USA > Missouri > Saline County > History of Saline County, Missouri > Part 34
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The Confederate wounded were gathered up and at first carried to the house of a Mrs. Johnson, in the east part of town, near where the fighting occurred. While they were here a wounded Confederate sat leaning against a crab-apple tree in the door-yard, waiting to have his wound dressed. A brute of a Federal militiaman saw him and shot him dead
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with a revolver. Three days afterward the wounded men were taken to the then Methodist church, which had been improvised for hospital purposes, and Dr. Spencer Brown, who had been sent back by Shelby for the pur- pose, was placed in charge of them. Among the Confederates were Cap- tains Clanton, Brannon, and Minor, and Lieutenant Thompson. The lat- ter was shot with a carbine ball through both temples. His wound was a dreadful one; his eyes protruded and he suffered very much; yet he recov- ered, and, in company with Capt. Clanton and three others, made his escape within a few weeks. The following are the names of all of the Confederate wounded prisoners that were taken to the Methodist church hospital. The list was prepared by Miss Kitty Ervin, a young lady who lived near Marshall and was a frequent visitor at the hospital. She died shortly after the close of the war. Captain Clanton (escaped,) Captain Minor, Captain Brannon, Lieutenant Thompson (escaped,) Zadoc R. Noe (escaped,) Ross (escaped,) Fountain (escaped,) Tate Sherrill (escaped,) John and Thomas Brannock, Mulot, Cephas Williams, White, Braden, Foy, Hiley, Barrette, Bird, Kirtley, Graham, Lewis, and Glasgow. The following died of their wounds: Corbin, Cotton, Pettis, Parkison, Richard- son, Captain Frazier and Smith. John Corbin died at the residence of Mrs. Sheridan, in Marshall, the rest in the hospital.
Miss Mary Allen, Mrs. Shroyer, Mrs. Bryant, and many other ladies were very attentive to the wants of the wounded men. These ladies were sympathizers with the Confederate cause, and suffered more or less perse- cution at the hands of unscrupulous members of the Federal forces during the war. They were largely assisted in their errands of mercy by Mrs. D. Landon, a lady of northern birth, rearing, and sympathies, whose many good deeds done for her neighbors will ever endear her to them.
The Federal hospital was at first in the house of Mr. Jacob Smith, and in a few days was removed to the residence of Judge Bryant, then occu- pied by the family of Judge Landon. Here the man Etter, died. His arm had been amputated and he was unable to survive its loss.
The number of men engaged on each side cannot now be accurately given, and never will be certainly known. Greeley's History of the War estimates Shelby's force at 2,500; Edwards' " Shelby and'his Men" puts it at 800; Gen. Shelby himself told the writer that he had 1,400; others of the Confederates say he had about 900 old soldiers and 200 recruits, one- half of whom were armed and participated in the battle.
Edwards puts the number of Federals at 8,000, half under Brown and half under Ewing; Col. Lazear and Major Kelly say that the total Fed- eral force did not exceed 1,200; other Federal officers say it did not exceed 1,000, etc., etc. This included two six-pound guns under Lieut. Thurber, and Johnson's four four-pound guns. All of the Federals were Missouri militia.
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After carefully examining the testimony on both sides, and desiring to state the truth without prejudice, it is altogether probable that the force under Shelby that took part in the fight numbered about 1,000 men-not many more and not many less; and the Federals had between 1,200 and 1,400.
Well was it for the Federals that Gen. Shelby did not correctly esti- mate their number. He outfought Brown as it was, but he thought Ewing's forces were assisting in the attack, or he would have no doubt gained a complete victory. But either commander could have won great renown for himself had he been as well informed as he should have been. Shelby could have ridden over and through Brown's forces and escaped without the loss of a tin cup, and Brown could have completely broken up and dispersed or captured the most of the Confederates. It was the old, old case wherein the foresight was not equal to the aftersight.
After remaining in camp about three hours at the point on the bottom where he destroyed his wagons, Shelby passed on to Waverly, reaching that place at about three in the morning and scarcely halting. He was so closely pressed while passing through this county that but few of his men whose homes were here. had time or opportunity to visit them. Many of them rode by the homes of old neighbors, but only had time to ride out of ranks and shake them by the hand as they stood by the road- side, and ask hurriedly after friends and relatives. About fifty recruits were obtained in this county.
