen. Price caused a number of hemp bales to be transported to the river heights, " etc.
Bevier in his history, " The Confederate First and Second Missouri Brig- ades," p. 306, says: " After much consultation, Gen. Harris hit upon a happy plan. * * A large quantity of hemp bales," etc.
Edwards in his history entitled, "Shelby and His Men," p. 44, says: "Col. Thomas Hinkle, of Wellington, claimed the hemp bale idea."
A letter from Col. Wingo, dated at Salem, Dent county, Missouri, July 25, 1881, to this historian, says:
" As to the hemp-bale strategy, I shall claim the honor of that until a better title is presented. Immediately after I was wounded,* when visited by Gen. McBride and Gov. Jackson, I told them both to use the hemp bales, and to suggest the use of them to Gen. Price. But as some one else might have thought of the same thing at the same time, and as the ball that tore my shoulder to pieces knocked all the love of military glory out of me, you have my permission to give this honor and glory to any one who claims it.
E. T. WINGO,
Col. Ist Regt. 7th Div. Mo. State Guards, in the late unpleasantness.
Capt. J. C. Jamison, who commanded Co. D in Lieut .- Col. Hull's bat- talion, writes from Louisiana, Missouri, July 25, 1881: " My impression now is that Gen. Martin Greene was the originator of the hemp bale por- table fortification."
Col. N. P. Minor, of same place and date as above, writes: "Of the hemp bale strategy I know nothing as to the author; but it was successful; and as Gen. Price was full of hard horse sense, I presume he originated it."
And now comes another claimant with strong backing. Col. C. W. Bell, who was adjutant of Gen. John B. Clark's third division, Missouri State guards [at that time in command of Col. Congreve Jackson] writes us from Brunswick, Missouri, August 4, 1881: "The night after the arrival of Gen. Price with his forces at Lexington, Col. M. G. Singleton, of Boone county, being then in command of a regiment in Gen. Clarke's brigade, informed me that he had with certainty learned of the ware- houses at Lexington being full of hemp bales, and this fact had suggested to him the advantageous use of the hemp bales as portable breastworks in assaulting the fortifications of the enemy. At the request of Col. Singleton I that night gave his suggestions and plan for using the hemp bales to
*Col. Wingo was in Gen. J. H. McBride's brigade, and was shot through the shoulder in the first day's fight or preliminary skirmish, Sept. 12th, on the southeastern outskirts of Lexington City, near the Macpelah cemetery. This was about seven days before any hemp bales were actually used .- Historian.
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HISTORY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY.
Gen. Price, who readily saw the value of the suggestions, and that night issued orders for the collection and preparation of the hemp bales. This was the first suggestion which was made to Gen. Price, as he then informed me. Severe illness of Col. S. prevented him from participating in the engagement at all; but his hemp bale portable strategy, under the immediate command of the gallant Gen. Harris, Col. Rives, and other brave and skillful officers and soldiers, was beyond doubt of incalculable advantage in winning the brilliant victory of Lexington. At the solicita- tion of the friends of Col. Singleton, and a desire on my part to vindicate the truth of history, this communication has been made to you. What- ever honor may attach to the originating of the hemp bale strategy, that honor is due to Col. Singleton, who in my presence received the thanks of that noble old hero, Gen. Price, for having made the suggestion.
C. W. BELL,
Former Adjt .- Gen. of Gen. f. B. Clarke's Div. Mo. State Guards.
In addition to the above, we have a letter written at St. Louis, August 24, 1881, by Capt. F. B. Fulemwider, who commanded a company in Col. Singleton's regiment, and to whom the letter is addressed, in which he says: " In reference to the hemp bale strategy, I will say I have a distinct remembrance that you told me at the time the fight at Lexington was going on, that you suggested it to Col. Bell, and he for you to Gen. Price. I have no doubt, from my remembrance of all the facts at the time of the fight, that you are justly entitled to the honor of the hemp bale move- ment."
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