The Federals followed cautiously in Shelby's rear, the pursuing force being Phillips' 7th regiment. The command halted that night at the residence of Mr. Vanmeter, in the bottom.
During the fight at Marshall, a citizen, named Mitchell, had a cow, which had strayed between the lines of the contending forces. While and where the bullets flew thickest Mr. Mitchell went calmly down after his bossy, and not seemingly caring whether blue or gray was the color. of the victors, drove her back to a place of safety, amid the storm of whistling bullets and screaming shell. Approaching the Federal line, he called out to the soldiers to " stand back out of the way and let this blamed old cow pass," and the soldiers stood back accordingly, and Mitchell saved his cow.
A Mr. McCafferty had some very choice pieces of bacon, which he was very anxious should not be captured or plundered by either side. His house was placed on blocks, without any underpinning. He thought to "save his bacon " by hiding it under the house. His neighbor, Jim. Mckown, had a pack of hounds, lean, lank and ravenously hungry. Affrighted at the noise of the battle, "the thunder of the captains and the shouting," these hounds had slunk under McCafferty's house, and lay cowering right where he proposed to hide his meat. As he flung it under
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piece by piece, the dogs siezed it and gleefully carried it away to a place of safety, where it was devoured. McCafferty, strange to say (!) was laughed at by those of his neighbors who had no meat of their own to hide, as well as those who had, on account of his mishap.
Two or three bombs from Shelby's cannon came into town. One struck a horse, hitched to the square fence; another hit a church, and one hit a store building. A good story is told of the effect of one of these shots.
THE WAR IN 1864.
The year 1864 was remarkable for the number of horrible deeds done by both Federals and Confederates, under the cover and with the excuse of military necessities. Early in the spring, the Confederate guerrilla organizatlons began to move in the western part of the state, and the " Red Legs," or Kansas militia, together with the Federal Missouri militia, were especially active. What followed is sought to be forgotten by the good, sensible people of all parties. Men were murdered and scalped, and their bodies otherwise horribly mutilated; houses and barns were burned; women and children turned out into the elements; whole districts laid waste; whole counties devastated.
Bill Anderson, Quantrell, Todd Poole, and other guerilla leaders, took no prisoners in fight-took none elsewhere that they spared. They shot, stabbed, and cut the throats of their victims, without mercy, sparing none, from the stripling to the patriarch. The Federal militia were equally merciless toward the guerrillas and bushwhackers. Any man who had belonged to them, or who, under any circumstances, had been connected with them, or who had fed or harbored them, given them information, or had seen them and failed to report their presence to the nearest Federal garrison, if captured, was shot down with but little ceremony, or with none at all. Each party claimed to act in retaliation for the offenses com- mitted by the other, and this was the excuse given then, and sometimes given now by their partisans, for these barbarities. Robbery and pillage were so common as to become matters of course, and but of small com- parative consequence. And these enormities were perpetrated “ in retal- iation," and by men claiming to be patriots!
But these things must be, at least will be, in a war where brothers fight against a father, and fellow-citizens of one race, of one country, of one kinship, enlist to kill each other for a difference of political opinion. There is this great consolation left-there will never be another war in this country between its citizens.
The usual number of bushwhacking fights occurred, the usual number
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of capture and executions, during the year 1864. The leading events those concerning the entire county, were the burning of the court house and Gen. Price's invasion, commonly called Price's last raid.
BURNING OF THE SALINE COUNTY COURT-HOUSE.
In August, 1864, the Federal garrison at Marshall was moved to Lex- ington. The forces had consisted of a detachment of the First M. S. M., under Maj. A. W. Mullins, and had been ordered into Lafayette county by Lieut .- Col. Lazear of that regiment, in command of the district of Lafayette and Saline. Col. W. S. Jackson, son of Gov. C. F. Jackson, had a Confederate command then operating in this, Cooper, and Howard counties. A portion of this force was in Howard county and another portion on this side of the river. .
As soon as the Federals had fairly abandoned Marshall, word was sent of the fact to Col. Jackson's force. On the 10th of August, according to the best information obtainable, a dozen or so of Jackson's men, under Lieutenants Piper and Durrett, dashed into town yelling and hallooing and firing their revolvers. There was no one to oppose them and they held the place for some hours. The most of them were from this county and were acquainted with many of the citizens of the place.
The court-house had been used by the Federals from time to time, during their occupancy of the place, as barracks and sleeping quarters for the men. The county officers had had their offices in the upper por- tion of the building, but the offices were not then in the court-house, and the records had been removed to Lexington for safe keeping. No one was then occupying the building. The lower rooms were littered up with hay and straw which had been used by the soldiers for bedding.
Shortly after Jackson's men arrived in the place, one of them went to the northeast corner of the court-house, on the outside of the building, picked up a wisp of hay, set it on fire with a lighted match, and tossed it through the window upon the hay and straw lying on the floor. Then he went his way. In a short time the building was completely on fire and destroyed. The walls fell in soon after. The building had stood for more than twenty years, and was in an excellent state of preservation The court-house had been put to military uses by the Federals, and was Federal property. It was therefore lawful for the Confederates to destroy it. It was not the only court-house burned in Missouri by either the Con- federates or the Federals.
News of the burning of the court house at Marshall having reached Col. Lazear at Lexington, that officer immediately came down with a detachment of the 1st M. S. M., and proceeded to take severe measures to punish the people of the county for suffering and allowing something to be done which they could not help, or at least which they claimed they 20
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could not help. A number of persons, male and female, were arrested and carried to Marshall, where they were confined and kept in prison for different times, and only released upon taking the iron-clad oath and giv- ing heavy bonds. Some of the men were not allowed even to do this. It was at this time that Mr. Gilliam was apprehended on a charge of hav- ing fed the guerrilla, Capt. Yager, and afterward released upon the state- ment of Miss Jennie Flannery that she was the guilty party, mention of which circumstance is made elsewhere.
Some of the ladies who were arrested by Col. Lazear were Miss Sue Bryant, of Marshall; Misses Bennie 'Elliot, Jennie Flannery, and Sallie Pearson, of Arrow Rock; Misses Amanda and Missouri Jackson, of Saline City, sisters. The charges against these ladies were generally for harboring, feeding, and furnishing information to the bushwhackers, Miss Bryant, the daughter of Hon. J. W. Bryant, of Marshall, was charged, says Col. Lazear in a letter to the historian of this chapter, "with encouraging bushwhackers by waving something in imitation of a rebel flag while they were burning the court house." The "imitation " referred to was the skirt of a dress used in calisthenic exercises in the Booneville ladies' seminary, of which Miss Bryant was a member. It was made of alternate red and white strips of muslin. Miss Bryant, now Mrs. John Cason, denies to this day that she ever did the act attributed to her. A letter addressed to a lady in Boone county was found in Miss B.'s trunk, containing the expression, "God bless the bushwhackers." This strengthened the case against her. She was taken to Booneville, from thence to Warrensburg, and from thence to the female prison at St. Louis, where she was kept for some months, and at last released on taking the oath and filing a $3,000 bond. She was then but seventeen years of age. Miss Bryant, Miss Elliot, and Miss Flannery were the only ladies taken out of the county. The Misses Jackson and Miss Pearson were released at Marshall on taking the oath. Miss Flannery took the oath at Warrensburg, and was set free. Miss Elliott proved contumacious, and it is said was eventually confined in the penitentiary at Jefferson City.
The men arrested were released upon taking the oath and filing a bond as security for their good behavior.
A few days after the burning of the court house, some of the members of Jackson's command were in attendance at church, in Blackwater town- ship. A company of militia rode up and tried to capture them. Their approach had been noted by a watchful picket, who sounded the alarm. All of them escaped but Lieut. Durrett, who was shot through the ankle, and fell, fainting, from his horse. The militia soon made him prisoner, took him to Arrow Rock, tried him by drumhead court-martial, and sen- tenced him to be shot. The sentence was executed in a very brief time. The lieutenant, unable to stand by reason of his broken limb, was propped
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up against a fence, and riddled with musket balls. His offense, as alleged by the militia, was that he had assisted in burning the court house, and was guilty of being a bushwhacker generally. His comrades gave as a reason why they did not try to carry off the wounded man, that they were pressed for time, and besides, they thought him dead. Durrett died " game." His last message to his friends was: "Tell the boys to keep on fighting."
At Arrow Rock, a detachment of Lazear's troops arrested Mr. Mar- shall Piper, tried him by some sort of court-martial, and shot him within an hour. He was universally regarded as a harmles and very excellent man, and one who had taken no part in the war whatever. He was always peaceable and inoffensive, and his execution was not only a regret, but a surprise to all who knew him. Col. Lazear says: "Piper was shot for harboring and feeding bushwhackers, and refusing to give information concerning the same; and you will please allow me here to say that it had more good effect in giving the Union people of Saline peace and protection than any one act I had done during the war." Mr. Piper's relatives deny yet that he was guilty, as charged, and his friends and neighbors, both Union and Confederate, all pronounce his execution simply an atrocity. Piper, with sixteen or eighteen of his neighbors, was first arrested, released on parole, and ordered to report regularly at Arrow Rock, every morning. The next morning he left his home and went to town, in compliance with the terms of his parole. Esquire Davidson, who was county assessor at the time, and a firm Union man, was with him. Mr. Davidson says that a number of the citizens were gathered together by Lazear's order, and addressed by him in a speech,{full of reproach for their past conduct, and of threat and warning for the future. Closing, he pointed to Piper, saying, "As for that fellow, he will be shot to-day, at two o'clock." This was the first intimation that Mr. Piper had that he was not to be allowed to return home, as he had been promised. Mr. David- son remonstrated, expostulated, and entreated Col. Lazear to spare the poor man, and so did others; but he was inexorable, would listen to no explanations, would give no time for the procurement of testimony estab- lishing the innocence and harmless character of the condemned-would have nothing but his blood. Promptly at two o'clock, Piper was led out. He did not shrink from the ordeal. He said he was not afraid to die, but, especially for the sake of his family, did not wish to. A detail of ten men carried out Lazear's order, and, strange to say, eleven bullet wounds were found in the body. Piper's hands were bound with his own hand- kerchief. He stood up and received the fatal fire without a tremor, pro- testing his innocence of intentional wrong to the last.
Esq. Davidson composed the remains and started home with them, meeting the family of the dead man, who had heard of the sentence, and
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were coming to see their respected and honored head before it should be carried out, but had arrived too late. Helay a mangled corpse, the victim of a horrible, revolting, outrageous murder, inexcusable, uncalled for, unextenuated, productive of no good, but exasperating and harrowing, and bringing only retaliation upon innocent men for its commission.
Soon thereafter the county was visited by Gen. Price, with several thousand men, on his famous and disastrous raid into Missouri in quest of supplies and recruits. It was intended, so says Gen. Marmaduke, to cap- ture not only the smaller Federal depots in Missouri, but the great military post of Ft. Leavenworth as well. If the expedition had been entirely successful communication would have been opened with Arkansas, and then Price's, from an army of invasion, would have become an army of occupation.
PRICE'S LAST RAID.
In the summer of 1864 the Southern Confederacy was bleeding at every pore, and dying fast. Gen. Lee's army of northern Virginia, reduced to a mere handful, was cooped up in the intrenchments of Petersburg, and the hand of Gen. Grant was already on the throat of Lee. The army of Gen. Johnston had failed to obstruct the march of Gen. Sherman, who was already in the very bowels of the Confederacy.
In the trans-Mississippi department, an army of 60,000 veterans were lying inactive, while the Confederacy was dying, and must inevitably die, unless some great move could be made in the West to give it new life, and change the aspect of affairs. In the West, this magnificent army of 60,000 veterans was under the command of Gen. E. Kirby Smith, a weak, vacillating man, utterly incapable of the work of genius demanded of him. There was but one of two things to do, and Gen. Smith did neither, but pursued a middle course, as vacillating men always do, and accomplished nothing. From the war department he received a calm but peremptory order to send every available man at once to Richmond. The difficulties of crossing the river deterred him, and he disobeyed the order. One other course remained, to mass every soldier and gun west of the river and invade Missouri, take St. Louis, and if Grant still kept his grasp on Lee's worn-out army, invade Illinois, Indiana, and through Ohio or Ken- tucky to Richmond. Gen. Smith was urged by Gen. Magruder to pur- sue this plan, but he hesitated and wavered, and finally determined to send Gen. Sterling Price with 10,000 cavalry to make a raid into Mis- souri. The expedition-containing three divisions, under Gens. Marma- duke, Shelby and Fagan .- started from Dallas county, Arkansas, on the 30th of August, 1864.
From the very first, before even it got out of Arkansas, the expedition moved slowly and uncertainly. Nearly an entire month was occupied in
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reaching Pilot Knob on the Iron Mountain Railway, and the road to St. Louis was then open for a swift and decided movement. But General Ewing was allowed to escape from Pilot Knob, and so much time was wasted that St. Louis could no longer be taken. Time was given for General A. J. Smith to reach St. Louis from Cairo with his corps. Gen- eral Price then sheered off to the northwest and struck for Jefferson City.
The capital was swarming with troops, and though encamped in sight of its domes for one night, the expedition avoided it, and pushed on slowly to the west, now encumbered with a tremendous train of wagons, cattle and supplies of all kinds, twelve miles per day was the march of this cavalry expedition! Reaching Booneville the expedition wasted three days, and here seem to have lost all idea of their original plan. Now the one thought in Gen. Price's mind seemed to be to reach the Kansas line, and to strike due south for Arkansas and safety.
On the 15th of October, the expedition reached the soil of Saline county. Gen. Rosecrans was now in pursuit of Price with a vastly superior force, composed of infantry, cavalry and artillery. Still the expedition, with its enormous train for a tail, could not move faster than 12 to 15 miles per day. Passing directly through Saline, Gen. Price halted and encamped on the 16th of October at the Keiser bridge over Salt Fork creek, on the state road to Lexington. On the 14th Gen. Shelby, with two hundred men and two pieces of cannon, had struck across. the county to attack Glasgow, and enable Gen. Clark with his brigade to cross. Shelby opened fire on the garrison camp just at daylight, and shelled it for a short time. A skiff was found and an attempt made to bring over a steamboat on the other side. The boat was reached, but her machinery was found in too damaged a condition for use, and the skiff returned, without loss. The guns of Gen. Clark were soon heard north of the town, and thus attacked in front and rear, Col. Harding surrendered. Gen. Clark crossed over his troops, and with Shelby marched rapidly to Price's camp on Salt Fork.
The angry roar of a great army behind him, and with ample power to cut him off at his contemplated place of turning to the south, accelerated the movements of Gen. Price, and he broke camp in Saline, as soon as Gen. Clark arrived, and moved on fifteen miles, to Waverly, in Lafayette county. On reaching Lexington, the expedition met the Kansas troops, under Gen. Lane, and after some fierce fighting bore them back towards Independence. On the 21st of October, a hard two or three hours fight enabled the advance of the expedition, under Marmaduke, and re-en- forced by Shelby, to push back the United States troops and cross the Little Blue, and to reach Independence-but here the expedition seemed utterly doomed, for a large army was in front, and a vastly superior force under Rosecrans in person, in sight behind. That night the salvation of
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Price's expedition demanded incessant retreat southward, through all the dark hours. But not a soldier moved-all slept, train and all. All day long, of the 23d of October, was spent in fighting around West- port; Marmaduke fighting in the rear to hold back General Rosecrans, and Shelby fighting to hold back Lane's army from Westport, while Gen. Price and his huge train could get well started down to the south. Some of the hardest fighting of the whole war was done on both sides, that 23d of October, on the prairies around Westport. Nature never formed a grander battle-field than that around Westport. Gen. Price, by sending his train, on the night of the 22d, could have saved it, and saved the life of many gallant men, wasted uselessly. Blundering seemed the normal con- dition of the commanders-in-chief upon both sides. At last, after six hours fighting, and the loss of one-third of their men, Marmaduke and Shelby succeeded in holding back Rosecrans, Blunt and Lane, until Price, with his mighty train, got well through the defiles, and the devoted Mis- sourians closed up on the rear. At the crossing of Turkey Creek, Gens. Marmaduke and Cabbell were captured, and the expedition almost demoralized. The two iron brigades of Shelby's division, composed very largely of Saline and Lafayette county men, held the Federal army at bay, through all the long retreat, and sacrificed half of what was left of the division, to save a train, that was useless, and was finally burned and destroyed after the sacrifice was made.
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